USA > California > Glenn County > History of Colusa and Glenn counties, California, with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the counties who have been identified with their growth and development from the early days to the present > Part 65
USA > California > Colusa County > History of Colusa and Glenn counties, California, with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the counties who have been identified with their growth and development from the early days to the present > Part 65
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C. N. BOSTROM
A self-made man who has become one of the leading contrac- tors and builders of Glenn County is C. N. Bostrom, a native of Jemtland, Sweden, where he was born on April 27, 1877. While at home in that northern country, he learned and followed the trade of a carpenter. In 1903, attracted by the reports of greater opportunities in America, he came to the United States, moved west to St. Paul, and for a while plied his trade there. His next camping-ground was at Spokane; and there, during nine years of progressive labor as a builder, he became prominent in contract- ing, making a specialty of fine houses. In that period of transition and development he invested in some city lots in Spokane in a good section of the city; and these lots he still owns.
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In 1912, Mr. Bostrom came to Orland to make his home; and here he has erected some of the best residences ornamenting the town. Among these are the homes of J. J. Flaherty, J. J. Lochen- myer, Willard Clarke, Charles A. King, George E. Nygaar, and Dr. Dale T. Martin; the two residences of Mrs. Paulson; and the Erickson Bungalows. Mr. Bostrom built the Swedish church, the Brandt block, and the Bank of Orland store building, one of the most attractive buildings in the town. He has also erected many ranch houses and small cottages in Orland, and in all has put up over seventy-five buildings in Glenn County.
Mr. Bostrom is the owner of two small ranches. One is a ranch of ten acres, lying to the south of Orland, and is planted with a variety of fruit trees. The other is a place of fourteen acres, west of Orland, seeded to alfalfa.
Some years ago Mr. Bostrom led to the altar Miss Emily Pe- terson, a native of Sweden, by whom he has had three children: Olstred, Edwin and Herman, the latter a native of California. All the family are members of the Swedish Church of Orland. Mr. Bostrom is highly respected in his community, where he and his family have a wide circle of friends.
CHARLES EDWIN STOVALL
The late Charles Edwin Stovall, son of one of the most hon- ored and successful pioneers (Jesse Curl Stovall, whose sketch ap- pears upon another page of this volume), was allotted but a brief business career, having met his untimely death on November 20, 1904, which elicited deep regret, not alone from his business asso- ciates, who honored him for his unusual ability and keen judg- ment in his particular line of endeavor, but from a host of friends in his social circle. He was a native son, having been born on the old Stovall homestead, in Colusa County, May 4, 1875. He re- ceived his education in the public schools of Colusa, after which he entered into business with his father's company, and in time became a director of the Stovall-Wilcoxson Company and assisted largely in the management of the extensive ranch, being foreman at the West Camp. He was also a director in the Bank of Wil- lows and had early proved his ability in his chosen occupation.
Upon June 11, 1899, at Williams, Cal., Mr. Stovall was mar- ried to Cella Edith Brown. She was a native of Crofton, Ky., and a daughter of Lycurgus J. and Orlena (Long) Brown. Her parents came to Maxwell, Cal., in 1890. Mr. Stovall was an ex- pert equestrian, perfectly fearless with horses, and found much
68 Stovall
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pleasure in handling them as a pastime. At the Mountain House, Colusa County, on November 20, 1904, occurred his tragic death. He had gone to the camp with a horseman known as "Indian Joe," whose occupation was the breaking of young horses. As they were riding toward Williams, on the night of the 19th, he changed horses with "Indian Joe" for the pleasure of riding the colt. Five minutes later the horse stumbled and fell, throwing his rider, who struck the hard road on the side of his head and face. He lived until eight o'clock the following morning. The interment took place in the cemetery at Williams, being conducted under the auspices of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, to which or- ganization Mr. Stovall belonged. Mr. and Mrs. Stovall were the parents of two children. One died in infancy; the other is Miss Cordelia Stovall, a member of the senior class of the Williams High School. Mr. Stovall was an active member of the Christian Church.
