USA > California > Contra Costa County > History of Contra Costa County, California, including its geography, geology, topography, climatography and description; together with a record of the Mexican grants also, incidents of pioneer life; and biographical sketches of early and prominent settlers and representative men > Part 46
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Township Number One.
an exquisite metal Cross and Vases made by R. Geissler, of New York. Early in this year all arrangements were completed in the obtaining of the corner lot contiguous to that whereon is the church, the intention being to move this to the central line ; accordingly trees have been planted in the new acquisition.
CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH, MARTINEZ .- A congregation of this denom- ination was organized June 18, 1874, in Martinez, by calling a meeting. The first resident pastor was the Rev. W. S. Clark, who was succeeded, in 1875, by Rev. E. B. Tuttle, who had pastoral care of the congregation for four years. During his charge the neat little building formerly owned and occupied by the Methodist Episcopal body was purchased, and in it services have ever since been held. In 1879 Mr. Tuttle was succeeded by Rev. John Hooper, who at the expiration gave place to Rev. A. Drahms, the present minister, in January, 1881. The Church is entirely free from debt, the building is in good condition, and the society numbers forty-five members.
SCHOOLS .- The first school in Martinez was taught by that worthy pioneer, B. R. Holliday, but it was many years before any permanent build- ing was erected for that purpose. In 1858 it was complained that there was no good school kept open during the year, but the matter would appear to have remained in abeyance until 1872, when, during the month of Octo- ber, the Martinez School District raised by tax the sum of three thousand dollars for the purpose of building a schoolhouse, which for twenty years and more they had been in want of. To this end, under the presidency of Hon. C. B. Porter, a meeting of the citizens of Martinez was held October 12, 1872, to consider what measures should be taken to provide the district with a suitable school building. On the 16th, the meeting, having been adjourned to that date, Mr. Fowler submitted a plan of a four-room building, two stories high, forty by eighty feet on the ground, to cost a sum not ex- ceeding six thousand dollars; but nothing more was then done than the appointment of a committee to ascertain upon what terms a loan of three or four thousand dollars could be obtained. On October 19th they reported that the last named sum could be borrowed at twelve per cent. per annum, payable semi-annually, the principal to be paid in installments of not less than one thousand dollars at any time after one, and within a term of four, five and six years, as might be agreed upon. On November 23d the trustees invited bids for furnishing materials and erecting a public schoolhouse, seventy-two by thirty-two feet, with central hall and tower, a projection front and rear twelve by twenty feet, cross-roofed with the body of the building which is to be surmounted with a cupola and belfry. The bid of Burrell & Co., of Oakland, for six thousand, nine hundred and forty dollars was duly accepted and work commenced, the whole being completed early in 1873.
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History of Contra Costa County.
The public school at Martinez is a building worthy of any metropolis. The main body of the house is seventy-two by thirty-two feet, with full height, central tower or stair hall fifteen by twenty-five feet, and rear cen- tral stair hall fifteen by twenty feet. The structure rests on a solid brick foundation, sunk two feet below the ground, rising a foot and a half above the surface. The cupola, crowning it at a height of sixty feet above the ground, has a twelve-foot square base, supporting a belfry curving into a square of five feet at the crown around which is an iron railing with curved braces from the angles supporting the rod of the weather-vane. Each of the four fine school-rooms are lighted by six large windows. The upper stair halls afford rooms for school apparatus, library, etc. The building is located near the center of the valley village, in full view of the Straits of Carquinez and Benicia, and in the shadow of lofty hills.
The Gazette of July 5, 1873, says: " For the purpose of securing the required funds-about one thousand dollars-to fence handsomely, lay out, grade and embellish with trees and shrubbery, the school block and the block adjacent, set apart and dedicated as a public square, the people of Martinez propose instituting a series of public entertainments, which will include amateur dramatic representations, socials, lectures, festivals, concerts and school exhibition exercises, and such other various attractions as will offer to the people a pleasant inducement to contribute their money for the accomplishment of a plan of public improvements which they all heartily desire." "The best laid plans 'mongst mice and men gang aft agley." The " hearty desire " may still remain-so does the square, still public, but, to wandering cattle and grunting porkers !
