USA > California > Los Angeles County > Los Angeles > A history of California and an extended history of Los Angeles and environs, Biographical, Volume III > Part 12
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In 1900 Colonel Eddy was united in marriage a second time with Mrs. Jane M. Wiswell (nee Fisher), a native of Vermont, who was taken by her parents when a child to western New York. There she was reared and educated at Albion
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Academy. Afterwards she removed to Chicago, Ill., thence to Los Angeles, where she married Colonel Eddy. She was a woman of lovable dis- position, a true helpmate to her husband, and her death, in 1913, was mourned by her many sincere friends. Since the death of Mrs. Jane M. Eddy, Mrs. Pearl Hansel, daughter of Mrs. Sheffler, keeps house for Colonel Eddy at the home on West Colorado boulevard and Eddy avenue, Eagle Rock.
LEWIS HILLARD BIXBY. As a pio- neer of Pasadena, at one time owning land which is now the heart of the residential district of that city, and recognized as one of the influ- ential citizens of Lordsburg and San Dimas, Cal., where he is engaged in orange culture, Lewis Hillard Bixby is entitled to prominent mention in any history of Los Angeles county. Since making his permanent home here in 1883, Mr. Bixby has been constructive in his work and has done much for the development of the country, improving property and taking an active part in all affairs that pertain to the up- building of the community where he makes his home.
Mr. Bixby is a native of Missouri, born in Cooper county August 30, 1853, the son of Elias and Catherine (Pavey) Bixby, the father being a native of Ohio, the mother of Missouri. Young Bixby was educated in Missouri and his first employment was as bookkeeper in the Citizens' National Bank at Sedalia, Mo. From there he went to Sherman, Tex., where for a time he clerked in a store, later going to Paris, Tex., where he conducted a general hardware and farming implement business. In 1881 he came to California on a visit and was so pleased with what he found here that he returned to Texas in the fall and settled up his business affairs, returning to California in 1883 to make his permanent home in Los Angeles county. He bought twenty acres of unimproved land on Los Robles avenue, between Colorado and Cali- fornia streets, Pasadena, securing the land from the Lake Vineyard Land and Water Company. This property he improved, planting apricots, peaches, grapes and oranges. For a time he conducted a general merchandise store on Fair Oaks avenue which he later sold to come to the La Verne district in the San Gabriel valley,
where he bought one hundred and twenty acres of land which he lost, however, in the depres- sion following the collapse of the boom in 1887. Part of his present place of twenty-eight acres on Foothill boulevard, Lordsburg, was left him by his father, while a part of the land he bought. The tract is set to oranges, Washington Navels and Valencias predominating, the whole being in splendid condition, handsomely improved and well taken care of.
Mr. Bixby has always taken an active part in the affairs of the community and is influential in all public matters. He has rendered valu- able service in the cause of education, being a member of the board of trustees at the time of the opening of the Bonita High School and serving as a trustee for the grammar school for twelve years. He is now secretary of the San Di- mas Land and Water Company, of which com- pany he was one of the original incorporators, and is also president of the Citrus Water Company. He helped to organize the La Verne Orange Growers Association and was the first secretary of this association, through which he markets his fruit.
The marriage of Mr. Bixby and Miss Mar- garet Young, the daughter of E. R. Young, a native of Indiana, took place in Sedalia, Mo., in 1876. Mrs. Bixby before her marriage was a teacher in the Sedalia schools, and since coming to California has been one of the prime movers in the formation of the Bonita Union High School and has always taken an active part in church and school work, being one of the lead- ers in the cause of education and a charter mem- ber of the First Christian Church of Pasadena. She is the mother of three children, two of whom were born in Texas and one in the La Verne district, all of them being very well and favorably known in Los Angeles county. They are: Edward H., Sadie P., now the wife of Fred L. Johnston, and L. Harmon. Both Mr. and Mrs. Bixby are well known socially in their community and are charter members of the Christian Church at San Dimas. Mr. Bixby also is an Odd Fellow, being a charter member of Pasadena Lodge No. 324.
