USA > California > A history of the new California, its resources and people; Vol II > Part 21
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He engaged in farming in Minnesota for a number of years, and in 1873 came with his family to California. The following year he established his home in San Jose and was engaged in farming and fruit-raising in Santa Clara valley until he was called to his final rest. He married Miss Martha Davis, a descendant of the Rev. Robert Jordan, an English clergyman who came from England in 1642 and settled in New England. Mrs. Conant sur- vived her husband for only six weeks. He passed away in the month of Sep- tember, 1889, and her death occurred on November 8, 1889. Their only sur- viving daughter is Mrs. James Moore, a widow, who is now living in San Jose and whose husband was well known as proprietor of a fruit farm and ranch in this portion of California.
Ernest Woodbury Conant, the only son, acquired his early education in the public schools of his native state, and when a youth of eleven years he accompanied his parents on their removal to California, continuing his studies in San Jose. When he had completed the high school course in this city he entered the University of California as a member of the class of 1884, but owing to a serious injury which he sustained as the result of an accident, he was unable to complete his collegiate course. After returning to San Jose he became engaged in fruit raising, and has since devoted his energies largely to horticultural pursuits. Not only does he raise fruit, but also ships and dries it, thus placing it upon the market. He owns a valuable ranch of thirty-eight acres conveniently and pleasantly located about four miles from San Jose. He is well known as a representative of one of the most important industries of California-the production and marketing of fruit-and in the control of his business interests he is meeting with most creditable success.
In the fall of 1902 Mr. Conant was elected to the office of treasurer of Santa Clara county upon the Republican ticket. He received a majority of
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over nine hundred and was one of only three candidates on the Republican ticket elected. Certainly this is a strong indication of the high position which he holds in the public regard and confidence, and his course in office has ever demonstrated that he merits the trust reposed in him.
In 1889 was celebrated the marriage of Mr. Conant and Miss Agnes Pender, a native of California and a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. W. R. Pender, who are residents of San Jose. They now have three children, two sons and a daughter : Ernest L., David J. and Mabel. Mr. Conant belongs to the Masonic fraternity and is a past master of San Jose Lodge No. 10, F. & A. M. He is widely and favorably known throughout the community in which he makes his home, his abilities well fitting him for leadership in political and business life. Here he has resided continuously from his early boyhood days, and the fact that many who have known him from his youth to the present time are numbered among his stanchest friends is an indication that his has been an honorable career. The terms progress and patriotism find prominent place in connection with his life history, for throughout his man- hood he has labored for the improvement of every line of business or public interest with which he has been associated and at all times he has been actu- ated by fidelity to his county and her welfare.
JOSEPH RUSH WELLER.
For more than a half century Joseph R. Weller has been identified with agricultural interests in Santa Clara county, where he now owns and operates three hundred and sixty acres of valuable land, adjoining Milpitas. He is one of the most prominent as well as the oldest resident of this locality, and his influence in public affairs has been a potent element for good in the state. Honored and respected, the high position which he fills in the public regard has been worthily won. Although he has traveled for more than fourscore years upon the journey of life he is still an active factor in business affairs. Old age is not necessarily a synonym of weakness or inactivity and it need not suggest as a matter of course idleness or lack of occupation. There is an old age which grows stronger and brighter intellectually and morally as the years advance and gives out of its rich stores of wisdom and experience to others. Such has been the career of Mr. Weller and the history of this community would be incomplete without the record of his life.
Mr. Weller was born in Warren county, New Jersey, on the Ioth of October, 1819, and is a son of Peter R. and Elizabeth (Smock) Weller, both of whom were natives of the same state. The father was of German lineage, while the mother was a representative of an old Moravian family of French Huguenot lineage. Both families were established in America during the colonial epoch in our country's history, and were represented by loyal soldiers in the Revolutionary war. A brother of the grandfather served with General Washington in the French and Indian wars. Peter R. Weller was a tanner by trade, following that pursuit in Warren county, New Jersey, and shipping his product to surrounding states and to Europe.