DAVID B. MACOUN
A man of scientific attainments, and of historic associations, especially with important chapters in the wonderful development of Canada, is David B. Macoun, superintendent of the James Mills Orchard Company at Maxwell and Hamilton City, who was born at Campbellford, Ontario, August 22, 1857. Mr. Macoun is of Scotch-Irish descent, and a member of a long-lived family. His parents were Frederick and Jane (Archer) Macoun, both natives of Belfast, Ireland. The Macouns emigrated from Scotland to Ire- land in 1635. Later, in 1765, some members of the family came to Canada; while others migrated to Virginia. David's uncle, John Macoun, M. A., F. L. S., was a prominent man in Manitoba, Can- ada, and a member of the first expedition which crossed the great Canadian country from the Atlantic to the Pacific, and of another commission which first inspected Manitoba and the Northwest. He saw the possibilities of that country as a marvelous agricul- tural section, and reported upon it years before its real develop- ment began.
When David B. Macoun was eighteen years old, he entered the service of the Geological Survey; and in that important branch of the Dominion's government he spent a number of years out in the field in the northwestern part of Canada. In 1885, he took part in the northwest rebellion of the Indians and the half-breeds. Mr. Macoun witnessed many stirring scenes on the vast plains. This was when the buffalo was being exterminated; and with others he often took part in hunting both the Indian and the buffalo. From 39
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1887 to 1896 he was farm manager of the Dominion Experimental Farm at Indian Head, in the Northwest Territory of Canada.
In 1896 Mr. Macoun came to Riverside, Cal., as assistant su- perintendent of the Arlington Heights Fruit Company's orchard, one of the largest lemon orchards in the world. As a result, he became an expert horticulturist, and has devoted nearly all of his life since that time to work in that field. In 1912, when the James Mills Orchard Company started their large projects at Maxwell, in Colusa County, and at Hamilton City, in Glenn County, he became associated with Mr. Mills as farm superintendent of both plants, which position he now holds.
In 1885 Mr. Macoun married Miss Bessie Georgenia Skinner, of Ontario, and is the father of three daughters : Mable, Mrs. J. B. Close, of New York; and May and Frances. While at Indian Head, Mr. Macoun became a Mason.
EDDIE L. WRIGHT
An official of whom the city of Orland is justly proud is Eddie L. Wright, the genial superintendent of the Municipal Water & Sewer System. Mr. Wright is a native son, known for his local patriotism and his devotion to the state. He was born in Placer County, June 17, 1856, and came of a father well-known among the "forty-niners." Soon after he arrived in California, he located in the state of Nevada, where he engaged in mining. While there he served for eight years as police judge at Gold Hill. In many ways he was identified with Nevada's growth for the remainder of his life.
Eddie L. Wright located in Storey County, Nev., in 1861, where he attended the public schools and learned the trade of a machinist, which for a long time he followed. For a while, he was with the celebrated Comstock Mines; and three years later he was with the Virginia & Truckee Railroad. Afterwards, for a time, he was employed by the United States Lighthouse Service.
In 1908, Mr. Wright located in Orland. He assisted in the in- stalling of the Orland Municipal Water & Sewer Plant, which was completed on August 6, 1912; and at present he is superintendent of this enterprise, which was built on a bond issue of $25,000 for the water system, and $15,000 for the sewer system-two items suggestive of the community's go-ahead spirit. Notwithstanding various problems, the undertaking has proved successful; and no little credit for its success is due to Mr. Wright and his devoted service. The water plant has two wells, a hundred feet deep, af-
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fording a large flow of water, chemically pure, and without dele- terious bacterial content. The water-bearing gravel is covered by a stratum of clay sixty-five feet deep, which shuts off all contam- ination from the surface. More than a hundred fifty homes are supplied, and connected with the sewers.
One of the interesting features of the water system is a pump- ing plant with a two-stage pump of six hundred gallons capacity a minute against fifty-seven pounds pressure, and a three-stage pump for fire purposes, which will deliver without fail seven hun- dred twenty gallons per minute against a hundred twenty-five pounds pressure. The well-equipped fire department of the town has a thousand feet of hose and a thirty-five-gallon chemical en- gine, as well as a first-class truck. The iron storage tank has a capacity of eighty thousand gallons, and is elevated on a hundred- foot steel tower. From the ground to the top of the tank is a dis- tance of one hundred twenty-four feet; and to the top of the ball, one hundred thirty-two.
The sewer system has a septic tank and disposal grounds large enough for a city of five thousand homes. There is a mod- ern hydrant fire system in the business and residential district; and so far as the means placed at his disposal will permit, Super- intendent Wright has made every provision for the convenience and the safety of the community.
Mr. Wright is the father of three sons. Harry is the propri- etor of a candy store in Orland; Russell is located in Santa Rosa; and John is a graduate of the Orland high school, of the class of 1917.
