USA > California > A memorial and biographical history of the coast counties of Central California > Part 38
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Mr. Field is a business man of absolutely unimpeachable integrity, and has served as a member of the Board of Supervisors of Monterey county since 1884.
M M. MOORE was born in Wayne county, Indiana, in 1835, but af- terwa rd moved to Howard county, where his father, David Moore, a farmer by occupation and a carpenter by trade, pur- chased a large farm.
Mr. Moore came to the Golden State in 1858, arriving in San Francisco, February 17, of that year. He worked for a time in Gilroy, Santa Clara county, in the dairy busi- ness, then came to the Pájaro valley and en- gaged in farming until 1865.
He then moved to the Cooper ranch located near Castroville, where he has since farmed successfully. His principal crops being wheat and potatoes. He owns 340 acres of fine land adjoining the town of Castroville, on the Moss landing road.
Mr. Moore was married in Watsonville, in December, 1869, to Miss Katie Leonard, a native of Montreal, Canada. They have three children, two sons and a daughter. Mr. Moore is well known throughout Mon- terey county as a man of honest dealing and safe business methods.
In domestic life he is a kind husband, in- dulgent father and a true friend. No mem- bers of the community in which they live are more highly respected than Mr. and Mrs. Moore.
LEE DAVIS, of Salinas, California, was born in Canada, January 18, 1843. A brief review of his life and ancestry is as follows:
His parents, Thaddeus and Nancy A. (Hagar) Davis, were natives of Canada, the former born July 27, 1811, and the latter in 1820. The maternal grandparents of Mrs. Davis were Jonathan Hagar, born August 4, 1765, and Azulah (Hopkins) Hagar, born in New Jersey, in 1770. Her marriage with Thaddeus Davis occurred October 20, 1836. Their happy union resulted in the birth of four sons and two daughters, of whom two sons and one daughter are now living. Thad- deus Davis comes of a long-lived and sturdy race, some of his ancestors having attained the advanced age of 107 years.
In 1850 the father of our subject left Can- ada and came to California, being followed three years later by his wife and children, who made the voyage to this State on the steamer Uncle Sam on the Atlantic and the Cortez on the Pacific side, landing in San Francisco. Cholera and yellow fever broke out on the vessel after they left Panama, and sixty of the passengers were attacked with it, many dying. In the year 1859 Mr. Davis returned
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to Canada, but came back to California the following year.
Mr. Davis and his sons have been engaged in farming, merchandising and stock-raising. They own about 1,300 acres, of which about 500 acres are sediment-rich and valuable land. It is said, and on good authority, that 180 bushels of wheat to the acre have been raised on the land, now owned by the Messrs. Davis. The floods of 1861 washed away half the house in which the Davis family lived. This was situated at Hill Town, three miles from Salinas, on the Salinas river. The other half of the house was moved to higher land, where it now stands. The channel of the river was narrow then, and the great volume of water was forced over its banks and spread over the entire plains to the depth of from two to four feet. The large sycamore, cotton- wood and live oak trees that bordered its banks have long since been washed away, and much valuable soil has also been carried away by the current.
H. Lee Davis was married, November 10, 1887, to Florence Titus, and their union has been blessed with three children.
OHN SAMUEL YOACHAM, one of the venerable pioneers of California, was born near Kansas City, in what was then Indian Territory in 1832. His parents were Daniel and Rosa (May) Yoacham, natives respectively of Kentucky and Tennessee, he being the fourth in a family of six children. His father was a contractor and bnilder, for the Indians, in the Government employ. Education in those days was received in log schoclhouses, and each man had to pay for his own children. In this way Mr. Yoacham obtained his schooling.
In 1848 he left for Mexico as a teamster, freighting from Santa Fé and back home in 1849; then back to Santa Fé, and thence to Old Mexico, and to El Paso, Texas; thence to Chihuahua, Durango and Mazatlan, packing. From the latter place he shipped to San Francisco, where he arrived June 15, 1850, on the bark Diana, a French vessel. After his arrival in California he mined about one year. The following three years he was en- gaged in farming at San José. Then he came to Santa Cruz county and settled in the Pájaro valley, farming, butchering, doing a livery business and keeping store, etc. At this writing he is still conducting a store. Polit- ically he is a Democrat, of uncompromising principles. He is an extensive reader, is well posted on the general topics of the day, and is in every respect an intelligent citizen. He has served three terms in the City Council and one term as its President. Socially he is an Odd Fellow, and is Past Grand of Pájaro Lodge; also a charter member of Watsonville Lodge of A. O. U. W.
