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 186

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

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Near Massena Springs, St. Lawrence county, N. Y., Ira C. Goodridge was born in 1847. His education was obtained in the public schools of his native locality. In 1868 he removed to Sara- toga Springs and clerked in a mercantile estab- lishment, but soon afterward began to work at general decorating. In 1880 he settled in Roch- ester, N. Y., and established an independent decorating business, of which he made a decided success up to the time of disposing of his enter- prise in 1899. As secretary and treasurer of the Puritan Manufacturing Company he held close relations with an important enterprise, and this also was disposed of before his departure for the west in January of 1900. As a guest of the Spalding, in Pasadena, he was quick to recog- nize a business opportunity, and by the fall of 1900 liad completed negotiations for the pur- chase of the hotel. The wisdom of his choice has been repeatedly demonstrated, and he is now contemplating an enlargement of his present capacity to meet the demands of an increasing patronage.

While living in Saratoga, N. Y., Mr. Good- ridge married Fannie W. Davison, by whom he has a daughter, Elizabeth M., who is a graduate of Miss Wheelock's classical school in Boston, class of 1902. John Davison, father of Mrs. Goodridge, is a prominent eastern, man and president of the Hudson River Railroad Com- pany. Her maternal grandfather, Chancellor Walworth, who died in 1898, was an attorney and judge in castern New York. While living in Rochester, Mr. Goodridge was a member of the Chamber of Commerce. At present he is identified with the Pasadena Board of Trade. For fourteen years he was an active worker in St. Peter's Presbyterian Church of Rochester. and is now connected with the First Presby-

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terian Church of Pasadena. In national politics he is a Republican. Personally he is one of the substantial and enterprising members of his community.

WILLIAM B. CLAPP. Long and honor- able connection with the interests of a commu- nity gives a man prestige and merited influence. Such is the case in the life of Mr. Clapp, who has made his home in Southern California since the fall of 1873 and has always, as civil engi- neer, surveyor and citizen, proved himself trust- worthy and capable. He was born in Conway, Franklin county, Mass., April 11, 1861, and is one among the three children of William T. and Ophelia (Billings) Clapp, natives of Massachu- setts. His father, who owned and operated a tannery in the east, removed to Texas in 1868, settling in Houston, where he engaged in the beef packing business and later traveled for a hardware firm. From Texas he came to Califor- nia, since which time he has made Pasadena his home.

Without any aid from others and lacking the advantages of systematic study under capable instructors, William B. Clapp nevertheless taught himself the rudiments of civil engineering, and by practical experience has acquired a knowl- edge of the occupation excelled by few. In 1881 he began to do surveying for the government. Among his important surveys in California was that for the Los Angeles & San Gabriel Rail- road, the first road to enter Pasadena, and with this company he was associated about four years. At one time he acted as assistant engineer of the Los Angeles Cable Railroad, and for sevenmonths was road master and civil engineer for the San Gabriel Valley Rapid Transit line, which has since become a part of the Southern Pacific system. During 1892 he was employed as chief engineer in putting in the sewer system in Phoenix, Ariz. From 1894 until 1901 he held the office of city engineer of Pasadena, which he filled with recognized ability and wise judgment. Under his energetic supervision the sewer sys- tem for Pasadena was brought up to its present high standard, the plans, since completed under other hands, being representative of his ideas and earlier work. Almost all of the present pav- ing in the city was put in under his supervision, and he also laid the plans for the balance. At this writing he has charge of work in the Hydro- graphic department of the geological survey, is laying out a sub-division known as Ford Place, and is a director in the Pasadena Mutual Build- ing and Loan Association.

Though not a partisan in his views, he is always pronounced in his adherence to Republi- can principles. In religion he is of the Congre- gational faith. Prominent in Masonry, he is a member of Pasadena Lodge No. 272, F. & A. .M., in which he is past master; Pasadena Chap-

ter, R. A. M .; Pasadena Commandery, K. T., in which he is senior warden; and Scottish Rite.

