USA > California > A history of California and an extended history of its southern coast counties, Volume II > Part 46
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STEPHEN TOWNSEND. Foremost in enterprises which have for their end the up- building of the best interests of the city, Ste- phen Townsend is named among the represen- tative citizens of Long Beach, and as such is held in the highest esteem by all who know him. He has been a resident of California since 1876, first locating in Pasadena, where he proved an important factor in the devel- opment and upbuilding of its best interests, securing its first franchise and building its first railway, and later the Altadena and other street ear lines: establishing the Pasadena Warehouse and Milling Company and con- ducting the same successfully ; and as a mem- ber of the city board of trustees advancing plans which were acceptable to both the eon- servative and radical element and were acted upon to the entire satisfaction of the people. In 1895 he became associated with the inter- ests of Long Beach, in which city he fore- saw a future unsurpassed by any other of the towns of Southern California. His efforts, since locating here, have resulted in the mate- rial upbuilding of the city, as well as a financial
gain toi himself, and has at the same time built up a place of prominence in the municipal and social life of the city.
Mr. Townsend is the descendant of English ancestry, the first members of both paternal and maternal families having located in this country during its colonial period. Deseend- ants drifted into the middle west, and in the state of Ohio, David, the father of Stephen Townsend, was born and reared to manhood as a farmer's son. He married Sidney Mada- lin, also a native of Ohio, and until 1855 they remained residents of that state and Indiana. In the last-named year they immigrated to Iowa and in Cedar county, near Iowa City, en- gaged in general farming and stock-raising. He continued in that location until the year 1876, when he brought his family to California and became a member of the Indiana Colony, now Pasadena, where he engaged in horti- culture up to the time of his death. He was survived twenty years by his wife, who passed away in 1903, at the age of eighty-three years. Of their thirteen children four are now liv- ing, the oldest son, Stephen Townsend, having been born in Hamilton county, Ind., October 19, 1848. He was but seven years old when the family located in Iowa, hence the greater part of his education was received in that state, first attending the public schools, and later the Iowa State University. Upon leav- ing school he began to farm on his own re- sponsibility upon land purchased in Franklin county, where he made his home for three years. Following this he was similarly oeeu- pied in Cedar county for two years, when, in 1876, he accompanied the family to California. The west appealed to him with its broader op- portunities and responsibilities and he readily heeame one of the most prominent men of the place, developing his latent power of manage- ment and executive ability. Prior to his lo- cation in Long Beach he purchased twenty acres of land on the Anaheim road. adjoining the city limits and one mile from the beach. The year following his location here he engaged in the real-estate business, laying out various subdivisions, blocks one, ten, fourteen and twenty-four and twenty-five as well as the
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Tutt tract of fifteen acres; Heller & Hays tract of fifteen acres; Harbor View of forty acres : Sunny Slope of thirty acres; and is in- terested in the subdivision of Ocean Pier tract ; West ; Riverside tract; and the Mooreland tract of fifty acres, also Huntington Beach. Since his location here he has been associated with various real-estate men, the firm first be- ing known as Bailey & Townsend; a few months later as Townsend & Campbell, and after two years he engaged with his brother, WV. H. Townsend. Following this he was alone until 1901, when he became associated with what was known as the Townsend-Robin- son Investment Company, now Townsend- Dayman Investment Company, in which con- nection he has since remained. This is an in- corporated company, with capital stock of $50,- 000; they opened a subdivision to the city of Long Beach of forty acres, this being one of the largest additions to the city. Mr. Town- send is one of the organizers and directors of the Orange County Improvement Association of Newport, of which he acts as president, serving in the same capacity for the La Habra Land & Water Company, and is ex-president of The Sunset Beach Land Company.