Mr. Yoacham was married, in 1854, to Miss Mary J. Hooker, a native of Virginia and a daughter of Major Hooker. Their children are as follows: Susic, Llewella, wife of A. W. White; Robert Lee and Daniel H.
HOMAS CLAY EDWARDS, M. D., so widely and favorably known through- out Monterey county, California, was born in Columbia, Missouri, Angust 24, 1860. His early intellectual training was received in the public schools of his native place. When in his fifteenth year he accompanied his mother and sister to California, his father having died when the Doctor was a mere child. Woodland in Yolo county was the
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place selected for their abode. Here young Edwards invested his immature muscle in the harvest fields during the summer and fed his mental cravings in the schools of his neighborhood in the winter, till he graduated at Hesperian College, Yolo county, receiv- ing the degree of A. B., he entered Cooper College, San Francisco, to prepare himself for the practice of medicine. Here he fol- lowed a course of study for one year, after which he returned East, entered the St. Louis Medical College, St. Louis, Missouri, where he took three courses, and received his di- ploma in March, 1883. Two months after he returned to this State he located in Sa- linas, where he has since been engaged in the practice of his profession.
Dr. Edwards was united in marriage to Miss Grace McCandless, of Salinas, by whom he has four children.
IRAM ROTH, deceased, was well known in his day, as a miner and a cook in mining camps, later as a prosperous business man in Monterey, where he owned and operated a meat market on Alvarado street. In early life he engaged in a sea- faring life, and the date of his coming to California is not known for a certainty, but it is thought it was in the early '50s. He was an active and reliable business man. Mr. Roth was a native of Germany, and combined the native smartness of the people of that country with the business tact of his adopted land.
Mr. John Roth, his brother, was a native of Hesse-Darmstadt, Germany, and died at Castroville, December 12, 1879, leaving a widow, Mrs. Mary Roth, a native of county Tipperary, Ireland. Mrs. Roth is an astute
business woman, and manages the comfort- able estate left her by her husband in a very capable manner. She is the owner of a very pretty home, and enjoys the respect and esteem of all who know her.
AMES I. HODGES, a well-known and much respected pioneer of San Benito county, California, dates his birth in Wilson county, Tennessee, September 30, 1830.
At an early age young Hodges left home and started ont in life for himself. In 1846 he enlisted in the army for the war with Mexico, but was rejected on account of his age. He then went to Arkansas and worked for a man by the name of Wood, with whom he remained until May, 1849. During that time he was employed on a pony express route from Rockwood to Morrow, Louisiana, a distance of 150 miles. It was the inten- tion of Mr. Hodges to make the journey to California via water that spring, but circum- stances prevented him from doing so. Still, however, determined to come to this coast, in the spring of 1852 he left Clarksville, Ar- kansas, with Captain Jamison's company, April 14 being the day on which they started. Their company consisted of about 380 per- sons; they crossed the plains with ox teams, and their experiences were similar to those of many other emigrants. When they reached the North Platte, Mr. Hodges was taken with the mountain fever, and was sick some two weeks. A few days after he had sufficiently recovered to take charge of his team, he had a run-away and was thrown into a creek. Getting wet caused him to take a relapse, which came near proving fatal. September 18, 1852, was the date of their arrival in
Thomas Think
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Stockton, California. Mr. Hodges turned his team out, took his pack and left for Sonora, Tuolumne county, where he engaged in chopping down timber for building purposes. He remained at this place one month, re- ceiving $4 a day and board, after which he returned to Stockton. He then began haul- ing goods from Stockton to the mines, and the last load he took stuck fast in the mnd. He sold flour at $1 per pound. In 1853 he and five others took up a claim. After they had opened it and were about to begin work, a man came along and wanted to buy out Mr. Hodges, and he sold his interest for $500. He was next engaged in hauling lumber from the mines to Stockton for three months. After that he went back to the mines and was engaged in mining until 1865, when he sold out for the sum of $70,000. Returning again to Stockton, he remained there till 1866, thence to Santa Rosa, and from there, in 1867, to Watsonville. In the fall of 1868 he went to Soquel, and the fol- lowing fall located in Hollister, then Monte- rey county, now San Benito county.
November 28, 1860, Mr. Hodges was united in marriage with Miss Mary J. Shir- ley, by whom he has had seven children, five sons and two daughters. One daughter is deceased.
