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 41
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their own yards throughout the country for dis- tribution and sale. And, as a result, their profits have been very large.
Mr. Perry and associates organized the Los Angeles and Humbolt Lumber Company at San Pedro, carrying there a stock to supply the Arizona and foreign trade. He organized the Pioneer Lumber and Mill Company at Colton, to supply the territory east of Los Angeles county, and also organized the Los Angeles Storage, Com- mission and Lumber Company. This company, in addition to lumber, carried lime, plaster, cement, fire-brick, etc., to supply the market.
In 1865 Mr. Perry obtained a franchise from Los Angeles City to light the city with gas. He organized the Los Angeles Gas Company, hold- ing the position of president and manager for five years, and sold the works, at a handsome ad- vance above cost, to its present owners.
Mr. Perry bought, set up and ran the first steam engine brought to Los Angeles. In 1879 he was elected director, president and manager of the Los Angeles City Water Company, which was heavily involved, and by introducing system, economy and efficiency, he put it on a dividend- paying basis, and it has ever since been retained in that position by its stockholders.
Mr. Perry owns much of the most valuable real estate in this city, and is interested in steam- ers and sail vessels plying on this coast. He is a stockholder in the Nevada Bank and Union Trust Company of San Francisco, and stock- holder and director in the Farmers and Mer- chants' Bank of Los Angeles; president of the W. H. Perry Lumber and Mill Company, presi- dent of the Pioneer Lumber and Mill Company, president of the Los Angeles City Water Com- pany, president of the Crystal Springs Water Company, president of the Southern California Pipe and Clay Company, president of the Bard Oil and Asphalt Company, director in the Olinda Crude Oil Company, director in the Reed Oil Company, stockholder in the Slocan Oil Com- pany, stockholder in the Union Oil Company, stockholder in the Kern Oil Company and many other corporations. As will be seen by the fore- going, Mr. Perry is a very busy man; in fact, is one of the most enterprising, far-seeing and suc- cessful business men on the Pacific coast. His keen insight enables him to forecast with sur-
prising accuracy what enterprises will be profit- able and what will not, and it is a remarkable fact that he seldom associated himself with any business that has not been a great financial suc- cess.
In 1858 Mr. Perry married Miss Elizabeth M. Dalton, of this city. They have three children living, viz .: Mrs. C. M. Wood, Charles Fred- erick, and Mrs. E. P. Johnson, Jr. The two daughters are fine musicians. Mrs. Wood, the elder, received her musical education and gradu- ated from the Conservatory of Milan, where she was a special pupil of the celebrated master, san Giovanni, and where she made a most successful debut as prima donna in an engagement of seven- teen successive nights. Mr. Perry has sur- rounded his family with all the comforts of life. His house is ever open to visiting friends, who are received with great warmth and welcome by himself and family.
ON. WILLIAM A. CHENEY. Through- out a career that has been conspicuous and honorable Judge Cheney has merited and received the respect of associates and acquaint- ances. His position at the bar of Los Angeles is deservedly high. He is the senior member of the law firm of Cheney & Taylor, with offices in the Stimson block, where he has a complete and val- nable law library. Since he came to California he has won (without any of those factitious cir- cumstances that sometimes usher a man into public notice) a higli reputation as lawyer, jurist and statesman; he has assisted in the making of the laws of our state; has pronounced sentence upon the violators of the law; has urged before jury and judge the vindication of the majesty of the law; and has zealously advocated the prin- ciples of his chosen party from the stump during important campaigns. As a corporation lawyer his ability is widely recognized, and he has been retained as legal adviser by numerous large cor- porations, notably the Los Angeles Electric Com- pany and the Los Angeles Lighting Company.
Both the paternal and the maternal ancestors of Judge Cheney settled in Massachusetts with the Puritans. Subsequent generations lived and died in the old Bay state. His parents, B. F.