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In the family were ten sons and four daughters, and by a second marriage our subject had four half-brothers and a half-sister.
The boyhood days of Joseph R. Weller were spent upon his father's farm, and he assisted in building the country schoolhouse in which he learned the alphabet. He continued to attend the district schools until about twelve years of age, and he afterward spent two years as a student in the Geneseo 'Academy of western New York. He was desirous of acquiring a good education, and applied himself diligently to the mastery of the branches of learning which constituted the curriculum. After leaving school he engaged in teaching for a few terms during the winter months, while in the summer seasons his labors were devoted to agricultural pursuits. When twenty-four years of age he entered the State Normal College at Albany, New York, and was graduated in that institution with the class of 1846. Subsequently he engaged in teaching on Staten Island until May, 1850, when he left New York for California. Making the journey by way of the isthmus of Panama he took passage on a sailing vessel, accompanied by his brother Abraham, and on the 7th of August, 1850, he reached his destina- tion, landing at what is now the foot of Jackson street in San Francisco. From that place they made their way to the mines, but not finding the excel- lent business prospects that they had anticipated they returned to San Fran- cisco after a short time.
In the fall of 1851 Mr. Weller came to Santa Clara county and at first rented a farm from James Murphy, which he operated for two years. In 1853, with the capital he had acquired through his own labor, he purchased two hundred and fifty acres of land adjoining Milpitas and thereon began farming. He has made it his home up to the present time, carrying on gen- eral agricultural pursuits, a dairy business and the raising of grain and cattle. He built the first fence and roadway on the old Calaveras road, and in the midst of what was then a wild region he developed an excellent farm, his enterprise and labor producing a wonderful transformation in the appear- ance of the place.
In 1860 Mr. Weller was united in marriage to Marian Hart Battey, a native of Madison county, New York, who came to California in 1852 with her first husband, who died the following year. To Mr. and Mrs. Weller have been born two children, Marian E., who is living with her parents ; and May Lucinda, who is the wife of William M. Curtner, a farmer and fruit raiser, who is a son of Henry Curtner, one of the old pioneer settlers of Milpitas, having arrived here in 1852.
Mr. Weller is a member of the San Jose Grange and has been quite prominent and influential in public affairs, giving his allegiance to the Republican party. He organized the school district of Milpitas and was a trustee of the schools for thirty years. Certainly the county owes to him a debt of gratitude for what he accomplished along educational lines. He has also been justice of the peace for over two decades, and his fairness and impartiality "win him golden opinions from all sorts of people." He has ever been faithful and loyal in the discharge of public duties, and in 1879 was honored by his fellow townsmen with election to the office of a dele-
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gate to the constitutional convention and aided in framing the organic law of the state.
In the first rank of the columns which have advanced the civilization of the west Mr. Weller has led the way to the substantial development, progress and upbuilding of California, being particularly active in the growth of Santa Clara county, where he still makes his home. He is numbered among the pioneers of this region, his memory going back to the time when the entire Pacific coast was but sparsely settled and the Indians were numerous and the population was largely a mining one, and when the land had not been reclaimed for purposes of civilization but remained in the primitive condition in which it had come from the hand of nature.
EDGAR D. PEIXOTTO.
Edgar D. Peixotto, lawyer and orator of San Francisco, is a representa- tive of one of the distinguished American families, his ancestry, both lineal and collateral, having through many generations been distinctively American, for at an early epoch in the colonization of the new world the Peixotto family was established in this country, as was the Davis family, from whom Mr. Peixotto is descended in the maternal line. It was in the latter part of the seventeenth century during the early settlement of Rhode Island that repre- sentatives of the paternal line became residents of Rhode Island. The grand- father, Dr. D. L. M. Peixotto, was a distinguished New York physician, a
writer of ability, and became dean of the faculty of medicine in Columbia College. Benjamin F. Peixotto, an uncle of Mr. Peixotto, was an eminent lawyer and at one time was associated in practice with Stephen A. Douglas. He was a member of the bar of San Francisco for a short time and afterward became connected with diplomatic service, occupying a position of minister to Roumania from the United States under General Grant, while under Presi- dent Hayes he was connected with the consular service as consul to Lyons.
