History of Contra Costa County, California; with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present, Part 100

Author: Munro-Fraser, J. P
Publication date: 1926
Publisher: Los Angeles, Calif. : Historic Record Co.
Number of Pages: 1118

USA > California > Contra Costa County > History of Contra Costa County, California; with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present > Part 100

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In 1904 Mr. Wood made a trip to Southern California as a tourist; then after his marriage he and his wife made five trips. His first work as a railroad man was with the Frisco Line in the Ozark Mountains, and he fired a locomotive from 1902 to 1907, the latter year he was promoted to be an engineer and ran as extra man till 1912, when he got a regular run. He got tired of the mountainous country, so in 1912 he came to Los Angeles and hired out to the Santa Fe; later he went to Stockton

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and ran a switch engine two months then went to Riverbank. He found so many older men, in point of service ahead of him that he took a sur- vey of conditions and when he was offered a job in the Richmond yards he took it immediately and has been in that part of the service ever since. There are now ten engines in the yards and five on the Belt Line. His first impressions of the town were unfavorable but he realizes there are few cities like Richmond and is contented and happy.

Mr. Wood and Miss Ora Ogle, daughter of Henry I. Ogle, who came to Pasadena in 1909, and who is now living at Haywards, were united in marriage in 1909. Their children are: Marion, Martha and Warren, all born in Richmond; and Gus, who was born in Missouri and died in Richmond in November, 1918, aged six years. Mr. Wood is a member of Alpha Lodge No. 431 F. & A. M., demitting from Arkansas Lodge No. 413 ; he belongs to Richmond Chapter No. 113, R. A. M. In line with his work he belongs to the B. of L. E. No. 839 at Riverbank; and to the Ozark No. 280 B. of L. F. & E. Mr. Wood owns his own home and property across the street. So enthusiastic is he over Rich- mond and its possibilities that he has influenced several to locate here.

MATTHEW WEIR .- Among the citizens who are deeply interested in church and religious movements in his locality we find Matthew Weir, whose home is situated at No. 301 Potrero Avenue, El Cerrito. He has been a valued resident of this locality since 1906, coming to Richmond in May of that year, and moving to his present location in 1915. He was born in Philadelphia, Pa., on December 6, 1870, and received his edu- cation in the common schools. At an early age he served an apprentice- ship to learn to become a finisher of woolen and cotton goods. Desiring to see something of the world he left Pennsylvania and went to Chicago, where he found employment for two years. After the close of the Col- umbian Exposition in 1893, he came West to San Francisco, from there going to the gold mines in the northern part of the State, where he worked as a carpenter for various mining companies, and also did some prospecting on his own account and met with some success in searching for gold. He spent two years at mining in Tonopah and at Yerrington, Nev., during 1911-1912, when he again came to California. He had located in Richmond in 1906, after the earthquake and fire in San Fran- cisco and entered the employ of the Standard Oil Company at their re- finery as a carpenter. Later he was promoted to the power department, where he now is.

Mr. Weir was married in 1905, in Redding, Cal., to Mrs. Olive Haffey, daughter of Matthew Morrow, a pioneer miner. Mrs. Weir was born in Shasta County and has lived in California all her life. They have an adopted son, Jack Joseph Weir. Mr. Weir is a member of Alpha Lodge No. 431, F. & A. M., in Richmond, and belongs to the Oakland Consistory of the Scottish Rite. He has taken a very active interest in church work and is a member and an elder in the Stege Presby-

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terian chuch. Through his influence and leadership a new church, costing $15,000 was begun in January, 1923, and completed soon afterwards. Mr. Weir served on the building committee and was elected treasurer of the church board. The new church has a seating capacity of 650 when thrown open to the public; has a membership of 110, and a Sunday School attendance of 130. The building is modern in every respect, is lighted and heated by electricity, and has a fully equipped banquet hall and kitchen. It is conceded to rank with the best structures of its kind and size in the entire bay district and is a source of pride to all the mem- bers, who give due credit to Mr. Weir.

WILLIAM MURRAY LAIDLAW .- For nearly a quarter of a century the life of W. M. Laidlaw, editor and owner of the Crockett Signal, has been inseparably associated with the history of Crockett, Cal., he having located there in January of 1906. Prior to the advent of Mr. Laidlaw in Crockett, other newspapermen had ventured in the field, but meeting with varied experiences had departed. The Crockett Signal, under Mr. Laidlaw's management, made its first appearance on January 29, 1906, as a 4-column daily paper. It became apparent after a few months trial that the field would not support a daily and on September 14 of that year the Crockett Signal appeared as a 4-column folio weekly. Through the sufferance of the public it has continued ever since, the passing years witnessing its gradual growth until it is now published as a 7-column quarto paper.

