A history of California and an extended history of its southern coast counties, also containing biographies of well-known citizens of the past and present, Volume II, Part 96

Author: Guinn, James Miller, 1834-1918
Publication date: 1907
Publisher: Los Angeles, Cal., Historic record company
Number of Pages: 1234

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The marriage of Mr. Cram was solemnized September 27, 1866, and united him with Sarah Ann Wakefield, daughter of Andrew Jackson and Nancy (Garner) Wakefield, of High- land, San Bernardino county. From early life Mrs. Cram has been identified with the Congregational Church, to whose mis- sionary and charitable enterprises Mr. Cram contributes, although not a member thereof or identified with any denomination. Politically he always has been stanch in his al- legiance to the Republican party. On that ticket he twice was elected to the office of county supervisor, in which capacity he served with efficiency and fidelity. During the early days of the organization of the Grange he identified himself with the movement and served as a local officer in the same, maintain- ing a deep interest in the work as one calcu- lated to promote the permanent prosperity of the agricultural class. All of his children are living, namely : Andrew Jackson, William Henry, John Edwin, Lewis Franklin, James Eaton, Robert and Mary Emile, Mrs. Joseph Cole, of Rediands. The father and sons own about one hundred and forty acres of orange land. While they have the different varieties of oranges, their specialty is the navels, of which they have some fine specimens in their groves. With one exception all of the sons are married and have established homes of their own; all are prosperous and enjoy the confidence of associates, exemplifying in their characters the efficient training and wise ex- ample of their parents.

ZENAS FREEMAN. Fallbrook counts it- self fortunate in having among its substantial farmers and prominent citizens a man who has stood unflinchingly for the best interests of his neighborhood and the community at large. Mr. Freeman has always been conspicuous for his

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enterprise in the advancement of the common schools and in all public projects that tended toward the upbuilding of the locality in which he lived. The son of Jacob and Elizabeth A. (Eubanks) Freeman, the former a native of Georgia and the latter of Alabama, Zenas Free- man was born in Washington county, Ill., April IO, 1846. About 1830 Jacob Freeman removed to Illinois where he married and settled on gov- ernment land. He spent the remainder of his life on his original farm; his wife is still living, at the age of eighty-nine years, in Webb City, Mo.

Zenas Freeman was educated in the district schools of the time and lived at home on the farm until he was of age. In 1867 he removed to Jasper county, Mo., where he bought land and engaged in farming and growing fruit. Where the flourishing city of Joplin now stands he killed ducks in 1872 on land which is now the main street. In company with his brother he erected a sawmill on the present city site and also conducted a lumberyard, furnishing the lumber of which the first buildings were con- structed, and doing a business which totaled $25,000 a year. This he disposed of later and returning to the farm, set out seventy-five acres to fruit, this being considered a large orchard at that time.

In 1886 the failing health of his wife induced Mr. Freeman to leave his home in Missouri and remove temporarily to San Diego, Cal. The climate proving beneficial a month later they came to Fallbrook, purchased their present hold- ings and subsequently disposed of the eastern property. His land, comprising sixty acres, is devoted to general farming, with the exception of fourteen acres in bearing olive trees.

While in Missouri Mr. Freeman served six- teen years on the school board of Jasper county and soon after removing to Fallbrook was elect- ed, in 1888, to a similar office here, a position he held eleven years. He was also one of the or- ganizers of the high school district and in 1893 was elected first president of the board of trus- tees, an office which he continued to fill until July, 1904. It is due in no small degree to Mr. Freeman's efforts that the school is now con- sidered one of the best in the county.

While in Missouri he was for some years deputy state organizer for the Grangers. He has been for the past five years deputy clerk for San Diego county, is also one of the road super- intendents of the fifth district, and was both ac- tive and efficient in working against the voting of irrigation bonds in that district, a measure which has proved so disastrous to other localities.

In the spring of 1895 Mr. Freeman issued a call and assisted in the organization of the Co- operative Association, which was consummated

in the autumn with fourteen members and a capitalization of $400. This store did a cash business of $140 per day for 1906 and has now membership stock of over $10,000. Mr. Free- man was also instrumental in organizing the Fallbrook Horticultural Society, which kept the banner exhibit in the San Diego Chamber of Commerce for several years.

