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 55
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was for a two-story building on Nicholl between Martina and Santa Fe Streets. During the year 1915 he ran a restaurant, but then reentered the contracting business, which he is now following with well-deserved success. Mr. Brewen was a member of the early volunteer fire department, and when it was changed to a paid department he continued for three years with the rank of lieutenant. He served as sanitary inspector for the city and for the government at the same time, and was in this office when the city was cleaned up from the rat pest. He has done police duty and is at present a deputy sheriff, serving under R. R. Veale. He was one of the men who were actively interested in starting the building trades or- ganizations.
On May 29, 1900, Mr. Brewen married Miss Sophie Fowl, a native of Greenberg, Ind., and daughter of George Fowl, a carpenter. Mr. and Mrs. Brewen have had five children: Stellma, a graduate from the high school and business college, employed by the Santa Fe; Carl, who finished high school and is now a machinist with the Standard Oil Company; Fowl, who finished high school in Richmond and is working as a pattern maker in Oakland; Abbott, a pupil in the high school; and a daughter who died in infancy. Mr. Brewen is independent in politics, supporting the men he considers best fitted for office regardless of political policies. His recrea- tion is found in hunting and camping, and he enjoys all kinds of healthful games. In his younger days he played baseball and still is an enthusiastic fan. He belongs to the Eagles.
GEORGE E. MURRAY .- An experience of many years in railway affairs has abundantly qualified George E. Murray for the responsible position of station agent for the Santa Fe Railroad Company at Pittsburg, Cal. Mr. Murray is a thorough railroad man and among the oldest in the employ of the Santa Fe system in California. He was born at Little Rapids, Wis., on May 8, 1889, a son of Robert and Eva (Childs) Mur- ray; the former a native of New Brunswick and the latter of Wisconsin. The father was station agent at various places in Wisconsin. He passed away at Oshkosh, Wis., aged seventy years. The mother now makes her residence in Pittsburg, Cal. Of this union were born three sons. T. F. is on the ocean liner Pallas; he is a competent telegrapher and an S. O. S. man. J. D. is now employed with the Redwood Manufacturers Company at Pittsburg; he was formerly in the Navy Yards at Vallejo. George E. is the subject of this review.
George E. Murray attended grammar school in his native city and then entered the high school at De Pere, from which he was graduated in 1905. The family then came to the State of Washington, and there he worked at the mining camp of Silverton. In 1909 he came to Berkeley, Cal., where he became a student operator for the Santa Fe Railway. Later he was agent at Muir, Cal., and was there for three years, when he was called to the superintendent's office at Fresno. He came to Pittsburg in 1915. This station was at first called Diamond, but later, in 1911, the
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name was changed to Pittsburg. This thriving industrial city boasts of the only "joint facilities switch" in the State. This switch was laid in 1902 to accommodate the Redwood Manufacturers Company. Then an agree- ment was entered into by the Southern Pacific Railroad Company and the Santa Fe system whereby the Santa Fe Company was to do all the switch- ing for both companies at Pittsburg, and the Southern Pacific Company was to do all the switching for both companies at Bay Point. This amica- ble agreement has proven of great benefit to both companies and was a wise move for all concerned.
At Muir, Cal., on September 16, 1912, Mr. Murray was married to Miss Esther Johnson, a native daughter of California; and to them have been born four children : Robert, William, Marjorie and Marian, the two last being twins. Mr. Murray is a member of the Pittsburg Chamber of Commerce and a charter member of the Rotary Club; and fraternally he is a member of the Masons and a charter member of the Elks, both of Pittsburg.
JOHN PETER BARRETT .- A pioneer of Pinole who has seen the growth and development of the town is John Peter Barrett, who came to California in 1875 and has been closely identified with this section of the State ever since. He was born in Brooklyn, N. Y., on January 6, 1853, the son of Henry and Jane ( Brandon) Barrett, both now deceased. Henry Barrett was born in England but came to the United States when a young man and saw service in the Civil War. He was a stone cutter by trade.