NEWSPAPERS .- There are two newspapers published in Martinez, both of which have a considerable circulation throughout the county, and which are conducted with much editorial skill. Below we give full histories of each.
THE CONTRA COSTA GAZETTE, from the files of which a large and in- teresting portion of the matter compiled in this history is derived, was the first newspaper published in Contra Costa county. Its first issue appeared on the 8th day of September, 1858. It is now consequently near the close of its twenty-fourth year, and has never missed its regular publication day, although the earthquake of October 21, 1868, made a wreck of the brick build- ing at Pacheco, in the second story of which its office was located, and ob- liged a hasty temporary removal of the press and sufficient type for getting out the paper to the ground floor of a vacant frame structure. The continual recurrence of more or less startling "tremblous " during forty-eight hours after the great shock rendered it perilous to remain in the shattered building, and very difficult to procure sufficient help that would incur the risk involved in removal of the press and necessary office material from it. Again, in
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Township Number One.
September, 1871, the office and every scrap of its material was destroyed by fire which occurred on Tuesday morning, but within forty-eight hours it had a complete new office outfit, and its issue of the week printed on Satur- day, so that it reached most of its subscribers but one mail later than usual. The publishing firm of the Gazette at its out-start was W. B. Soule & Co. The " Co." represented a number of public-spirited citizens of Martinez, who contributed part of the amount for payment of the office outfit to the said W. B. Soule, and had become responsible for furnishing it. In the course of a few weeks these sponsors found they had put their contributed money in the hands of an unmitigated confidence sharp, of plausible ad- dress, who had applied none of it to the payment of the material procured, but had obtained it all upon their guaranty of payment, and misappro- priated the money advanced to him. This confidence operator's connection with the paper continued but little more than a month. The gentlemen who had thus found themselves at unexpected costs, the owners of a news- paper establishment, then made an arrangement with two practical printers, Charles Bonnard and B. E. Hillsman, for its publication, and its seventh number was issued October 30, 1858, by Bonnard & Co., as publishers. In February, following, W. Bradford became the sole owner and publisher, and so continued for something more than a year, when, in April, 1860, R. R. Bunker purchased an undivided half interest in the paper, and, until March, 1861, it was published by Bradford & Bunker. In that month and year, Mr. Bradford disposed of his interest to W. W. Theobald, and Bunker & Theobald became its publishers. The development of the grain-growing interests of the central. section of the county, and the centralization of its incident business at Pacheco, as the storage and shipping point, made that a more advantageous location than Martinez, and induced the removal of the Gazette to that place in September, 1861. In July, 1865, Mr. Theobald disposed of his interest in the paper to C. B. Porter, which made a change in the publishing firm name to that of Bunker & Porter. The decline of Pacheco as a business point in consequence of the opening of new competing outlets for the products of its former tributary district, determined the proprietors upon a removal of the paper back to the County seat. A com- modious and well situated office was erected, and the paper removed to Martinez in November, 1873. Up to the present time the life-term of the Gazette has been about equally divided between the two places of publica- tion-about twelve years in each. In March of the present year, F. L. Fos- ter purchased a one-third interest in the Gazette, and its publishing firm is now Bunker, Porter & Foster.
THE CONTRA COSTA NEWS .- This paper was first established in the Spring of 1874, in the town of Pacheco, which is situated about five miles from Martinez, the county seat. The founders of the journal were Barry
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History of Contra Costa County.