Mr. Freeman was married to Miss Sarah E. Glasscock, a native of Jasper county, Mo., and the daughter of Eli Glasscock, of Tennessee. Six children were the result of the union: Zula E., who died when two years old; Margaret A., who died when one and a half years of age; Frederick J., of Los Angeles; Mamie Myrtle, wife of A. C. Réche, of Fallbrook; Eli E., en- gaged in farming on a large scale near Fall- brook; and Earnest L., a student in the Fall- brook high school. Mr. Freeman is a demitted member of the Independent Order of Odd Fel- lows, which he joined when twenty-one years of age.

GEORGE WASHINGTON COVERT, M. D. The Covert family is of Holland-Dutch origin and became established in America as early as 1645, in which year it is thought the great-grand- father crossed the ocean and settled in Manhattan, N. Y. Subsequently he removed to Morristown, N. J., and it was there that the grandfather, Isaac Covert, was born. As one of the valiant defenders of the young colonies' interests he served for seven years in the Revolutionary war. first as a scout under General Armstrong, and later as fife major. After the close of hostilities he removed to Mercer county, Ky., where in addition to following his trade of weaver he also carried on a farm. He located seven quarter sections of land in Johnson County, Ind., which he had planned to apportion equally among his seven children, but his death occurred in 1825, on the very day set for the transfer and settle- ment of the transactions. His wife passed away in Indiana three years later. Their son Daniel was born in Mercer County, Ky., where besides following agricultural life to which he was early trained, he learned the cabinet-maker's trade. After his removal to Franklin, Ind., he still con- tinned farming, but made a specialty of building and contracting, into which he finally drifted, having branched out into this line through his knowledge of cabinet-making and the carpenter's trade. During his later years he retired from active life, dying on the homestead farm in In- diana in his eighty-ninth year. Throughout life he had enjoyed the consolation of religion and was a member of the Presbyterian Church, in which he served as deacon for many years. Politically he was a Republican. In his young

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HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

manhood he married Miss Rachel Voorhies, who like himself was a native of Kentucky and a descendant of Holland-Dutch ancestors on the paternal side. Her father, John Voorhies, who was a native of New Jersey, removed to Mercer county, Ky., following farming there some time before his removal to Indiana in 1825. There he remained until 1860, when he moved to Allen county, Kans., but in 1873 settled once more in Indiana, and in that state he passed away. Mrs. Covert died on the Kansas homestead when in her eighty-third year.

Of the five children who comprised the parental family George W. was next to the youngest and is now the only one living. He was born August 18, 1833, on the Indiana homestead near Frank- lin, Johnson county, and received such meager educational training as the schools of the time and locality afforded. In brief, his education was limited to three months in the pay schools during winters, the remainder of the year being given to his father in caring for the farm. Tak- ing advantage of the opportunity to become a landowner by the opening up of government land in Kansas he went thither in 1860 and en- tered land in Allen county in the vicinity of Carlyle, carrying on a farm for a number of years. As late as 1863 there was only one physician in Carlyle and he determined to prepare himself for the profession and open an office in his home town. During the years 1864-65 he attended Rush Medical College, Chicago, Ill., and there- after returned to Carlyle and began the practice of medicine, in addition to which he also prac- ticed dentistry. A brief interruption in his prac- tice occurred in 1865, during which time he served in the Kansas Militia, but when his services were no longer necessary he returned to Carlyle and resumed his practice. The strain of over- work began to impair his health and he gave up his practice in Kansas and returned to Indiana in 1873, locating in Whiteland, where he soon re- gained his former vigor. It was not long after this that he opened an office in Whiteland. follow- ing his profession there for a number of years, or until 1887, when he located in Franklin, that state, there continuing the practice of medi- cine until 1894. His identification with the west and more particularly with Long Beach dates from May, 1894, coming here at that time to engage in the practice of dentistry with his son, he himself having charge of the plate work. Dr. Covert is an enthusiastic believer in the future of Long Beach and has demonstrated this belief by investing quite heavily in city real estate. He bought a large tract on American avenue and Sixteenth street, known as the Covert tract, which he subdivided, and all of which is now practically sold. He also owns property on the corner of Third and Locust streets, upon which are two

residences, one of which he occupies with his family.

In 1854 Dr. Covert was married to Miss Mary E. LaGrange, a native of Indiana, and five children have been born to them, as follows : E. L., a real-estate dealer in Long Beach; Car- rie C., Mrs. Lynn, also of this city; Electa, the wife of J. D. Whiteside, and resident of Frank- lin, Ind .; Mollie, the wife of J. Sharp, of Long Beach; and A. T., a graduate of the dental pro- fession, who is now in the employ of the Town- send Dayman Company. The family attend the Presbyterian Church of Long Beach, in which Dr. Covert and his son A. T. are ruling elders, and politically he is a Prohibitionist.