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and Martha (Whitney) Cheney, were natives of that state, and the former engaged in the mer- cantile business in Boston for years. There were six children in the family, but only three are now living. William A. was born in Boston in 1848 and received his education in public schools and the Massachusetts Academy. He had fitted for the sophomore class in college, when ill health obliged him to leave, but he subsequently com- pleted his course by personal study. His first visit to California was in 1867. Six years later he returned to this state, where he has since made his home. In 1877 he was elected county judge of Plumas county. Three years later, upon the adoption of the new constitution, he was elected to the state senate by the counties of Butte, Plnmas and Lassen. He entered upon his duties as state senator with vigor and earnestness, and was recognized as one of the leading Republi- cans of the region. Frequently he spoke in the party's interests at times of elections and during important campaigns. While practicing in Sac- ramento, he was for a time a partner of Creed Haymond, who later became general solicitor for the Southern Pacific Railroad. Therenpon Judge Cheney came to Los Angeles and formed a part- nership with Gen. J. H. Mansfield. Shortly afterward he was made a member of the school board of this city, an office that he filled with credit, materially promoting the welfare of the schools and taking a warm and constant interest in their progress. In 1884 he was elected to the superior bench of Los Angeles county. The same methods of thoroughness and sagacity that had brought him success as a lawyer contributed to his success as a jurist. He remained on the bench until 1891, when he resumed a general law practice. The same diligence in study that characterized him when a youth is very notice- able in his discharge of professional duties. A student in boyhood, he has remained a student through his active career. Every development in his profession, every change in the law, muni- cipal or general, is carefully studied by him, and its merits or demerits thoroughly grasped. Hence he has been a "growing" lawyer, one who keeps pace with the advance of his profession and who is thoroughly versed in every department of juris- prudence. His attention has been so closely given to professional and official duties that he
has had little leisure for the social amenities of life or for active participation in the work of the fraternities, although he holds membership in the Masonic Order and the Ancient Order of United Workmen.
The home of Judge Cheney is at No. 1046 South Hill street. His wife, a daughter of Franklin Skinner, of New Haven, Coun., is a lady of superior literary attainments and the author of a number of books. They have one son, Harvey D. Cheney, now an attorney in Los Angeles.
APT. GILBERT EDMOND OVERTON. Both in civic and in military life Captain Overton has wielded a potent and lasting influence. He was born in New York City, March 18, 1845, a son of Gilbert Davis and Julia Frances (Westcott) Overton, and a descend- ant of a long line of sturdy and resolute Britons. On his father's side he traces his ancestry back eight generations, to 1695, when his family settled in Southold, N. Y .; while his first known maternal ancestor was Stukeley Westcote, of the county of Devon, England, born in 1582. Both the Westcotts and the Overtons served the coun- try during the Revolutionary war. Maltiah Overton, the captain's grandfather, was born in New London, Conn., July 31, 1776, and for years was captain of a ship sailing from Southold, Long Island. December 30, 1799, he married Lucretia Davis, who was born March 30, 1780, aud died August 26, 1836. He survived her only a few years, dying November 1, 1839.
The entire life of Gilbert Davis Overton was passed in Southold and New York City. He was born in the former town July 12, 1812, and died in the latter city July 30, 1849. He had married Miss Westcott, who was born at Provi- dence, R. I., October 5, 1816, and died at sea near St. Iago de Cuba June 19, 1866. She was a daughter of Esbon Westcott, a ship builder, who was born June 22, 1783, and died in New York City July 15, 1849. He was twice married: first at Providence, R. I., October 2, 1808, to Amy Babbitt, who died in the same city August 18, 1812; and second, at Providence, R. I., July 4, 1813, to Phobe Folger, who died at Yonkers, N. Y., November 24, 1869.
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HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
Educated in the schools of New York City and the North Salem Academy, the subject of this article was a youth of sixteen when the Civil war broke out, and, fired with the enthusiasm of youth, he determined to offer his services to his country. September 26, 1861, he was commis- sioned a second lieutenant of the Fourth New York Cavalry. After faithful service he was honorably discharged from the volunteer service as adjutant of the Twelfth New York Cavalry, in the field, July 19, 1865, at the close of the Civil war. On the 2nd of October, 1867, he was ap- pointed a second lieutenant of the Sixth United States (Regular) Cavalry. He was retired from active service as captain in the regular army February 24, 1891, his retirement being on ac- count of physical disability contracted in the line of duty. In 1865 he was breveted major, New York state troops, for distinguished service in the Civil war. February 27, 1890, he was breveted captain in the regular army for gallant services in leading a cavalry charge in the action against the Indians on Mclellan's creek in Texas, No- vember 8, 1874. In every position during his long military career he bore himself with becom- ing dignity, and was faithful to the best govern- ment on earth. By nature, as well as by his long years of experience, he was well fitted to dis- charge with ability the responsible duties of an officer in the regular army, being resolute, brave and determined, and at the same time having a large fund of sound judgment and common sense.