The father of Mr. Bixby, Elias Bixby, came to California in 1889 and homesteaded the ranch on which the son now resides, having at that time fifteen acres in all. This he planted to oranges and made a success of his grove. He
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was a member of the Odd Fellows, and ranked high in that order, being a member of the grand lodge of the state of Missouri. He died at the home of his son, Hillard, in Los Angeles, November 13, 1893.
GEORGE W. FULWIDER. Having lived eighteen years in Virginia, twenty-four years in Indiana, twenty-four years in Nebraska and eleven years in California (1914), George W. Fulwider, prominent fruit grower of East Whit- tier, feels amply qualified to judge as to the merits of the various parts of the United States as a desirable place to establish a home and he is unqualified in his assertion that Southern California is the most desirable of them all. Mr. Fulwider is a native of Virginia, having been born in Augusta county, January 11, 1837. His father, Samuel Fulwider, was born in a log cabin in Virginia in 1796 and lived to be eighty-four years of age. His mother was Madeline Airheart, who came from an old family, while the paternal great-grandfather was of sturdy old Pennsyl- vania Dutch stock. Young George was reared in Virginia, living on the farm until he was eighteen, when, in 1855, the family removed to Boone county, Ind., being among the early pioneers of that section. He owned and con- ducted an eighty-acre farm there until 1879, when he went to Otto county, Neb., where he engaged in farming for twenty-four years.
It was in 1903 that Mr. Fulwider came to Cali- fornia and located at East Whittier, purchasing his present place of ten acres. Since that time he has purchased three additional tracts; two of them, of seven and nine acres respectively, are now under a high state of cultivation and set to orange and lemon trees and to walnuts, in all of which lines he is meeting with great success ; the third tract consists of eleven acres near the Colima water plant, a part of the old Gunn ranch, which it is Mr. Fulwider's intention to set to oranges.
The marriage of Mr. Fulwider occurred in 1863, uniting him with Miss Rudy M. Geeg, of Indiana. Of this marriage have been born seven children, five daughters and two sons. They are: Amanda P., now the wife of William H. Jones, and the mother of three children; John E., deceased; Dora E., the wife of Elmer Austin
of East Whittier, and the mother of three chil- dren; Mrs. Sarah Barker, deceased; Laura, the wife of Edgar C. Hostetter, and the mother of four sons; Albert A., who is in charge of his father's ranch ; and Alice, the wife of Charles N. Brings, and mother of three children.
Mr. Fulwider, although well advanced in years, is still keenly interested in all public wel- fare movements, and is progressive and wide- awake in all that tends toward the public good. He is a member of the United Brethren in Christ, being affiliated with the local church in Whittier.
MRS. SUSAN MILLER DORSEY. As assistant superintendent of the Los Angeles city schools since 1913, and president of the southern section of the California Teachers' Association for 1914-15, Mrs. Susan Miller Dorsey has as- sumed her rightful place in the educational life of the city and state, and is doing a work among the students and teachers that is second to none. She is a born educator, a woman of broad sym- pathies and deep appreciation of human motives, desires and efforts, and thus is able to enter into a closely sympathetic bond with those with whom her work throws her, and whom she desires to aid and encourage. She is possessed of rare judgment and that still rarer qualification, sound common sense, while her executive ability is of an exceptionally high order.
Mrs. Dorsey is a native of New York, born at Penn Yan, in February, 1857, the daughter of James and Hannah (Benedict) Miller. She re- ceived the best of educational advantages, and graduated from Vassar College with the degree of A. B. in 1877, when she was but twenty years of age. Her natural inclination was for teaching, and she was at once given the opportunity to enter upon her life work, her first position being as a teacher of classics at Wilson College, Cham- bersburg, Pa., in 1877-78. In 1878 she returned to her alma mater as a member of the faculty, being the teacher of classics at Vassar until 1881. It was in 1896 that Mrs. Dorsey accepted a posi- tion as teacher of classics in the Los Angeles high school, which she occupied for ten years, and in 1903 was made head of the classical de- partment of that institution. In 1902 she was also made vice-principal of the pioneer high school of the city, which position she filled with
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unusual success until 1913, when she resigned to take up her duties as assistant superintendent. The election of Mrs. Dorsey as president of the southern section of the California Teachers' Association in 1914 was a natural tribute to her ability and personal charm, paid by the many hundreds of teachers who, either as students at the Los Angeles high school, or as teachers under her supervision, have been aided and encouraged by her official help and her strong personal friend- ship.