William Murray Laidlaw was born January 2, 1876, in the little hamlet of Elmdale, St. Lawrence County, N. Y., the son of Robert Dar- ling and Mary (Hall) Laidlaw. As the name implies, the family is of Scottish descent, tracing its origin far back into the history of Scotland.

In the year 1881 the parents of Mr. Laidlaw removed from New York State to Aberdeen, Brown County, S. D., a small prairie town, which at that period was the terminus of a new railroad then on its first lap in a construction program, which in later years carried it on to the Pacific Coast. The founder named the town after his home city in Scotland. In Aberdeen Mr. Laidlaw received the rudiments of an edu- cation in the grade school and when fifteen years of age began serving his apprenticeship as a printer. In the spring of 1901 he migrated to San Francisco and after a short residence there went to Richmond, Cal., entering the employ of the Santa Fe Railroad Company. His experi- ences finally convinced him he was not destined for a railroad career and he went back to printing, accepting a position on the Richmond Daily Leader, in time becoming manager and editor of this paper. In Sep- tember, 1904, he disposed of his interests in the Daily Leader and went to Martinez, where he was employed on the Martinez Daily Gazette until January, 1906, when he chose Crockett as a place wherein to again embark in business.

In politics the Crockett Signal occupies a neutral position, its influence being exerted on behalf of issues deemed best for the interests of its con-

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tituents and supporting for public office, irrespective of party affiliation, those considered best qualified. In the advancement of the educational, moral, commercial and civic interests of the community, it has labored unceasingly.

In 1911 the parents of Mr. Laidlaw joined him at Crockett, the father being employed at the sugar refinery until his death in February of 1919. The mother returned to Aberdeen, S. D., to make her home with a daughter, Miss Clyde May Laidlaw. The latter for many years has held a responsible position in the office of registrar of deeds of Brown County. Another sister, Selina, is now Mrs. E. L. Milligan and resides in Illinois.

On September 11, 1904, W. M. Laidlaw was united in marriage with Miss Grace Anna Beach, a native of York, Nebr., and daughter of Dr. Morgan H. and Sarah M. (Walsworth) Beach, who came West in 1881 and located in Eastern Oregon; both of them are deceased. Mrs. Laid- law has five brothers, all of whom are identified with the printing pro- fession. A sister, Mrs. G. A. Follett, resides at Richmond. Mrs. Laid- law was educated in the Oregon public schools and at the time of her mariage to Mr. Laidlaw resided at Ashland, Ore. She is an ideal help- meet to her husband and the latter without hesitation ascribes the growth and popularity of the Crockett Signal to the influence for good wielded by his helpmeet and companion of nearly a quarter of a century.

Fraternally, Mr. Laidlaw has several affiliations. He is a member of Carquinez Lodge No. 337, F. & A. M. of Crockett; Crockett Chapter No. 184, O. E. S .; Oakland Consistory No. 2, M. R. S .; Aahmes Temple A. A. O. N. M. S. of Oakland; Vallejo Lodge No. 559, B. P. O. Elks; Selby Lodge No. 192, K. of P .; and Hollywood Camp No. 417, W. O. W. He is also a member of various clubs and business organiza- tions and a stanch supporter of Boy Scout and Camp Fire Girl activities.

S. J. CLAEYS .- One of Contra Costa County's most influential citi- zens, and the leading spirit in the development of Rodeo and vicinity, is Mr. Claeys, president of the First National Bank of that city, and also one of the directors of the Rodeo-Vallejo Ferry. Mr. Claeys is in the foreground when movements are on foot for the further development of the county's resources, and he has been of inestimable value in the work of upbuilding this part of the State. Born in Oceania County, Mich., in the town of Hart, on March 13, 1879, he is the son of Campbell and Louise (Hasard) Claeys, both natives of Belgium, though they have made their home in the United States for the past fifty-six years. The parents took an active part in the agricultural development of Michigan, where they owned two large farms. There the father died in 1922, hav- ing reached the age of seventy-eight years; and there the good wife and mother is still residing, now also seventy-eight years old. Of their family of eleven children, Mr. Claeys is the only one residing in California. He attended the public schools of Michigan; but being one of a large family of children, he had to help in the farm work from the age of thirteen,

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and also do supplementary work in the lumber camps of Michigan during the winter months, working for wages from that early age. He assisted in the home farming and stock-raising in summer, and helped to clear the home acreage in winter, in the meantime driving teams to haul saw logs to the sawmill and working in the sawmills at odd times.

