History and biographical record of Monterey and San Benito Counties : and history of the State of California : containing biographies of well-known citizens of the past and present. Volume II, Part 27

Author: Guinn, J. M. (James Miller), 1834-1918; Leese, Jacob R. Monterey County; Tinkham, George H. (George Henry), b. 1849. Story of San Benito County
Publication date: 1910
Publisher: Los Angeles, Calif. : Historic Record Co.
Number of Pages: 454


USA > California > San Benito County > History and biographical record of Monterey and San Benito Counties : and history of the State of California : containing biographies of well-known citizens of the past and present. Volume II > Part 27
USA > California > Monterey County > History and biographical record of Monterey and San Benito Counties : and history of the State of California : containing biographies of well-known citizens of the past and present. Volume II > Part 27


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and maintenance, within the state, of hospitals for the relief of the sick and for training schools for nurses.


The family represented by Mr. Hawkins is of old Virginian lineage, his paternal grandfather having crossed the mountains from that common- wealth into Kentucky as early as 1800 and the father was born in the Blue Grass state in 18II. Later the family became transplanted in Marion county, Mo., where Thomas S. Hawkins was born in 1836. At the age of sixteen years he joined his grandfather at Cynthiana, Harrison county, Ky., where he received an academic edu- cation, and later he taught school in Missouri about two years. For a similar period he en- gaged in merchandising along the line of con- struction of the old Atlantic & Pacific Railroad. During 1860 he outfitted at Westport, Mo., with oxen, wagons and a drove of cattle, and with these he started across the plains. At the expi- ration of six months he arrived at San Jose, where he disposed of his cattle. With the pro- ceeds he bought land near Gilroy, Santa Clara county, where he engaged in farming until 1866. From there he removed to the San Felipe valley in San Benito county.


Upon the organization of the San Justo Homestead Association in September of 1868 Mr. Hawkins was chosen secretary and general manager. Largely through his energetic efforts was brought to a culmination the purchase of twenty-one thousand acres of the San Justo rancho from Colonel Hollister for $400,000. A portion of the tract was platted in town lots and the sale of lots began in the autumn of 1868 immediately after the land had been ac- quired. The town was named in honor of that illustrious citizen who had been the early owner of the tract. For four years the association con- tinued the sale of lands, after which Mr. Hawkins continued the business alone. At the same time he devoted considerable attention to his ranch of several thousand acres in Monterey and Santa Clara counties, where he instituted valuable im- provements and placed large herds of stock. When the project was inaugurated for the di- vision of the county he was enthusiastically in favor of the movement and canvassed his friends in Monterey county endeavoring to secure their influence and aid. About 1874 the legislature


passed an act creating San Benito county by the separation of the land from Monterey county.


The Bank of Hollister was established in 1874 with a capital stock of $100,000, since which time the stock has been increased to $250,000. Under the executive oversight of the president, Mr. Hawkins, assisted by his son, Thomas W., the cashier, the bank has maintained a reputa- tion as a reliable institution and is known as one of the solid financial concerns of the county. In addition to his many other activities, Mr. Hawkins has acted as president of the Hollister Water Company ever since its organization and through his instrumentality an ample supply of pure water for city purposes has been piped a distance of fourteen miles from the mountains of Grass valley. From the organization of the Hollister Warehouse Company he acted as its president. Other local enterprises received the impetus of his keen judgment and trained mental faculties.


Notwithstanding his intimate association with the founding of the town and his position as one of its influential business men, Mr. Hawkins has steadfastly refused to accept the official honors which his fellow-citizens would have tendered him. The only exception he has made in the matter is in regard to the position of member of the town board, in which capacity he gave intelligent, experienced service for twenty-one years, devoting his time and influence to the aiding of progressive movements. Politically he was stanch in his allegiance to the Demo- cratic party in national affairs until the free silver plank was inserted in the platform. In local matters he has been guided by the charac- ter of the candidate rather than his views rela- tive to the tariff and other national problems. Years ago he was active in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and passed all of the chairs in Mound Lodge No. 166, which on va- rious occasions he represented as delegate to the Grand Lodge. The building of a house of wor- ship for the Methodist Episcopal Church South during the years 1873 and 1874 was largely due to his devotion to the enterprise and ever since then he has been a trustee of the congregation.