Baldwin, George J. Bennett and W. K. Dell, who placed Charles H. Chad- wick in full charge of the enterprise. Mr. Chadwick managed the paper for about two years, when he resigned. He is now living in San Francisco and managing a hotel. Immediately after Mr. Chadwick's leaving the paper Mr. Dell purchased Baldwin's and Bennett's interests, and engaged W. R. Kennard and H. J. Jackson to conduct the paper. In the Spring of 1877, William R. Cranna, the present proprietor, returned from the East after an absence of six years, and was induced to take the editorial reins of the News, from which time up to the present, the News has gradually gained ground in every section of the county, and to-day is acknowledged one of the best weeklies published in California. During the last four years Mr. Cranna has added by degrees to the establishment a fine job depart- ment, and is now turning out all kinds of job printing, equal to any office in San Francisco. The News is Democratic, and the only paper published in the county that represents the Democratic principles and party, yet it is well patronized by those who are opposite in politics. The News has a good circulation in every town in the county, also in Oakland and San Francisco. The News office was removed to Martinez in 1877, where it is still located, and with the energy and enterprise of its proprietor, William R. Cranna, it will some day rank with the leading journals on the coast.
LODGES, SOCIETIES, ETC .- The Lodges and Secret Societies of Marti- nez are not numerous, but they suffice to perform the necessary duties devolv- ing upon them. Being in easy access of all the towns in the interior, the interchange of fraternal relations is frequent and pleasant.
MARTINEZ LODGE, No. 41, F. & A. M .- This was the first Masonic Lodge started in the county, its charter bearing date May 6, 1854, the offi- cers applying therefor being R. N. Wood, W. M .; H. Mills, S. W .; and Sam. Russell, J. W. The first meeting was held in the second story of the Berry- essa adobe, May 27, 1854, the officers being Robert N. Wood, W. M .; Hiram Mills, S. W .; Daniel Small, J. W .; John Tucker, Treasurer; E. F. Wred, Secretary. In 1860 they moved into their own building, erected by sub- scription of the members. The present officers are S. J. Bennett, W. M .; George A. Sherman, S. W .; H. P. Edwards, J. W .; W. M. Hale, Treasurer ; B. Borach, Secretary ; E. P. Wagg, S. D .; P. McCarger, J. D. The Lodge is in a flourishing condition, and has a large membership.
LAUREL COUNCIL, ORDER OF CHOSEN FRIENDS .- This Lodge was or- ganized June 17, 1882, with the following charter members: Alexander Boss, George W. Boss, Mrs. E. J. Boss, William Clark, Ellen J. Dowie, Mrs. C. J. Hollenbeck, Henry M. Hollenbeck, Ansil B. Hamblin, James E. John- son, Mrs. Maria B. Lander, Dr. John Leffler, Mrs. Charlotte Leffler, David P. Mahan, Mrs. M. Perry, Nancy E. Pitts, Mrs. Getta Stewart. The mem-
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Township Number One.
bership is seventeen, and the officers for the current term are H. M. Hollen- beck, P. C. C .; Dr. John Leffler, C. C .; Mrs. E. J. Boss, V. C .; Mrs. M. B. Lander, Secretary ; James E. Johnson, Fin. Sec .; Mrs. J. Leffler, Treasurer ; A. Boss, Prelate ; William Clark, Marshall; Mrs. N. E. Pitts, J. G .; George W. Boss, O. G.
