Historical and biographical record of southern California; containing a history of southern California from its earliest settlement to the opening year of the twentieth century, Part 120

Author: Guinn, James Miller, 1834-1918
Publication date: 1902
Publisher: Chicago, Chapman pub. co.
Number of Pages: 1366

USA > California > Historical and biographical record of southern California; containing a history of southern California from its earliest settlement to the opening year of the twentieth century > Part 120

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During the time that he made his home at Lamanda Park no enterprise was inaugurated for its benefit which failed of his encouraging aid. Public-spirited to the point of self-sacri- fice, he neglected nothing that would develop this region and render it one of the most beau- tiful spots of the country. In 1885 he assisted in incorporating the San Gabriel Valley Rail-

road, and became a director of the same. The opening up of this locality to settlement was due in large measure to this road, which has since been merged into the Santa Fe system. He was a member of the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce and the Union League, and in politics voted with the Republican party. His death occurred October 8, 1894, being the result of an explosion at Lamanda Park. To the many friends and associates of his busy years the news came with all the force of a sudden and unexpected bereavement and called forth many tributes of praise for his manly character, up- right life and generous dealings with his fellow- men.

The marriage of Mr. Brigden occurred at Penn Yan, N. Y., June 27, 1882, and united him with Miss Helen L. Whitaker, who was born near Geneva, that state, and by whom he had two children, Louise C. and Timothy Dwight Brigden. The Whitakers are of Eng- lish descent and early settlers of New Jersey. The great-grandfather of Mrs. Brigden was a Revolutionary soldier. The grandfather, Jona- than Whitaker, organized the first Presbyterian congregation in Yates county, N. Y., and long officiated as its elder; by occupation he was a farmer. The father, Gen. Alexander Finley Whitaker, was born near Geneva, N. Y., and engaged in the manufacture of agricultural im- plements at Penn Yan, but, after being burned ont in 1872, he retired from business cares. His last years were spent in California, in the home of Mrs. Brigden, but he died in New York while visiting old friends and relatives. The title by which he was known was given to him during his service in the New York state militia, where he held the rank of major-general. In religious views he was a Presbyterian. His two children, Mrs. Brigden, of Lamanda Park, and Melville Torrance Whitaker, of Los An- geles, were born of his union with Louise Phelps Torrance, who was born in Avon, N. Y., and died at Lamanda Park in 1900. Her father, Richard Torrance, was a native of Connecticut, and her grandfather was a commissioned officer in the Revolution and one of the most con- spicnous figures in that historic conflict.

WILLIAM G. BENEDICT. Few men in Southern California have managed larger or more important real-estate transactions than has William G. Benedict, one of the honored busi- ness men of Pasadena. From an English- Quaker ancestry Mr. Benedict inherits the strength of character and high moral principle which have been of such inestimable value to him in fashioning his successful career. His youth, spent on the paternal farm near Carding- ton, Morrow county, Ohio, contained all of the hardships experienced by the average farni-

Granville Spurgeon

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reared boy, and his opportunities were those of his own making. He was born January 10, 1833, and attended the little log schoolhouse in the vicinity of his home, sitting on the slab seats and poring over the rule of three at the crudely constructed desks.

Sylvester Benedict, the father of William G., was born near Lake Champlain, N. Y., the pa- ternal grandfather, Cyrus, being also a native of New York, and an carly settler of Ohio. Syl- vester located on a farm in Morrow county, Ohio, where he lived for many years, and where his death occurred. He married Susannah Shaw, born near Lake Champlain, N. Y., a daughter of Jonathan Shaw, who settled on Shaw Creek, Delaware (now Morrow) county. The very first pioneers of this region were the Shaws and Benedicts, and the families under- went many hardships and deprivations while tilling their land and rearing their children. Three Benedict brothers married three Shaw sisters. They built their own log cabins and made their own clothes, and the Benedicts cleared one hundred and twenty acres. Of their four sons and three daughters, William G. is the only survivor, although a half brother, T. J. Grisell, lives in Galion, Ohio, but will soon come to Pasadena.