The marriage of Mr. Clapp and Miss Velma W. Browne, a native of West Comington, Mass., was solemnized in Pasadena, Cal. Her father, Charles P. Browne, was born in Massachusetts, where he learned and followed the machinist's trade, and during the war was employed as a machinist in the Armory at Springfield, Mass. Coming to California in 1876, he built a resi- dence at Alhambra, and also did considerable building for others. In 1881 he came to Pasa- dena and put up a machine shop, which he oper- ated for a time. Later he devoted his attention principally to piano tuning. Since his death Mrs. Browne has made her home with her daughter, Mrs. Clapp. The latter was given fine advantages in girlhood, being sent east in 1895 to take a course of study in Boston. The beauty of her clear and cultivated soprano voice is con- stantly commented upon. For three years she had charge of the music in the Methodist Epis- copal Church and for a similar period was en- gaged by the Presbyterians. At this writing she has a large class in vocal music, and is recog- nized as one of the leading and most successful teachers in her home city.

J. A. EPPINGER. The name of Eppinger indicates the Teutonic origin of the family. The grandfather of J. A. Eppinger was born in that portion of Switzerland bordering on Germany and at an early age removed across the border, later crossing the ocean to Pennsylvania and settling in Lancaster, where he engaged in the brewing business until his death. During the time that he made his home in Ulm, Wurtem- berg, his son, John G., was born, and the latter was eighteen years of age when the family set- tled in Lancaster, Pa. For a few years he was interested in a brick manufacturing business in that city. Later he removed to the vicinity of Harrisburg and purchased a farm of one hun- dred and sixty-five acres at Derry Station. On that homestead his death occurred, when he was eighty-one years of age. After settling in Lan- caster he had married Mary Shay, a native of that city, and a daughter of Michael Shay. The latter was born in Germany, but spent much of his life in Lancaster, where he followed the lock- smith's trade.

Among seven children that attained mature years J. A. Eppinger was third in order of birth, and he is the eldest of the five sons now living. All of his brothers, Henry, James, Oscar and Charles, remain in Pennsylvania. He was born in Lancaster, March 26, 1856. His education was obtained in Palmyra Academy in Lebanon county, Pa., of which he is a graduate. For a time he engaged in the retail drug business in Harrisburg, after which, in 1870, he went to Vin- ton, Iowa, and was similarly occupied. His next

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location was La Crosse, Wis., where he conduct- ed a drug store. Selling out that business, he entered the employ of the W. S. Merrill Chemi- cal Company of Cincinnati, Ohio, for whom he traveled on the road more than twenty-four years. The satisfactory nature of his service is indicated by his long tenure in the position and by the many testimonials of praise he received on relinquishing his connection with the firm. February 2, 1899, he arrived in California, set- tling in Redondo, where he now has an attrac- tive home on Francisco avenue and Diamond street .. In the spring of 1902 he was elected a trustee of Redondo, and he is now serving as chairman of the committee on streets, in which capacity he has already accomplished much for the benefit of the city streets. Notwithstanding his activity in local affairs and his election to office, he does not affiliate with any party, but is independent in his views. In religious faith he is an Episcopalian, while fraternally he is connected with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and Knights of Pythias.

The first wife of Mr. Eppinger was Miss Ada M. Dodge, a relative of Wisconsin's late gover- nor of that name. She was born in Saginaw, Mich., and died in Chicago, Ill. Some years later he was united in marriage, in Memphis, Tenn., with Mrs. Sarah E. (Lawless) Pemberton, who was born in Brooklyn, N. Y., being the daughter of an extensive and wealthy dry-goods merchant of New York City. At this writing she is the sole surviving member of the Lawless family, descendants of Lord Lawless of Ireland. Among her relatives the most distinguished was her uncle, George Stephenson, the inventor of locomotive engines. On completing her educa- tion she was united in marriage with Lord Pem- berton of England, a son of Sir Richard Alexan- der Pemberton, and some years after his demise she became the wife of Mr. Eppinger. In their home is a daughter, Hazel D. (by Mr. Eppin- ger's first marriage), who is a talented musician and has been given exceptional advantages in vocal and instrumental music.

FRANCIS M. CASAL, M. D. The record of the Casal family is intimately identified with the history of the ancient city of Seville in Spain, which was the capital of the Gothic dynasty prior to the sixth century and, since the establishment of the Spanish kingdom, has been one of its most prominent and populous cities. During the turbulent times in Europe that were caused by the ambition of Napoleon, the city of Seville was seriously affected by these dis- turbances. However, before it had fallen into the hands of the French, many of its leading men left, among them Juan F. Casal, who settled in Philadelphia, Pa., and there died of yellow fever in 1801. Two years before his death he married an English lady, Jane Redmond, then a resident

of Philadelphia. The only son of their union, John F. Casal, Jr., was born in Philadelphia, and received his education in Baltimore, where he was graduated from the University of Maryland, with the advantages to be derived from study under Nathan R. Smith. On the completion of his medical studies, he opened an office in Balti- more, where his entire professional life was passed. A careful study of the institution of slavery led him to realize its evils, and he liber- ated his last slave the year before the Civil war opened. Having acquired large holdings near Palmyra, Mo., he removed to that point and gave his attention to the management of his large estate, remaining there until his death, in 1870. Fraternally he was a Mason.

