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 169

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

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On coming to California, after having gained a thorough knowledge of the fruit business in the east, he settled in Los Angeles county, mak- ing an investment in five acres. However, the depreciation in the value of the property and the impossibility of successfully conducting a fruit-raising business thereon, forced him to sell the place at a great sacrifice, and when he came to Gardena in 1891 he was without means. Wishing to thoroughly investigate local condi- tions before purchasing property, he rented a five-acre place for five years, with the privilege of buying in the mean time if he so desired. So satisfactory was his study of the soil and the results of his early efforts thereon, that at the expiration of two years he became the owner. He erected a neat house and made cther improvements that enhance the value of the property. Two acres are under cultivation to Logan berries, and two are in blackberries, while eight acres of leased land are in alfalfa. The cozy home is presided over by Mrs. Bryant, who was formerly Miss Kittie Thompson, of Nebraska.

In addition to the raising of berries, Mr. Bry- ant is much interested in the dairy business, and now has a herd of fourteen milch cows, comprising Jersey, Holstein and Durham breeds. This industry he has found to be a profitable occupation, netting him an appreci- ated addition to his income. In politics he is a Republican, while in religion he is a believer in the doctrines of the Society of Friends.

HON. ROBERT M. CLARKE. The effi- cient services rendered by Mr. Clarke as mem- ber of the state assembly from Ventura county are especially worthy of recognition, inasmuch as he is the youngest member of that body and is gaining his first experience in statesmanship. Prior to his election he had engaged in the prac- tice of law in Santa Paula and it is his plan, on the expiration of his official term as legislator, to resume professional labors in his home town. As one of the native-born sons of Ventura coun- ty (where his birth occurred in 1879), his rise into prominence is a source of gratification to the people among whom he has always made his home.

On the completion of his high-school educa- tion Mr. Clarke began to study law in Santa Paula, later going to Los Angeles, where he continued his readings. April 10, 1900, he was admitted to the bar before the Los Angeles supreme court, and at the same time began the practice of his profession in Santa Paula. For a time he was associated with George E. Far- rand, the partnership continuing until Mr. Far- rand was made county clerk. On the Repub- lican ticket, in the fall of 1900, Mr. Clarke was

elected to the assembly, and it was a source of gratification to his friends that he ran ahead of the ticket. In the assembly he is a member of the judiciary committee, the committee for the revision of the code, and the committee on high- way and military affairs. In local matters hc maintains an interest, and whatever makes for the progress of Santa Paula or the development of the resources of Ventura county is sure of his appreciation and support. In any work for the upbuilding of the community he is always ready to assist.

During 1900, the year of his admission to the bar, Mr. Clarke established domestic ties, and was united in marriage with Edna M., daugh- ter of J. R. Thurmond, a pioneer of the Carpin- teria valley. In the Santa Paula Parlor of Na- tive Sons he has officiated as president, and he is also actively connected with the Masonic Order.

FRANK D. BISHOP, M. D., one of the most successful medical practitioners of Long Beach, was born in Charlestown, Portage county, Ohio, January 22, 1856, a son of O. D. and Mary A. (Brown) Bishop, natives respec- tively of Charlestown and Toronto, Ontario. The mother, who is now living in Ohio, is a daughter of Amos Brown, who was born in England, and upon immigrating to this country settled first in Toronto, and afterwards in New York state, where his death occurred. The pa- ternal grandfather, David Bishop, was of Scotch-English descent, and, though born in Connecticut, was one of the very early settlers of Charlestown, Ohio. His son, O. D. Bishop, the father of Frank D., was a farmer during his active life, and died in Ohio in 1899.

The oldest in a family of five children, Frank D. Bishop was reared on the paternal farm in Ohio, and graduated from the high school in Ravenna. His first business venture was as a hotel man, and in this capacity he managed the St. Cloud Hotel, in Canton, Ohio, for about eight years. In the mean time he had become interested in medicine and surgery, and having decided to devote his future energies to this branch of science, began to study under the capable instruction of Dr. K. B. Waite, of Cleveland. He then entered the University of Medicine and Surgery at Cleveland, and after graduating therefrom began to practice in Cañon City, Colo. Not realizing his expecta- tions in the Colorado town, he returned to Ohio and practiced medicine in Windham. Portage county. for a couple of years, going then to Harriman. Tenn., where he remained for two years. Owing to the uncertain state of his wife's health, he was obliged to make fre- quent changes in location, and eventually took up his residence in the salubrious climate of Albuquerque, N. M., where he worked up a

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large and satisfactory practice. While in the Mexican city he was medical director of the government Indian School at Albuquerque, and was also appointed to the board of territorial medical examiners by Governor Otero. Both of these positions he resigned upon coming to California in 1899, and in June of 1900 located at Long Beach, where he has since conducted a medical and surgical practice.

