Historical and biographical record of Los Angeles and vicinity : containing a history of the city from its earliest settlement as a Spanish pueblo to the closing year of the nineteenth century ; also containing biographies of well known citizens of the past and present, Part 107

Author: Guinn, James Miller, 1834-1918
Publication date: 1901
Publisher: Chicago : Chapman Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 996

USA > California > Los Angeles County > Los Angeles > Historical and biographical record of Los Angeles and vicinity : containing a history of the city from its earliest settlement as a Spanish pueblo to the closing year of the nineteenth century ; also containing biographies of well known citizens of the past and present > Part 107

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E. J. Vawter was one of the organizers of the colony which made the first settlement upon the site of Pasadena. At one time his father owned the land upon which now stands the First Na- tional Bank of that city, and forty acres of prop- erty surrounding it. Our subject still owns valuable real estate in that lovely city, which, by many tourists, is considered the most Eden- like spot in sunny California. It is generally conceded that few of the citizens of this county have been connected with more enterprises or have done more for the general welfare, in pro- portion to their means, than have the Vawter family.

Ever since becoming a resident of this place E. J. Vawter has been more or less connected with local politics. He has been a trustee of the

town, has served as a member of the board of education and has been present at nearly all of the state and county conventions of the Repub- lican party. He is identified with the Masonic order and the Knights of Pythias, and is an honored member of the Pioneers' Association of Los Angeles county.

The marriage of E. J. Vawter and Miss Laura E. Dixon, a native of Indiana, took place in the Hoosier state in 1869, and seventeen years later she was summoned to the silent land. The only child of this union is E. J. Vawter, Jr., who is cashier of the Main street Savings Bank of Los Angeles. In 1888 our subject married Miss Isabella L. Nelson, who was born in New York City and there received a good education and the training which qualifies her to shine in any society.

OLDRIDGE OZRO COLLINS. The family represented by this able attorney of Los Angeles was one of the first to plant itself on the bleak and barren shores of New England, where its members with the other Puritan pio- neers sought to transform a dreary waste of land into a habitable region. From that time onward the Collins family was identified with the rise and growth of New England, and particularly with Massachusetts and Connecticut, where the larger number of its members made their homes. On the other hand he is descended, through his mother, from a long line of Dutch and French- Huguenot ancestors, who were early settlers in New Netherlands and bore an honorable part in the development of the Empire state. In the various wars of our country both families were represented and always on the side of liberty, freedom and justice.

Ozro Collins, father of the subject of this arti- cle, was born at Woodbridge, near Naugatuck, Conn., and settled in Toledo, Ohio, where for many years he was a resident. He married Ann Van Etten, who was born in Owasco, N. Y., June 12, 1819, and died in Toledo, December 22, 1858. She was a woman possessing a character of great nobility and gentleness, and one whose happiness centered in the welfare of her husband and children. The education which her son, our subject, acquired was in large measure due to her influence, for she inspired him with a love of

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learning and a zeal in the acquisition of knowl- edge. He was given every advantage which the best schools of the country afforded, and of these he availed himself to the utmost, acquiring in this manner a breadth of knowledge that has been most helpful to him professionally and so- cially.

After graduating from St. Louis University in 1865 Mr. Collins matriculated in Harvard University, where he took the regnlar course of study in the law department, graduating in 1867. He has received the several degrees of A. B., A. M. and LL. D. In 1869 he was admitted to the bar of Illinois at Chicago, where he engaged in practice until his removal to California in 1889. Meantime he took an active part in the organization of the Chicago Bar Association, of which he was secretary for two terms, and he also served as a member of the board of managers and the committee of admissions from 1881 to 1889. In addition to his activity in direct pro- fessional lines he was also connected with the state militia. He was instrumental in the crea- tion of the First Infantry, Illinois National Guard, and was elected one of the first six cap- tains. Upon the organization of the Illinois mi- litia into a division of three brigades, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-colonel, in which capacity he held a large command at Chi- cago during the railroad riots of 1877. His posi- tion in that line and on the staff presented oppor- tunities so favorable for acquiring information relating to the military affairs of Illinois that in 1884 he published an accurate and complete his- tory of the Illinois National Guard.

Nor does this publication represent the limit of Mr. Collins' literary activity. He has a taste for belles-lettres and is an interesting writer, as is evinced in his various literary publications. During his later professional years, notwith- standing the pressure of many demands npon his time, he has written a biographical mnemoir of his mother.