The first marriage of Mr. Hawkins was so- lemnized in 1858 and united him with Miss Catherine Patten, who died four years later,


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leaving an only son, Thomas W., now cashier of the Bank of Hollister. In 1864 Mr. Hawkins , was united in marriage with Miss Emily Day of Santa Clara county. Four children were born of this union, namely: Charles N., who is man- ager of the Grangers' Union at Hollister and also engages in buying and selling stock; W. I., a manufacturer of men's furnishing goods in San Francisco, having branch stores in that city, Sacramento and Los Angeles ; Mrs. Kathryn Boyns, a well-known musician residing in San Francisco; and Winfield E., who died in 1908. All of the children were born in California with the exception of the eldest son. Throughout the entire county Mr. Hawkins is known and honored. As president of the important enter- prises previously mentioned and as a promoter of civic progress in Hollister, he holds a position of marked prestigc. Versatile ability has en- abled him to handle many affairs and bring them to a successful issue. Upon the organization of the State Bankers' Association he was chosen a member of the first executive committee, which position he filled with the sagacious judgment characteristic of him in every undertaking in- augurated and every responsibility assumed.


WILLIAM R. FLINT.


Through the accomplishments of father and sons the name of Flint has become an import- ant one in the development of the commonwealth of California. The first to establish the name on the Pacific coast was the father, Benjamin Flint, who was a native of Maine, whence he came to California in 1849 in response to the allurements which were spread broadcast over the country after the finding of gold in that year. Mining had been the attraction which drew him hither, but his accomplishments along this line were as nothing compared with the de- velopments of another character with which he was associated. His associations with the cattle- raising interests of the state under the name of Flint, Bixby & Co. are not local in character, but have extended to all parts of the state and country, and represent but one of the several interests along allied lines with which his name was coupled. His unanimous election as presi-


dent of the Southern Pacific Railroad represents the high opinion in which he was held by his fellow-citizens, and although the pressure of other duties would not allow him to serve in that capacity, he did consent to serve as vice-presi- dent and with the fellow-members of the board he secured from the government and city of San Francisco the various franchises which led to the completion of that important road.


William R. Flint is a son of Benjamin and Caroline L. (Getchell) Flint, his birth occurring on the old homestead known as San Justo ranch and located not far from San Juan, March 13, 1869. He attended school in Waterville, Me., for five years with his twin brother, George C., now of Long Beach, Cal., and upon his return to California continued his education in the pub- lic schools of this state. He started out on his independent career by taking charge of a large ranch in the San Joaquin valley, superintending this for five years. While there he was appointed by Governor Markham a county commissioner to form the new county of Madera. Subsequent- ly he spent a year in the Philippine Islands in the employ of the government, a part of the time acting in the military service. He then re- turned to the San Joaquin ranch near Hollister, which since the death of the father he has owned in partnership with his brothers, George C. and Walter P., and this he has superintended satis- factorily for more than ten years past. About one thousand acres are under cultivation, while the remainder of the land, or three thousand acres, is used as range for the large number of cattle.


In November, 1908, Mr. Flint was elected to the state assembly on the Republican ticket. Fraternally he is well known, for his associations are numerous and in nearly all of them he is now or has been an office holder. He is past master of Texas Lodge No. 46, F. & A. M., of San Juan; high priest of Hollister Chapter, R. A. M., of Hollister ; besides which he holds membership in Watsonville Commandery No. 22; Islamı Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S., of San Fran- cisco : Lodge of Perfection, A. A. S. S., also of San Francisco; and is a member of Salinas Lodge No. 614, B. P. O. E., of Salinas. He is also a member of the Fremont Memorial Asso- ciation, of which he has served as president for


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three years, and he is also a member of the Con- gregational Church. Mr. Flint's marriage united him with a native daughter of California, Miss Mary L. Kemp, who was born in San Juan.


JEREMIAH PURA.