In 1904, Mr. Claeys came West to California, stopping on the way to visit the St. Louis Exposition, and from there coming on to Martinez, where his cousin, R. E. Claeys, was engaged in the grocery business. He went to work for McNamara & Winkleman for two years, in the butcher business at Martinez. In January, 1907, he came to Rodeo, and three months thereafter his marriage occurred, to Miss Henrietta Reder, a native of the Pinole Valley and daughter of Fred Reder, pioneer rancher. Five children have blessed their marriage: Josephine, Linus Francis, Reder, Margaret, and Milicent.

Mr. Claeys has engaged in ranching on an extensive scale, and is now the owner of 150 acres near Rodeo, besides being the renter of 1500 acres devoted to stock-raising. He is a cattle-raiser and dealer in live stock, and maintains a meat market at Rodeo, in the management of which he is assisted by his son. He is the owner of the Rodeo Water Works, which supply the city with water pumped from wells 200 feet deep, using electric power and a gravity system, thus giving the city the benefit of unusually good water for domestic purposes.

In 1918, when the First National Bank of Rodeo was started, Mr. Claeys helped to organize the institution and was on its first board of directors. He helped organize the Rodeo-Vallejo Ferry the same year. The First National Bank, of which he is now president, is capitalized at $50,000, and owns its own building, a two-story concrete structure erected in 1922. The Rodeo-Vallejo Ferry was capitalized at $500,000, with the late Avan J. Hanford as president; Oscar Klatt, secretary; and S. J. Claeys, treasurer. Mr. Claeys is also interested in the American Toll Bridge Company, capitalized at $6,000,000, which is constructing the toll bridge, to be completed in the spring of 1927 to span Carquinez Straits.

It would be hard to find a more thoroughly representative American citizen than Mr. Claeys, or one more in accord with the spirit of progress of the times. He firmly believes in aiding all worthy projects which have for their object the real advancement of his city, county, and state; and his worth is fully appreciated by his many friends in the community. Fraternally, he is a member of the Knights of Columbus of Berkeley, and of Richmond Lodge No. 1251, B. P. O. E., of Richmond. In politics he votes the Republican ticket.

GEORGE H. MILLER .- As head of the refining department for the Shell Oil Company at Martinez, George H. Miller takes rank among the foremost oil-refining experts in the United States. A practical man, he has learned the details of his line of work through long years of ex- prience. He was born and reared in one of the first oil fields of this country, and in point of service is the son of one of America's oldest oil

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refiners. Born on December 27, 1875, at Titusville, Pa., he is the son of G. R. Miller, who learned the oil refiner's business in Pennsylvania and became the first refining superintendent for the Pacific Coast Oil Com- pany, at Alameda, Cal. This company was later taken over by the Stan- dard Oil Company and removed to Richmond, and was thus the nucleus of one of the greatest, if not the greatest oil refining plant in the world. G. R. Miller was born in Pennsylvania, of Pennsylvania-Dutch and Scotch blood, and was refining superintendent for the Standard Oil Com- pany at Olean, N. Y., for many years. He married Isadore Murray, who was a native of New York State and came from a long line of pio- neer settlers of western New York. G. R. Miller retired from active business, in Alameda, a few years prior to his death, which occurred at the age of sixty-eight years.

George H. Miller was the second of seven children born to this worthy couple, and came to California with his mother in 1880, his father having preceded them two years before. He attended the public schools in Alameda, and later Heald's Business College in San Francisco. After finishing at the latter, like his father he took up the work of oil refining, first as stillman at the Pacific Coast Oil Company's station at Alameda ; from there he went to the stockyards station of the Mercantile Oil Com- pany at Oakland, and from there to the Capitol Refinery until it was taken over by the Shell. He then became superintendent of the Mon- arch Oil Company's refinery at West Berkeley for five years or more, spending one and one-half years at Maricopa, where his firm had an- other refinery. He next became superintendent of the Pinal Dome Oil Company, at Betteravia, Cal., and from there went to Salt Lake City, where he was connected with the Salt Lake City Utah Refinery eighteen months. On August 1, 1918, he came to Martinez, entering the employ of the Shell Oil Company, and soon after his arrival purchased his home on Pacheco Boulevard in that city, where he now resides. He was made head of the refining department for the Shell Company at Martinez in 1919, and still holds that important position, bringing to his work his varied and thorough experience and knowledge of oil refining which he has made his life work.