The marriage of Captain Overton took place at Detroit, Mich., February 20, 1873, and united him with Jane Dyson Watkins, of Detroit, Mich. They are the parents of the following-named children: Gwendolen, who was born at the United States military post at Fort Hays, Kans., February 19, 1874; Carleton, who was born at Detroit, Mich., September 14, 1876, and who died in that city November 18, 1876; and Eugene, who was born at the United States mili- tary post of Fort Grant, Ariz., May 11, 1880.
Mrs. Overton was born in Detroit, Mich., Au- gust 10, 1849, a daughter of Leonard Bissell and Anna (Jackson) Watkins. Her father was born in Torringford, Coun., June 21, 1823, and died at Detroit, Mich., December 7, 1855. Her
inother was born in Detroit, April 20, 1827, and died at Fort Adams, R. I., August 8, 1892; she was a daughter of Charles and Ann (Dodomead) Jackson, the former born in Roxbury, Mass., January 8, 1793, and the latter a native of De- troit, Mich. Ann Dodomead was a daughter of John Dodomead, an ensign in the British army prior to 1780, and after that an American citizen. He married Jane Murray, of Philadelphia, whose mother bore the name of Catherine Stout, and descended from Richard Stout and Penelope Von Princes. Richard Stont lived at Middletown, Conn., after 1648, and was a son of John Stont, of Nottinghamshire, England. The father of Leonard Bissell Watkins was John Watkins, who was born in Hamilton, Conn., November 6, 1800, and died at Geneva, Il1., in 1863. He married Nancy Bissell, who was born at Torringford, Conn., December 22, 1799, and died at Detroit. Mich., in 1853.
A great-grandfather of Mrs. Overton, Amasa Soper, was a captain in the Revolutionary war. Her great-great-grandfather served in the Revo- lutionary war as a British officer. Her grand- mother, as the wife of Captain Dyson of the United States regular army (her first husband), refused to give to General Hull a sheet or tablecloth which he demanded to run up as a flag of surrender to the British of Detroit, Mich., whereupon he (General Hull) threw the dishes from the breakfast table and carried off the tablecloth, which he used to announce to the British the cessation of hostili- ties. Some of the silverware thrown from that table by the general in his haste is now in Cap- tain Overton's possession.
Captain Overton and his family spent the years of 1889-91 in Europe, aud, upon his retire- ment from active service in the army, resided in Washington, D. C., for a year, coming from there to Los Angeles. In July, 1893, he engaged in the fire insurance business as special agent and adjuster of losses. He is a man of strong char- acter, fitted to be a leader of men. In politics he adheres to the Republican party, and in Septem- ber, 1896, served as chairman of its county con- vention at Los Angeles, Cal. He and his family are members of the Episcopal Church. Captain Overton is a member of the Military Order of Loyal Legion, and is a Mason.
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HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
ON. FRED EATON. In presenting to the readers of this volume the biography of Mr.
- Eaton, we are perpetuating the life record of one of the most influential native-born sons of Los Angeles, and one who has occupied the most prominent positions in the gift of his fellow-citi- zens. Nor has his success been merely that of gaining prominence among others, but he has also been successful in promoting the welfare of the city and advancing the progress of her people. Indeed, few have done more than he to develop her resources, and the character of his work is such that succeeding generations will have reason to revert to his career with gratitude.
The most responsible positions which Mr. Eaton has held are those of city engineer and mayor. In both he has accomplished much for the city's ad- vancement. Believing that a public office is a public trust, he has devoted his attention to the faithful discharge of his duties, and his practical industry, wisely and vigorously applied, has not failed of official success. Both in official and pri- vate business transactions he has always been systematic and methodical, qualities which are essential factors in the conduct of an important office. The services which he rendered the people as city engineer, and which he is now rendering as mayor, entitle him to rank as one of the most distinguished men of Los Angeles.