EDWARD KENDRICK MASTERSON
In the front rank of those who are recognized as authority on the resources and prospects of California, and particularly of those who have had much to do with the shaping of the cattle in- dustry of the state, is Edward Kendrick Masterson. He was born in Jackson, Amador County, Cal., on May 12, 1858, and accom- panied his parents, in Angust of the same year, to the Newville district, in Colnsa County, where the family remained a couple of years. His parents were among the progressive pioneers of the state, and are more particularly mentioned in the sketch of his brother, James Masterson, which is printed elsewhere in this work.
Following his school days and a year at St. Mary's College, in San Francisco, Edward Masterson returned to his old home, and in partnership with his brothers, D. H., James, and John, engaged
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in stock-raising. After his father's estate was divided, he was married, in 1885, to Miss Frieda Wileken, a native of Germany, who had come to California four years previously in company with an annt. In 1891, the couple moved from Newville to Woodland, Yolo County, and there for five years Mr. Masterson represented the San Francisco butcher firm of Brown & Draper. For the next two years he was associated with the firm of Miller & Lux, after which, for ten years, he was ill and unable to do any work. When he recovered, he opened a butcher shop at Elk Creek, and there did a fine business.
Later, Mr. Masterson located in Orland, where he managed a fruit ranch, devoted especially to grapes and almonds. His next move was to Germantown, in 1897, where he opened a lodging house and restaurant; and when the telephone company installed a switchboard in the town, it was located in his place of business, with Mrs. Masterson the operator in charge. He still makes his home in Germantown, and is now engaged in the sheep, cattle and stock business. For five years, he was United States Government inspector of live stock. He became an expert on all diseases to which live stock are subject, and was in wide demand for con- sultation. He is recognized as one of the prominent men of the state, and keeps in close touch with all the other experts in his line. For five years Mr. Masterson was school trustee of the Floyd district.
Six children have blessed the domestic life of Mr. and Mrs. Masterson. Eliza is the wife of L. Haase, of Germantown; Maggie is the wife of John H. Peterich, Jr., of the same place; W. Emmett is employed in Hochheimer's store in that city, and is married to Miss Adelia Beeck; Freda is the wife of Harry Ripley, a nephew of President Ripley, of the Santa Fe Railway; James is engineer on the James Boyd ranch, at Willows, while Edgar is still a schoolboy, residing at home.
EMIL BOREN
Mention is made elsewhere of the energy and perseverance of Emil Boren and his partner, Joseph H. Webb, in pursuit of intensive farming on their one hundred forty-two acres near Or- land. Mr. Boren was born in Utah, where he attended the public schools and was reared to manhood. Since his marriage with Miss Webb, he has been associated with his father-in-law in business, having an interest in the ranch and its productions.
Mrs . Nichols
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Emil Boren is descended from Swedish parents, who came to this country from their native land and settled in Utah, where they were much respected farmers. His early days were spent on a farm, where he became used to hard work, so that, no matter how hard the task, he felt equal to cope with it. Indeed, much of the success of the firm of Webb & Boren is due to the energy and enter- prise of its junior partner. Besides their ranch interests, they own stock in the Orland Cheese and Butter Company. All progressive movements for the betterment of the community receive their hearty cooperation and support.
In 1902, at Moab, Utah, Emil Boren was united in marriage with Miss Bertie E. Webb. Of this marriage four children have been born, to help gladden the days of their parents and grand- parents : Carl, Leona, Percy, and Ida May. Mr. Boren is a self- made man, who is working himself to the front by his many manly qualities. He and his wife have many friends in their community.
MRS. WILLIE BELL NICHOLS
That women have come into their own in California, has been evidenced in many ways. In this state they have been given ample opportunity to demonstrate their abilities in every line of en- deavor, including that of ranching, an occupation in which Mrs. Willie Bell Nichols has proved her proficiency. A native of Glenn County, born in the Liberty district, Mrs. Nichols is a daughter of Henry B. St. Louis, the son of Colbert St. Louis, who was a native of St. Louis, Mo., and a pioneer settler of Yolo County, where he passed his last days. Henry St. Louis was born on Cache Creek, Yolo County, where he was reared on a farm, and where, in his boyhood, he saw the great expanse of plains in the Sacramento Valley overrun with cattle. He married Laura Cornelia Stanton, born in Illinois, a daughter of Corydon Stanton, who was among the very first settlers in Yolo County, whence the family have scattered to various parts of the state. Both parents are living, as are also their two children, a son, Cordy, and Mrs. Nichols.