Mrs. Dorsey has also been closely interested with many of the best progressive interests of the city for many years, and is recognized as a leader among the women who have accomplished so much for the city and the state. She is a Pro- gressive in her political affiliations, and is a loyal believer in the tenets of her faith. She is identi- fied with leading women's organizations of the city, especially those that are doing a great pro- gressive and educational work, including the Woman's College Club, the Evening City Club, the Collegiate Alumna, Vassar College Club and the Federated College Clubs. She is a mem- ber of the Baptist church and is especially inter- ested in the work of the young people.
WATT L. MORELAND. The general man- ager of the Moreland Motor Truck Company, Watt L. Moreland, is a man who has spent the greater part of his life in the automobile busi- ness. The son of John B. and Alethea (Grice) Moreland, he was born February 11, 1879, in Munsey, Ind., and received his early education in the grammar and high schools. At the age of
eighteen he commenced to learn the machinist's trade, working with the Republic Iron and Steel Company for three years, beginning at fifty cents per day, and during that time completing a mechanical engineering course with the Interna- tional Correspondence Schools. He then went to Toledo, Ohio, and engaged with the Toledo Ma- chine and Tool Company as diemaker, remaining with them for three months, after which he was employed in Cleveland, Ohio, by the Winton Motor Carriage Company in the assembling and testing department, later being transferred to their New York branch, where he had charge of the mechanical department. Resigning his posi- tion in New York, Mr. Moreland went next to
Kokomo, Ind., and engaged with the Haynes- Apperson Auto Company as assistant in design- ing and building racing cars which took part in the first endurance race in America. In 1902 he came to Los Angeles, Cal., on a vacation, and liked California so well that he decided to remain here. He therefore organized the Magnolia Auto Company at Riverside, Cal., for the manufacture of automobiles, and was for a year and a half the general manager of the company, at the end of that time coming to Los Angeles on account of suits being brought against them over Selden patents. Here he engaged with the Auto Vehicle Company as superintendent of construction. In June, 1908, he organized the Durocar Company, manufacturers of automobiles, of which concern he became vice-president and general manager. Later he sold his interest there to take the posi- tion of chief engineer of the Auto Vehicle Com- pany, and subsequently was with various automo- bile companies in Los Angeles until April, 1911, when he started the Moreland Motor Truck Com- pany, of which he became general manager, the other officers being R. H. Raphael, president ; C. J. Kubach, vice-president, and J. L. Armer, sec- retary and treasurer. This company manufac- tures a general line of motor trucks, their busi- ness interests extending all along the coast, and into South America, Australia and Canada.
The marriage of Mr. Moreland with Margaret Elkins took place in Riverside, Cal., in May, 1902, and he is the father of three children, Margaret, Harriett and Watt. In his political interests Mr. Moreland is a Republican, and he holds member- ship in the Jonathan Club, the Los Angeles Ath- letic Club, the Gamut Club and the Los Angeles Press Club.
JACK L. STONE. One of the most promi- nent industries of modern times, and the one possibly in which more spectacular fortunes have been made than in any other, is that of the manufacture and distribution of motor driven vehicles. As is always the case where the oppor- tunities for profit are large, this field of endeavor has attracted to its standard men of more than ordinary ability, and today the ranks of automo- bile men, in the various departments of the busi- ness, include some of the brightest and brainiest men of the nation. Prominent among the man- agers of sales departments in this part of the
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state is J. L. Stone, Southern California manager for the Kelly-Springfield Motor Truck Company, who makes his headquarters in Los Angeles. One of the largest deals of recent date was the sale by Mr. Stone of one hundred and five motor busses to the Pacific Motor Coach Company, for use in city and interurban service in Los Angeles, San Francisco and other coast cities. This sale amounted in value to something over half a mil- lion dollars, the busses being of a very high grade, far superior to those used in New York and London, both in size and structure.
