USA > California > A Volume of memoirs and genealogy of representative citizens of northern California, including biographies of many of those who have passed away > Part 28
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Mr. and Mrs. Bennetts have been born six children,-five sons and one shangh- ter. The latter is now a capable assistant in the Ione postoffice.
Mr. Bennetts is a member of the Masonic fraternity. He is twice past master and is now the master of the Ione Lodge, No. 80. He also belongs to the Ancient Order of United Workmen. In politics he is a Republican and on the establishment of the board of education he was one of the first appointed to membership thereon. He was also his party's nominee for the office of rep- resentative and made a creditable race, but through a combination of circum- stances was defeated. Ile is a thorough business man, widely and favorably known in the county, and, as manager of the oldest store in lone, has mani- fested marked ability.
In closing this record we can not refrain from mentioning in a brief man- ner some of the characteristics of Daniel Stewart. He was an earnest, honest and incorruptible man, with a frank, genial manner which won and retained friendship, and in consequence his death was sincerely mourned by a large num- ber of appreciative friends and acquaintances, with whom his long public ser- vice had placed him upon terms of intimacy.
We take pleasure in presenting the few facts of the foregoing sketch that we were able to glean, because the subect fully deserves this honorable men- tion and much more. Not only "line upon line and precept upon precept" are needed. but also example upon example, properly to impress upon the minds of most people the importance of all the excellencies of character.
JOHN CHISHOLM.
One of the most popular and highly esteemed residents of Placer county is John Chishohn, whose pleasant residence in Auburn is a favorite resort of his many friends. Long connected with the public service, he has labored for the benefit of his fellow men and at all times has been loval and faithful to his duty. He is now filling the office of county treasurer, being elected for at second term.
A native of Scotland, John Chisholm was born on the 8th of December. 1839. in lladdington, and represents an old Highland family of the clan of Chisholm, of Chisholm. His father. John Chisholm, Sr., was born in Lauder- dale, Scotland, and married Isabell Pride, a native of East Lothian. He dievoted his energies to farming and stock-raising, and was not only prominent in business affairs but also exerted a strong influence for good by reason of an upright life. He and his wife held membership in the Presbyterian church at North Burwick, in which he served as an elder for forty-two years. He attained the age of seventy-eight years, and his wife passed away in the sixty- eighth year of her age. They were the parents of thirteen children. five of whom are living. All were reared in the faith of the Presbyterian church and into their lives were instilled lessons of industry and honesty which have Derne good fruit in later years.
John Chisholm of this review was reared amid the refining influences of Christian home and in his native county acquired a good common-school
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education. Hoping to benefit his financial condition by emigrating to the United States, he took passage on the sailing vessel India, which weighed anchor in the harbor of Glasgow. Very stormy weather and heavy seas were experienced, and they had a rough voyage, finding great difficulty in making the harbor of New York. Mr. Chisholm settled at Carbondale, Penn- sylvania, and after his arrival in this country was converted under Methodist preaching and joined the church. He was at once licensed as an exhorter, as he had special ability in that direction, being a strong and convincing speaker. He labored earnestly in behalf of the church during the time he was working in the coal mines, earning his living by the sweat of his brow. His marked ability as a speaker, however, led the Methodist Conference to ordain him as a minister, and in 1880 he came to California, connecting him- self with the Methodist conference at Petaluma. He has since filled the pas- torate of various churches with great ability, was stationed for three years at Arcata, and three years at Elk Grove and was then appointed to Auburn, where he preached for four years. On the expiration of that period he spent two years in charge of the Methodist church at Nevada City, but the health of himself and his wife both failed and he retired from the pastorate there, return- ing to Auburn. Soon afterward he was appointed the chaplain of the state prison at Folsom and worked in that field for eight years, during which time he did splendid work among the unfortunate men whose tendency toward crime had led them to forfeit their liberty. While he is mot now actively connected with the conference, he often fills the pulpit and is an entertaining, thoughtful speaker whose oratorical powers lend effectiveness to his utterances. In all his work he is prompted by earnest Christian charity, deep human sympathy and humanitarian principles. These qualities bring him the respect and love of people of all denominations and thus he exercises a great power for good. He performs more funeral and marriage ceremonies in this community than any other one minister, and he never refuses his services for the burial of the dead. no matter how arduous have been his labors or how small the chance of reward.