When the California Society of the Sons of the Revolution was organized Mr. Collins became one of its charter members; he has been con- nected with the New York Society since 1891, also is a member of the Pennsylvania Society of the war of 1812, and was an original member of the New York Society of Colonial Wars. Upon

the incorporation of the California Society of the Sons of the Revolution in 1893 he was elected president, in which position he has continued to serve efficiently ever since. In 1895 a charter was granted to the Society of Colonial Wars in California and he was chosen the governor, which office he still holds. He is also a member of the Veteran Corps of the First Regiment, Illi- nois National Guard, of the Harvard and Uni- versity Clubs of Chicago, and Los Angeles Con- mandery No. 9, K. T.

The marriage of Mr. Collins, which took place in 1874, united him with Miss Mary Ballance, daughter of Col. Charles Ballance, for years an influential lawyer of Peoria, Ill., and during the war serving as colonel of the Seventy-seventh Illinois Infantry. He died in Peoria in 1872. Mrs. Mary Collins died in the same city, Decem- ber 24, 1894. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Collins are as follows: Rejoyce Ballance, who was born in Chicago, July 28, 1876; Gladys, who was born in Chicago, Angust 14, 1883, and died in Oakland, Cal., February 2, 1886; Constance Dorothy, born in Chicago, October 26, 1888; and Jessie Fremont, whose death occurred in Los An- geles, May 10, 1890.

AMES FLETCHER ISBELL. During the long years of his sojourn in the land of flow- ers and sunshine and infinite possibility, James F. Isbell has hoarded memories full of charm and variety and progress. Upon his ar- rival in Southern California in 1868, great herds of cattle and sheep roamed at will and grazed on the uplands and in the meadows, where now the air is sweet with the fragrance of' blossoms, prophetic of a luscious, abundant harvest. There was also a tinge of old world sovereignty associ- ated with his first place of residence, the ranch upon which he located having been previously a portion of the home ranch of Don Pio Pico, the last Spanish governor of California. Here the first Isbell child was born; this being the first white child born on the former property of the Spanish crown.

Governor Pico's place was a three-league ranchito, which was called in Spanish, Rancho Passo de Bartolo Veja. The governor was a loyal American citizen, devoted to the institu- tions of our country, and, personally, was a gen-

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HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

tleman of the old school, dignified and courtly. He proved a good friend to Mr. Isbell; the latter raised a crop of corn on his ranch with only once irrigating the land. Don Pio Pico offered to sell him all the land he wished at $20 per acre, and to wait for payment until he had harvested his crops. This offer Mr. Isbell refused, although he has ever since regretted doing so. Instead, he went to Orange county in 1872 and bought twen- ty acres of land for $30 an acre, but traded ten of the acres for orange trees to plant on the bal- ance of the property. In addition he bought five acres, thus having fifteen acres, which he later sold for $500 per acre. Theincrease in the valne of the property was due to his efforts in the inter- ests of irrigation. He was instrumental in the organization of the Santa Ana Valley Irriga- tion Company, which bought out the Chapman & Glassell Company. The old ditch was not large enough to accommodate the demand for water, and Mr. Isbell was one of sixteen men who went to Los Angeles and bought out the old company. They built what was practically a new ditch, and by cutting a tunnel they created a forty-foot water power, which is used by the Olive Milling Company. Theditch cost about $65,000, much of which amount was worked out by the stockholders. It has proved of incalculable value to the entire country and irrigates twenty thou- sand acres of land. Immediately after its com- pletion prices began to advance, and it was for this reason that Mr. Isbell was enabled to sell his property at such a splendid increase over its purchase price. During the work of building the ditch he superintended one gang of the con- struction party, at the upper end of the ditch, in the Santa Ana Cañon in the mountains. He de- serves much of the credit for this undertaking and its successful accomplishment.

In 1883 Mr. Isbell changed his location to the ranch at Los Nietos where he now resides. Here he has thirty acres in all, twenty-five of which are under English walnuts and five under oranges, Originally a waving cornfield shook its tassels in the air, plebeian progenitor of a golden aristocra- cy. Since his return to Los Angeles county Mr. Isbell has done considerable work in grading ditches in the Los Nietos valley. He worked for the Santa Fe Railroad Company in securing for them the right of way between Los Angeles and

the Orange county line. He also put up the grade at the railroad crossing at Los Nietos sta- tion, thus giving the Santa Fe the right of way, and obliging the Southern Pacific to put up the signal tower. While working for the railroad company he was able to secure fifty acres of land, on which he located the town of Rivera, subdi- vided the property into lots, and these he sold. He gave the land for the Baptist and Presbyterian Churches of Rivera and assisted in their erection. He also erected a hotel and assisted in building a town hall. He has been the most prominent real estate dealer in this part of Los Angeles county, and all of his transactions have been honorable and conducted in a conscientious man- ner.