In 1856 William G. Benedict left the familiar surroundings in Ohio and located in Marshall county, Iowa, near Legrand. This region proved a most satisfactory place of abode, and he became prominent and useful in the commit- nity. He found employment in buying, improv- ing and selling lands, in manufacturing and milling, and all that he touched seemed to suc- ceed and yield abundantly. He also bought and sold stock in large numbers, shipping thousands of head to the Chicago markets. They at one time purchased a thousand head of cattle in Montana, which they shipped to Chicago. In connection with his Montana stock he also en- gaged to some extent in mining, but owing to the disadvantage of not being on the premises he failed to realize his expectations. During his six years' residence in Marshalltown he was a member of the board of supervisors uninter- ruptedly, and resigned the position only upon his removal to Pasadena in 1887.

Among the subdivisions developed and laid o11t by Mr. Benedict in Los Angeles county may be mentioned the L. II. Michner subdivision, in which he owns a half interest; the William G. Benedict & Company subdivision; the Benedict & Son subdivision; the Chamberlain subdivision on Woodbury Road; three subdivisions east of Pasadena; the William G. Benedict subdivision of the Halliday tract, Santa Ana; and he owned an interest in the Palmer tract. The real-estate business is conducted under the firm name of William G. Benedict & Son. They own an orange ranch of twelve acres on the Marengo

tract, South Pasadena. At the collapse of the boom in 1887 Mr. Benedict lost heavily.

In Legrand, Iowa, Mr. Benedict married Cor- delia A. Youngs, a native of Miami county, near the town of Troy, Ohio. Of this union there have been born four children, viz .: Wilfred W., who is the partner of his father; Susie, who died at the age of cighteen; May, the wife of B. B. Hinman, of Chicago; and Charles V., traveling inspector for the Pasadena Electric Railroad. Mr. Benedict was an abolitionist during war days and is now a Republican. He is a well- informed, genial and popular gentleman, and has many stanch friends in the city of which he is one of the most enthusiastic upbuilders.

GRANVILLE SPURGEON. As one of the earliest settlers of Santa Ana, Granville Spurgeon was intimately associated with the de- velopment of its business interests. Coming here in 1870, he joined his brother, William H., the founder of the town, and whose arrival pre - ceded his own by two years. For many years afterward the brothers were partners in a mercantile establishment, which they conducted successfully and which subsequently was sold to Beatty Brothers, but is now owned by the firm of Crookshank & Son. Another enter- prise in which Granville Spurgeon engaged was the fire insurance business, also as a produce merchant, but these he also sold out to other parties. Of later years he devoted himself es- pecially to the development of one hundred acres of peat lands, on which can be raised the finest celery in California. Of this he sold a part, still retaining fifty acres.

The Spurgeon family originated in England and on coming to America settled in Virginia, whence Mr. Spurgeon's grandfather .removed to Bourbon county, Ky., during the days of Daniel Boone and other pioneers. Granville Spurgeon, Sr., was born and reared in Bourbon county, and there married Lovina Sibley, a native of Prince Edward county, Va., and a direct de- scendant of an influential English family. In 1830 Granville and Lovina Spurgeon moved to Columbus, Ind., and settled on a farm, but ten years later made another change of loca- tion, going to Clark county, Mo. After some years on a farm there they settled in Alex- andria, Mo., where the father was an active business man and held some local offices of trust. While the family were visiting at the old home ncar Louisville, Ky., Granville Spurgeon, Jr., was born August 19, 1843. In 1849 the father came overland to California and for eighteen months engaged in mining. after which he returned to Missouri and in 1855 bought a farm. Some few years were spent on that place, but in 1864 he and his family sought a permanent home in California, spending five months on the road and settling in 'Solano

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county. There both parents passed away, the father surviving the mother and dying at fifty- seven years of age.

About 1866 Benjamin and Granville Spur- geon, accompanied by a sister, moved to Wat- sonville, Cal. One year later, in November, 1867, these two brothers, with W. H., settled in Los Angeles county and took up govern- ment land between Compton and Los Angeles. The next year W. H. went to Santa Ana, but Granville remained on the farm until his brother, Benjamin, died in 1870, when he joined his remaining brother in Santa Ana. He therefore was one of the oldest residents of this city at the time of his death, which oc- curred August 7, 1901. During the long period of his connection with the city, he main- tained a high standing as a citizen and a friend.

WILLIAM ALLEN. After a busy mercan- tile career in Egypt, Mr. Allen came to the United States, and, selecting what he believed to be one of the fairest spots in any country, established his home at Lamanda Park. At the time of its purchase by him the ranch, now known as Sphinx, consisted of five hundred and two acres, but the estate has since been reduced to four hundred and forty acres, the whole of which has been managed since his death by his widow and children. About twenty-six acres are under cultivation to citrus fruits, mostly oranges. A vineyard of over two hundred acres, set out in 1872, 1882 and 1885, furnishes an abundance of grapes of the Mission, Zinfan- del, Blue Elbe and Berger varieties, as many as six hundred tons being used in one season in the winery on the ranch.