Mr. Stone is a native of New York City, and was born September 4, 1870, the son of John A. and Susan J. (Stafford) Stone. His boyhood was passed in his native city, where he attended the public and high schools, graduating from the latter at the age of eighteen years. He then se- cured employment as a clerk in the wholesale grocery establishment of Park & Tilford, with whom he remained for three and a half years. At the end of that time he yielded to the lure of the West and came to California, locating at Eureka, where he took charge of a department store, remaining in this capacity until the time of the Spanish-American war. In July, 1898, he enlisted in Company A, Battalion of Engineers, ranking as corporal. Following his discharge he went to San Francisco with the Southern Pacific railway as clerk in their freight department, re- maining for four years. He then accepted a position with the Crocker National Bank as col- lection teller, filling this responsible position un- til 1911, when he came to Los Angeles. Soon afterward he became identified with the First National Bank of this city in the capacity of col- lection teller, and remained with this institution until January of 1913, when he resigned to accept his present position as Southern California man- ager for the Kelly-Springfield Motor Truck Com- pany, manufacturers of motor trucks, exclusively. In this new field Mr. Stone has been pre-eminently successful, and under his able direction the busi- ness interests of the company have been pushed forward, the scope of their enterprise in this sec- tion having been decidedly extended.
Since coming to Los Angeles to make his home Mr. Stone has become one of the most loyal supporters of the southland and also has be- come deeply interested in the possibilities offered for investment in real estate, and accordingly has made purchases of realty whenever possible. His
principal possession in this field is a ten acre orange grove near Porterville, in which he takes much pride. He is also keenly alive to the pos- sibilities for business in this section of the state, and is a firm believer in the splendid future that awaits the city of his adoption. In his political affiliations Mr. Stone is a Republican, and a strong party man. He has never been interested in politics from the viewpoint of official prefer- ment for himself, but rather from the broad stand of better government and the welfare and pros- perity of the state and nation through wise admin- istration of the public affairs. He is a Mason.
The marriage of Mr. Stone was solemnized in San Francisco, June 6, 1900, uniting him with Miss Anna F. Ward, of that city. Mrs. Stone has borne her husband five children, viz: Lilian M., Harry J., Webster A., and Herbert E. and Frances A., twins, all of whom are attending the public schools of this city.
ROY PALMER HILLMAN. The recorded bank clearings of Los Angeles are such as to fill the hearts of the Angelenos with pride, and the hearts of the citizens of rival cities with envy. And it is also a matter of pride to the men and women of this city that the men who are engaged in this splendid business are themselves worthy of the confidence and respect of their fellow townsmen. Prominent among those who are associated with the growth of the banking busi- ness in Los Angeles is Roy Palmer Hillman, at present secretary and cashier of the German American Trust and Savings Bank, he having been associated with this institution for more than ten years. The rise of Mr. Hillman in the banking world is interesting and at the same time typical of the business. He commenced his career as a messenger boy and from this posi- tion climbed steadily upward until he was elected to his present responsible position in 1913. He is well known throughout the city and county and enjoys the esteem of the patrons of the bank and the admiration and affection of his fellow workers.
Mr. Hillman is a native of Mantorville, Minn., having been born there January 21, 1879, the son of William F. and Emma (Palmer) Hillman. In 1888 he came to California with his mother and here he attended the public schools, graduating
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from the Los Angeles high school in 1899. His first employment was with the department of electricity of Los Angeles, from 1899 to 1900. He then commenced his education and experience as a banker, being messenger and clearing-house clerk in the Los Angeles National Bank from 1900 to 1902. It was in 1902 that Mr. Hillman first entered the service of the German American Trust and Savings Bank, being their note teller during the year of 1902-03. During 1903-04 he was associated with the Southwestern National Bank of Los Angeles as paying teller, and in the latter year, together with other well-known local men, became one of the incorporators of the Western Motor Car Company. In 1905, how- ever, he disposed of his interest in this business and again entered the banking field, this time as assistant cashier of the German American Trust and Savings Bank, a position which he held until 1909, at which time he was made secretary of the bank. He retained this position until 1913, when he was elevated to his present position of secre- tary and cashier.