In Cleveland, Ohio, Dr. Bishop married Manon Spaulding, who was born in Spafford, N. Y., and was educated at Hillsdale College. Mrs. Bishop is also a graduate of the Cleveland Homeopathic Hospital College, and assists her husbandin his large and lucrative practice. Three children have been born to Dr. and Mrs. Bishop, Ruth, Francene and Winifred. The doctor is a Republican in national politics, and is frater- nally associated with the Independent Order of Good Templars. He is medical examiner for the Pacific Mutual and Phoenix Insurance Companies and Order of Pendo. He is now a member of the Southern California Homeo- pathic Medical Society, and was formerly asso- ciated with the medical societies of Ohio, Ten- nessee and New Mexico. In the Methodist Episcopal Church, of which he is a member, he is serving as steward.

FRIDOLIN HARTMAN. The association of Mr. Hartman with Ventura began in 1873. at which time the predominating element con- sisted of a small Spanish population, who faith- fully observed the customs of the mother coun- try. Prosperity reigned from a Spanish stand- point. Churches were wealthy and good fel- lowship prevailed throughout the surrounding country. Beyond the settlement stretched the mustard fields, with latent fertility as yet unsus- pected. Sheep trails wound in and out, which are now roads in common use. No spectator has watched modern development with more in- terest than Mr. Hartman, and none has estab- lished a more honorable place for himself in the community by which he is environed.

A native of Bavaria, Mr. Hartman was born February 2, 1844, his parents being August and Theresa (Koll) Hartman, natives of Bavaria, and residents of Germany during their entire lives. The father was a hotel and commercial man, and lived to be eighty-seven years old, but the mother died in middle age. Of their large family, nine children are living, Fridolin being the youngest and the only one to settle in America. He received a common-school cd- tication and when young learned the brewing business, being for four years in the employ of Smith Brothers. Later he traveled in Austria and France, in which latter country he entered the employ of a large brewing concern. In 1870, owing to the declaration of hostilities which culminated in the loss of Alsace and Lor-

raine to the French, he found it dangerous to remain in France, but was unable to get to his native land; accordingly he boarded a ship bound for America, and arrived in New York in August of 1870.

Going at once to St. Louis, Mo., he was em- ployed there by the Phoenix brewery (Christian Staley, proprietor) until April of 1871. The persuasions of a former acquaintance in Ger- many, Joseph Dilger, induced him to come to California. and he worked with Mr. Dilger in the City brewery of Sacramento until 1873. Following this he spent several months in San Francisco. Acting on the suggestion of a San Francisco firm, he came to Ventura in April of 1873. For about one year he managed the Ventura brewery for other parties, after which he purchased the plant. For a time business was conducted in a wooden shanty, but this he was enabled to replace for a more pretentious structure and continued prosperity repaid his efforts during the years that followed. The ab- sence of railroads brought him a large country trade, but when these were built through the county and when large breweries were estab- lished in Los Angeles and San Francisco, the smaller concern proved unprofitable, and in 1898 was closed.

Years ago Mr. Hartman was elected to the Ventura city council and held the office until his election as a member of the board of super- visors of Ventura county, which he held for three terms. In 1884 he was elected supervisor of the first district and has held the same con- tinuously since, with the exception of four years when he was town trustee. His present term as supervisor will expire in 1904.

The marriage of Mr. Hartman and Katie Kaufman occurred in Ventura in 1874. Mrs. Hartman is a daughter of Michael and Mary Katıfman, and was born in Minnesota, to which state her parents had removed at an early day, and where they resided during the Indian mas- sacre. To Mr. and Mrs. Hartman have been born sixteen children: Ludwig, Theresa, Frido- lin, Katie, Karl, Anna. George, Rose, Lena, Fannie, Willie, Henry August, Nellie, Chester, Ralph and Walter. Two, Rose and Henry Au- gust, are deceased.