ON. THOMAS FLINT .- That portion of California particularly embraced within the territorial limits of this vol- ume, is peculiarly prolific ground, from the point of view of the historian. Much of its history, however, centers about a compara- tively few men, whose names must ever re- main in the foreground in the annals of the Golden State, but who, for the most part, have gone to join the silent majority. Some 20
remain, however, as active participants and leaders in present affairs, as they have been since the early days.
Dr. Flint, San Benito county claims as a citizen of one of these, and one who has been a prominent figure for upward of forty years. A brief outline sketch of his career, giving some of the earlist features, becomes there- fore a valnable, and indeed essential, contri- bution to this work.
He is a native of Maine, born at New Vine- yard, then in Somerset, but now in Franklin county, on May 13, 1824, his parents being William Reed and Electa (Weston) Flint. Both the Flint and Weston families were among the early settlers of New England, and are creditably associated with the impor- tant epochs in its history. On the father's side, the founder of the family in this country, ac- cording to the authentic published volumes of New England genealogy, was Thomas Flint, who came from Wales. The first men- tion of his name in the town records of Salem, Massachusetts, is in 1650, but this is known to be a considerably later date than that of his arrival. He was among the first settlers of Salem village (now South Danvers), and the spot in the wilderness which he selected for his later home is situated on the Salem and North Reading road, abont six miles from the present courthouse in Salem. The first deed to him on record describes a tract " containing 150 acres of meadow and past- ure land, and lying within the bounds of Salem," bought on September 18, 1654, of John Pickering. His son, Captain Thomas Flint, was an officer in King Philip's war, and was in Gardner's expedition against the Narragansetts in 1675. Dr. Thomas Flint, great-grandfather of our subject, was fifth in descent from the original Massachusetts set- tler; and he was a physician by profession,
-
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and served as a surgeon in the Revolutionary war. His son, Dr. Thomas Flint, was born in North Reading, and located in Sandy river valley, in 1787; he was a prominent set- tler and is recorded as the first merchant in Farmington. As a physician and surgeon he had an extensive practice in the sparsely settled community. His third child, William Reed Flint, was the father of the subject of this sketch; he was a land surveyor, and fol- lowed his profession for years in the lumber regions of Maine; he was County Commis- sioner, and in this capacity took an active part in the building of permanent roads; he figured prominently in public life in his day, and was three times elected a member of the Senate of the State of Maine; he was born October 25, 1796, and on July 9, 1823, was married; March, 1831, he removed with his family frow New Vineyard to Anson, Maine; where his death occurred, August 5, 1887. His wife, Electa Weston, also came of one of the prominent old New England families; the founder of the family in this country was John Weston, who was born in Buckingham- shire, England, in 1631, and came to America at the age of thirteen years, having landed at Salem, Massachusetts, in 1644. He resided in Salem until twenty-one years of age, then became a resident of Lyun village, in South Reading, now Wakefield, Massachussetts, where he purchased an extensive tract of land, on a part of which his descendants are living to-day; the line of descent is traced through several generations to Joseph Wes- ton, who settled in Concord, Massachusetts, and later removed to Canaan (afterward Bloomfield, and now Skowhegan), Maine. In the winter and spring of 1771-'72, he re- mnoved with his family to a grant of land, which he had helped to purchase from the Kennebec Company, and his wife was the
first white woman to settle in Somerset, county, where they lived for several years almost entirely isolated from the outside world. He died of fever contracted by fa- tigue and exposure assisting General Bene- dict Arnold's expedition past Skowhegan and Norridgwock Falls on its way to Quebec in October, 1775. Among their nine chil- dren was one who later became prominent as Deacon Benjamin Weston, who married in March, 1788, Annie Powers, a grand- daughter of Peter Powers, the first settler in Hollis, New Hampshire; their daughter, Electa. who was born in 1802, became the wife of Hon. William R. Flint, and was the mother of the subject of this notice. She died April 10, 1885. Ten children were born to William Reed and Electa (Weston) Flint, of whom three became residents of California; Benjamin, who came in 1849, and until his death was a prominent citizen of this State; B. P. Flint, the youngest of the family, who is a business man of San Fran- cisco; and Thomas, the subject of this sketch ; George, the eighth child, who resides on the old family homestead at Anson, Maine, has also been a public man and a member of the Senate of Maine.