Born May 4, 1848, James F. Isbell is a native of Newton county, Mo. His parents were Thomas and Rachel (Wright) Isbell, natives of Missouri, the ancestry on the father's side being Scotch-English, and on the maternal side Scotch- Irish. The mother died in 1858, and the father is now living at Burbank, Cal., and is in his seventy-sixth year. He is an active Mason and an honor to the fraternity. He was four years a member of the Texas Rangers. The son lived on his father's farm in Newton county, Mo., until 1856, when he moved with his parents to Wise county, Tex., where they remained until 1868, going thence to Southern California. His oppor- tunities for acquiring an education were indeed limited, and were confined to the early subscrip- tion schools of Texas, which was a wilderness of unsettled land. In later life he made up for the limited chances of his youth and is to-day a more than ordinarily well-informed man. He married Mary L. Roland, of San Antonio, Tex., and of this union there are eight surviving children: John P .; Ollie E., the wife of M. Holbrook; Lottie O., who is married to James Faulking- burg; Orry T .; Allie K., who is the wife of Albert Dickerson; Nora B .; Elton S. and Ever- ett F.

Mr. Isbell is a member of the Democratic party and has figured conspicuously in the various offices within the gift of the people. While a resident of Orange county,' Cal., he served as constable for seven years, and he is now a member of the board of the Pico school district and chair- man of the board, which capacity he has been

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HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

identified with for a number of years. He was also instrumental in organizing his home school system. He served for two years as deputy sheriff of Los Angeles county under Sheriff Edward Gibson. Mr. Isbell is a typical pioneer and is president of the Los Nietos Valley Pioneer Club, of which he was au organizer. Fraternally he is a member of Whittier Lodge No. 323, F. & A. M. He is public-spirited and advanced in his ways of dealing with questions pertaining to the welfare of the community in which he lives, and his many admirable traits of character, mind and heart have endeared him to friends and asso- ciates.

C D ARL W. POTTER, president of the board of trustees of the Covina schools and a res- ident of Covina since the fall of 1884, was boru in Effingham county, Ill., February 11, 1861, a son of Oliver E. and Cornelia (Orvis) Potter, natives of New York state. His father came to California in 1880 and settled in Santa Ana, wlience four years later he removed to Covina and here remained until death, June 12, 1899. When Carl was a child of two years his parents moved from Illinois to northeastern Iowa, and there his years of boyhood and youth were uneventfully passed, his education being gained in local schools. In 1881 he joined his father in Santa Ana and spent three years there. On liis arrival in Covina he found scarcely even the integral elements of the present village. He himself erected, for a shop, the second building ever put up in the place. He is justly entitled to be denominated a pioneer. He has witnessed the development of the surrounding country and no one has rejoiced in its advancement more than · he. His first occupation in life, after leaving the home farm, was that of fireman on the Illinois Central Railroad, where he remained for two years. Later he turned his attention to the blacksmith's trade, which he learned so thor- oughly that he is now considered one of the expert smiths of the valley, and carries on the trade successfully.

Fraternally Mr. Potter is connected with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Order of Foresters and the Ancient Order of United Workmen, all at Covina. His political views are stanchly Republican, but he is not a partisan and

does not identify himself with public affairs. His interest in educational matters is deep. Realizing the importance of the public-school system he does all in his power to advance its welfare. In June, 1900, he was elected a mem- ber of the board of trustees of the Covina schools for a term of three years, and soon afterward was chosen president of the board, an office that he fills faithfully and well. By his marriage to Miss Anna Reynolds, who was born in New York state, he has three children, Celo M., Harold W. and Hazel G.

EBSTER WOTKYNS. He whose sym- pathies are on the side of progressive movements should be accorded a high place in the citizenship of his town and county. This, in a few words, gives one of the most prominent characteristics of Mr. Wotkyns. He has the greatest faith in the future of California, the history of which during the last decade has gone far toward justifying the faith in it mani- fested by men of wise judgment and keen fore- sight. His interest in Pasadena is especially deep, for this is his home city and for years he has aided in the development of some of its im- portant enterprises. He is a director of the Pa- cific Clay Manufacturing Company, of Los An- geles, and for years has been connected in a similar capacity with the San Gabriel Valley Bank of Pasadena.