Since coming to the United States Rev. Mr. Chisholm has been a stanch advocate of American principles and has entered actively into campaign work on three different occasions, delivering many able addresses in support of the principles which he believes contain the best element of good government. In 1894 the party chose him as its candidate for treasurer of the county, and he was elected and served so satisfactorily for four years that he was again chosen for the same office, by the very complimentary majority of six hundred and ten, which was a great increase over his first majority. Over the record of his official career there falls no shadow of wrong or suspicion of evil.
In 1867 the Rev. Mr. Chisholm was married to Miss Johanna Polson, a native of Scotland and a daughter of Donald Polson, a prominent Scotch mer- chant. They were married in London, England, and had three children ere his emigration to America. Mr. Chisholm came first to this country, and in 1872 sent for his wife to join him. She is still his devoted helpmate and has been to him a faithful companion on life's journey, sharing with him
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in the joys and sorrows that checker the lives of all. He is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, with which he became identified in Penn- sylvania, and through the intervening years has been one of its active workers and exemplary representatives, manifesting in his life the tenets of that char- itable order. He also belongs to the blue lodge, chapter and commandery of the Masonic fraternity, and has long been a chaplain in the craft. He and his wife hold membership in the Order of the Eastern Star, and in many official positions in these societies he has discharged his duties in a creditable and able inanner, reflecting honor upon the organization.
Mr. and Mrs. Chisholm have a delightful residence in Auburn, stand- ing in the midst of pleasant grounds. and they take great delight in cultivating beautiful flowers and in adorning their place with the arts of the landscape gardener. They have a host of warm friends, and their social qualities and sterling worth render them popular and highly esteemed residents of the community. As has been truly remarked, after all that may be done for man in the way of giving him early opportunities for obtaining the require- ments which are sought in the schools and in books, he must essentially form- ulate, determine and give shape to his own character; and this is what Mr. Chisholm has done. His life is exemplary in all respects, and he has ever supported those interests which are calculated to uplift and benefit humanity, while his own high moral worth is deserving of the highest commendation.
PRENTICE M. TRASK.
Prentice M. Trask is carrying on farming in Tuolumne county, and the years of his identification with the interests of this portion of the state covers almost five decades. Ile arrived in the county in 1852 and is now residing upon a good farm near the town of Columbia. Born in the far off state of Maine, he is a native of the town of Industry, in Franklin county, his natal day being May 9, 1829. The blood of English and German ancestry flows in his veins, for from both the fatherland and the merrie isle came his ances- tors to the new world, first establishing homes in New Hampshire and later 11 the Pine Tree state. Jonathan Trask, the father of our subject, was born m New Hampshire and was married in Maine to Miss Martha Jewell. They were farming people and highly respected citizens, and they became the parents of fourteen children, of whom thirteen reached maturity, although only four are living at the time of this writing, near the close of the year 1900. One of the sons, John Ruggles Trask, came to the Pacific coast in 1853.
The subject of this review was educated in his native state, and with the hope of bettering his financial condition in California he started for the Pacific coast. He made the journey by way of the isthmus of Panama. Many of the passengers had ship cholera and a number were buried in the sea. Such experiences on those plagne-stricken ships were very trying, but Mr. Trask was fortunate enough to escape the disease and arrived safely in San Fran- esco on the 11th of July, 1852. He made his way direct to Columbia, which was then a town of miners, and much excitement existed owing to the rich
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gold finds of this locality. The number of miners and settlers was ap great that the town was the third in size in the state, being exceeded in population only by San Francisco and Sacramento. At that time and for years after- ward the whole country for miles in every direction was considered good mining property and vast quantities of gold have been taken from among the rocks and in the gulches and ravines.