FRED P. BALDWIN. During his three years' residence in Long Beach Fred P. Baldwin has shown his enterprise and progressiveness as a citizen, and since his election to the office of city clerk has proven himself an exceptionally efficient official. He was born February 22, 1866, in Watertown, N. Y., the son of Fred A. and Ellen (Perry) Baldwin, the former having been born on the Atlantic, and the latter of Welsh descent and a native of Utica, N. Y. The father was reared until his sixteenth year in England and after coming to America learned the plumber's and tinner's trade in Utica, and was a resident of Watertown, N. Y., from 1866 until the time of his death in 1892, his wife surviv- ing him three years.

Of their three children Fred P. was the oldest. He was educated in the public schools of New York, and in 1885 graduated from the Water- town high school. Possessed of unusual musical talent he had in the meantime become a pro- ficient pianist and after the completion of his school work he traveled for two years with a light opera company. After giving up this line of work he went to Ticonderoga, N. Y., and was for a short time secretary of the Young Men's Christian Association there, but soon resigned and returned to Watertown, where in 1888 he secured an appointment as a sub-carrier in the postoffice. A year later he was made a regular carrier and continued at that employment for fourteen years. Then deciding that a change would be beneficial he decided to come to Cal- ifornia and in 1903 located in Long Beach. He secured bookkeeping positions successively with Bailey Brothers, the Long Beach Ice Company, and the Long Beach Hardware Company, resign- ing from the latter position after his election to the city clerkship April 9, 1906. He was nominat- ed on the Independent ticket and the good reputa- tion he had gained among his fellow citizens was then evidenced by the fact that he received a majority of three hundred and seventy-nine votes.

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HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

Upon April 16 the oath of office was administered and he will continue to fill the position to which he was elected for two years from that date.

In Watertown, N. Y., Mr. Baldwin was united in marriage with Miss Maud M. Greene, who was born in Belleville, N. Y., and they have be- come the parents of one son, Raymond F. Both Mr. and Mrs. Baldwin are active members of the Episcopal Church. Mr. Baldwin keeps up his piano practice and is considered one of the most talented musicians in Long Beach. Frater- nally he is affiliated with numerous prominent lodges, among them being the Benevolent Pro- tective Order of Elks, the Eagles, Knights of Pythias and Royal Court. In national politics he advocates Republican principles, in local affairs believing that men are more important than plat- forms in securing good and efficient government. He is interested in military affairs and while in New York he was a member of the Thirty-ninth Separate Company, N. G. S. N. Y., in which he enlisted the second time, serving in all eleven years or until the law excluding government em- ployes from the national guard ranks went into effect. As a man of well-rounded interests and talents he is held in the highest respect and esteem throughout the community.

JAMES CHRISTOPHER HASKINS. The ancestry of the Haskins family is traced to Eng- land, the emigrating ancestor having established the name upon American soil in the colonial days of our history. Massachusetts was the state chosen by this ancestor and there the name flourished for many generations, members of the family participating in the Revolutionary war. Lafayette Haskins was a farmer through- out his entire life. The patriotism of the family was his by inheritance, demonstrated by his ser- vice in the war of 1812. In his family was a son, Caleb R., who was born in Assonet, Mass .; in young manhood he entered upon a sea-faring life and in time became master of a whaler out of New Bedford. He came to his death by drowning in 1852. His wife, formerly Jane Slo- cum, a native of Massachusetts, born on the Island of Cuttyhunk, one of the Elizabeth Group, was a daughter of Frederic Slocum, and died in New Bedford in 1853.

The birth of two children blessed the union of Captain Haskins and his wife, the younger of whom, James Christopher Haskins, was born in New Bedford, Mass., January 23, 1842. He was reared in his native town, receiving his prelim- inary education in the common schools of that place, and later attending the schools of Provi- dence, R. I. Trained to habits of industry and self-reliance, at the age of sixteen years, he was apprenticed in Providence to learn the jeweler's