Raphael Peixotto, the father of Edgar D. Peixotto, is a native of Ohio, and the year 1868 witnessed his arrival on the coast. He located in San Francisco, where he still resides, occupying a prominent position in the com- munity affairs, his influence and labors largely molding public policy here. He was a very successful merchant and won a position of distinction as a representative of business interests in the metropolis of the Pacific coast. He married Myrtilla J. Davis, a representative of an old family of Virginia, in which state her birth occurred. Among their children was Ernest C. Peix- otto, an artist and writer of note, whose literary productions are well known to the readers of Scribner's Magazine. Another. brother, Major Sidney S. Peixotto, is prominently identified with philanthropic work in connection with the boys' clubs of San Francisco. A sister, Jessica B. Peixotto, has the dis- tinction of being the second woman to receive the degree of Doctor of Philos- ophy from the University of California, and is now a member of the faculty of that institution.
Edgar D. Peixotto was born in New York on the 23d of December, 1867, and when but a year old was brought by his parents to the west, being
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Edgara . Periyotto
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reared in San Francisco, where he acquired his preliminary education in the public school. His literary course was followed by preparation for the legal profession. He matriculated in the Hastings College of the Law, in which he completed the regular course and was graduated in the class of June, 1888. In January, 1889, he was admitted to the bar on passing the examination be- fore the supreme court, subsequent to which time he spent a year in travel in the United States and Europe. Upon his return he entered upon the practice of law in San Francisco, and in December, 1893, became assistant district attorney of the San Francisco district under Hon. W. S. Barnes. He con- ducted the prosecution and was identified with many prominent cases, includ- ing the trial of Patrick Collins, who was convicted of murder and hanged. He also conducted the first trial of Jane Shattuck, who was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment. Mr. Peixotto was Mr. Barnes' only assistant, and he was counsel in the trial of William Henry Theodore Durrant-the crime of the century-and made the opening address to the jury in behalf of the people. This argument was a splendid example of Mr. Peixotto's forceful and succinct style. In 1899 he wrote the history of this case, which was published by a Detroit house, the work being well illustrated and designed for the general reader as well as for the profession. Shortly after this celebrated trial Mr. Peixotto resigned his position in connection with the office of district attorney and entered upon the private practice of law, now occupying a fine suite of rooms in the Claus Spreckles building. In 1899 he was attorney for Sheriff Henry S. Martin. Mr. Peixotto has been conspicuous in connection with Republican politics in California as a promoter of the interests of the party, but never as an office-seeker. In 1896 and again in 1900 he was a delegate to the national republican convention, and in the latter year was secretary of the California delegation. He has always been a stanch advocate of the party and its principles, and has delivered many campaign addresses, his eloquence and logic never failing to impress his auditors and many times carrying conviction to the minds of those who hear him. He was one of the executive committee on the occasion of the reception of President Roosevelt in San Francisco in 1903. He is a prominent mem- ber of the Bohemian and other clubs of San Francisco and of various fraternal organizations, and is well known throughout the state, being a favorite upon the public platform and a most popular after-dinner speaker.
Few lawyers have made a more lasting impression upon the bar of the state for legal ability of a high order and for the individuality of a personal character which impresses itself upon a community. Of a family conspicu- ous for strong intellectuality, indomitable courage and energy, he entered upon his career as a lawyer, and such is his force of character and natural qualifications that he has overcome all the obstacles and written his name upon the keystone of the legal arch of California.