Mr. Wotkyns was born in Troy, N. Y., De- cember 23, 1857, a son of Hon. Alfred Wotkyns,. M. D., who was of Revolutionary stock and (it is thought) English and Welsh ancestry. Dr. Wotkyns was a man of unusual ability and won the friendship of many men of prominence, among them the statesman Daniel Webster. As a physician he stood remarkably high. His suc- cess brought him a very large practice in and near Troy. On the organization of the National Bank of Troy, in 1852, he was chosen its president and accepted the position. He continued at the head of the bank until his death, in 1876. He took an active part in local affairs and in 1857 served as mayor of Troy. His ancestors had also for sev- eral generations been prominent in the growth of Troy, where the family settled early in the nine- teenth century, when the city was a mere hamlet.

The education of Webster Wotkyns was ob-

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tained in Troy Academy and Rensselaer Poly- technic Institute, of Troy, where he took a full engineering course, and graduated in 1879 with the degree of C. E. The next year he went from Troy to Chicago and accepted a position as a con- fidential clerk with the dry-goods firm of James H. Walker & Co. He remained with them for a little over six years. In the fall of 1887 he came to Pasadena, where he still resides. For more than ten years he has been a member of the real- estate firm of Wotkyns Brothers, of this city. He is a Democrat in national issues. In October, 1895, he was appointed postmaster of Pasadena, and on the Ist of December assumed the duties of the office, which he filled for the next four years. The duties of this office he discharged satisfac- torily to all, notwithstanding the fact that it pre- sents difficulties unknown in most postoffices; this being the result of the constant growth of the city, and also because of its large throng of win- ter tourists. Fraternally he is identified with the Masonic order and the Pasadena Council, Royal Arcanum. He is a member of the Pasadena Episcopal Church and for a number of years has officiated as one of its vestrymen.

The home of Mr. Wotkyns is at No. 815 South Orange Grove avenue. While living in the east he was married to Miss Charlotte Jackson, of West Troy, N. Y. They have a son and daugh- ter, Alfred and Margaret P.

DWARD A. CARSON. In following the history of Edward A. Carson and his an- cestors, memories of the beautiful remance of Southern California, "Romona," inevitably come uppermost in one's mind. How naturally the thoughts return of days of the past -- days of a little more than half a century ago, when his forefathers led a quiet, pastoral life in the peace- ful valleys of this region, little dreaming that strangers soon would overturn all of the old, treasured customs, and supplant the few inhabi- tants with an ambitious, thrifty population. Some there are, perhaps, who often sigh for the time of the vanished yesterday, but to the pro- gressive modern spirit the destiny of Southern California has worked for her advancement and highest welfare. Nowhere on this continent can be seen to greater advantage the reclaiming and

enlivening power of man-on the one hand, the arid, brown hills and valleys white with dust during the major portion of the year, and on the other, beautiful, fertile homesteads, orange groves and lovely towns, bowered in a wealth of almost tropical vegetation.

The father of Edward A. is a native of New York state, but for forty-seven years has made his home in California. Now, in his declining years, he is residing on a portion of the famous old Dominguez ranch, one of the oldest in Los Angeles county. He is a veteran of the Mexican war and soon after the cession of California to the United States, he decided to try his fortunes on the Pacific slope. In 1853 he arrived in this county and carried on a hardware business for about a year. Later he served for twenty-one years as the public administrator of the county, thus holding the record for the longest continu- ous service of any official here. Placed in an ex- ceedingly difficult position and before affairs had been adjusted to the satisfaction of the native in- habitants or to their so-called conquerors, and without precedent to guide him in his dealings with the contending factions, he wisely yet firmly wielded his authority and won the admiration and respect of all classes. He erected the first brick building in Los Angeles. His wife was a daughter of Senor Dominguez, a wealthy native citizen, owner of the extensive property previ- ously mentioned. He was one of the strong, sturdy, honorable characters who deserve to live in history. Possessing an excellent education and much of the energy of the Anglo-Saxon, he spent his leisure in study and was thoroughly posted in the affairs of his day, taking the leading newspapers and keeping in touch with the age. Thus, enlightened and liberal, he believed that . California, the land of his love, would have a far greater future should she be enrolled under the flag of the free, and unlike many of his neighbors and compatriots he was glad at the outcome of the Mexican war. His well-stocked ranch was a favorite camping ground for the armies of the United States, and though time and again they destroyed and appropriated everything they could lay hands upon he never could be prevailed upon to present for payment the checks which were given him upon the United States treasury as a partial indemnity for his great losses.