Dr. Thomas Flint, with whose name this sketch commences, received his literary edn- ca ion in the high schools and academies of A I- son, Skowhegan and North Yarmouth, Maine. At the age of twenty-one, he began the study of medicine with Dr. V. P. Coolidge, at Waterville, and later attended the Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, where he was gradnated in 1849. While in attendance at the Jefferson Medical College, his thoughts were seriously turned toward California, but circumstances intervened to delay his de- parture until a later time. Leaving college, he returned to Anson, Maine, where he re-
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mained until 1851. His brother Benjamin had gone to California in the early days of the gold excitement, and the consummation of the Doctor's intention to do so had only been deferred by the fact that parties who were to accompany him on the journey had been delayed. Meantime, he practiced medi- cine causally, but in May, 1851, he went to New York to begin the sea voyage to Cali- fornia. He secured passage on the steamer " Crescent City, " which left New York har- bor on May 28, arriving at Chagres on June 6. On the following day an incident occur- red, which seriously threatened to mar the pleasure of the journey. Captain Jewett of the Chagres river steamboat, in violation of the terms of the contract, attempted to transfer the passengers to small boats with native boatmen, to continue the trip to Gorgona. The passengers rebelled, and soon a collision was imminent, weapons being drawn on both sides. The interference of General Hitchcock of the United States Army, however, was the means of bringing about an understanding, and as a result the Captain took them to Gorgona by steamer. Small boats manned by naked natives with long poles, conveyed them to Cruces, and from there they proceeded on foot, sending their bag- gage on by express. Two days, the 8th and 9th of June, were consumed in the foot jour- ney to Panama, at which port they remained until the 15th, when they boarded the steamer " Northerner, " on which the jour- ney was to be completed. She sailed on June 16, and reached San Francisco on July 7, forty days from the date of leaving New York. The same evening, Dr. Flint left for Sacramento by river steamer, and thence pro- ceeded to Volcano (now Amador county), where he mined a little. On August 8, he started for Colomna, where he remained until
Jannary 9, 1852, engaged in mining to some extent and in the cattle and beef business. He returned from Coloma to Volcano, and there soon found himself incidentally attend- ing to quite an extensive medical practice. The residents of Volcano at that time will recall the 3d of November, when Rod Stowell shot and stabbed Frank Kerns nearly to death at Fort John, near that place. " Old Rod " as he was called had established his reputation as a " tongh customer " from his having shot and killed an Indian, and having pinned a gambling companion to the floor with his bowie knife sticking through his head. It was expected that Frank's wounds would soon prove fatal, so a vigilance committee was or- ganized which had " Old Rod " arrested and held under guard for a lynch trial. Frank recovered, which circumstance kept " Old Rod's " neck from being stretched, and bronght Dr. Flint fame as a skillful surgeon On Christmas day, 1852, he started on his return to the East, making the journey via Panama, and visited his old friends and rela- tives in the State of Maine. In the spring of 1853, he started again for California, this time overland, as had been his intention on coming East. He went to Terre Haute, In- diana, the most westerly point which could then be reached by rail, and there was formed the firm of Flint, Bixby & Company, which afterward became so widely known through its extensive operations in California, composed of Dr. Thomas Flint, his brother Benjamin, and Llewellyn Bixby, his consin.
At Quincy, Illinois, they purchased sheep, and then started in earnest on their westward journey, crossing the Mississippi river at Keokuk, with 2,400 head of sheep, a team of fifteen yoke of oxen, some saddle horses and other stock. From Keokuk, those in charge of the stock proceeded across the State of
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Iowa to Council Bluffs, where they crossed the Missouri river on the ferry. Dr. Flint, however, went to St. Louis, purchased the remainder of the outfit, and took it by steamer to Council Bluffs, where the expedition was met. From the Missouri, they proceeded up the North Platte, by the old trail, and through the South Pass and Echo Canon to Salt Lake. Considerable trouble was had with Indians, and on the Platte river they lost one man, killed by the savages. While encamped one night, some Indians crept in at midnight, cut the horses loose and when a man was aroused by the noise, he was shot by the Indians, who then fied. At Salt Lake, 100 head of cattle were purchased and added to the outfit. They arrived at the Mormon capital too late, however, to .take the northern route across the mountains, and they consequently turned to the southward, taking what was known as Frémont's trail. At Provo, Utah, they fell in with Colonel Hollister, with whom were Messrs. Woodworth and William Perry, who afterward made their mark in California, and the two trains traveled more or less in com- pany from Mountain Meadows, at which point they overtook Colonel Hollister's company.
They moved along leisurely, remaining some time at places where they found favorite camping grounds, and arrived at the Mission San Gabriel January 7, 1854, having passed the winter quite comfortably on the road. They remained in the vicinity of the mission until March, and then started northiward along the coast and stopped at what is now Coyote Station, in the Santa Clara valley. In July, 1855, they came down to the San Juan valley, and in October following purchased the San Justo ranch of Francisco Perez Pa- checo, who boasted of being an Aztec Indian, and also made the same claim for his wife, although she may have been part Spanish.