On the maternal side Dr. Casal traces his line- age through English progenitors to remote Ger- man ancestors. His mother, who bore the maid- cn name of Ann Maria Toy, was born in Phila- delphia, and was the daughter of a Revolution- ary soldier. Her death occurred in Missouri. Of her family of six daughters and three sons, two daughters and two sons are now living. One of the sons, John F., came to California in 1838, and at first acted as agent for the Wells-Fargo Company at Napa on the Napa river, but after- ward became a superintendent of mines and finally engaged in business as a broker in San Francisco, where he died in 1893.

Dr. Casal was born in Baltimore, Md., Sep- tember, 20, 1842. H'e was reared principally in Missouri. After his graduation from the St. Louis high school, he was prepared to enter the sophomore class of Washington University, but at the outbreak of the Civil war changed his plans and commenced the study' of medicine un- der the guidance of his father, whose thorough knowledge of the science and long experience in treating all forms of disease admirably quali- fied him to lead the student in all of his re- searches. Later he matriculated in Rush Medi- cal College, Chicago, from which he was gradu- ated in 1864. With a theoretical knowledge of medicine that was thorough and broad, he was prepared to enter the field of active practice, and, with the belief that the west afforded ex- ceptional advantages to young professional men, he settled in Austin, Nev., in 1864, having made the trip from his home in Missouri via New York and Panama. Early in the spring of 1865 he entered military service as assistant surgeon in the Second California Infantry, and was sta- tioned for a short time at Presidio. Later he was transferred to Arizona, where he had his headquarters at San Pedro. In a short time he was transferred to Fort Grant, which point he reached by marching overland to Yuma, thence going up the Gila river. After three months he was ordered to Fort Goodwin, a military post near the present site of Solomonville, Ariz. From there in May. 1866. he returned to Yuma.

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where he took a steamer down the Colorado river and up the Pacific ocean to San Francisco. The close of the Civil war bringing to an end the need for his services. he was mustered out. June 30, 1866.

In July of the same year Dr. Casal was ap- pointed acting assistant surgeon, with headquar- ters first at Camp McKee, and later at Camp McGarry. From the latter point he went to Chico, Cal. At Sacramento he joined Company A. Eighth United States Cavalry, and with them proceeded over the mountains to Fort Church- ill. Thence, in the fall of 1866, he proceeded to Camp Winfield Scott, and was stationed there until June, 1867, when he resigned and returned to the east, via the Nicaragua route.

With a desire to acquire a more profound knowledge of his profession, Dr. Casal took lectures in Bellevue Hospital Medical College and the College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York. In 1868 he established himself in practice at Pittsfield, Ill., where he remained for nineteen years, meantime not only gaining a reputation for skill in the treatment of disease, but also winning the esteem of people by his progressive spirit. For a time he was president of the board of trustees of Pittsfield. During all of these years, however, he had not forgotten his experiences on the Pacific coast, and mem- ory often lingered over events of the past. Finally he determined to return to the west and spend his remaining years in a region unrivalled for grandeur of scenery and equable climate. During December of 1887 he established his home in Santa Barbara, where he has since en- gaged in the practice of medicine and surgery. He has built two residences in this city and is a property owner. For three terms he has offi- ciated as health officer, which position he still fills. Since 1878 he has been connected with the American Medical Association, and during his residence in Illinois he was a member of a State Medical Society, while at this writing he is actively connected with the Southern Califor- nia Medical Association.

The marriage of Dr. Casal took place in Pitts- field, Ill., and united him with Miss Amelia Le- titia Atkinson, who was born in that city and clied in Santa Barbara, April 25, 1901, leaving three children. The older daughter, Mrs. Mary Amelia Robinson, makes her home in Dallas, Tex., where the younger children Annie H. and F. M., reside with their father.