ROBERT B. LYON. One of the most de- lightful pleasure resorts in Ventura county is that owned and managed by Mrs. Gertrude Lyon at Matilija. When taken possession of in 1871 the Cliff Glen Mineral Springs was an un- improved and discouraging looking squatter's claim, with but one man in the neighborhood to relieve the monotony of desolation. But the squatter's claim had latent possibilities ready to expand under the touch of enterprise and indus- try, and there has since been developed all those exhilarating and charming surroundings which

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enticingly beckon to all in search of a change of environment, or in need of physical and mental relaxation. Hither gather many guests during the season, impelled by the transparent air, the advantages of bathing and fishing. the excellent viands provided for her guests by mine hos- tess, and the general prevailing air of courtesy, geniality and jolly good fellowship. Placidly taking its way through the grounds is the Ven- tura river, with its clear, limpid depths, and numerous members of the finny tribe, and this trout stream flowing through the canyon has more than anything else made possible the im- provements so fully appreciated to-day. The buildings for guests and horses are modern and conveniently constructed, and there are tents on the banks of the river, and splendid camp- ing grounds. The enterprise which has built up the resort has also looked well after the sur- rounding roads. The springs in the canyon are located a mile from Mitilija postoffice, eighteen miles from Ventura, seven miles from Nord- hoff, the nearest railroad point, and forty miles from Santa Barbara. The genial hostess of this ideal retreat has abundant cause for gratitude that her lines have fallen in such pleasant places, that her efforts are so well appreciated, and that those who seek immunity from care in the un- changing smile of nature, are glad to do so under her competent guidance and unremitting care.

The squatter's claim, so well transformed, was purchased in 1871 by Robert Lyon, who was born in New York City in 1836. Ill health drove him to this lovely spot in the mountains every summer, but he did not open it to the public until 1887, a short time before his death. He was a noble, brave man of whom his chil- dren, wife and friends alike were prond.

W. W. BROUGHTON. Splendid in concep- tion and stupendous in execution has been thie accomplishment par exellence of W. W. Brough- ton. For in the estimation of any who would faithfully chronicle the deeds of the pioneers of Santa Barbara county, no more large minded project than the founding of the Lompoc colony has animated the enthusiasm of any settler, however great his loyalty, or his faith in the possibilities of his adopted part of the world. While Mr. Broughton has many claims to dis- tinction, the fact seems clearly defined, that when his reputation as a lawyer, publisher and journalist has faded in the light of subsequent events, his name will be recalled indefinitely by those who have profited by his farsightedness, clear reasoning power, and practical common sense, in directing them to the scene of their unfailing harvests, and their peaceful homes in an ideal locality.

The youth of Mr. Broughton was spent in his native town of Tonawanda, Erie county, N. Y ..

where he was born July 29, 1836. His pre- liminary law experience was gained in the office of W. W. Thayer, since governor of Oregon, and also judge on the supreme court bench of that state. After coming to California in 1859 he combined the practice of his profession with newspaper work, and among the different papers which have been founded, edited and published by him may be inentioned the Santa Cruz Enterprise, started in 1874, and now merged into the Santa Cruz Surf ; the New Age, which first saw the light in 1865, a San Fran- cisco periodical now in its thirty-sixth year, and which was the first Odd Fellows' weekly paper published in the United States; and the Lom- poc Record, founded in 1875, and at present continuing the success to which it is by reason of long years accustomed.

In 1870 Mr. Broughton conceived the idea of colonizing the Lompoc valley, and in further- ance of his desire visited Colonel Hollister, one of the owners of the Lompoc rancho of forty-six thousand acres. The grand old pioneer thought well of the plan proposed by Mr. Broughton, and negotiations were at once instituted for the consummation of the same. In the meantime the Record was doing a large business in placing before the public the merits of the val- ley, and the interest in the colonization became widespread. The Lompoc colony lands em- brace all the territory of the Lompoc and Mis- sion Vieja de la Purisima ranchos, and the title is by United States patent. The lands border for seven miles on the Pacific ocean and extend back from the coast about twelve miles. The original Lompoc rancho containing 38,- 335-78 acres of land, was granted by the Mex- ican government to José Antonio Carrillo, April 15, 1837, and the Mission Vieja, containing four thousand four hundred and forty acres, was granted to Joaquin and José Antonio Car- rillo. November 26, 1845. Carrillo sold the land to the More brothers, they sold to the Hollis- ters, Dibblees and Cooper, who in turn disposed of it to a stock company negotiating for the colonies. The main valley consists of thirteen thousand acres, and the Santa Ynez river runs westerly through the ranchos, for twelve miles forming their northern boundary.