OCCIDENTAL CHAPTER, No. 64, ORDER OF EASTERN STAR .- This Chap- ter was organized October 15, 1881, with the following charter members ; Elizabeth Williams, L. C. Wittenmyer, Francis Williams, Eva Bissell, Clara K. Wittenmyer, Lizzie T. Russell, Emma Moore, Helen C. Carothers, Mar- garet E. W. Thompson, Mary Brown, Narcissa H. Woodruff, Caroline J. Hol- enbeck, Henry M. Hollenbeck ,Clara L. Wittenmyer, Leontine Blum. The offi- cers first elected were : Elizabeth Williams, W. M .; L. C. Wittenmyer, W. P .; Leontine Blum, A. M .; Eva Bissell, Secretary ; Margaret E. W. Thompson, Treasurer ; Emma Moore, C .; Clara L. Wittenmyer, A. C .; Nellie Carothers, Ada ; Clara K. Wittenmyer, Esther ; Mary Brown, Martha ; Lizzie T. Russell, Electa ; Cornelia J. Hollenbeck, Warder; Francis Williams, Sentinel. There are at present thirty-two members on the roll, while the Lodge is in a very flourishing condition, the officers for the current term being : Elizabeth Williams, W. M .; L. C. Wittenmyer, W. P .; Leontine Blum, A. M .; C. Ed. Miller, Secretary ; Margaret E. W. Thompson, Treasurer ; Emma Moore, C .; Clara L. Wittenmyer, A. C .; Ella Borland, Ada ; Emily McCarger, Ruth ; Clara K. Wittenmyer, Esther ; Rosa Miller, Martha ; Lizzie T. Russell, Electa ; E. B. Wagg, Warder ; Francis Williams, Sentinel. Meets in Masonic Hall, Martinez, on the second and fourth Mondays of each month.
CARQUINEZ .LODGE, No. 90, A. O. U. W .- Was organized March 31, 1879, with the following charter members : D. P. Mahan, Francis Williams, C. Ed. Miller, J. Weiss, J. C. McHarry, W. E. Coffin, J. B. Smith, D. B. Tinker, E. E. Webster, George S. Overfield, W. J. Hough, J. Leffler ; the first officers being: F. Williams, P. M. W .; J. Weiss, M. W .; J. C. McHarry, G. F .; Wil- liam Coffin, O .; J. B. Smith, G .; D. B. Tinker, Rec .; E. E. Webster, Fin .; George Overfield, Recd .; C. Ed. Miller, I. W .; W. J. Hough, O. W. The Lodge, which meets every Thursday evening in the hall of the Good Temp- lars in Martinez, is in a flourishing condition, and has a membership of forty. The officers for the current term are : R. M. Jones, M. W .; Henry Raap, F .; Thomas McMahon, Sr. O .; F. Williams, Rec .; W. J. Douglas, Fin ; E. E. Webster, Recd .; Frank Coleman, G .; H. G. F. Dohrmann, I. W .; John McCann, O. W. The past Masters of the Lodge are: J. Weiss, F. Williams, C. Ed. Miller, John Leffler, J. M. Littlefield and R. M. Jones.
THE BANK OF MARTINEZ .- In the year 1873 the Bank of Martinez was started, and on July 28th work on the building was commenced by E. W. Hiller, and was completed about three months thereafter. The structure, with its ornate Corinthian composite front, plate glass, paneled wainscoating,
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History of Contra Costa County.
richly moulded counter, lofty rooms and elegantly finished walls and ceilings, proves to be as handsome an establishment as any in the State. On October 4th the iron safe, an elaborate piece of work made by Dubold & Kienzel, at Canton, Ohio, was received. It was placed in the fire-proof vault on the 6th October. On the same day (October 6, 1873,) the Cer- tificate of Incorporation of the Bank of Martinez was filed, the Directors being : L. I. Fish, W. W. Camron, Simon Blum, Henry M. Hale, William M. Hale. The Capital stock was fifty thousand dollars, represented by five hundred shares of one hundred dollars each. During its first week a large business was done, and we are gratified to learn that its prosperity has con- tinued up to the present time.