Reared to respect the high principles of Ma- sonry, Dr. Casal in early life was initiated into that order. Thirty-two years ago he was made a Mason, in the blue lodge at Pittsfield, of which he was master. Later he advanced to the Royal Arch Chapter, in which he was high priest. He was an officer in the Council and for nine years held office as eminent commander of the Com- inandery. After coming to Santa Barbara, he

was one of the organizers and charter members of St. Omar Commandery No. 30, K. T., of which he was elected. the first eminent com- mander, filling the office for three years. In 1890 he was inspector of the sixth district. As he has followed his father's example in his ad- lierence to Masonry, so in politics he has always remained faithful to the Democratic principles in which he was reared. Identified with the Episcopal Church, he was a warden for fifteen years during his residence in Illinois and is now senior warden of the Santa Barbara Church. Before coming west he was active in Sunday- school work, and for seventeen years served as superintendent at Pittsfield.

GEORGE W. BENSON. The life of this well-known citizen of Verdugo furnishes an example of what may be accomplished by de- termination and industry. While he had the advantage of some in the fact that he inherited $2,000 from his father's estate, yet in the main his accumulations are the result of individual efforts. When he came to this part of Los An- geles county it was one vast sheep range, and few as yet realized its possibilities as a fruit- growing section. He was among the first to buy property and experiment with the raising of horticultural products here, and his success stimulated others to emulate his example.

In Pecatonica, Winnebago county, Ill., Mr. Benson was born June 3, 1858, a son of William and Jane (Wells) Benson, natives respectively of France and New York. His father was born while the family, who were English, were tem- porarily residing in France, and in childhood was taken to Toronto, Canada, where he re- ceived a fair education. When about twenty years of age he came to the States, and drove a stage from Chicago to Galena, Ill., for a num- ber of years. Later he bought eighty acres of canal land in Seward township, Winnebago county, paying $2.50 per acre for the property. To this farm he afterward added until he was the owner of one hundred and seventy-two acres, forming a valuable homestead, on which he continued to reside until his death, of consump- tion, at forty-eight years of age. Had his life been spared to old age undoubtedly he would have become wealthy. He was survived by his wife, who died in 1870 at forty-eight years of age. Of their six children, all are dead except George W. and a brother in Florence, Cal. The former, who was fifth in order of birth, was six years of age when his father died, and twelve when he lost his mother, after which he remained with an elder brother on the home farm. At seventeen years of age he began working by the month on farms, and three years later came to California, for a year working in a nursery in Los Angeles.

Returning to Illinois, Mr. Benson joined a

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brother in the purchase of their father's old home and remained there two years, but dis- posed of the property and came back to Cali- fornia May 25, 1883. During that year he pur- chased a ranch of forty-two and one-half acres at Verdugo. At this writing he owns twenty- seven and one-half acres, of which fifteen are in fruit, twelve and one-half being in deciduous fruits, and two and one-half in oranges and lemons. The property is well improved and forms a valuable addition to the income-bearing estates of the district. In addition to the man- agement of the land, since 1900 he has owned and operated a fumigating outfit; and since 1894 has been officially connected with the Verdugo Pipe and Reservoir Water Company, which distributes and divides the water on about fifty acres.

January 12, 1881, Mr. Benson married Miss Julia F. Hewett, who was born in Pecatonica township, Winnebago county, Ill., April 23, 1857, being a daughter of John L. and Philenia (Perry) Hewett, natives respectively of Massa- chusetts and New Hampshire, and early settlers of Winnebago county. During much of his active life Mr. Hewett followed the shoemaker's trade. At the time of death he was fifty and his wife seventy years of age. They were the parents of eight children, three of whom at- tained mature years. When Mrs. Benson was a child of eight years she was sent alone to Port Dover, Canada, and there spent the years of girlhood. Of her marriage to Mr. Benson, there are four children, namely: Warren Elbert, who is with his parents; Elroy H., who died at sixteen years of age; Mable and George Perry, at home. In politics Mr. Benson votes with the Republicans, but has never showed any partisanship, nor has he at any time sought office, preferring to devote himself to his private business interests.