trade, remaining so occupied until the breaking out of the Civil war, when on the 16th of April, 1861, he volunteered in the First Rhode Island Detached Militia Company under Colonel Burn- side. He was mustered in at Washington May 2, and with his company was immediately or- dered to the front, participating in the battle of Bull Run. His three months' service expiring on August 2, he re-enlisted as sergeant on the 28th of that month in the Third Rhode Island Heavy Artillery, his service continuing until the close of the war. He participated in the battle of Hilton Head on November 7, 1861, Skull Creek, Pocotaligo, Ahista, Secessionville, James Island, and many other important engagements. For thirteen months he was located on the ex- treme point of Morris Island, at Fort Gregg, en- gaged in the bombarding of Fort Sumter, S. C. Upon the evacuation of Charleston he was the first man to place the colors over the city, plant- ing the flag over the old postoffice at the foot of Broad street, assisted by four of Company B of the Fifty-fourth Regiment of Massachu- setts, who volunteered to row him over to the mainland. During the war he received several wounds. While on Morris Island at Fort Gregg the explosion of a two hundred pound Parrot gun threw him over a gun carriage and in- jured his spine in such a way as to cause par- tial paralysis in later life. At Pocotaligo he re- ceived a gun thrust in the forehead and at James Island a pistol ball in the chin. He was mus- tered out of service at Providence, R. I., August 24, 1865.

Returning again to the jewelry business Mr. Haskins engaged in this work until the fail- ure of eyesight induced him to seek other em- ployment. He secured a position as traveling salesman for his cousin, W. L. Douglas, the well-known eastern shoe manufacturer, with whom he remained until his retirement from ac- tive business life because of failing health. He made his home in Providence for some years, later in Brockton and finally in Boston, from which city in 1902 he came to Long Beach, Cal., where he has since resided. His home is pre- sided over by his wife, formerly Miss Addie Clark, of Springfield, Mass. She also boasts an ancestry of the best blood of New England, John Clark, mate of the ship Ann, having land- ed in Plymouth in 1620. A descendant, John Clark, served in the Revolutionary war and an- other John Clark served in the war of 1812- all men of patriotism, earnestness of purpose and of citizenship that meant no little in the uphuilding of the nation. Mrs. Haskin's father, Norman Clark, also born in Springfield, Mass., was a farmer by occupation, and like his an- cestors, a patriot, serving in Company C, Twenty-ninth Regiment Massachusetts Infantry,

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HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

during the Civil war, his death occurring on Ship Island in 1862. His wife, formerly Maria Baker, was a native of Massachusetts, her death also occurring in that state. They were the parents of seven children, of whom four are now living, another son, Charles H., also serving in the Civil war in a Massachusetts cavalry regi- ment. By a former marriage Mrs. Haskins is the mother of one son, E. N. Whittaker, a man- ufacturer of paper. By her marriage with Mr. Haskins she also has one son, Waldo F. She is a member of the Women's Relief Corps and the Ladies of the G. A. R., Daughters of Veterans of the Civil war and the Bess Ross Society. Mr. Haskins is a member of Long Beach Post No. 18I, G. A. R., and both himself and wife are identified with the First Congregational Church of this city. Mr. Haskins is a Republican and gives a most earnest support to the principles he endorses. He is a citizen of worth and merits the esteem in which he is held.

HENRY Z. GILL, M. D., LL. D. Varied ex- periences and a cosmopolitan knowledge of the world, acquired through travels in the old world and the new, and through the strenuous career of an army surgeon, give to Dr. Gill a distinctive position among the physicians of Southern California, where he has made his home since the autumn of 1902. Although he was at- tracted to this section by its charms of climate and scenery, he has not allowed his life to sink into passive enjoyment of surrounding com- forts, but has given of his best to the promotion of local interests. Perhaps in no other respect has he accomplished as much good as through his efforts to secure a thorough knowledge of the laws of health on the part of the people. That "prevention is better than cure" is one of his theories, and acting upon that sentiment he has maintained an interest in the construction of public school buildings in order that the ventilation and the lighting facilities may be conducive to the health of the children. In the latter part of 1902 he strongly advocated the establishing of city sewers, and also gave his most earnest efforts toward securing the sanitary systems and conditions which now exist.

The early years of Dr. Gill's life were asso- ciated with a farm in Bucks county, Pa., where he was born October 6, 1831, and where he passed the uneventful years of boyhood. On the completion of an academic education he engaged in teaching school in Pennsylvania. After going to Columbus, Ohio, in 1854, he followed teach- ing in Franklin county, and in the leisure hours of school work he took up the study of medicine with R. J. Patterson, M. D., of Columbus, as preceptor. Later he attended one and one-half

courses of lectures at Starling Medical College, and then completed his course in Jefferson Medi- cal College of Philadelphia, from which he was graduated in 1857. From that time until the Civil war he engaged in professional practice at Columbus, Ohio, where he gained a reputation as a rising young surgeon and physician.