The name Lompoc is from the Indian, mean- ing lagoon, or little lake. The price paid for the colony lands was $500,000, payable in ten annual installments, and the capital stock was divided into one hundred shares of $5,000 each. In the deed was placed an iron-clad clause providing against the manufacture or sale, upon the lands of the colony, of any intoxicating beverage. The land was surveyed, and divided into tracts of five, ten, twenty, forty, and eighty acres, and a mile square was reserved for the town site near the center of the valley. November 9, 1874, occurred the auction sale of the lots, amount

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ing to more than $700,000 for city and farm tracts, about thirty-five thousand acres remain- ing unsold, for which the former owners offered $270,000. Soon building operations were be- gun, and within an incredibly short time nearly a hundred families were occupying their new homes. By 1875 the town of Lompoc bore many evidences of enterprise, supporting be- sides the Record, a physician, a justice and a notary. From time to time much difficulty was experienced holding to the original resolu- tions regarding prohibition, and eventually the community yielded to high license. Owing to its high moral character, an unusually large number of people have been attracted to the Lompoc region, and this, added to the manifold natural advantages of rich alluvial soil, and the possibility of raising the most diversified crops, has converted this part of Santa Barbara county into an ideal residence section. The flood water of the Santa Ynez river will in the near future be utilized for irrigation purposes. It is need- less to say that the work connected with the carrying out of so large a scheme was stupen- dons, and the fact that Mr. Broughton was the vital force, and the guiding hand at the helm, place him in the position of being one of the greatest benefactors that the county of Santa Barbara has known. An active Democrat, he has filled almost every position of trust within the gift of the people of his town. He is now serving his third term as supervisor, and has been chairman of the board. He is also presi- dent of the town council of Lompoc, with which he has been connected since the incorporation.

The marriage of Mr. Broughton and Amanda Elizabeth Anthony occurred in 1862, Mrs. Broughton being the only daughter of George T. Anthony, a well-known citizen of Santa Cruz. The Anthony family comes from New England and has many Quakers among its members. They have ever exerted a strong moral influence in the communities with which they have been connected; one of their members, Charles V Anthony, is at present a retired clergyman, re- siding in San Francisco. Mrs. Broughton was born in Fort Wayne, Ind .. in 1848, and is the mother of seven sons and five daughters, of whom three daughters and five sons are now living.

OTHO M. JONES. The business career of Otho M. Jones has been so closely identified with that of his father, Hon. A. H. Jones. that a résumé of the mercantile experiences of the latter must of necessity shed considerable light upon the success of the former. Few more in- teresting personalities have invaded the com- mercial ranks of Long Beach than that of the Hon. A. H. Jones, who was born in Asheville, N. C., and came of a prominent old Virginia family. His first impressions of life were gained

on the farm of his father, George Jones, a large land owner, and afterward he embarked upon a mercantile enterprise in Hendersonville, Hen- derson county, N. C. Although of southern birth his sympathies were entirely on the side of the Union, and when the strife between the north and south culminated in the declaration of war, his one thought was to reach the Union lines. This proved a hazardous undertaking to say the least, and after an exciting trip, inter- spersed with many adventures and hardships, lie was captured in Tennessee and imprisoned in Richmond, Va. Through the exercise of strat- egy he was enabled to escape in 1862, and once through the Confederate lines he remained in the north until the restoration of peace. In the meantime his wife and boys remained on the southern farm at the mercy of the injustice of the Confederacy, and suffering great depriva- tions. Needless to say that his return was hailed with delight. Almost immediately Mr. Jones embarked upon a journalistic venture in Hen- dersonville, publishing the Pioneer of that town, the same being later removed to Asheville. In the meantime he was a member of the state con- stitutional convention, and helped to frame the laws. and in 1868 was elected a member of con- gress from his district, and re-elected in 1870. At the termination of his service in congress he engaged in the hotel business in Washing- ton, D. C., and afterwards engaged in farming in Prince George county, Md. Upon returning to Asheville, N. C., he engaged in the mercantile business for eight years, and as before took a leading part in the conduct of town affairs.