GEORGE STECKEL. To the true lover of art, photography offers possibilities unexcelled in the domain of the beautiful. Combined with its facilities for accurate reproduction are its adaptability for harmonious and graceful effects, its opportunities for artistie posing, and its in- stantaneous response to a master hand. The great west occupies no secondary position in the talent of its disciples of this art, and among them George Steckel stands without a superior. Nature gave him qualities especially adapted to the work in which he engages, and these qualities have been fostered and developed by years of study and experience. Medal after medal has come to him in recognition of the unrivaled quality of his carbon and sepia pic- tures, which are his specialties. His first exhibit was made at Boston in 1889, at which time an award was tendered him for general portrait effects. Two years later, at Buffalo, he received

a bronze medal. In 1893, when in competition with the San Francisco photographers at Me- chanics' Institute, he was awarded all of the four medals offered at that time, and during the same year, at the World's Fair convention of photographers, he was given two medals; also the two highest medals offered for por- trait photography, and a mnedal and diploma from the Liberal Arts department. Altogether, he has won eighteen medals and several diplo- mas at various expositions, his latest award having been two medals at the Paris Exposi- tion of 1900.

In Allentown, Pa., where he was born De- cember 20, 1864, Mr. Steckel spent his boy- hood days. When fourteen years of age he entered the photographic gallery of E. D. Jeans of that city, where he made such rapid strides in acquiring a knowledge of the art that in two years he had completed the same. With a view to selecting a suitable location for a home, he traveled throughout the west, and in January, 1888, arrived in Los Angeles, with which he was so pleased that he immediately decided to establish himself here. Selecting a suitible building on South Spring street, he opened a studio. A few months later he formed a part- nership with J. H. Lamson, but after two years bought his partner's interest, since which time he has been alone. From year to year, the in- creased demands of the business have neces- sitated the securing of additional space, and he now occupies one-half of the second floor, and all of the third floor of the building, which gives him a large space for his studio and its equip- ments. During much of the year he furnishes employment to a large number of assistants, but personally takes charge of all the sittings and has the entire business under his capable and constant supervision. Through his success- ful exhibits and also through his membership in the National Association of Photographers, he has gained a wide reputation among photog- raphers and by them is conceded to occupy a leading position in the list of the world's pho- tographic artists. Aside from his professional work, in which his ambitions are centered, he has only limited associations and interests, in- cluded in these being his membership in the California and Jonathan Clubs, and the lodge, commandery and shrine of the Masonic Order.

LEONADES BLY. The family whose rep- uitation for industry and ability Mr. Bly so well sustains is of English ancestry. Early in the history of America they settled in the east. The paternal grandfather, Abraham, was a farmer in Indiana, and afterward settled on a farm two and one-half miles southeast of Des Moines. Jowa. Rev. J. T. Bly, the father of Leonades. was born in the Hoosier state, and served for a short time in an Indiana regiment during the

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Civil war. As a minister of the Christian Church, he underwent the hardships incident to his calling in the early days of Iowa, where he was a pioneer preacher. In his early youth he had given attention to contracting and building, and this occupation he followed, after leaving Iowa, in Kansas and Colorado, being a railroad contractor in Kansas. In 1884 he came to Cali- fornia and engaged in contracting at Los An- geles until he died five years later. He married Margaret Staten, who was born in Indiana and died in Iowa about 1868. In their family were four children, namely: A. B., a railroad man at Creston, Iowa; Mary M., of Topeka, Kans .; C. E. and Leonades, both of Los Angeles.

Until his eleventh year Mr. Bly lived in Iowa. After removing with his father to Central Kan- sas he continued his studies in the public schools, but at a comparatively early age began to work for a living. Upon locating in Pueblo, Colo., in 1879, he learned the trade of a stone mason. In 1883 he went to Shoshone, Idaho, where he followed his trade with the railroad company. The next year he came to Los An- geles, where he worked at his trade two years, and then began building and contracting. Among his contracts may be mentioned those for the stone work of the Lyman Stewart resi- dence, the Foster, Harding, Vermillion resi- dences on Chester Place, the Adams street en- trance to Chester Place, and the Youman's block. In the fall of 1901 he materially in- creased his responsibilities by establishing a stone working plant on Alameda street between Seventh and Eighth streets, where all kinds of stone work are turned out. The plant is fitted with steam power machinery and is most com- plete in every detail. The quarry at Santa Bar- bara provides the celebrated buff stone, and the Sespe quarries furnish the well-known Sespe brown stone. His partners in business are his brother, C. E. Bly, and his brother-in-law, G. D. McGilliard. The enterprise as established by him is a distinct credit to his wise judgment.

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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 186

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