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Edward A. Carson, one of twelve children, was born in Los Angeles in 1869, and was educated in the public schools and by private tutors. Later he pursued a course of special instruction in a business college, and to further equip himself for the duties of life continued his higher studies in Santa Clara College, where he was graduated in 1892. For the three years following he studied law and then took up civil engineering. After spending two years in that line of business, he accepted a position as a clerk to the board of county supervisors, where he gave complete sat- isfaction during the four years of his service. In the fall of 1898 he was elected on the Republi- can ticket to the responsible office of city auditor of Los Angeles, and is ably discharging the du- ties which fall to his share.

Fraternally Mr. Carson is identified with the Native Sons of California, the Royal Arcanum and the Woodmen of the World. His marriage to Miss Celia Pearson of San Francisco took place in 1896. Her father is a prominent citizen and hotel-keeper of Stockton, Cal., and she is a lady of education and culture.

USEBIUS POLLARD. In the death of this honored citizen of Alhambra, Los Angeles county lost one of her representative agri- culturists-a man sincere, upright and conscien- tious in word and deed. His life was a busy and useful one, not, however, given up to self-ag- grandizement, but ever dominated by the noble desire of aiding and uplifting his fellow-men. A complete record of the good deeds which he per- formed, of the kindly sympathy which he inva- riably exercised towards others, could not be compiled, for he was modest and unostentatious in all his acts, and few, save those benefited, ever learned of his good works.

Coming from the sturdy, honest, hard-working Cornwall-Celtic stock, Mr. Pollard also was en- dowed by nature with many other characteristics for which that people are noted and admired. He was born in Kenwyn parish, Cornwall, England, July 14, 1839, a grandson of William, and son of John and Christiana (Trethowan) Pollard. In his youth he learned the business of mining, and he was trained in the industrious habits to which his ancestors were accustomed.

Having heard glowing accounts of the wonder- ful possibilities of the far-away Pacific coast, Mr. Pollard left home when he attained his majority and sailed for the United States, coming to Cali- fornia by way of the Isthmus of Panama. Locat- ing in Grass Valley, this state, he followed his usual occupation of mining for some six years, meeting with well deserved success.

In 1866 he was married, and three years after- wards he removed with his wife and their infant daughter to San Gabriel, where he took up a claim of eighty acres, situated about a mile south of the Sunny Slope ranch, then owned by L. J. Rose. After filing his claim Mr. Pollard left his brother, Thomas Pollard, to attend to affairs there, while in company with a friend he went to the mines of Inyo county, where he hoped to se- cure employment and means to improve his new property. As it turned out, this was a most dis- astrous venture, for he was unable to procure the work that he desired at the mines, and as he was returning home from his fruitless quest he was prostrated by a sunstroke while crossing the des- ert. His once strong constitution was broken, and for a period of fully five years he was unable to perform even the lightest kind of work. In 1876 the family disposed of their San Gabriel val- ley claim (the purchaser being L. J. Rose, pre- viously mentioned), and, removing to Alhambra, bought a fine five-acre tract of irrigated land from B. D. Wilson. Here the father and sons engaged in the nursery and fruit-growing business, and within a few years success crowned their arduous labors. What has long been known far and near as the Los Robles nurseries is a point of in- terest to everyone, and many visitors and stran- gers make special trips to see the place, which is a model one in every respect. A splendid variety of citrus trees are to be found here in every stage of growth and productiveness. Within ten years of his first purchase of land at Alhambra Mr. Pollard had added to his property until the place comprised thirty-five acres, as it does to-day.

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Historical and biographical record of Los Angeles and vicinity : containing a history of the city from its earliest settlement as a Spanish pueblo to the closing year of the nineteenth century ; also containing biographies of well known citizens of the past and present, Part 107

Author: Guinn, James Miller, 1834-1918 Publication date: 1901 Publisher: Chicago : Chapman Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 996

Author: Guinn, James Miller, 1834-1918
Publication date: 1901
Publisher: Chicago : Chapman Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 996