Pacheco had purchased the land from Gen- eral José Castro, to whom it had been granted by the Mexican Government. From this point, the firm of Flint, Bixby & Co. carried on their extensive operations, which made them a power in the State. No change has ever been made in its membership since its organization at Terre Haute, except by the death of Benjamin Flint, October 3, 1881, and since that time, the remaining partners have carried on the business. They were at first engaged principally in sheep-raising, but from time to time other interests were added. In 1858, the firm disposed of half the San Justo ranch to Mrs. Lucy A. Brown, sister of Colonel Hollister, from whom the property passed to Colonel Hollister, the deed of par- tition being made in 1861, and the land for- mally divided at that time, Dr. Flint making the choice of the portion of the ranch re- tained by his firm, this portion consisting of 14,000 acres. This land is varied as to its topography and productive character, but is all valuable. Its capabilities in some direc- tions, and the progress made therein, are mentioned elsewhere.
In 1858, the firm of Flint, Bixby & Com- pany, engaged in the business of staging, and became the owners of the line between San José and Los Angeles. Later, this line was extended to San Diego, and for four years they transacted the passenger and express- carrying business, and carried the United States mail between those remote points, the enterprise being one of vast magnitude. Seven hundred head of horses were required as stock for carrying on this business, and three days were consumed in the trip between the terminal points. Stations were estab- lished throughout the entire line, at intervals of abont twelve miles, and a schedule of six
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miles an hour was maintained throughout, including stops.
The firm conducted this line for twelve years, but when the extension of the railroad from the north began, the length of the line was gradually lessened. Their superintend- dent was William Buckley, and, in connection with him, they ran the Panamint stage line for two years, the run being at first from Caliente to Panamint, and later from Mojave to Panamint. They sold out their interests to William Hamilton.
In 1872, Flint, Bixby & Co. embarked in the beet sugar manufacturing business, as stockholders in the California Beet Sugar Company, being among the pioneers in this line on the Pacific coast. They built a large factory at Alvarado, importing the special machinery from Germany, and established a plant, having a capacity of fifty tons of sugar per day. This plant was moved from Alvar- ado to Soquel Santa Cruz County. During their experience in this industry, they manu- factured large quantities of sugar, but the methods then in vogue were considerably more expensive than those of the present time; and when the market price of sugar fell below what it cost them to produce it, on ac- count of the admission duty free of Sandwich Island sugars, they withdrew from the busi- ness.
During this time, they were also engaged in working the Cerro Bonito quicksilver mine in this county, which, though not now in operation, is still their property, as also the Monterey quicksilver mine. About the same time, Dr. Flint was interested in the wool- shipping and commission business, in the firms of Perkins, Flint & Co., and B. P. Flint & Co., of San Francisco. Flint, Bixby & Co. have all along been interested in mining, both in this State and in Nevada, and so
continue at present. They also took part in the original organization of the Southern Pa- cific Railroad Company, and were the active workers in securing for the company the franchise and grant of land in San Francisco, and in the preliminary work generally, and were represented in the directorate of the road; Benjamin Flint, of their firm, was the first vice-president of the Southern Pacific Company. Dr. Flint is now largely inter- ested, by himself, through Flint, Bixby & Co., and through other partnerships, in land and stock, banking and other interests, and in their operations his firms have handled and owned vast tracts, part of which have since been disposed of. The firm of Irvine, Flint & Co., in which he was a partner, owned the San Joaquin ranch, and in that and the Lomas de Santiago and Santa Ana ranches, together, they had about 100,000 acres. Atabout the same time, Flint, Bixby & Co. owned the Huer-Huero ranch, in San Luis Obispo county, containing about 46,000 acres. As a member of the firm of J. Bixby & Co., he is an owner in 9,000 acres of the Ceritos ranch, 16,000 acres in the Palos Verdes ranch, and over 7,000 acres in the Alamitos ranch. Flint, Bixby & Co. also have other and smaller tracts in this and other counties and in the State of Washington, as well as real estate in San Francisco. Their stock interests are now principally in the line of cattle, of which they have something like 7,000 head of Durham and Holstein and their crosses. They still retain some sheep inter- ests, though not nearly so extensively as for- merly. They were among the first on the coast to import Merino sheep from Vermont and New York, and were the first to pay such a price as $1,000 for a Merino ram, which price they paid to Hammond, of Vermont. It was considered at the time a foolish act on
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