ALFRED W. JONES.
Well known in business circles in Santa Clara county and also in con- nection with public affairs having to do with the welfare and progress of the community, Alfred W. Jones well deserves representation in this volume.
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He is now engaged in harness manufacturing in Milpitas, where he is like- wise filling the office of justice of the peace. He was born in this place on the 23d of April, 1868, and is a son of Alfred and Celia (Thornton) Jones, the former a native of Vermont and the latter of Massachusetts. Both were descended from old American families antedating the Revolutionary war. It was in the year 1859 that Alfred Jones came to California, making the trip by way of the isthmus route. Like most men who came here in those days, he sought a fortune in the mines, and after a few years spent in the mining regions at Virginia City, Nevada, he returned to San Francisco, where he resided for a brief period. He then came to Santa Clara county, settling in Milpitas in 1867. Here he embarked in the harness-making busi- ness, which he followed continuously up to the time of his demise. Being an excellent workman, energetic in the performance of his tasks and reliable in all his business dealings, he secured a good patronage and thereby gained a satisfactory reward for himself and family. He died in 1896 at the age of sixty-four years, and is still survived by his widow, who makes her home in San Jose. The family numbered four daughters and two sons: Ida; Alfred W .; George, a resident of South Omaha, Nebraska; Alice, a school teacher, who for two years has been principal of the public schools at Ber- ryessa, California; Effie, who is living at home with her mother; and Nellie, who is a student in a Normal school.
Alfred W. Jones, born and reared in Santa Clara county, is indebted to the public school system for the educational privileges which he enjoyed and which he continued to improve until about eighteen years of age, when he put aside his text books and began learning the harness-maker's trade under the direction of his father. In the spring of 1891 he went to San Francisco, where he entered the wholesale house of W. Davis & Son, harness manufacturers. In the spring of 1892, however, he returned to Milpitas and continued in his father's employ until the time of his demise, when he purchased the business, which he has since carried on with constantly grow- ing success. He is thoroughly familiar with the trade and the practical workings of manufacture, and as he places upon the market an excellent com- modity and as he is reliable in all his business dealings, he has won a full measure of success. It is true that he became interested in a business already established, but in controlling and enlarging such an enterprise many a man of even considerable resolute purpose, courage and industry would have failed, and he has demonstrated the truth of the saying that success is not the result of genius but the outcome of clear judgment and experience.
In 1894 Mr. Jones was united in marriage with Miss Mary E. Welch, a native of Berryessa, Santa Clara county, and a daughter of Robert Welch. who was a pioneer settler of Milpitas and a prominent farmer of that locality, carrying on agricultural pursuits until his death. He came from Canada to California in 1849, being among the early settlers who made their way to the gold fields and became the promoters of the early development and progress of this portion of the country. He was for many years prominent in political circles and was a stanch Republican. To Mr. and Mrs. Jones has been born one son, Robert Welch Jones, now about a year old.
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Mr. Jones gives his political allegiance to the Republican party, and in 1897 was appointed justice of the peace to fill a vacancy. In 1898 he was regularly elected to the office and in 1902 was re-elected for a second term of four years, so that he is the present incumbent. His wife was appointed postmistress of Milpitas by President Mckinley in 1898, and has filled the position to the present time, Mr. Jones acting as assistant in the office. He belongs to the Ancient Order of United Workmen, to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and to the U. P. E. C. His life has been one of continuous activity, in which has been accorded due recognition of labor, and to-day he is numbered among the substantial citizens of his county. He has achieved success through honorable effort, untiring industry and capable management, and in private life has gained that warm personal regard which arises from true nobility of character and deference for the opinions of others.
FRANCIS MARION EVANS.