A native of Liverpool, England, William Allen early acquired a thorough knowledge of mercantile pursuits through the instruction of his father, Joseph Allen, who was a prosperous cotton merchant of that city. When a young man he went to Egypt, settling at Alexandria, where he engaged in exporting cotton to vari- ous European markets. His energy and shrewd business methods brought him an early financial success, and while he was still young he was able to retire from active cares, returning in 1864 to England and establishing a country home at Bath, Somerset. His first visit to Cali- fornia was made in 1878, when he was so pleased with the climate and prospects that he bought the ranch Sphinx. Returning to England, he brought his family back the following year, and about the same time erected for them a commo- dious rural residence. From the time of his re- moval to California until his death, which oc- curred July 21, 1886, he was busily engaged in undertakings calculated to develop his property and also to advance neighborhood values.

At Alexandria, Egypt, in 1859, occurred the marriage of Mr. Allen and Miss Emily J. Bell,

whose father, a Londoner by birth, became one of the early cotton merchants of that famous Egyptian city. Her mother, Hester L., was born on the Isle of Malta, where her father, John David, was at the time serving as general commissariat. The David family was of Welsh extraction. Of the union of Mr. Allen and Miss Bell nine children were born, namely: Annie, at home; Arthur, a cattleman at Payson, Ariz .; Harold, who is executor of his father's estate; Walter, manager of the home ranch; Edith, Mrs. Bowring, of Charter Oak, Cal .; Hubert, who carries on a cattle business at Payson, Ariz .; Sidney, an orchardist in Lindsay, Tulare county; Percy, who is engaged in horticultural pursuits at Covina; and Bernard, who resides on the home ranch at Lamanda Park. The fam- ily attend the Episcopal Church at San Gabriel and contribute to its various benevolences. Throughout the vicinity where they have so long resided their friends are as numerous as their acquaintances. Not only by reason of her hospitality and social qualities, but also on ac- count of her executive ability, Mrs. Allen has won a high place in the respect of associates. With the able assistance of her sons, she has maintained a high standard of improvements at the homestead and has constantly added to its value by such changes as suggest themselves to an intelligent vineyardist of the present day.

PERRY P. BONHAM. Since the spring of 1886 Mr. Bonham has been identified with the business interests of Pasadena. He was born in New York City December 13, 1857, being the third among the five children of Perry and Marie Bonham, the former a furniture dealer in the metropolis. The family possessing suffi- cient means to educate their children and train them for life's responsibilities, the son who was his father's namesake attended local schools in boyhood, but, being of an ambitious nature, he early developed a desire to learn a trade, and accordingly when fifteen was apprenticed to the plumbing business. at which he served for four years. The year 1885 found him in Chicago, and the next year he settled in Pasadena, where he worked on the old Raymond Hotel, and then took charge of the plumbing department of the Pasadena Hardware Company, in which capac- ity he did the first plumbing in Pasadena.

Believing that the city offered an excellent field for independent work, Mr. Bonham en- tered business for himself in 1889, and for some years was located at No. 19 East Colorado street, but later bought the property at Nos. 45-47 West Colorado, where he erected a suita- ble business structure. Among the contracts which he filled were those for the Painter Hotel of Pasadena, Westminster Hotel in Los An- geles, Stimson and Newmark buildings in Los Angeles, State Normal building of Los Angeles,

J. P. Shotter

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HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

Pomona College building at Claremont, the Schaffer block in San Diego, Green Hotel, Car- rollton block, and many public buildings and residences in Pasadena. By many he is con- sidered to be the finest plumber in the state, and on all hands it is conceded that his work has borne the test of time and has proved in every respect reliable and as guaranteed. In 1900 he sold out his business, since which he has given his attention to managing his real-estate holdings. He erected and now owns the Bon- ham apartment house, containing seven apart- ments, and situated on Walnut and Raymond avenue. The block which he erected on West Colorado has since been sold. The residence which he built at No. 460 North Marengo ave- nue is presided over by his wife, who was for- merly Miss Fannie Johnson, and was born in New York City. They have one child. The family attend the Episcopal Church and Mrs. Bonham is a member of the same.