GRANGERS' WAREHOUSING AND BUSINESS ASSOCIATION .- A meeting of the members of the Danville, Walnut Creek, and Alhambra Granges was held at Walnut Creek, June 1, 1875, to determine what action should be taken on the report of the Joint Committees of several Granges with respect to the formation of a Grange Business Association, and the establishment of warehousing and deep-water shipping facilities at or near the town of Mar- tinez. An incorporation was then formed called the " Grangers' Warehous- ing and Business Association of Contra Costa County," while the following Directors were chosen to serve for the first term : John J. Kerr, James Stone, Erastus Ford, of the Danville; Nathaniel Jones, J. W. Jones, H. S. Raven, of the Walnut Creek ; J. Strentzel, James Kelly, Alexander Boss, of the Alhambra Granges. The capital stock was fixed at fifty thousand dollars, divided into two thousand shares of twenty-five dollars each. On January 10, 1876, a meeting of the citizens of Martinez was held to take action in aiding the enterprise. The chair was occupied by Dr. Strentzel. It was shown that the village would be greatly benefitted in becoming the shipping and commercial point of the country district, which the means of deep water shipping would make it, while the disposition of those present to render the undertaking all the assistance in their power was unmistak- ably good. Messrs. Fish, Blum and Porter were appointed a committee by the Chair to solicit subscriptions to the stock of the Association. Work on the property acquired was pushed with vigor. By the month of April the grading for the roadway and buildings was far advanced ; on May 22nd the Construction Committee were authorized by resolution to contract for build- ing a warehouse without delay ; on June 12th this was commenced, and on the 17th of July, the first of the two warehouses was ready for the storage of grain, while, on July 12th, pile-driving for the wharf was commenced, and Robert M. Jones selected to take charge of the business. A track is laid from the warehouses along the wharf which adds greatly to the facilities of shipment, while the entire enterprise is in a flourishing condition, and a credit to the enterprise of Contra Costa's citizens.
J. J. Wills
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Township Number One.
THE FISHING INDUSTRY .- The following interesting account of the Fishing Industry at Martinez we copy from the Contra Costa Gazette of June 3, 1882 : " Within the last few years the exportation of canned sal- mon has become generally recognized as one of the leading industries of the Pacific Coast. This fish has, from very ancient times, been everywhere es- teemed as an article of food, and it was formerly widely distributed through- out the whole of northern Europe, Great Britain, Germany, France, Russia, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Holland, and was found extensively in the waters of Canada, Newfoundland and New England. Years of suc- cessive fishing have exhausted many of the streams, in which they once abounded, of this favorite fish ; and the poisonous debris of saw-mills and manufactories has totally exterminated them from their old haunts in New England streams. In consequence of this depletion of Eastern and European waters, California and Oregon salmon finds a ready sale in almost every market in the world. That our supply is fully equal to the demand, has been made possible only by the exertions of the Fish Commissioners, who have worked steadily and faithfully to surround our fish interests with a net-work of laws, rules and regulations through which unscrupulous fisher- men cannot break. It is safe to affirm that ten years ago there was not more than one cannery on the Pacific Coast where there are now a dozen ; and yet the average number of salmon canned by each cannery is fully as great now as then.
" The Commissioners have done a good work. There is still much to do in ferreting out those who secretely violate the laws applicable to fish, and it is desirable that every officer vested with power should use all legal means to bring offenders to justice. The Chinese fishermen are open and persistent enemies, not only to salmon, but to all kinds of fish. With their shrimp mesh-nets, constructed so that small fish of every description are hopelessly entangled therein, they drag the waters of the Bay and annually destroy millions of fry, thus constituting a constant drain on the fish re- sources of the Coast. The severity of the laws have for a few years past partially precluded them from pursuing their nefarious occupation, but they still work in secret, when possible to do so, and there is not a week but that the laws are, to a certain extent, violated. The bulk of fishermen in
this State are composed of Italians and Greeks, the Italians being proba- bly in the majority. There are employed in the salmon fisheries between San Francisco and Sacramento, about eight hundred boats. Each boat is inanned by two fishermen ; there are, therefore, one thousand six hundred men employed in catching salmon between the two points named, or in a distance of only one hundred and twenty miles. There are two hundred and fifty boats in the Straits of Carquinez alone. There are nine can- neries along the river and Suisun Bay, and several in San Francisco, em- ploying, on an average, from sixty to eighty men to each establishment.