In addition to the foregoing Mr. Townsend is vice-president of the First National Bank of Long Beach and president of the First Na- tional Bank of Huntington Beach. He or- ganized and is president of the Land & Navi- gation Company that purchased eight hundred acres of the Seaside Water Company, where is now being dredged the harbor for Long Beach. He also carries stock in many other com- panies and takes an active interest in all move- ments tending to promote the welfare of this section of Southern California. The real-es- tate firm which he organized is one of the most substantial of its kind in this part of Cali- fornia and carries on an extensive business, the high character of ability enlisted in the work making it one of the most successful en- terprises of Long Beach. In addition to his engrossing real-estate interests he has been active in the municipal life of Long Beach, in 1903 being elected president of the board of trustees, which office he filled with efficiency. In Iowa, October 19, 1869, Mr. Townsend was
united in marriage with Anna M. Carroll, a native of Indiana. They became the parents of five children, two of whom died in early childhood and Frances Maye died in 1901, aged twenty-eight years; in 1894 she graduated from the College of Music of Southern Cali- fornia University. Ester Belle is the wife of Dr. A. T. Covert, of Long Beach, and is a graduate of the Los Angeles State Normal, class of 1893. Vinton Ray, who graduated from the University of California at Berkeley in 1903, is now a junior in the medical depart- ment of Southern California University; in 1905 he married Ada Campbell, the daughter of W. L. Campbell.
Mr. Townsend is a member of the Method- ist Episcopal Church, in which he officiates as a member of the board of trustees and super- intendent of the Sunday-school, and is serving on the building committee of the new Long Beach Methodist Episcopal Church. He is a director of the Young Men's Christian As- sociation and at the present writing is serving as president of the Long Beach Hospital As- sociation, of which he was one of its organ- izers, and is also a member of the Chamber of Commerce. Mrs. Townsend is a prominent and earnest worker in the Methodist Episco- pal Church and president of the Ladies Social Circle, is associated with the Young Men's Christian Association, and is a member of the Ebell Club. It can truly be said of Mr. Town- send that he is representative of the best in American citizenship, living up to a high standard in public and private life, making his influence felt throughout the community for its betterment and moral uplift.
JOSEPH S. TURNER, M. D. Medical and surgical science has a thorough and painstak- ing exponent in Dr. Turner, one of the leading practitioners of Los Angeles, he having come here as early as 1883, although he did not locate here permanently until 1898. With the increase of population which the city has since experienced his practice has developed accordingly, a just reward due his recognized skill.
In the city of Niles, Mich., Joseph S. Turner was born February 25, 1854. his parents being
Richard Mariny
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Joshua L. and Laura A. (Johnson) Turner, the latter a daughter of Dr. E. J. Johnson, of Ra- venna, Portage county, Ohio. The father was a minister of the Methodist faith, a calling which occupied almost all of his active life, in the course of which he filled pulpits in a number of states, especially in Michigan and Iowa. Dr. Turner has very little recollection of life in his native state, for at the time he was six years old his father was transferred to a pulpit in Iowa, the family locating not far from Ottumwa, the coun- ty-seat of Wapello county. As he had then reached school age he became a pupil in the com- mon schools of that place, later attending and graduating from the high school there also. In the mean time plans had been formulating in his mind to take up the medical profession, and as a preliminary step in this direction he began read- ing medicine with Dr. J. I. Wakefield, of Spring Hill, Warren county, Iowa. Subsequently he took up his studies in the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Keokuk, that state, his gradua- tion following in 1875. Immediately thereafter he opened an office for practice in New Virginia, Warren county, and during the two years which he remained there built up a good practice. Re- moving to Muscatine county at the end of this time he there met with even more flattering sticcess, and in 1883 took a post-graduate course in Rush Medical College, Chicago. His ambition to settle in the Pacific coast region however brought him hither six years later, his first in- troduction to Los Angeles occurring in 1883. but on account of his wife's health he was induced to settle in San Fernando instead. During the fifteen years of his residence in the latter place Los Angeles had made rapid strides in every direction and his removal hither seemed an ad- visable step, and in carrying out this plan he has broadened his scope of usefulness, to say nothing of the financial benefit which has accrued thereby. His connection with the medical fraternity of the city since 1898 has been most helpful to the profession, and his ambition to keep in touch with the latest developments of the science of materia medica is shown by his membership in the Los Angeles County Medical Society and the Medical Society of the State of California.