In 1850 Benjamin S. and Helen (Hayes) Eaton, natives respectively of Connecticut and Maryland, became pioneers of Los Angeles County, which was then sparsely inhabited, bearing but few indi- cations of its future greatness. Mr. Eaton was a lawyer by profession, and served as one of the first district attorneys here. He assisted in the found- ing of the Pasadena colony, of which he was presideut for several years, and through whose efforts was established what is now one of the most beautiful cities in the world. He was fond of horticulture, and experimented considerably in endeavoring to ascertain the fruits to which this soil and climate were best adapted. He planted a vineyard near Pasadena, and was the first to demonstrate the success of vine culture in Southern California without artificial irrigation, his experiment, therefore, being of great value to this part of the state.
Five years after the family settled in Los Ange- les County the subject of this article was born.
At an early age he showed a decided talent for engineering, and when fifteen began to acquire a practical knowledge of it, working with the Los Angeles Water Company. His advancement was rapid, and at twenty he was superintending engi- neer for the company, which position he filled for nine years. The first official position he held was that of city engineer, to which he was first elected itt 1886 for a term of two years. During this term he originated the plan of the great sewer system of Los Angeles, which was adopted, after the unqualified approval of the most distinguished sanitary engineers of America, among them being Rudolph Herring, consulting sanitary engineer of New York City, and the representative of the government in the study of the sewage systems of large European cities. This gentleman came to Los Angeles, at the invitation of the city council, and examined Mr. Eaton's plan of sewage, which he endorsed as one of the most perfect in the coun- try. In January, 1888, Mr. Eaton was again elected city engineer by a large majority, which gave him an opportunity to put into practical operation his proposed system. The success with which he met gave him at once a place among the leading men of the city, while at the same time it established his reputation as an engineer. In 1890 he was appointed chief engineer of the Los Angeles Consolidated Electric Company, which, under his direction, built the Los Angeles Rail- way Company's system. In 1898 he was honored by election to the mayor's office, after having been nominated by acclamation. This position he now fills, showing in it the same intelligence and public spirit noticeable in his previous official service.
When nineteen years of age Mr. Eaton married Miss Helen Burdick, of Los Angeles, member of one of the leading families of the city. Mrs. Eaton and her mother are the owners of the Bur- dick block, No. 129 West Second street, one of the most substantial office buildings in the city.
His energy is one of the most conspicuous traits in Mr. Eaton's character. He is quiek to perceive an emergency, and equally quick to devise means of meeting it, and this trait may be seen both in his conduct of private affairs and municipal mat- ters. To this quality, combined with his large executive ability, is due his success in the under- takings with which his name is associated. Clear-
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HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
ness of perception and soundness of judgment may be noticed in liis official acts. He possesses true public spirit, and uses his influence to en- hance the best interests of the city, promoting all worthy movements for its development and prog- ress. It is the united testimony of the people that his course has been such as to reflect credit upon the citizenship of Los Angeles.
ORACE M. DOBBINS, president of the board of trustees of Pasadena, is one of those progressive men to whose business ability and great enterprise Pasadena owes its high standing among the cities of the Pacific coast. Though scarcely yet in the prime of life, he has achieved a success notable in character and typical, undoubtedly, of what the future holds for him. His name is connected with many of the enterprises that have aided in the develop- ment of his home city and have caused it to be- come a favorite with tourists from the east.
The enterprise with which his name is most intimately associated is a novel and original project, of which he was the instigator and has since been the principal promoter. As president of the California Cycleway Company, it is his aim to build an elevated cycleway extending a distance of almost nine miles, from Hotel Green in Pasadena to the Plaza in Los Angeles. The company was organized and incorporated in 1897 with Mr. Dobbins as president; Hon. H. H. Markham, ex-governor of California, vice-presi- dent; Walter R. Stephenson, secretary; and E. H. May, treasurer. On the completion of the road it will be used by bicycles, tricycles and all horse- less vehicles, which will have for their transit a cycleway twenty feet wide, without grade cross- ings, and with an average grade of one-half per cent. Que and one-half miles of the road have been constructed at the Pasadena terminus, the grading on the entire line' is completed, and the lumber is now on the ground for the next three miles of construction.