John Peter Barrett attended school in different places where he lived as a boy growing to young manhood and at the age of twenty-two came to California and worked as a carpenter on the old Palace Hotel, just then being erected. He followed the carpenter trade several years. On ac- count of dull times in San Francisco Mr. Barrett went to Prescott, Ariz., then the capital of the territory, and engaged in general sawmilling for three or four years. Coming again to San Francisco he applied for a job at carpenter work and was offered one dollar and fifty cents for his labor, as he was told that was all that was being paid to able bodied men. He refused and found a job with A. Lusk & Company as a fruit hauler for three dollars per day and he stuck to it for nearly three years. He then came to Contra Costa County and leased some land from his father-in-law and raised stock for four years and met with fair success. He then en- tered the California Powder Works, but made his home in San Pablo, going back and forth every morning and night with a two-wheeled cart and horse, reporting for work every morning at 6:30. He was made foreman of the nitric acid department, then promoted to the sulphuric acid department, with a satisfactory raise in wages, and given charge of all the acid works, a position of much responsibility. He hired and fired employees. He still lived in San Pablo and the superintendent proposed that he come to live nearer his work, which he decided to do and erected
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one of the first homes in Pinole and is still living in that same house, which is in good state of repair. He continued steadily at work and was grad- ually advanced from time to time, and when Mr. Burns, the superinten- dent, died, Mr. Barrett succeeded him in the department and increased the output from 20,000 tons of sulphuric acid to 100,000 tons. After twenty- three years of service with his company Mr. Barrett was pensioned at the age of sixty by Mr. Birmingham. He is now looking after his per- sonal interests and ranch of thirty-five acres, part of which is in the limits of Pinole. He has some cows and chickens and raises garden truck. He enjoys being in the open and is a strong booster for the climate of this district, which he says "can't be beat."
Mr. Barrett was married on March 28, 1883, to Miss Eleanor Eliza- beth Inwood, daughter of Henry and Elizabeth Eleanor (Buges) Inwood, English people. The following children have come to bless their home circle. The first died in infancy. William Henry, aged forty-three, is a bricklayer in San Francisco. John P., also a bricklayer, lives at home, is married and had one child, Ruth; his wife is deceased. Charles met his death in a coal mine in 1924; he had married and had a son, Charles. Nellie Elizabeth married Gus Weisman, an engineer at the Hercules Pow- der Works. For many years Mr. Barrett served as a school trustee ; also one of the town trustees when the sewers were installed. He became a stockholder in the bank when it was organized and has favored every en- terprise that has come to Pinole. He has seen the growth of schools, the commercial houses, the establishment of the newspaper, the postoffice, in fact every place of business and the residences have been erected since Mr. Barrett came here to live. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity and was one of the promoters of the lodge hall in the town. He belongs to the Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Barrett is fond of fishing and camping and takes a vacation whenever possible. It is to such men as Mr. Barrett that the county owes a debt of gratitude, for he never has hesitated when it comes to doing good for his home community.
C. W. JENSEN .- The success which has met the efforts of C. W. Jensen since he made his purchase of land in Contra Costa County has left him no reason to regret his removal from his native land. He was born in Denmark, March 8, 1887, the sixth child in a family of nine chil- dren born to Christian and Mary (Christensen) Jensen, both born in Den- mark. The father is still living at the age of seventy-eight; the mother was seventy-five when she passed away.
Mr. Jensen attended the common schools in his native country and when old enough learned the butter and cheese making trade. He came to America in 1906, going to Triplett, Mo., for a year, after which he came to San Francisco, where he followed his trade. Later he went to Idaho and there worked at his trade until he was drafted into the World War on January 24, 1918. He was transferred to San Francisco and served with the 127th Infantry of the 32nd Division. He was on the Meuse-Argonne
J. J. Casey مـ
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front and was gassed twice, but not seriously. After the armistice was signed he was sent to Germany with the Army of Occupation and remained for five months. Returning to the United States, he was honorably dis- charged at the Presidio, San Francisco, in May, 1919. In August, 1919, he came to his present ranch home, consisting of ten acres which is planted to almonds, apricots and wine grapes. Besides his farming activities, Mr. Jensen does a general drayage business in Brentwood, and is also the agent for the Union Ice Company.
On January 1, 1923, Mr. Jensen was married to Miss Pauline Abbel, a native of Belgium. Mr. Jensen is a member of the Roy Frerichs Post, No. 202, of the American Legion and of California Lodge No. 1, 1.O.O.F., at San Francisco. Mr. Jensen is a naturalized American citi- zen and is most loyal in his support of all measures for the advancement of his home section of Contra Costa County.