The home of Dr. Turner is located at No. 1434 West Eleventh street, and is graciously presided
over by his wife, whom he married in 1874 as Miss Carrie Wakefield, a sister of Dr. J. I. Wake- field under whom he read medicine before at- tending college, and who is now practicing in Pasadena. Although Mrs. Turner is a native of Pennsylvania, the greater part of her early life was passed in Iowa, whither her parents re- moved during the early settlement of that com- monwealth. Five children have blessed the mar- riage of Dr. and Mrs. Turner, as follows: Mand F., who is now the wife of Dr. J. M. King; Everett W., Laura C., Josephine Lois and Myrtle Elsie. In his earlier life Dr. Turner was active in Masonic affairs, but is not now affiliated with the order. However, he belongs to the Independ- ent Order of Foresters and three other orders.
RICHARD GARVEY. Keen business fore- sight and the faculty of decision as well as vision have given to Richard Garvey the com- petence which the world owes every man, but which only the persevering and energetic suc- ceed in winning. He came to California in the pioneer days of the state, interested himself in mining for twenty years, and after making a pronounced success in this work turned his attention to the real estate of Los Angeles county, in the buying and selling of which he has been unusually active. Mr. Garvey is a native of Ireland, born in County Mayo September 22, 1838, and in 1849 came to the United States consigned to a relative in New York, but landed at Savannah, Ga., instead, as he says, "not knowing enough to get off there." Ilis father, Peter Garvey, was a farmer in his native country, and died there about 1845. His mother, formerly Mary Flannagan, was also a native of Ireland and died in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1884. They were the parents of seven children, three of whom are living. Richard, Delia and Maria, the latter two living in Cleveland, Ohio, One son, Jolin Garvey, who served in the Civil war, as an officer in the Seventh Regiment Virginia United States Volunteers, died from the effects of a wound received at Antietam and was buried in Cleve- land, with military honors. Another son be- came a priest in the Catholic Church, his death
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occurring while engaged in his ministerial du- ties in Texas.
Upon coming to the United States Richard Garvey first lived in Savannah, Ga., removing in 1854 to Ohio, where in Cleveland he re- ceived his education. In his boyhood he sailed on the lakes and was wrecked three different times, once near Chicago, once at Cleveland and the third time at Mackinaw. In 1858 he followed the westward trend of civilization and came to California, arriving in Los An- geles in due time. Soon after his arrival he engaged with Capt. W. S. Hancock to carry the mail and express from Los Angeles to the military posts of the south in New Mexico and California, after which, like thousands of oth- ers who came to the state after the war began, he engaged in mining. He was located in Cal- ifornia, Nevada and Arizona during the twen- ty years in which he was so occupied, meeting with success in his various enterprises, and in 1872 he sold one mine in San Bernardino coun- ty for the sum of $200,000. He has been suc- cessful in disposing of others for large amounts, but he still retains the Greenlead mine in Holcomb valley district, which he in- tends to reopen and will strive to replace the fortune he lost. All this time he had made Los Angeles his headquarters and in the meantime had become interested in the future of the city and surrounding country, and in 1872 he began to purchase real estate, between this date and 1886 owning five thousand acres of land, upon which he spent all the money he had previously made as a young man and incurred considerable indebtedness. Much of this property he re- tained until 1892, when he began subdividing it in five and ten acre tracts, disposing of large portions of it, and at an expense of over $100,- 000 bought water and brought it seven miles to the property, built a lake comprising nine and one-half acres with a dam fifty-four feet high, by which he irrigated one thousand acres of the land. This was done through loans from the Farmers and Merchants Bank of Los Angeles.
In order to pay off the large loans and inter- est from this bank, sales were made amount- ing to over $200,000, and during the thirteen years over $300,000 was paid, still owing to
them $90,000 in 1905, at which time they fore- closed, thus bringing the added costs up to a total of about $110,000. Notwithstanding the fact that they declared in open court that the property was not worth that amount, in 1905 Mr. Garvey disposed of one thousand acres at an advance of $25,000 to some of the best busi- ness men of Los Angeles. Soon afterward he sold eight acres for $6,000 and in 1906 sold two hundred and thirty-one acres at $635 per acre, the sale representing $145,000 and com- prised the old homestead, which was among the first houses built in the old Mission days of San Gabriel. He is still owner of about six hundred acres of the Garvalia ranch, and entirely out of debt, which is about the first time he has been in that condition since he owned the land, notwithstanding the fact that he was nearly ruined by a man he had served all his life, and that he trusted implicitly.