Socially Mr. Hillman is well known throughout the city, where he has a host of friends. He is an enthusiastic motorist and was president of the Automobile Club of Southern California in 1910. He is also a member of several local or- ganizations, including the San Gabriel Valley Country Club, the Los Angeles Athletic Club and the Chamber of Commerce.
The marriage of Mr. Hillman occurred in 1902, in Los Angeles, uniting him with Miss Grace Laubersheimer, of this city. Like her husband, Mrs. Hillman is popular socially.
HARRINGTON BROWN. Tracing his gen- ealogy back to the early Colonial period through a long line of distinguished men and women, who have been prominent in the af- fairs of the nation since the establishment of independence, Harrington Brown, newly ap- pointed postmaster for Los Angeles, is proving a worthy descendant of a proud old family. He has been a resident of Los Angeles since 1878, and during all the intervening years he has been prominently associated with the affairs of the city and has taken an active part in its development and upbuilding, being especially prominent in all civic affairs of importance. He
has always been heavily interested in real estate and since the opening of the oil industry has been closely identified with that, being at this time president of the Southern Refining Com- pany and one of the heaviest stockholders in the company. His recent appointment to the posi- tion of postmaster was in direct accord with many distinguished services that he has ren- dered to the city and to the Democratic party in particular, and is a merited recognition of his ability as a business man and as a loyal and devoted son of the Angel City.
Mr. Brown is a native of Washington, D. C., born January 1, 1856, the son of Dr. William Van Horn Brown, also a native of the national capital and for the greater part of his life promi- nent in the official life of the city. The latter's father, and the grandfather of Harrington Brown, was the Rev. Obadiah Bruen Brown, a native of Newark, N. J., a man of great ability and power, prominent not only in church work, but also a generous philanthropist and for many years officially prominent in the affairs of the nation. He established the first Baptist church in Washington, D. C., giving his services as pastor free of charge and in addition contrib- uting large sums of money to the support of charitable and benevolent work carried on by that denomination. He was an eloquent and even brilliant speaker, and was considered one of the finest entertainers in the most brilliant circle in Washington at that time. Among his most intimate friends he numbered Andrew Jackson, at whose hands he received the ap- pointment of postmaster-general during the ad- ministration of the latter, and in which capacity he rendered distinguished service. Probably the most noteworthy achievement of the Rev. Oba- diah Brown was the inauguration of the Star mail route which gave to the Southern states their first regular mail service. His wife was also a prominent figure in the social life of Washington at that time and a great church worker. She it was who founded the Protestant Orphans Home in Washington and when she laid down the work her daughter and a grand- daughter-in-law succeeded in her footsteps.
Dr. William Van Horn Brown served in va- rious capacities in the affairs of the nation at Washington, at one time being chief clerk of the land department and at another being con- nected with the patent department. In politics
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he was independent, giving his support to the man whom he deemed best fitted for and most worthy of the position. Practically his entire lifetime was passed in Washington, having been absent from the capital city for only a short time, when as a young man he went to Missouri. His marriage united him with Ade- laide Harrington, a native of Troy, N. Y., and of the seven children born to them, two are now living. One son, a pioneer of Los An- geles, was for many years one of the most prom- inent men in the city and county, well known throughout the state in business and profes- sional circles as one of the most benevolent and worthy of men. At the time of his death in this city in 1892 every business house closed its doors until after the funeral and the city was in deep mourning. He was a partner in the law firm of Hutton & Smith and had served for two terms as district attorney for Los An- geles county.
Harrington Brown received his education first at Emerson Institute and later at Prince- ton College, and after graduating from the lat- ter he entered the law department of Columbian College, now George Washington University, in Washington City. It was in 1878 that he first came to Los Angeles, and here he has since made his home. On Vermont avenue he purchased a tract of one hundred and thirty acres, extending to Normandie avenue and Santa Barbara street and on into the country. This he subdivided and improved, placing it on the market in residence lots. With his own hands he set out the trees which make that section of the city a beauty spot today, and otherwise added greatly to the development of that sec- tion. His present home place is located at the corner of Vermont avenue and Santa Barbara street, and marks the site of his original home in the city.
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