While voting with the Republican party in na- tional elections, Mr. Bonham believes that local elections should not be based upon the belief of the candidate regarding tariff, currency, im- perialism, etc., but rather upon his fitness for the work and his standing as a citizen, hence he votes independently for all local offices. At this writing he is a member of the board of police, fire and park commissioners of Pasadena.

J. P. TROTTER. During the years of his residence in California Mr. Trotter has been identified with various activities in Ventura county, and for some years past has made his home in the village of Fillmore. He came here in 1891 from Carroll county, Mo., where he was born November 30, 1859. His father, Hamilton Trotter, who was a merchant and leading citizen of Carrollton, gave him good educational advantages and trained him for the responsibilities of the future. This training, combined with his natural intelligence and practical experience, has made him a thorough- going business man.

For eight years, beginning in 1881, Mr. Trotter engaged in the stock business in Mon- tana, principally in Gallatin county. From there he returned to his native county, and spent three years, still carrying on a general stock business. However, impaired health ne- cessitated a removal, and, in search of a more healthful location, he came to California, where he has not been disappointed in the hoped-for restoration of his health. In 1891 he bought a stock ranch at Pole cañon, in the vicinity of Fillmore, and on that place he made his home for five years, meantime engaging in the raising of horses and cattle. On moving into Fillmore, he bought out the firm of Lineberger & Pyle. and since that time has conducted a livery and sales stable. Besides his barn, he owns several

cottages in the village. To him belongs the credit for the present improved state of the town. A tireless worker in behalf of the village, he has sought by all means within his power to promote the local activities.

October 25, 1888, Mr. Trotter married Miss Emma Faris, who was born in Carroll county, Mo., and accompanied her husband to Califor- nia in January, 1891. During 1898 she returned to Missouri to visit her mother, and died at her old home on the last day of July.

The nominees of the Republican party re- ceive Mr. Trotter's vote, and he is quite active in the politics of his county. In the fall of 1899 he was elected justice of the peace and afterward served efficiently in the position until he resigned, March 7, 1902. All movements for the general welfare receive his support and warm sympathy. Though he is a very busy man, having in addition to the business already named a meat business that is important and large, he yet finds time to work in the interests of local beneficial movements. and no citizen of Fillmore is more public-spirited than he.

JOHN RANSOM BRAGDON. From a Welsh ancestry variously represented in the church and among the more intellectual. occu- pations. John Ransom Bragdon inherits a ca- pacity for painstaking effort at once consistent with material prosperity and a high order of citizenship. As manager for the Pasadena Electric Light & Power Company he occupies a substantial position in the business world of his adopted city, his rise to his present respon- sibility being expressive of a thorough mastery of the business. Of Pilgrim stock, he was born in Boston, Mass., August 31, 1875, a son of Prof. C. C. Bragdon, and grandson of Rev. Bragdon, a clergyman in the Methodist Episco- pal Church.

Prof. C. C. Bragdon was born in Portland. Me., and is a graduate of the Northwestern Uni- versity at Evanston, Ill. As a sol-tier in -n Tli nois regiment he served the cause of the Union during the Civil war, and for thirty years was connected with the La Salle Seminary, at A11- burndale, Mass., first as principal, and later as proprietor. As an educator he has taken high rank among the most capable in the country, and, unlike many who follow a similar calling, has amassed a competence. Of late years he has been identified with interests in California, and is one of the large stockholders of the Edi- son Electric Light Company of Los Angeles. At the present time he is building a palatial home on the corner of Madison and East Colo- rado street, Pasadena, and will soon be installed in his new quarters. He married Kate Ransom. a native of Williamsport, Pa., and daughter of Jolın Ransom, a large land owner in Pennsyl-

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vania, and a lumberman on the Susquehanna river. Mrs. Bragdon was educated at the Dick- erson Seminary, and is the mother of two chil- dren.

John Ransonı Bragdon was educated in the Boston public schools, at Allen's private school, and at Williams College, which he entered in 1894, and from which he was graduated in 1898, with the degree of A. B. For the following six months he was private secretary to his father, and in January, 1899, came to California in the employ of the Edison Electric Light Company, of Los Angeles. From the humble position of telephone boy and messenger he worked his way into the bookkeeping department, later be- coming assistant cashier. May 1, 1900, he was appointed cashier, and July 1, 1901, was made manager of the Pasadena Electric Light & Power Company, a branch of the Edison Com- pany's plant. Although a comparatively new- comer to this city, he has already made his influ- ence felt in various departments of its activity, and his faith in its future, and his own desire to participate therein, are best evinced by his pur- chase of property upon which a residence is in process of erection. He is a member of the Board of Trade, and is fraternally connected with the Delta Kappa Epsilon. In political af- filiation he is identified with the Republican party, and as a member of All Souls Episcopal Church is secretary of the vestry. Mrs. Brag- don was Sarah Coleman, a native of Lake county, Cal., and daughter of Theodore Cole- man, manager of Throop Polytechnic Institute.