In 1884 Mr. Garvey was united in marriage with Miss Tessie B. Mooney, a native of Ohio, and she died the following year, leaving a son, Richard, Jr., who was reared by his aunt, Miss Mary E. Mooney. He is a graduate of St. Vin- cent's College, and is now a student of Berke- ley. Mr. Garvey is a member of the Catholic Church and fraternally belongs to the Knights of Columbus. He has a comfortable residence in Los Angeles but prefers a country home, and upon his ranch in the Garvalia district is going to build a house, equipped with every modern ' convenience and comfort. Mr.
Garvey is independent in his political views, reserving the right to cast his ballot for the man he considers best qualified for official position. He has served as school trustee of Garvalia district for many years, and takes a keen interest in the upbuilding of educational affairs. In 1875, after the failure of the Temple & Workman Bank, he was appointed receiver.
HON. THOMAS D. MOTT. By her rich and varied resources California has drawn to her unshackled energies the sons of many states and countries. They came hoping to attain personal success, and, to such extent as they have been fortified by determination, persever- ance, intelligence and sound judgment, they
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have gained prosperity. While promoting their personal interests, at the same time they have advanced the welfare of their adopted state and have been found on the side of prog- ress and justice in every cause. As one of this class mention belongs to T. D. Mott, whose death, February 19, 1904, removed from earth one who for the past fifty years had been well and favorably known in business and commercial circles in this city. By those who had labored side by side with him during this time he was affectionately known as the "fa- ther of modern Los Angeles," a name which was well merited when it is considered how thoroughly unselfish he was, placing personal gain secondary to the well-being of the little Mexican pueblo to which fate led him in 1852.
Of eastern birth and parentage, Thomas D. Mott was born in the village of Schuyler, Sar- atoga county, N. Y., July 30, 1830, and the first eighteen years of his life were spent in this locality, once the scene of important events during the war of the Revolution. At the age of fourteen he began to make his own way in the world, receiving as compensation the munificent sum of $25 per year, board in- cluded. His natural aptitude and ambition led him to look for a more inviting field for his abilities, an opening for which he had not long to search, for soon after the beginning of the gold excitement in California he had mapped out a course for his life in the new and untried west. After a journey of about six months, interspersed by numerous perils and priva- tions, he arrived in San Francisco and it was not long before he secured lucrative employ- ment in the mines of the northern counties. By the exercise of the most rigid economy he was enabled to lay by enough means to war- rant him in embarking in a general merchan- dise business in Stockton, where it may be said he met with his first business success. At the age of twenty-one, with the proceeds which this business netted him, he determined to put his efforts into a scheme which he had been in- vestigating and which he felt sure would war- rant the expenditure of time and money which he had planned to invest. This was the estab- lishment of a suitable ferry system over the San Joaquin river, a venture in which he suc-
ceeded far beyond his expectations until dis- posing of his interests in the northern part of the state to cast in his lot with what was then known as the pueblo of Los Angeles. His good judgment and foresight in selecting this spot for his future home rewarded him in aft- er years with rich harvests. For some time after his arrival here he carried on a livery sta- ble, but it was not long before it was discov- ered that he possessed those qualities needed in a statesman and public man, and he was brought to the front by the many friends who had been attracted to him by his sterling traits of character. A natural gift of organization and an ambition to master men and affairs led him into politics and for more than a quarter of a century his reputation as a Democratic leader extended throughout the state. In 1863 he was elected the first county clerk of Los Angeles county, his re-election following for three successive terms, and during this time he discharged the manifold duties of the office, which also included the responsibilities of ex- officio recorder and auditor. It was about this time that Los Angeles was confronted with a grave question, namely, whether or no the Southern Pacific, which was then being built through the San Joaquin valley, would be laid out to take in Los Angeles. It was a vital question with the struggling town and meant life or death to its future, and it was this con- dition of affairs that induced the election of Mr. Mott to the legislature by his constitu- ents. There as in every other position to which he was called he became a command- ing figure, winning the regard of his constitu- ency by insuring the construction of the rail- road over the Tehachepi and through the Sole- dad canon, a route which secured an immense advantage to Los Angeles and was a large factor in bringing this city into public note.