HON. JEREMIAH P. CASEY .- The late Judge J. P. Casey served many years as a justice of the peace and as a supervisor of Contra Costa County. He was born near Macroom, in County Cork, Ireland, in November, 1848, the son of Patrick and Margaret (Buckley) Casey, farmer folk in Ireland. The father took part in the wars between Ireland and England, lived to be ninety-three years old, and died in 1889. The mother died in 1901. The records of the family go back for many gen- erations and show that the ancestors of our subject lived in the vicinity of Macroom, County Cork, and were farmers.
Jeremiah P. Casey grew up on the home farm and helped with the work on the place, and in the meantime attended the common schools. In 1873 he came to America in the hope that he could better his condition, arriving in San Francisco on May 13, of that year. Going to Davis, Yolo County, he secured work with the Southern Pacific Railroad Company in winter months and worked in the harvest fields in Solano County in the summer. He continued at various kinds of labor in various places in the State until 1879, when he landed in Port Costa and bought a saloon, which he rented for six months, and then opened a hotel; he also owned and operated a brewery. He held the office of justice of the peace for twenty years. In 1908 he was elected a member of the board of supervisors from the second supervisorial district of the county, and served until his death on April 6, 1924. The success he met with in his official capacity is shown in that he served continuously in office, at each election succeeding himself although being opposed by good and strong men politically in his district. He was one of the most progressive men in his section of the county, and his constituents knew their interests were safe when placed in the hands of Judge Casey. He was strong for good roads and worked untir- ingly to place Contra Costa County in the forefront of the counties of the State in this respect. He was a friend of education and served for years as a member of the board of trustees of the Port Costa district, and was instrumental in the erection of the first schoolhouse in Port Costa. In
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politics he was a Democrat. He belonged to the Hibernians in Vallejo, and to the Foresters of America and the Young Men's Institute in Port Costa, having served as first president of the latter.
Judge Casey was married in Vallejo, Cal., in June, 1890, being united with Mary Boyle, a native of County Cork, Ireland; and they had four children: Patrick, deceased; Margaret M., an employee of the Port Costa Water Company; Jeremiah, who married Catherine Murphy, has two children, Margaret and Catherine, and resides in Oakland; and John, an employee of the Southern Pacific, residing in Port Costa. Mrs. Casey died on August 20, 1907, aged forty years, and Miss Casey has practically reared the two boys from their youth. The family are Catholics.
GEORGE H. SHAFER .- A native of California, George H. Shafer has been a constructive factor in the development of eastern Contra Costa County and has at all times done his share toward the upbuilding of the community in which he has so long made his home. Every movement calculated to be of material benefit to the State or county has received his support, and today he is honored and respected by all who know him. He was born at Rio Vista, Cal., on February 26, 1866, a son of William and Elizabeth (Pearce) Shafer. His father was born in Bedford County, Pa., and came west across the plains about 1855. The family settled in Contra Costa County in 1867, where the father became an extensive agri- culturist, owning and operating 900 acres of land. Elizabeth Pearce came across the plains with her parents in 1852 and in Contra Costa County she was married to William Shafer. Of this union five children were born : Adrian H., a rancher near Brentwood; Mabel, Mrs. George Geddes ; Win- ifred, Mrs. Mott Preston; Hannah; and George H., of this review. The father was one of the early river men on the Sacramento, bringing vege- tables from up the river to the coal mines ; and later he became identified with the stock business and ranched on a large scale. He was active in politics, but never aspired to public office, although he was often a dele- gate to county conventions. He was a great temperance worker and did much to further the cause in his vicinity. William Shafer was seventy-nine years old when he passed away at Brentwood on March 11, 1915; Mrs. Shafer has now reached the age of eighty-one, and makes her home at Brentwood.
George H. Shafer worked on his father's ranch until sixteen years of age, and then went to Stockton and entered the normal school and business college, from which he was duly graduated. After finishing school he accepted a position with the C. A. Shaw Hardware & Implement Company and remained with them for some time. Returning to Contra Costa County, he purchased the livery business of P. J. Moody, at Brent- wood, which he successfully operated for about twenty-five years.