Mr. Trask at once engaged in mining in Coral Gulch, and for eight years had numerous claims which he worked and sold. He has taken out from eight to thirteen and a half ounces of gold in a single day, and after operating his mine sold the property at from three hundred to five hundred dollars. His experience, however, has not been altogether fortunate, for at times he has met with failure and disaster, and like others, he has paid considerable money for claims that proved to be of little value. Probably not a resident of the entire state found that his career as a miner was altogether fortunate. Periods of prosperity were followed by periods of financial depression, some claims yielding rich deposits, while others gave nothing in return for labor. Mr. Trask is thoroughly familiar with the history of the excitement in the early mining camps and knows fully the story of the development of Cali- fornia as it became settled with emigrants from all over the land. Many men of worth came to the state, but there were others who had little regard for law or for the rights and liberties of those with whom they were associated. Such men were not deterred from the perpetration of any crime, and the law-abiding citizens were forced to take matters in their own hands. Vigi- lance committees were formed and without trial by court or jury the offenders suffered summary justice. Although Mr. Trask participated in no hanging, he witnessed several and endorsed the action. for the punishment was fully merited. His career, however, was rather a peaceful one, as he was never robbed or was never in any great danger that he knew of from that class of people.
In 1860 the subject of this review turned his attention to farming. securing one hundred and sixty acres of land a mile and a quarter north of Columbia. Here he is engaged in the raising of vines and fruits of many varieties. . He has departed from the old method of irrigating and cultivates entirely with- out water. A visit to his farm to see the luxuriant growth and the healthy con:li- tion of his vines and trees, is all that is needed to convince one that his method is practical, his returns larger and his labors and expenses much re'liced. He is the first man in Tuolumne county to have adopted this method of rais- ing fruit, and is exceedingly well pleased with the results. His vineyard contains twenty-five acres, or about twenty-five thousand vines, and has six acres devoted to fruit trees of various kinds.
His home is located on the summit of a large hill. being two hundred feet higher than Gold Springs, of one hundred rods distance, and affords a most commanding view of the surrounding country. The trees which adorn his home and the fruit trees on the top of the hill are all of his own planting. Upon that farm he has since resided and he now has a good home and all the needed comforts of life. His prosperity is well merited, for it has been
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secured by honest effort and indefatigable energy. Throughout the long years of his residence in this state he has been ably assisted by his wife and children. In 1854 he returned to Maine, to wed "the girl whom he had left behind," and there he was happily married to Miss Susie M. Pierce. He spent nine months in the Pine Tree state and then, accompanied by his bride came by way of the Nicaragua route to California, locating first at Gold Springs, where he now resides. Four children came to bless his home, of whom three are living, namely: George M., who is now the owner of a livery barn in Columbia; Florence M., the wife of Adolphus C. Davis, the leading merchant of Columbia : and Clara J., the wife of Edward Doyle. The mother departed this life on the Ist of January, 1897. She was a most highly esteemed lady, a faithful wife, a devoted mother and an accommodating friend. Mr. Trask has since remained single, living upon his farm, which he owns in connection with some valuable mining interests, being one of the owners of the American quartz mine, which is an excellent producer. He has been a life-long Repub- lican and an enterprising, honest and industrious citizen, temperate in all things, faithful to every trust, one of California's best pioneers.
WILLIAM B. LARDNER.
Prominent among the distingished members of the bar of Placer county is numbered William Branson Lardner. He is actively connected with a pro- fession which has an important bearing upon the progress and stable pros- perity of any section or community, and one which has long been considered as conserving the public welfare by furthering the ends of justice and main- taining individual rights. In political circles Mr. Lardner has also gained dis- tinction and in 1899 and 1900 represented the thirteenth district of California in the general assembly, and is now state senator from the fifth senatorial district.
A native of Michigan, he was born in Niles, on the 12th of December. 1850, and is a representative of an old English family. Ilis great-grand- father. Lynford Lardner, emigrated to Philadelphia in 1740. He was a brother-in-law of Richard Penn and went to Philadelphia in the interest of the Penn heirs, having charge of the estate there. He settled at Lansdowne and had one hundred acres of land at Holmesburg, on the Delaware river. His son, William Lardner, the grandfather of our subject, married Miss Ann Shepherd, of North Carolina, and their son, Lynford Lardner, was born in Philadelphia. Having arrived at years of majority he married Sarah K. Moore, also a native of the Keystone state. In 1832 he removed to Cincinnati, prior to which time he was in the United States Bank in Philadelphia, with Nicholas Biddle, a cousin and one of the most distinguished financiers the coun- try has produced. Later in life Mr. Lardner engaged in the wholesale grocery business in Cincinnati. In religious belief he was an Episcopalian, while his wife was identified with the Methodist church. They became the parents of nine children. The father died in 1882, at the age of seventy-six years, and is buried at Auburn, California. His wife passed away October 13. 1899, at
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the advanced age of eighty-one years. Only four of the family yet survive.