Willie Bell St. Louis was educated in the public schools of this county, and lived at home until her marriage to John Fred Nichols, a native of Germany, who came to California with his parents when he was a lad of sixteen. The family finally settled west of Willows; and there the father farmed until he moved to Los Angeles, where he died. The mother is still living in that city. .
After their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Nichols engaged in farm- ing, purchasing the ranch where Mrs. Nichols now lives, on which
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they raised grain and stock. When the Sacramento Valley Irriga- tion Company started operations, Mr. and Mrs. Nichols sold most of the ranch, retaining ninety acres, which they farmed until his death in July, 1912.
Since her husband's death, Mrs. Nichols has continued oper- ating the ranch, where she raises grain and alfalfa, and conducts a dairy. She has helped to make every improvement seen on the place, and is very successfully carrying on the business as she and her husband had planned. One child blessed the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Nichols, a daughter, Arvilla.
JASPER M. HARRISON
A pioneer of Colusa and Glenn Counties since 1874, and one who has seen the town of Orland develop from a place of scattered ranches into a thriving farming community, Jasper M. Harrison attributes his success to the habits of unremitting industry and perseverance which he acquired early in life. Born in Benton County, Mo., November 18, 1844, he was raised on a farm and re. ceived his education in the schools of that district. When he was still a lad, the Civil War broke out and he enlisted in the Confed- erate army, in Nicholas Regiment, Jockman Brigade, Shelby's Di- vision, and saw action in the Battle of Pine Ridge, and in many skirmishes. After the close of the war he farmed in Missouri for a time; but his ambition was to come to California, where the op- portunities were greater for a young and energetic farmer.
On October 29, 1874, Mr. Harrison arrived in Colusa County ; and thereafter, for ten years, he worked for wages on different ranches on Stony Creek, where the town of Orland now stands. He was working with a definite object in view; and when he had, by dint of hard work and strict frugality, accumulated the neces- sary financial start, he purchased a four-hundred-sixty-three acre ranch. He was one of the big grain-raisers of early days in Cali- fornia, and raised over ten thousand sacks of grain in one year. At that time California was the leading wheat-raising state in the Union, and Colusa was the banner county in that industry, pro- ducing in one year more than two million bushels of wheat, or more than one fiftieth of the entire crop of the United States. The county's record as a barley-producer is about as great. Mr. Har- rison can rightly take pride in having been an important factor in . the development of the state, and in bringing prominence and wealth to his community. To these sturdy pioneers we owe much of appreciation; for the tasks they undertook in those early days
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were no easy ones. They had none of the modern appliances that are now used in agricultural work; their hardships and depriva- tions were many; and to those who have succeeded in spite of all obstacles we owe the present prosperity of our commonwealth.
Mr. Harrison is still an active farmer, and still plows and har- rows with his eight-mule team. He has been a hard worker all his life. Landing in California without funds, and entirely dependent on his own resources, by persistent effort he won success, and is now a prosperous ranch-owner, enjoying the fruits of his industry. One hundred sixty acres of his ranch is under the Government Irrigation Project, and is planted to alfalfa, which yields him good returns. He has forty head of cattle, and devotes some of his time to hog-raising. In 1910 he built a fine, modern home on the prem- ises, with everything to make for the comfort and enjoyment of life.
The marriage of Mr. Harrison, which occurred in Morgan County, Mo., on June 25, 1867, united him with Jane Cooksy, a na- tive of Tennessee. Mr. and Mrs. Harrison have six children, thir- teen grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren. The children are as follows: Mrs. Martha E. Graham, of Orland; William A., of Hamilton City; Mrs. Mary Susan Outz, of Orland; Walter L., at home; Henry A., of Orland; and Charles A., at home.
THEODORE B. BIRCH
Between the years 1871 and 1903 California claimed the tal- ents of Theodore B. Birch. These years were fraught with many changes in the progress of events in the state; and he was an in- terested participant in all that took place, especially in Glenn and Colusa Counties, where his influence was felt in all good works. He was born near Cambridge, Guernsey County, Ohio, in Febru- ary, 1835, and was there reared and educated. His father was a prominent politician of that county, and for many years served as sheriff. In the later years of his incumbency in office, this son acted as his deputy.