While necessarily the management of this im- inense undertaking requires very close attention on the part of Mr. Dobbins, it does not represent the limit of his activities. He is vice-president of the El Cajon Valley Company in San Diego county, Cal. For two years he was president of
the Pasadena board of health and is now president of the Pasadena Hospital Association. He is a member both of the Pasadena board of trade and the Los Angeles chamber of commerce, and is actively connected with the Pasadena Tourna- ment of Roses Association. Shortly after he came to Pasadena he was elected a member of the city board of trustees, of which he was chosen president, April 16, 1900, having, as the in- cumbent of this position, all the responsibilities and duties connected with the office of mayor. Strong in his sympathies with the Republican party, he has been an active factor in the local work of the party and for three terms has held office as president of the Americus Club of Pasadena, which is one of the largest Repub- lican clubs in Southern California. He is a mem- ber of the Pasadena Country Club and also the Cumberland Club of Portland, Me.
Mr. Dobbins was born in Philadelphia, Pa., August 29, 1868, a son of Richard J. and Caro- line W. Dobbins, natives respectively of Mount Holly, N. J., and Washington, D. C. His fa- ther, who was a successful builder, was given the contracts for the erection of the larger number of the official buildings at the Centennial of 1876. He invested in property in Philadelphia and also in New Jersey. In 1892 he came to Pasadena, where he died in January of the fol- lowing year. He is survived by his widow and the following children: William E. and Richard P., of Philadelphia; Lillian H., of Pasadena; Horace M .; and Florence D., wife of Thaddeus Lowe, of Pasadena. The Dobbins family is of English extraction.
The education of Mr. Dobbins was acquired principally in Cheltenham Military Academy. In 1886 he left school to travel with his father, who had a short time before suffered from a stroke of paralysis. It was for this reason that father and son spent the winters from 1886 to 1890 at the Raymond Hotel, in Pasadena. In July, 1890, our subject went to Portland, Me., and embarked in the packing of canned goods with Horace F. Webb as a partner, the firm name being H. F. Webb & Co. In 1893 the H. F. Webb Company was incorporated. In the fall of 1894 Mr. Dob- bins established his home permanently in Cali- fornia, going first to San Diego, but after a year removing to Pasadena, where he now resides at
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No. 1204 Orange Grove avenue. His marriage, March 23, 1892, united him with Miss Frances Gove, daughter of Charles G. Gove, of Cincin- nati, Ohio. They are the parents of two daugh- ters, Dorothy and Marjorie.
OHN W. WOOD. To many residents of California Mr. Wood is best known as the writer of short stories, sketches and poetry that appear from time to time in well-known pa- pers and magazines. To others he is known chiefly through his service as a member of the Cal- ifornia State Board of Pharmacy, with which he was connected for six years. However, to the peo- ple of Pasadena he is best known as their efficient and popular postmaster. He was appointed to this office January 17, 1900, and took charge of the same on the Ist of March following, since which time his attention has been closely given to an intelligent and able supervision of every department of the work. The appointment came to him from President Mckinley, of whose policy as executive he has been a stalwart champion.
Mr. Wood was born in Wilmington, Del., March 1, 1851. Both of his parents were of Scottish birth and ancestry. His father, Dr. John Wood, was a pharmacist, and also served as postmaster of a suburb of Wilmington. When he was a boy our subject attended the grammar schools of Wilmington, and also studied in the high school for a time. From an early age he was familiar with the drug business, having acted as an assistant to his father. He deter- mined to take a complete course in pharmacy and turn his attention to the business of a drug- gist. In 1871 he graduated from the Philadel- phia College of Pharmacy and afterward went to New York City, where he was employed as a pharmacist for four years. From there he came to California, and for a short time clerked in San Francisco. Later, for three and one-half years, he engaged in the drug business at San José. In 1883 he came to Pasadena, where he lias since made his home, engaging in the drug business, and taking part in many of the city's activities. For two years he served as a school trustee of Pasadena, and at this writing he is a trustee of the public library. Besides his other interests,
he was for three years editor and proprietor of the Pasadena Valley Union. Fraternally he is con- nected with Corona Lodge, F. & A. M.
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