William Branson Lardner, whose name introduces this review, was edu- cated in Cornell College, Iowa, being graduated in that institution with the class of 1875. Determining to enter the profession of law he prepared for the bar by pursuing a course in the law department of the State University of Iowa, in which he was graduated in 1877. Previously he had engaged in teach- ing school for five years in Iowa and in California, and when he had mastered the principles of jurisprudence sufficient for admission to the bar he came direct to Auburn and opened a law office, in which he has since continued. He has a close and discriminating nature, with keen powers of analysis, is logical in argument, forceful in delivery and convincing in his appeals before court and jury. He is now well known as a well-read lawyer and an able advocate, having been connected with much important litigation whereby his ability has been demonstrated. In 1879 he was elected district attorney and served in that office most capably for two years and ten months, during which time he prosecuted the train-wreckers who had wrecked the train at Cape Horn Mills. This was a very celebrated case, and two of the men were convicted. The able manner in which he handled the suit won for Mr. Lardner consider- able celebrity as an able criminal lawyer.
In 1898, while he was in the east, he was nominated by the Republican party here as a candidate for the assembly, and returning home he entered upon the campaign, making a capable canvass of his district. He received the flat- tering majority of eight hundred and ninety-three over his competitor, a most excellent man. Mr. Lardner possesses marked energy and determination and is an active factor in political circles. Since coming to Auburn he has frequently done able work on the stump for his party, and has also been one of the most influential promoters of the interests of the town and county along many lines which have contributed to the material upbuilding and progress of this portion of the state. His is a loyal devotion to the county's good, and his efforts have been of benefit in many directions.
Mr. Lardner is a member of the Miners' Association and labored for the mining interests of California through his membership on the mining com- mittee of the legislature. He is also a prominent Mason, holding member- ship in lodge, chapter, council and commandery. He is also a Forester and is identified with the Improved Order of Red Men, and in all these organizations lic takes an active interest, being imbued with the helpful and benevolent spirit of the fraternity.
On the IIth of January, 1881, Mr. Lardner was married to Miss Jennie Mitchell, a native of Essex county, New York, and a daughter of William H. Mitchell, now a prominent citizen and leading politician of Beloit, Kansas, who served as a delegate to the national convention held in Philadelphia in 1900. Mr. and Mrs. Lardner have five children, all born in Auburn, namely : Mabel Frances, Mary Biddle, William Branson Penn, Georgia Florence and Effa Elvira.
The parents are active members of the Protestant Episcopal church, in which Mr. Lardner is serving as the senior warden and superintendent of the
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Sunday-school. having occupied both positions for many years. He is a mem- ber of the Monday Night Club, whose object is to study and cultivate a taste for literature, science, art, music and patriotism. This is one of the leading organizations of the city and in its work he takes a deep interest. He has a nice home and finds great pleasure in improving its grounds and in caring for his fruits and flowers there. His is a well-rounded nature, in which devo- tion to a single interest alone has not produced a one-sided development. His career, both public and private, is marked by the strictest integrity and faith- fulness to every trust reposed in him. The record of his life is unclouded by any shadow of wrong or suspicion of evil. He is known as an honorable man. a pleasant, social companion, a devoted husband and father and as one who holds friendship inviolable.
GEORGE FREDERICK WESSON.
Those of the pioneers of the days of gold who still remain in California are honored by their fellow citizens as pioneers are honored in all parts of the country. One of the most conspicuous of this class in San Andreas, Calaveras county. is George Frederick Wesson, a brief narrative of whose interesting career it will be attempted here to give. Mr. Wesson, who arrived at San Francisco November 19. 1849, was at that time between nineteen and twenty years of age, and he has been a witness to nearly all of the wonderful develop- ment which has placed California in a proud position among the states of the republic.