The marriage of Mr. Miller, at Alameda on April 26, 1905, united him with Miss Margaret Aitchison, a native of Nova Scotia of Scotch blood, whose ancestors for three generations have lived in Nova Scotia. She is the daughter of the former well-known Alameda contractor, Gavin Aitchison, who now resides at Buhach, Merced County. Mr. and Mrs. Miller are the parents of two children: George Reber, now a junior in the Alhambra High School; and Glen Aitchison, attending the Martinez Grammar School.

Fraternally Mr. Miller belongs to the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, at Alameda. Primarily he is a home-loving man, and interested in everything that means the further upbuilding of his community, city and county.

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PHILIP A. LEE .- One of the leading citizens of El Cerrito who has had much to do with the city in an official capacity, serving as chair- man of the board of trustees from 1918 to 1924, is Philip A. Lee, known to his personal friends as "Phil". A native of Nevada, he was born in Pioche, on May 9, 1881, the son of Milton and Annie (Mathews ) Lee, both of eastern birth, but who grew up in Nevada, where they were married. They had fourteen children, all still living; the father and mother having passed away on their ranch in that state when Phil was but eleven years old. The seventh in order of birth he attended the public schools until he was orphaned, when his school days were prac- tically ended and he did such work about the ranch as a boy of his age was expected to do. At the age of eighteen he went to De Lamar and followed mining for many years, or until he came to California to live.

Mr. Lee was married in Tonopah, June 29, 1905, being united with Miss Olga Carling, born in Chemung, near Chicago, Ill. Her father, Benedict Carling, was born in Sweden, was well educated and a compe- tent brick and stone mason and plasterer. He was always employed at his trade and traveled over considerable of the country after arriving in the United States. He met an accidental death on April 14, 1911, at the age of fifty-seven years. Of the eleven children born to Mr. and Mrs. Carling, five are still living. Mr. and Mrs. Lee are the parents of two children: P. Arthur and Olga Vilate, both born in El Cerrito and attending the El Cerrito public school.

Mr. Lee came to Contra Costa County in 1911, at the time his father-in-law was accidentally killed by a Southern Pacific train, intending to return to Nevada, but it was necessary for him to remain to settle the affairs of Mr. Carling, and in October of that year he secured work with the Standard Oil Company in their Richmond refinery and remained steadily employed until September 5, 1923. On the seventh of that month he took charge of an oil service station he had purchased at the corner of San Pablo and Fairmont Avenues, El Cerrito, and since then has gradually built up a very lucrative business, being assisted in his work by Mrs. Lee. This was his first business venture, he having always worked as a salaried man, and that he has more than made good is attested to by his friends.

While living in Nevada Mr. Lee was active in the Miners Union and was secretary of the Tonopah division of that order; also was a delegate to the national convention of that body held in Denver in 1909. While there a distinct honor was conferred upon him by his being chosen secre- tary of the convention of some 1600 delegates. He there made the ac- quaintance of "Mother" Jones and other celebrities in the mining world. Mr. Lee is a member of Point Lodge No. 503, F. & A. M .; Eclipse Lodge No. 403, I. O. O F. and has taken an active interest in both organizations. His first entry into the political arena was when he was elected a trustee of El Cerrito on its incorporation in 1917. At the gen- eral election in 1918 he was again elected a member of that body and

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chosen chairman, and as such he served until 1923. In 1924 he was de- feated by a small majority for reelection; again in 1926 he was a candi- date for trustee and elected by the largest majority ever cast for any candidate in the city. He has implicit faith in the town and has invested all his savings in real estate, owning the corner on San Pablo and Fair- mont Avenues, where his service station is located, and two houses, be- sides unimproved property. His recreation is found in healthful out of door sports and fishing.

Mr. Lee and his wife have always supported all progressive move- ments for the upbuilding of their city, the maintenance of good schools, (Mrs. Lee being a past president of the El Cerrito P. T. A.) ; good roads and for the best in civic development. Those who know Phil Lee make the statement that his word is as good as his bond, and his friends are legion in Contra Costa and Alameda Counties.