Francis Marion Evans, who has been a resident of California from his boyhood days, having arrived in this state in 1850, was born in Grundy county, Missouri, on the 19th of January, 1838. He is a son of Josiah and Cavy Anne (Smith) Evans, both of whom were natives of Ohio. They removed to Missouri in the year 1836 and became pioneer settlers of that state, where the father secured a tract of land and engaged in farming and stock-raising for a number of years. In 1848 there came news of the dis- covery of gold in California, and report after report was received concern- ing the richness of the mines and the excellent opportunities for the rapid acquirement of wealth on the Pacific coast. All this proved alluring to the Evans family, and in 1850 they made preparation for seeking a home in the far west. They crossed the plains in a wagon drawn by an ox team, the family at that time numbering the father and mother and seven children, the eldest of the children being Francis M. Evans. Making his way to the gold regions, the father followed the fortunes of a miner for about two years in Amador and Yuba counties, but not meeting with the success he had anticipated in that direction he resolved to turn his attention to other labor which he believed would prove more profitable, and in April, 1853, he took up his abode in Santa Clara county, locating near the present site of Milpitas, where he purchased a squatter's claim. He then engaged in general farming and stock-raising and continued to direct his labors in this direction up to the time of his demise, which occurred in 1883. His wife passed away in 1885. He found that farming was to him a more profitable field of labor than mining and through the continued exercise of his industry, energy and perseverance he became the possessor of a comfortable com- petence.
Francis M. Evans, whose name introduces this review, acquired his early education in the country schools of Santa Clara county. He was a pupil during the winter months while in the summer seasons he aided his father in the arduous task of developing a new and hitherto unimproved farm. In the fall of 1859 he went to Nevada, where he remained until
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1867, being employed in various ways during that period. In the latter year he returned to Santa Clara county and again took up the work of the home farm, with which he has since been identified. After the father's death he and his brothers operated the ranch together until 1902, when he purchased the property which he now owns and conducts. In connection with general farming he has engaged in stock-raising and also devotes some attention to the dairy business, and each department of his work is proving profitable.
In 1869 Mr. Evans was united in marriage to Miss Lydia Trueman, a native of New Brunswick, who came to California in 1869 with her parents, who settled in San Jose. Her father, Marcas Trueman, is now a retired undertaker, living in that city. The home of Mr. and Mrs. Evans has been blessed with seven children, three sons and four daughters, namely: May, Nellie, George, Annie, Elizabeth, Josiah and Arthur. Mr. Evans is a Re- publican in his political affiliations, and as every true American citizen should do he keeps well informed on the questions and issues of the day. He has been a trustee of the public schools for a number of years, and the cause of education finds in him a warm friend. His life has been quietly passed in the control of his business interests, but nevertheless he belongs to that class of citizens who form the strength of every community because they uphold the social and moral status of the community and co-operate in movements for its material and substantial upbuilding. As a pioneer he is familiar with the history of this portion of the state for more than a half century. People of the present day can scarcely realize the struggles and dangers which at- tended the early settlers, the heroism and self-sacrifice of lives passed upon the borders of civilization, the hardships endured, the difficulties overcome. These tales of the early days are almost like a romance to those who have known only the modern prosperity and conveniences, but Mr. Evans' mem- ory forms a connecting link between the primitive past and the progressive present and his mind bears the impress of many of the early historic annals of the state.
THOMAS RUSSELL.
Thomas Russell is one of the respected and prominent citizens of Santa Clara county actively identified with important agricultural interests. To a student of biography there is nothing more interesting than to examine the life history of a self-made man, and to detect the elements of character which have enabled him to pass on the highway of life many of the companions of his youth who at the outset of their careers were more advantageously equipped or endowed. The subject of this review has through his own exertions attained an honorable position and marked prestige among the representative men of the west, and one whose success amply justifies the application of the somewhat hackneyed but most expressive title, "a self- made man." He devoted a number of years in his early life to sailing on the seas, and since coming to Santa Clara county he has wrought along lines of important business enterprises, which have resulted in winning him suc-
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cess and gained him prominence as a representative business man of his chosen community.
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