Mr. Mott was one of the organizers of the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce and dur- ing the days of its early struggles he gave lav- ishly of his means to support it. in fact con- tinted to do so until it became self-supporting. In 1886 he built the first large business block south of First street, a building which still bears his name, and which was but one of the
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many building ventures which he later under- took.
In his private life Mr. Mott bore an unblem- ished record. In 1861 he was united in mar- riage with the daughter of Don Jose Sepulveda, a representative of an old Spanish family. Don Francisco Sepulveda, the grandfather, was born in Aragon, Spain, and he it was who es- tablished the family in America, coming here as a member of the army under command of Captain De la Guerra as an officer. After his services were no longer needed he settled on his grant at Santa Monica, still later removing to Los Angeles, where he erected the Pico house. His son, Don Jose, who was born in San Diego, acquired the San Joaquin ranch south of Santa Ana, this vast estate compris- ing eleven leagues or fifty thousand acres of land. Besides this he also acquired the Santa Ana grant of eighteen hundred acres. Over the hills and plains comprised in these tracts roamed thousands of cattle, divided into bands of various colors, forming a scene which read- ily reminded one of the holdings of the patri- archs of old, as told in Biblical history. Don Jose Sepulveda was without doubt one of the foremost men of his day, no one exceeding him in quality of character or in his benefactions to the poor and needy. His marriage united him with Francisca Avila, who was born in Santa Barbara, Cal., the daughter of Antonio Ygna- cio Avila. The latter was born in Spain and came to America with his father, a capitalist, who located in Southern California and be- came a prominent figure in the unbuilding of this section of country. Twelve children orig- inally comprised the parental family, ten of whom grew up and three of whom are now liv- ing. One of these, Judge Ygnacio Sepulveda, was for many years judge of Los Angeles county and later a prominent attorney of Mex- ico City. The beautiful and cultured home of Mr. Mott had been the meeting place of many men of note and prominence in years past, which was indeed a privilege to those thus honored, for those who knew him only casual- ly loved and honored him as their friend. No more fitting close to this resume of the life of Mr. Mott could be given than is couched in
the language of Major Ben C. Truman: "No man anywhere ever possessed a more radiant and charming personality. All through his life he had been noted for his unerring man- liness, his irreproachable rectitude, his liber- ality and charity and his love of home."
JAMES H. BLANCHARD. A man well known in iegal circles and an active citizen in Los Angeles for almost thirty-five years is James H. Blanchard, who has watched the city's growth from a straggling village, until today it can make the boast of being the metropolis of the Pacific coast. A native of Michigan, he was born in Niles in December, 1847, a son of Jonathan and Matilda (Ingraham) Blanchard, the latter also born in Michigan. The father was a descendant of New England ancestors, and he himself was born in the East, his parents then living in Ver- mont. Until attaining mature years his life was associated with scenes and events surrounding his birthplace, but subsequently he removed to New York state, still later going to Michigan. It was in the latter state that his marriage with Miss Ingraham occurred, and there the parents rounded out their lives, the father passing away in 1864 and the mother surviving until 1889. From the latter state the father answered the summons for able-bodied men in the defense of the cause of the north, enlisting as a member of the Twenty-sixth Michigan Infantry, and was ap- pointed chaplain of the regiment.
Of the two sons comprising the parental fam- ily Harlow L. makes his home in Santa Monica, while James H. is the attorney of Los Angeles previously mentioned. From the common schools in the vicinity of his Michigan home he passed to the high school, his training there fitting him for entry into the University of Michigan, gradu- ating from the literary department in 1870, and from the law department in 1872. It was with this preparation that he came to Los Angeles the following year and opened a law office. Sub- stantial growth in any line of endeavor is often apt to be slow, and for that very reason when the object sought has been gained it is cher- ished all the more for the labor and patience ex- pended. This has been the experience of Mr.
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