Theodore B. Birch taught school in Ohio, and later in Illinois. At one time he took a trip to Pike's Peak, Colo., with ox teams. While he was there, the Civil War broke ont, and he enlisted in Company F, Second Colorado Volunteer Regiment of infantry. He saw service on the frontier in Kansas, taking part in the battles of Big Blue and Little Blue Lakes, and was also with the party that had the skirmish with the notorious Jesse James.
After the war, Mr. Birch went back to Flora, Clay County, Ill., and was there married in 1865. After his marriage, he again
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taught school for a time; but in 1871 he once more answered the call of the West, and, coming to California, located a government claim of one hundred sixty acres, ten miles southeast of Orland, Colusa County, in the Emigrant district. This later became a part of Glenn County, when the county organization was per- fected. For a time he was employed in St. John, besides running his ranch, which he later sold. He then spent two years in Kansas, but in 1881 returned to Orland, and lived and raised grain in this county for six years. He saw the opportunity to buy some property in the town, and for seventy-five dollars bought one and one quarter acres, then at the edge of the city. This property is now included in the heart of the residence sec- tion. From a grain field Mr. Birch developed a fine residence property, setting out ornamental and fruit trees, laying out lawns and gardens, and making of it an ideal home. Here he lived in the midst of every comfort, and surrounded by a wide circle of friends, until his death in 1903.
During his lifetime Mr. Birch worked at the mason's trade; and even in his later years he did plastering, laid brick, and built chimneys and flues in many of the buildings now standing in town, and in the country about it. He also worked on the old Orland College during its construction. Mr. Birch was an active and earnest Christian. Both he and his wife were mem- bers of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and gave freely of their means to assist in the work of its various societies. He helped organize the Grand Army Post at Orland, and for years served as its adjutant. He was a charter member of Ivy Lodge, No. 218, I. O. O. F., of that city, and passed all the chairs of the order, serving many years as secretary. As a Republican, he wielded a strong influence for good in politics, and his counsel was often sought in the interests of the party.
In 1865, Mr. Birch and Harriett M. Ross, a native of Ohio, were united in marriage. She had been for years an active member in the Methodist Church, and still is a teacher in the Sunday School. To this worthy couple were born the following children, all of whom received a careful training, in preparation for the duties and responsibilities of life: Esther E., Mrs. John Mehil. who is deceased; Thomas Q., a brick and stone mason, and for some years a school-teacher before taking up his trade; Ber- tram, a rancher in Stanislaus County ; Luella May, also deceased ; James, formerly principal of the Orland grammar school, who is now ranching near town; Abbie, wife of U. G. Durfee, of Whittier, Cal .; Mary, deceased; Jolm, a teacher in the grammar school at Willows; Dwight, in the United States forestry service, and a resi- dent of Berkeley; and Grace, deceased. It is a gratification to Mrs.
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Birch to know that through her training, and their own intelligence and self-respect, her sons have never entered a saloon. She recalls the pioneer days in Glenn County, when the present site of Orland was a grain field; and no one has been more interested than she in the preservation of the interesting data of the early history of the county.
JOSEPH H. WEBB
Three and one half miles northwest of Orland, on Stony Creek, is located the fine eighty-acre ranch owned by Joseph H. Webb, with his son-in-law, Emil Boren, who, by their untiring efforts, have brought the place to a high state of cultivation, so that it is now considered one of the most productive in this section. Mr. Webb was born in Jones Connty, Iowa, November 19, 1846. He is a son of Elijah C. Webb, of Tennessee, who died in Mis- souri at the age of seventy, and Nancy (Cook) Webb, a native of Indiana, who died in Rifle, Colo., at ninety-six years of age. Of their family of eight, only three are living.
Joseph H. Webb attended the district schools, and in his free hours assisted his father with the work in his flouring mill at Anamosa, Iowa. In 1862, when in his seventeenth year, he enlisted in Company E, Thirty-first Iowa Regiment, under Cap- tain E. B. Alderman, for service in the Civil War, and was assigned to the Fifteenth Army Corps, Army of the Tennessee. During the war he served under Generals Thomas and Logan, and took part in the battles of Vicksburg, Mission Ridge, Chica- manga, Lookont Mountain, and others of lesser importance, doing his duty with determination and valor. He was mustered ont at Washington, D. C., where he participated in the Grand Review, and was honorably discharged. Not content with having done his duty during the war, Mr. Webb joined Buffalo Bill as an army scont and buffalo hunter, serving four years on the plains, during which time he had many thrilling experiences with In- dians. In one encounter, one of their party was killed. Four others were rescued by Buffalo Bill.
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