On August 20, 1888, Mr. Shafer was married to Miss Martha C. Bainbridge, a native of Missouri, daughter of Dr. James A. and Mary Ellen (Herold) Bainbridge, both natives of Missouri. Dr. Bainbridge
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passed away at his daughter's home in Brentwood on April 5, 1914, aged eighty-one years, while the mother was only forty-eight years old when she passed away. Eight children were born of this union, of whom Mrs. Shafer is the sixth.
In 1888 Mr. Shafer was elected constable, an office he has held con- tinuously ever since, excepting four years when he did not run for office owing to other matters that occupied his time. In 1888 he was appointed deputy sheriff. His present appointment is under Sheriff R. R. Veale, who was his schoolmate and a warm personal friend. In 1905 Mr. Shafer engaged in the undertaking business at Brentwood, at first in association with his only son, Earl B. Shafer, who is now superintendent of the Grower's Fertilizer plant at Stockton. Earl B. Shafer married Miss Emma Goodman of Oakley; and they have one daughter, Lelah, and make their home in Stockton.
Mr. and Mrs. Shafer have complete command of their occupation and dignify it with consideration and reliability, backed by a thoroughgoing technical knowledge. They maintain an attractive establishment, which was enlarged in 1923, and their growing business necessitates another addition in the near future. Mr. Shafer owns seventy acres of land ad- jacent to Brentwood. This is planted to almonds, fruits and wheat. In politics Mr. Shafer is a stanch Republican. Fraternally, he stands high in the Masonic, Odd Fellows and other orders in eastern Contra Costa County. He is a Past Patron of the Eastern Star at Brentwood. He has served as president of the East Contra Costa County Chamber of Com- merce, and is now a director. Mrs. Shafer is a member of the Brentwood Public Library Association, which she helped establish. She is Past Dep- uty of the Foresters and Past Matron of the Eastern Star, and is now Deputy Grand Matron of the Grand Chapter, 17th California District, I. O. O. F. Mr. and Mrs. Shafer enjoy the esteem of a large circle of friends who justly honor them for their worth and ability.
FRANK J. PEACOCK .- A skillful mechanic and capable stationary engineer, well-known in Byron Precinct No. 1, is Frank J. Peacock, who is now serving as chief engineer at the McCabe Pumping Station on the pipe line where he has been continuously employed for the past twenty-two years. He has to his credit a quarter of a century of service as a steady and efficient engineer for the Standard Oil Company, and for ten years he was a locomotive engineer for the Southern Pacific Railroad Company, run- ning from Rocklin to Truckee. Although sixty-four years old, he enjoys good health and is able to attend to his responsible duties daily.
Mr. Peacock is a native son and has witnessed many of the interesting events that have transformed the great State of California. A son of pioneer parents, he was born in Eldorado County on November 17, 1862, at old Pilot Hill, nine miles from the spot where John Marshall discov- ered gold in 1848. Benjamin Franklin Peacock, his father, was born in Pennsylvania and crossed the plains to California via the old Santa Fe trail
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in 1848, and for several years was engaged in gold mining. He was mar- ried, in California, to Frances Littlefield, who was born at Wells, Maine, but was reared in Lynn, Mass. Frank J. Peacock is the only living son of their family, but there are three daughters, the eldest being now seventy- two years old. The father lived to be ninety-six years old, and the mother was sixty-six when she passed away.
Frank J. Peacock grew up in Eldorado County and received his educa- tion in the public schools. He left home when he was only thirteen years old and tried his luck at gold mining and various other pursuits, with a varying degree of success. For several years he was deputy sheriff of Placer County. Having a penchant for machinery, he took a job as fire- man for the Southern Pacific Railroad Company, and rose to be a locomo- tive engineer, working steadily for ten years. Then he entered the employ of the Standard Oil Company as engineer for the pipe lines, serving at the Vernalis, Tracy and Los Medanos pumping stations before coming to the McCabe station in 1906.
At San Francisco, in 1905, Frank J. Peacock was married to Miss Mary Miller. Mr. Peacock is a Democrat.
ANDREW NELSON .- An experienced smelterman, Andrew Nel- son is now a resident of Contra Costa County and enjoys the esteem of a wide circle of friends. He was born in far-off Norway in 1859, the son of Jonathan and Aasa Mary (Anderson) Nelson. The schooling of Mr. Nelson was limited for at an early age he went to work in the smelter in his own country, continuing until coming to America in 1887. First he went from Norway to Australia and after some time spent in that coun- try decided the new world held out a more hopeful prospect for a man of energy and consequently came to California and Crockett. With his previous experience he found no difficulty in getting work in the Selby smelter and he continued in that employment until 1920, when he was re- tired with a pension for long and faithful service as a furnace man. Al- though retired, Mr. Nelson is called for work occasionally at the sugar refinery. He is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and of the Woodmen of the World.