An appointment as assistant surgeon in the Eleventh Ohio Infantry was tendered Dr. Gill in April, 1861, and he accepted for a service of three months, but in July again enlisted, this time for three years. In July of 1862 he resigned his commission and returned to Columbus. Imme- diately afterward he accepted an appointment as surgeon of the Ninety-fifth Ohio Infantry, where he remained in active service until May of 1864, thus giving the State of Ohio three years of active professional labors in her regiments. In July, 1864, he was commissioned surgeon of United States Volunteers by Abraham Lincoln, after a brief service as an assistant surgeon with the same troops, and he continued to hold his commission until the war closed and he was mustered out in August of 1865. During the first year of the war he was stationed in West Virginia, and during the second year participated in the campaigns in Kentucky, where he was captured at Richmond and imprisoned for six weeks within the enemy's lines. In January, 1863, he entered upon the Vicksburg campaign, where he participated in that long and terrible ordeal memorable in the annals of history. Dur- ing the following year he was a participant in the Atlanta campaign, later was in the Savannah campaign and through the Carolinas, his service being in the capacity of surgeon-in-chief of the First Division, Twentieth Army Corps, which position he held until the close of the war.

Following the stirring years of the war Dr. Gill traveled through Missouri and purchased property in Kansas City. Later he took a com- plete course of lectures in Jefferson Medical College. In May of 1866 he left the United States for professional study in Europe, where he spent two years in the hospitals of Berlin, Vienna, Breslan and Pragne, and then visited Paris, where he spent five months during 1867- 68, and after a month in London crossed the

ocean to the United States. Opening an office in St. Louis in 1868, he not only conducted a private practice, but also lectured in the St. Louis Medical College. In 1873 he removed to Jerseyville, Ill., where he had a large and profit- able practice from that year until 1881, but re- moved then to Chester in order to enter upon his duties as surgeon of the Southern Illinois penitentiary. In that position he was remarkably successful. Prior to his appointment the records showed the death rate to be thirty-seven for every one thousand prisoners, but under his

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HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

supervision and insistence upon sanitary methods the rate was reduced to five per thousand.

After a service as surgeon for two years and four months Dr. Gill resigned and became pro- fessor of surgery in the medical department of the University of Wooster, in Cleveland, Ohio, where he delivered five courses of lectures. Owing to his health becoming affected by the climate, he resigned in 1886 and went to Kan- sas, where he established a large practice at Eldorado and continued there for seven years. From 1893 until 1902 he had his office at Pitts- burg, Kans., where he became widely known as a specialist in treatment of diseases of the eye, ear, nose and throat. Prior to this, in 1886, he had published the largest work in the English language treating on diphtheria, croup and tracheotomy. After a very successful career in Kansas, he removed to California in order to avail himself of the climatic advantages offered by this region, and extended travels in the state upon a tour of investigation ended in his decis- ion to settle at Long Beach, where he makes his home at No. 338 Pacific avenue, and has estab- lished a practice extending through the city and surrounding country. Since coming to this loca- tion he has erected five houses, all of which have been sold, and he has also bought and sold real estate in the city.

In Columbus, Ohio, in April, 1869, Dr. Gill married Miss Mattie C. Carpenter, native of that city. They are the parents of a daughter, Mrs. Elizabeth McAlister of Long Beach, and a son, R. F., who has charge of the Long Beach water works. The family are identified with the Metho- dist Episcopal denomination, of which the doc- tor has been a member for fifty years, and in the work of which he has been a generous contri- butor. In politics he has always been a believer in Republican principles, but no trace of partisan- ship has shown in his acts; in every relation he has been the fair-minded, impartial citizen. In Masonry he has affiliated with the blue lodge, chapter and commandery, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and Grand Army Post No. 181, California and Nevada Department, of which he was surgeon and now ranks as senior vice-com- mander. During his residence in Kansas he served for two years as secretary of the state board of health, and since coming to the coast he was for two years surgeon of the Southern California Veterans' Association. In the course of his long professional life he has accumulated a large library of valuable medical works, as well as many other volumes, and this library he has donated to the Southern California Univer- sity, the medical department receiving the bulk of the volumes. Through this gift the informa- tion he gleaned in former years of thoughtful

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A history of California and an extended history of its southern coast counties, also containing biographies of well-known citizens of the past and present, Volume II, Part 96

Author: Guinn, James Miller, 1834-1918 Publication date: 1907 Publisher: Los Angeles, Cal., Historic record company Number of Pages: 1234

Author: Guinn, James Miller, 1834-1918
Publication date: 1907
Publisher: Los Angeles, Cal., Historic record company
Number of Pages: 1234