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There are, therefore, no less than two thousand five hundred men employed in taking salmon and canning them for home and foreign consumption. These figures convey some idea of the growing importance of this compar- atively new industry ; but a more definite conception of the enormous amount of fish taken yearly from our rivers and bays may be formed by considering the fact that the San Francisco markets alone, this season, dis- pose of two thousand fresh salmon daily, to say nothing of the Sacramento, Stockton, Oakland and San José markets, and the sales made throughout the smaller towns of the interior. The cost of a fishing outfit ranges from $450 to $800. A suitable boat can be purchased for an average price of $260. The nets in use up the river are comparatively small, and cost about $200 ; those used in the Straits will average at least $300 apiece-they are of much greater depth, and contain a great deal more material. The thread for their construction costs one dollar per pound, and some few nets con- tain as high as three hundred pounds of netting. The ropes, lines and corks for each net costs about $50. The construction of a good net is worth $180 ; but fishermen generally save this amount by making their own nets. If hired done, fishermen pay twenty cents a fathom for the work. The fishermen pursue their vocation at all points on the river and bay during the season. The fish, after remaining a short time in the brackish water below the Straits, begin to ascend. The first catch will be made in the Straits ; the following day the fish will have reached Collinsville; and the next day they may be found at Rio Vista. In this manner they ascend, gradually lessening their speed the further up they go. The Winter run commences in January, and consists of a variety of salmon much longer and thinner than those caught in the Fall. In February the number of fish to be found are but limited. The Spring run, which commences in March, is composed of a variety much thicker than the fish of the preceding run. They ascend in limited quantities, only.
The Fall run is the largest, and commences in August. These salmon, known as the hook or hawk-nosed salmon, are the very largest variety. The run continues for six weeks, the principal body going up in September. The average daily catch varies according to the season. Last season the salmon ascended in such numerous quantities that the fishermen could have caught each day per boat, for a period of six weeks, over one hundred fish. But the markets were glutted, and as it was impossible to dispose of that number, they contented themselves with catching merely enough to supply the demand. This season the average daily catch per boat does not exceed twenty fish; and the supply is not sufficient to keep the canneries running at their full capacities. The price, of course, varies according to the supply and demand. The canneries started at Martinez and Benicia, by creating a more extensive demand, have doubtless influenced prices this season to some extent. Last year the average price per fish was but thirty-five cents. This
Township Number One. 409
year the price has been as high as sixty-five cents, owing to the scarceness of salmon and the competition of the canneries; but a compromise, result- ing in an equal distribution of fish to the several canneries, has reduced the price to forty cents. The principal buyers are Bradford & Co., Booth & Co., Colville, Johnson & Co., Lusk & Co., the Fisherman's Cannery (at Benicia), Black, Kendall & Shields, A. Lusk, and Pardini & Co. Suisun flats and the Straits of Carquinez are the principal fishing grounds. A number of boats fish at Sonoma flats, below Mare Island, but the fishing there is difficult, owing to the roughness of the water. Within the last two years a place above Vallejo, on Napa river, commencing at what is known as Slaughter House Point, has become quite a favorite fishing ground. The grounds up the Sacramento river are also extensive, and thousands of salmon are caught there daily during the season. The fishermen are, as a class, brave, hearty men, to whom an almost constant open-air life, and the fresh, salt breezes of the sea, have imparted a ruddy countenance and a healthy circulation. The peculiar nature of their occupation brings out the muscles of their arms, expands their chests, and gives them an air of activity peculiarly their own. Their costume is simple and picturesque ; and, as a whole, they form an unique group among the various industrial classes of the coast. They are all governed in their relations to each other by unwritten but effective laws, created by themselves for self-protection. When the tide is running out, the head of a "drift," or group of boats, has the privilege of first letting out the net; the second boat then follows, each awaiting its turn. Any attempt to secure an undue advantage by crowding into some favored position would be resented by the balance of the drift in a manner not tending to the pecuniary advantage of the offending party. At slack water, when there is no movement of the nets, the fishermen take their respective posi- tions within about one hundred yards of each other.
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