Another of the sons of Switzerland who have contributed to the citizenship of California is Jeremiah Pura, who came to the state over forty years ago and in the meantime has made a competence for himself and is rearing his large family of children to lives of usefulness. His earliest recollections are of his boyhood home in the canton of Ticino, Switzerland, where he was born in 1844, and there he remained until he attained manhood years. In 1868, when he was twenty-four years of age, he left familiar scenes and took up life in the midst of strange and unfamiliar surroundings, having crossed the ocean and taken up his abode in the United States.


Mr. Pura's first experience was in San Fran- cisco, where for about a year he followed gar- dening, and thereafter for about six months he was variously employed in the vicinity of Sac- ramento. From there he went to Point Reyes, Marin county, where in accepting a position on a dairy ranch he became associated with a line of business with which he was familiar and one which was also congenial. He remained with this employer for about five years, when the association was brought to a close in order that Mr. Pura could take possession of the property which he had in the meantime purchased in San Benito county. This purchase consisted of four hundred and eighty acres of land near Hollister, on which he maintained a dairy ranch with splendid success for thirty years. He still owns and maintains this property as in years past. From 1901 until the fall of 1909 he made his home on a ranch in Monterey county near Gon- zales. This consists of two hundred and fifty acres of rented land, on which he maintains a dairy of eighty cows, the product from which he manufactures into cheese on the ranch. On this ranch also he ranges one hundred head of stock, and has about two hundred acres of the land in alfalfa. Taken altogether he has one of


the best ranch enterprises in Monterey county, for he is thoroughly acquainted with all branches of the business and knows how to get the best returns from his labor and investment. In October, 1909, he purchased one hundred and fifty-eight acres, upon which he now resides, this tract adjoining his leased property. His last purchase is all in alfalfa, and he also pur- chased ninety-five cows with the ranch.


In 1882 Mr. Pura was united in marriage with Miss Esther Bangness, of Santa Cruz, and seven children have been horn to them, as follows: Frank C., Lewis J., George H., Albert R., Lena Zebulon and Esther. All are still under the shelter of the parental roof, and all are receiving the best of advantages and opportunities that shall fit them for lives of usefulness. The eldest son, Frank, is a member of the Foresters of America. Much of Mr. Pura's time is taken up with his own private affairs, but he is never too busy to do his part as a good citizen. He is a thorough believer in giving the young every possible advantage for an education, and his work along this line has borne fruit in the Pura school district, where he has served as a trustee for a number of years.


HARRY R. HAZELTON.


Experience with conditions in the United States and Canada gained through residence at various places qualifies Mr. Hazelton to judge wisely concerning the advantages offered by any particular section of country, and it is his opinion that opportunities in California are as numerous as elsewhere and that the climate is unsurpassed for healthfulness. Hence he was well satisfied to remain on the home ranch left by his father and which he managed until dis- posing of it in 1909. He made a specialty of fruit and poultry.


Born at St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada, June 23, 1875, Harry R. is a son of C. F. Hazelton, who came to California for the first time as early as 1862 and two years later drove a herd of cattle through the Salinas valley to Santa Bar- bara. The country made a favorable impression upon him at the time of passing through, al- though settlers were few and no attempt had


Wallace M. Pence


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HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.


been made to improve the land. The vast stretches of unfenced tracts were used exclu- sively as range for stock, and the building up of permanent homes had scarcely begun. The oc- cupation which he followed, that of a lumber- man, took C. F. Hazelton over much of the frontier country, and in that way he became in- terested also in mining, which he followed in Idaho and in Calaveras county, Cal. From British Columbia, where he had been interested in lumbering and mining, he removed to Califor- nia. For a time he sojourned in Santa Clara county, but in 1892 he became a resident of Monterey county and purchased sixty acres of unimproved land. Hither he brought his family and at once took up the task of planting trees and starting a fruit farm. The remainder of his life was passed here quietly and busily and when he passed away May 8, 1908, it was recognized that one of the public-spirited men of the com- munity had been removed from the scenes of his activities. Three children survive him. A son, Bruce, makes his home in Winnipeg, and the only daughter, Mrs. William Sharpe, is living in St. Thomas, Ontario.