He is of English ancestry and his first American progenitor came over before the Revolution and some of his forefathers participated in that great struggle for independence. Phineas Wesson, his father, was born in New Hampshire, in 1794. and married Miss Lucy Smith, a native of Shrewsbury. Massachusetts, whose father. Daniel Smith, died there at the age of one hun- dred and nine years and has a place in history as a soldier of the Revolution. After their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Wesson settled at Providence, Rhode Island, and there George Frederick Wesson was born March 29. 1829. and there Phineas Wesson, who became well known as a hotel-keeper, died at the age of sixty-two years and his wife at the age of fifty-two. Of their seven children only three survive : George Frederick Wesson, of San Andreas, and two of his brothers who live at New Haven, Connecticut.
George Frederick Wesson was educated and learned the jeweler's trade in his native city, and on the 3d of March, 1849, was one of sixteen pas- sengers who sailed from there aboard the bark Nahumkey for the long voyage around the Horn to San Francisco. When they arrived at their destination they were eight and a half months out from Providence and had suffered much discomfort and privation, each passenger having been for some time on an allowance of only a pint of water a day.
After setting foot on the soil of California, Mr. Wesson lost no time in getting to the mines. His first mining was at Long Bar, on the Yuba river. where by hard work he made six or seven dollars a day. From there he
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went to Downieville, where he met with less success. Then he was taken in by the Feather river excitement and had no success at all, and retired to Tony Bar, where he was taken sick and went to San Francisco for treatment! After his recovery he went to Chinese Camp, Tuolumne county. There was no water there, and he went on to Vallicita, in Calaveras county, and spent a year in clerking in a store at Vallicita and mining near there, and after that he gave his attention exclusively to mining for a time, with discouraging results, and drifted into the saloon business, in which for nine months his average receipts were sixty dollars a day with a good percentage of profit.
In 1854 he was appointed deputy sheriff and tax collector, and under the law then in force collected four dollars a month from each foreign miner. In 1861 he was elected county clerk of Calaveras county and took up his resi- dence at Mokelumne Hill. At the expiration of his term of office he went to Reese river, Nevada, on a fruitless quest for precious metal. He returned to California and in the fall of 1864 was elected township assessor and tax col- lector. In this capacity he served for three years. Under a new law the county sheriff became collector of taxes. Mr. Wesson again engaged in the saloon business at Mokelumne Hill, and a year and a half later he was appointed deputy sheriff under Sheriff Ben Thorn, and held that office four years, during which time he had many exciting experiences in running down and capturing dangerous criminals. After that he kept a saloon for four years, when Mr. Thorn was again elected sheriff and Mr. Wesson again became his deputy and removed to San Andreas, in April, 1880. After service as under sheriff for a year and nine months, he opened a saloon at San Andreas, which he has since managed in connection with his mining interests, and the sightly hill on which his comfortable residence is located is considered good mining ground.
Mr. Wesson was married November 21, 1864, to Miss Mary Ann Con- way, a native of county Mayo, Ireland, and a daughter of Richard Conway. Mrs. Wesson's father died in his native land, and in 1843 her mother brought her, an infant. to America. Some time after her arrival in the United States. Mrs. Conway married Philip Kelly, who became a member of Stephenson's regiment and came with that organization to California in 1847, bringing his wife and stepdaughter with him. Mrs. Kelly died at Mokelumne Hill, at the age of fifty-two, and Mrs. Wesson, who is the only survivor of her family, was undoubtedly the first auburn-haired child in California. Philip A. Roach, who became the first editor of the San Francisco Examiner, and some other prominent gentlemen, passing the San Antonio mission, saw her playing with some Mexican children and were greatly surprised at her appearance, for they never expected to see a white child so far removed from civilization. Mrs. Wesson learned Mexican Spanish in her intercourse with her Mexican play- mates and has since spoken it fluently. A child of Catholic parents, she adheres to that faith. She has every right to the title of a pioneer woman of California. for the ship in which she and her mother sailed around the Horn, the Susan Drew, the first vessel of its class built for its peculiar ser- vice, came in 1847. She attended school at Monterey and was an early teacher in Calaveras county. Mr. and Mrs. Wesson have had five children. all born at
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