On July 18, 1889, Andrew Nelson married Mrs. Hellene Jorgenson, daughter of Jorgen Anderson and Tole Hellene Halvorson, both born in the old country. This union has been blessed with two children; Yorgan, born June 8, 1890, married Florence Falk and they have two sons, An- drew and George, Jr .; the only daughter and second child, Alma Louisa Nelson, was born April 22, 1896, and died in early childhood. Mrs. Nel- son is one of ten children, several of whom came to America and are now living in the East. The Nelson home is one of the show places of Crock- ett and is a bower of flowering plants and shrubbery. Their home shows the touch of an expert housewife, such as Mrs. Nelson, and reflects the refinement of its occupants. They are kindly and hospitable folk and have a large circle of friends.
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HENRY LEXON .- As the proprietor of the Pullman Bakery at No. 3061 Cutting Boulevard, Henry Lexon is gradually extending the scope of his business in Richmond and surrounding territory. He was born in Potsdam, Germany, the son of Henry and Frieda Lexon, the father a cabinet-maker by trade. As a lad he attended the schools of his native country and learned the trade of the baker. In 1898 he came to America and landed in Vancouver. One summer was spent in Alaska, and then he came to Seattle for six months. His next location was in San Francisco, where he engaged in business and was prospering until the great fire and earthquake of 1906 destroyed all he had gathered together, and with little insurance. He worked in Fairfield, Solano County, three years, and in 1912 came to Richmond; bought property at Pullman, on Cutting Boulevard, erected his present building, equipping it with modern appli- ances; and established the Pullman Bakery. Since that time his business has been steadily growing and he caters to a particular trade. He is assisted by his good wife, and gives his personal attention to the preparing and baking of his bread and pastries.
On December 13, 1905, Mr. Lexon married Miss Clara Wanderer, born at Vincennes, Ind., a daughter of Antone and Lena ( Bohnert) Wan- derer, both natives of Germany. She is one of eight children, all of whom are in San Francisco. Their children are : Henry, driving a delivery wagon for his father, and Clara, Alice, Margie, Lillian and Raymond. Mr. Lexon lends his influence to help promote all worthy projects for the bet- terment of his community.
ANDREW FRANCIS PORTMAN .- One of the successful grain raisers in Contra Costa County is Andrew Francis Portman, residing near Antioch. He is a native of this county and was born on September 2, 1876, a son of Andrew and Johanna (Babbe) Portman. The father was a large rancher, operating some 1240 acres near the Veale Tract in the eastern part of the county, in Knightsen precinct. In the Portman family there were six children, viz .: Fred, of Vallejo; Sophie, who married William Penland and also resides in Vallejo; Will, residing in Colusa County; Andrew F., of this review; Mary, Mrs. Ira Sullivan, of San Jose; and Hannan, Mrs. Alfred Gosney, also in San Jose. Mrs. Portman is still living, and at the age of seventy-eight is hale and hearty. She makes her home in San Jose. Andrew Portman lived to be ninety years of age, and died on July 3, 1923. The children were all born and reared in Contra Costa County, whither their mother came with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Fred Babbe, from her birthplace in Germany, when she was a girl of seven years. Mr. Babbe had come to California in search of gold soon after the news of its discovery had been heralded to the world, had mined for a time, and then went back East and later brought his family to the Coast.
Andrew F. Portman was reared to farm work and received his school- ing in the public schools of his neighborhood, working on the home place with his father and learning the various branches of agriculture. The home
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ranch contained a large Indian mound, from which many specimens left by the Indians were obtained as the mound was leveled to make levees, etc. There were skeletons, skulls, arrow heads, beads, Indian jewelry and their coins, making an interesting collection. After reaching manhood, Mr. Portman began ranching for himself. He has been very successful, is the owner of considerable land and also owns the Melrose Hotel in Pittsburg. He is considered one of the large grain raisers in the county, operating 1000 acres of the C. A. Hooper estate besides his own ranches.
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