After having served an apprenticeship to the machinist's trade, Harry R. Hazelton for two years worked in the Santa Cruz power house and for six months was an employe of the Western Fuel Company, besides which he fol- lowed his trade in the east for a short time. At the age of twenty-one years he married Miss Doria Brown, who was born in Missouri, but came to California in childhood and received a fair education in the schools of the west. After their marriage they took charge of the fruit farm originally purchased by Mr. Hazelton's father, and throughout this community they won a host of warm personal friends. Fraternally he is identified with Santa Cruz Lodge No. 38, F. & A. M.


WALLACE M. PENCE.


The years of painstaking, persistent application to the study of law which marked the earlier years of Mr. Pence have brought their own re- ward in the fruition of his aspirations toward professional excellence. After his mind was made up to enter the profession of law he never


allowed himself to be satisfied with a superficial understanding of any point, but always aimed to get at the heart of whatever was undertaken. Throughout the practice of his profession he has given evidence of a thorough understanding of the principles of the law, this being especially true in the line of real estate, and in this branch alone he has built up an extensive and valuable clientele.


Mr. Pence was born and reared in the middle west, his birth having occurred in Oquawka, Henderson county, Ill., March 27, 1860. Both of his parents, R. T. and Elizabeth (Conger) Pence, were natives of Pennsylvania, the father being of Pennsylvania Dutch extraction, while the mother came of an old Quaker family. After attending the public schools in his home town Mr. Pence went to Shenandoah, Iowa, and entered the Wes- tern Normal school, from which he graduated in 1884, with the degrees of A. B. and B. S., and subsequently he taught for one year in his alma mater.


The following year, 1885, marks Mr. Pence's advent into California, at which time he went to San Luis Obispo county and engaged in teaching in Creston and Cayucos, and also in Guadaloupe, Santa Barbara county. During the two years thus spent in pedagogical work he determined to concentrate his efforts in the mastery of the law. and in order to perfect himself for the profession he matriculated in the University of Kansas, where for two years he devoted himself assidu- ously to study. Returning to California at the expiration of this time, he located in Monterey county, and near Parkfield he settled on a ranch which he operated for about two years, in the meantime serving in the capacity of deputy county assessor. Upon coming to Salinas in 1892 he was admitted to practice before the supreme court of the state and this has since been his field of activity. The majority of the important cases requiring adjustment in the county have been brought to him, and as a consequence he has the most extensive and probably the wealthiest clien- tele in this section of Monterey county. An en- terprise which lies very close to Mr. Pence's heart is the Monterey County Abstract Company. of which he is the manager and a large stock- holder, and the chief propelling force.


Mr. Pence was married January 4, 1893, to


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Miss Carrie Beeman, and two sons, Juarez Bee- man and Harold Titus, have been born to them. Since taking up his residence in Monterey county Mr. Pence has become one of the most active men in the promotion of all movements for its advancement, and co-existent with the large practice which he has built up in the meantime is a long list of personal friends and well-wishers. Politically lie is a Prohibitionist, and in the cast- ing of his vote it is his aim to place the weight of his influence in behalf of those candidates who stand for purity in municipal matters, and in every way that lies in his power he endeavors to elevate the standard of his home city. He is a Baptist and was for sixteen years superintendent of the Baptist Sunday school at Salinas.


JAMES H. GRIFFIN.


The greater part of the life of James H. Grif- fin has been passed on the old Griffin homestead in Monterey county near the town of Castroville, where he still resides. As might be inferred from the fact of so long a residence in one lo- cality, he is a man of ripened judgment concern- ing the soil of the county and its possibilities of cultivation for various products. The stock business also he thoroughly understands, for the raising of stock has been a leading industry at the home ranch ever since he came hither with his parents. Through long experience with stock and grain he has acquired a reputation as a progressive farmer and expert judge of stock, and it is said of him that he is one of the most judicious agriculturists of his community.


Born in Sonoma county, this state, October 10, 1864, James H. is a son of Edward and Catherine Griffin, the former a native of New York, born about the year 1827, and the latter a native of Ireland, descended from devoted members of the Roman Catholic church. To that faith she adhered as a consistent Christian and in her character were exemplified the fruits of her religious feelings. About 1870, when James was a boy of six years, the family moved from Sonoma to Monterey county and settled on a raw tract of land near Castroville. At the old location the father had engaged in the dairy- ing industry and shortly after he settled on the


new ranch he resumed activities in that line, which he followed until his death, at the age of seventy-two years. His wife was sixty-five years old at the time of her demise.