C. OTTO DAHLGREN .- Mr. Dahlgren can be called the veteran employee of the Oleum Refinery of the Union Oil Company, at Oleum, Cal., for it was he who broke ground for the company there, throwing the first shovelful of dirt, excavating for the foundation of the stills and boilers, in August, 1895. Born at Westby, Island of Gjotland, Sweden, on November 7, 1866, he is the son of Captain Lars Dahlgren, and comes from a line of seafaring men, his grandfather having also been a sea cap- tain. His mother, who before her marriage was Caroline Nestrom, lived to be seventy-three years old; the father was accidentally drowned at sea. Of their five children, our subject was the third child, and attended the schools of Sweden, later being confirmed in the Lutheran Church. When fifteen years old he became a sailor before the mast, and has sailed around the world three times, doubled the Horn twice, and sailed to Australia, New Zealand, South America, West Indies, Siberia, and other points, on English merchant ships.

Landing in San Francisco in November, 1889, Mr. Dahlgren left the sea and engaged in carpenter work. In 1892 he came to Contra Costa County and worked for the Pacific Patent Plaster Company, and also for the Union Stock Yards Company at Rodeo. He was one of the first to go to work for the Union Oil Company at Oleum, in August, 1895, be- ginning as a laborer and being repeatedly promoted until he entered the laboratory and became laboratory foreman. The fumes of the chemi- cals impaired his health in time, and while recuperating he was made wharfinger for the company at Oleum, which position he now holds.

The marriage of Mr. Dahlgren, October 23, 1903, united him with Miss Marguerite Trainer, a native of San Francisco, and daughter of the late John William Trainer, contractor and builder of that city. John William Trainer was born in Maine, and married Elizabeth Cummings, who was a native of New York State; the former reached the age of eighty-two, while the mother died at sixty-two years. They were the parents of three children; Marguerite; Julia, now Mrs. C. E. Holt of Mill

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Valley; and John W., of the firm of Trainer and Parson, Opticians, at San Francisco. Mr. and Mrs. Dahlgren are the parents of one child, John Victor, who graduated with the Class of 1923 from the John Swett Union High School at Crockett, and is now employed at San Pedro, Cal.

Fraternally Mr. Dahlgren belongs to the Odd Fellows, being Past Grand of Rodeo Lodge No. 193; Mrs. Dahlgren is a member of the I. D. E. S., and of the Druids, in Rodeo. A Republican in politics, Mr. Dahlgren cast his first vote for William Mckinley. He believes in fur- thering the general welfare of his home community, doing his full share toward that end, in which effort his good wife joins him, for she is the descendant of one of California's pioneer families.

GUIDO TODARO .- A man of much business ability, thorough in all his undertakings and well qualified to hold the important position of vice-president of the First National Bank in Pittsburg, Guido Todaro is recognized today as one of the rising financiers of Central California. He was born on June 6, 1870, at Conselve, Padova, Italy, the son of Dr. Annibale and Philomena (Menegazzi) Todaro, the former a doctor in chemistry in Italy. The Todaro family are and have been druggists and chemists for generations. Dr. Todaro owns a house in which he has a store in Conselve, which is being carried on by one of his sons, who is a doctor of chemistry. The father was born in this house and has operated the drug store all his life. The grandfather was also born in the same house and conducted the same store during his lifetime. Thus it came that the family of Dr. Todaro were all born in the same home. The brother spoken of is now about sixty years old and has followed in the footsteps of his father and grandfather and is running the store. It is the plan of Guido Todaro to take his son to Italy and send him through the Padova University and in time he will take up the drug business in the same store above mentioned.

Guido Todaro was educated in Italy at the Lyceum and the Uni- versity of Padova, but left the University before he received his diploma, to engage in the importing business at Calcutta, India. He left home in November, 1894, went to Bombay, crossed India and stopped at Cal- cutta. He then took trips throughout India until 1897, when he left Calcutta on account of the bubonic plague, and went to Hongkong, China, where he boarded the steamer Gaelic, went through Japan and thence to San Francisco, arriving on June 27, 1897. For seven years he was em- ployed in the Italian-American Bank in San Francisco. In the latter part of 1903 he came to Pittsburg and opened the Contra Costa County Bank, as cashier and manager, and from the beginning until it was sold to the Mercantile Trust Company, of San Francisco, in 1923, was the leading factor in the operation of that bank which grew in importance each year under his guidance. In January, 1925, Mr. Todaro left the employ of the Mercantile Trust Company of California, and in April, 1925, ac- cepted the vice-presidency of the First National Bank in Pittsburg. He

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History of Contra Costa County, California; with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present, Part 100

Author: Munro-Fraser, J. P Publication date: 1926 Publisher: Los Angeles, Calif. : Historic Record Co. Number of Pages: 1118

Author: Munro-Fraser, J. P
Publication date: 1926
Publisher: Los Angeles, Calif. : Historic Record Co.
Number of Pages: 1118