With the opening of the Oklahoma strip in 1889, Mr. Jones availed himself of the remark- able opportunity and bought a claim near Nor- man and engaged in farming and stock-raising. He also became interested in the mercantile business and bought the ground and built two store buildings and laid in a fine stock of gro- ceries. His business was conducted in partner- ship with his son. Otho M., the firm name being Jones & Son. Mr. Jones remained in Okla- homa until 1897. when he came to Long Beach and bought the corner lot upon which was erected the Jones building, and which is thirty- two by fifty-two feet in ground dimensions and two stories high. Here he started the large mercantile business which is now managed and owned by his son, and in which he was vitally interested up to the time of his death, January 29, 1901. He was a stanch Republican, and was a member of the old-time Methodist Episcopal Church. In Hendersonville, N. C., he married Sarah D. Brittain, a native of North Carolina, and a daughter of William Brittain, a farmer in that state. Mrs. Jones, who survives her husband, is the mother of five children, four of whom are living. Otho M. being the youngest. Two daughters are living in North Carolina,

Jerome 6. Wilson

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HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

and the other son, Thaddeus W., has distin- guished himself in the United States army, of which he is still a member. He is a graduate of West Point, on the Hudson, and during the Spanish-American war began to serve with the rank of major, and for meritorious conduct at the battle of Santiago was appointed to the rank of lieutenant-colonel of a regiment of United States Volunteer Infantry.

Otho M. Jones was born January 5, 1850, and was educated in the public schools and spent two years at the East Tennessee University, now the Grant University, at Athens, Tenn. He then discontinued further study to engage in business with his father, and has ever since been a member of the firm of Jones, Son & Co. Since the death of the elder man he has had entire control of the large business, and he is among the foremost substantial men of Long Beach. He is a member of the Methodist Epis- copal Church, and like his father is affiliated with the Republican party.

JEROME CALVIN WILSON. In addition to his business interests in Santa Barbara, Mr. Wilson is associated with oil enterprises in the Summerland district, where he began to put down wells in December, 1894, and has since become the owner of eighty wells in the same locality, besides owning the water right and the water system there. His Santa Barbara inter- ests include the ownership of the Olympic sta- bles, opposite the Arlington hotel, and the Blackhawk stables, corner of Cota and Chapala streets, in both of which he conducts a large livery, feed and sale business.

The Wilson family comes from Scotch ances- try. David Wilson was a native of the north of Ireland, whither his ancestors had fled to es- cape religious persecution. He came to America on an English man-of-war and settled at Lon- donderry, N. H., later being a pioneer farmer of St. Johnsbury, Vt., where he died at a great age. In religion he was of the forceful Scotch Presbyterian type. His son, James, a native of Vermont, and a soldier in the war of 1812, engaged in farming until his death at Sutton, Caledonia county, Vt., at eighty years. Next in line of descent was Calvin Wilson, a native of Vermont, and for fifty years a resident on the same farm, but since 1888 making his home with his son in Santa Barbara. Elizabeth, wife of Calvin Wilson, was born in Glover, Vt., and died in Santa Barbara, Cal., May 13, 1901, when almost eighty years of age. Her father, Lindon French, was a native and farmer of Kirby, Vt., and of English descent. He married a member of the old Massachusetts family of Howards.

The family of Calvin and Elizabeth Wilson consisted of ten children. eight of whom are living, namely: Jerome C; Charles Austin, of Santa Barbara; Henry, who is in San Fran-

cisco; James W., who has a livery business in Santa Barbara; Mrs. Elvira Bessil, also of this city; Mrs. Lilla Russell, of Los Angeles; Alonzo R., a farmer living in Hollis, N. H .; and Mrs. Rosette Rice, who lives near the old homestead in Vermont. Jerome Calvin Wilson was born in Caledonia county, Vt., April 20, 1849, and received his education in the Sutton grammar and high schools. Going to Boston in 1869, he became interested in a mercantile business, and remained in that city until he came to California in 1885. For a year he car- ried on a restaurant business in San Francisco, and in 1886 came to Santa Barbara. Soon after his arrival he rented a lot on the corner of Cota and Chapala streets. On the lot stood an old shed, and in this he began a livery business. A year later lie bought the lot and has since purchased adjoining property and removed the old buildings, erecting in their place a two-story stable of larger dimensions on Cota and Chapala streets. In the raising of standard-bred horses he is meeting with some success, and now owns, among others, Maggie E., record 2:17. He is the owner of a farm of seven hundred and fifty acres in the San Fernando valley, two and one- half miles from Pacomia, on the Southern Pa- cific road. Of this tract three hundred acres are in barley, one hundred and eighty in apricots, producing a crop valued at $20,000 annually, one hundred and eighty acres in peaches, pro- ducing fine crops, and ninety acres in olives. In addition to this place he owns other tracts of farm land in the county, besides his various holdings in Santa Barbara city and county. He is a member of the now well-known Guarantee Oil and Refining Company of Beaumont, Tex.

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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 169

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