Any enterprise looking to the betterment of the community in which he lived received the stanch support of Edward Griffin. Particularly was he interested in the free-school system and for years he served as a trustee of the school in his home district, during which time he labored to promote its welfare and enhance its useful- ness. Those who remember him invariably allude to his fine character. He was a man of integrity and high moral worth. These quali- ties were genuine and spontaneous and sprung from a kindly heart and well-balanced mind. Those less fortunate than himself he was ever ready to aid. In his home he was particularly happy and ever showed himself to be a good husband and indulgent father. The welfare of their children was the highest ambition of the parents and they had 10 aim other than to pro- mote the happiness and enhance the usefulness of their children, five in number, namely: Ed- ward William, James Henry, Louis, Katie and Lucy. All are living with the exception of Katie, and all were educated in the schools of the district and Castroville. The sons jointly own about one thousand acres of farming and grazing land and conduct a large dairy of one hundred and twenty-five cows; the management of which engrosses their time and thought. James is unmarried and continues at the old homestead, which is endeared to him by the association of long and busy years. In politics a Republican, he has worked for the advance- ment of party principles, both state, national and local, but he has not filled any of the public offices, preferring to devote his attention to the duties of ranching.


DAVID LEIBBRANDT.


The fact that the Leibbrandt family comes of Teutonic lineage is indicated by the name. The founder of the race in the United States was the late John Leibbrandt, who was born and reared in Germany. He came to the United States a bachelor but was married in Indiana. From


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there, some years later, accompanied by his wife and four children, he sailed via the Isthmus of Panama to California. Starting from Santa Cruz he went to the mines, but soon returned to Santa Cruz and bought land in the vicinity of that town. In 1864 he established his home in Trinity county where he lived four years, when he re- turned to Santa Cruz county, and there contin- ued to reside until his death in 1892, at the age of seventy-seven years. His wife passed away during the 'Sos. Their children are: Jacob, of Santa Cruz ; David; John, and Mrs. Susan Law- rence, of Redding, this state.


At the time of coming to California with his parents in 1857 David Leibbrandt was nine years of age, he having been born in Indiana in 1848. His education was obtained in the schools of Trinity county and prepared him for the re- sponsibilities of business affairs. Upon starting out he and his brothers built the bath-house at Santa Cruz, starting upon a very small scale, but gradually increasing their equipment and ac- commodations as the town became more and more a popular resort for tourists and for the residents of other parts of the state. Eventually, after a successful connection of twenty years with the enterprise, he sold out in order to en- gage in farming.


Upon coming to the Washington district, Monterey county, in 1897, Mr. Leibbrandt bought two hundred and ninety acres, ten miles from Salinas, and here he raises grain and stock. Fifteen acres have been planted in an orchard of peaches and apples. Considerable acreage has been cleared under his personal supervision. The buildings have been erected by the present owner, and, in fact, all of the improvements represent his unaided efforts and sagacious judgment. The comfortable home is presided over with effici- ency by Mrs. Leibbrandt, formerly Catherine Colberg, by whom he has one child, Alzoe, born in Monterey county.


The first marriage of Mr. Leibbrandt united him with Miss M. A. Canfield, who died some years after their union, leaving two children, Harold and Vernie. Both were born in Santa Cruz, attended the Washington school in Mon- terey county, and are now employed in San Francisco. Fraternally Mr. Leibbrandt is a mem- ber of Santa Cruz Lodge No. 147, I. O. O. F.,


in which he has passed all of the chairs, and he is further identified with Santa Cruz Encamp- ment No. 30. His son Vernie is'affiliated with the Odd Fellows in San Francisco. While Mr. Leibbrandt has never been a politician;' he is stanchly in favor of Republican principles and' at one time served as a delegate to the county , convention of the party. His interest in educa- tional affairs led him to accept the office of trus- tee of the Washington school, which is one of the very oldest schools in Monterey county, and for several years in his official capacity he has been instrumental in upbuilding the educational interests of the district.




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