JOSEPH EDWARD MCCUTCHEON. Among the many capable builders who have found business opportunities in Pasadena, none has more surely won the public confidence than Joseph Edward Mccutcheon, erecter of many of the finest residences in this city, and one of its most honored and respected citizens. Of sturdy Scotch ancestry, Mr. Mccutcheon was born in Lindsay, Victoria county, Ontario, April 6, 1866, his paternal grandfather, Samuel, hav- ing settled in that region in the early '40s. He was a farmer by occupation, as was also his son, Samuel, the father of Joseph Edward, who was born, lived, and eventually died, in Lindsay, Ontario. The younger Samuel married Mary McCarroll, a native of Peterboro, Canada, and daughter of James McCarroll, born in the north of Ireland and of Scotch descent. Six children were born of this union, two of whom are liv- ing, Joseph Edward being the youngest and the only one in California. In his youth he had few educational advantages, for the family for- tunes were not large, and it became necessary for him to assist in the general maintenance.

When seventeen years of age he was appren- ticed to a carpenter in Lindsay for three years,

after the completion of which he continued to reside in the city and did such carpenter work as came his way. In 1888 he removed to To- ronto in the hope of improving his prospects, and the same year crossed the lake to Buffalo. N. Y., where he worked at liis trade for a short time. Upon removing to California in 1889 he worked for three years in San Francisco, and during a portion of that time was foreman for a firm in Oakland. After locating in Pasadena in 1892 he was for a time employed by Mr. Slaven, eventually becoming foreman for that gentleman, and remaining with him until em- barking on an independent building business in 1898. For a year he continued a partnership with Mr. Stoll, but after the removal of the latter-named member of the firm he managed the business alone. Among the residences which reflect special credit upon Mr. McCutch- eon may be mentioned that of Mr. Christy, and the Wildes, Dr. Groff and Vedder residences, of Pasadena; the Fred Armstrong and Mrs. Girouar residences of Altadena; and the Mar- tin Chase residence at Riverside, the most im- posing and beautiful in the town.

The wife of Mr. Mccutcheon was formerly Elizabeth Bonham, born in Pittsburg, Pa., and a sister of P. P. Bonham, of Pasadena. Mr. and Mrs. McCutcheon are members of the Pres- byterian Church, and are well known in the social life of this beautiful city.

GEORGE B. ADAMS was born in Syracuse, N. Y., September 5, 1826, and there he lived with his parents, Zophar H. Adams and Lucy (Barnes) Adams, until the age of seventeen years, when he moved to Elgin, Ill. There for several years he was employed in one of the village stores, but at the age of twenty-three he began business for himself. His first venture was the grocery business, but after a few years he purchased a stock of watches and jewelry and steadily increased this business until he moved to the Pacific coast.

April 18, 1850, Mr. Adams married Ellen M. Truesdell, daughter of Burgess Truesdell and Maria L. (Gale) Truesdell, and four children, Florence, Claude, Alice and Gertrude, were born to them. Florence and Gertrude died be- fore their father. His wife, son and daughter Alice were with him at the time of his death, April 10, 1900, at Alhambra, Cal. Throughout his life he was an earnest Christian. He was reared in the Episcopal Church, but when about twenty-three he joined the Methodist Episcopal Church, and continued an active member, hav- ing been steward and trustee for fifty years.

The National Watch Factory at Elgin was the making of that city, and to Mr. Adams, more than to any other, is due the credit of locating the factory therc. Rival towns were making most strenuous efforts to secure the industry,

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Historical and biographical record of southern California; containing a history of southern California from its earliest settlement to the opening year of the twentieth century, Part 120

Author: Guinn, James Miller, 1834-1918 Publication date: 1902 Publisher: Chicago, Chapman pub. co. Number of Pages: 1366

Author: Guinn, James Miller, 1834-1918
Publication date: 1902
Publisher: Chicago, Chapman pub. co.
Number of Pages: 1366