USA > California > Fresno County > History of Fresno 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, Volume I > Part 11
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In connection with General Riley's visit to the placers, a reconnoissance of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valleys was made with a view of estab- lishing military posts to defend the miners and settlers. From the character of the mining population and the nature of their occupations, Riley advised that unless a strong military force were maintained on "the frontier." it would be impossible to prevent the outrages upon the Indians, and these in turn avenged by murders of isolated parties of whites. He urged that a military post be speedily established in the Kings River neighborhood, be- cause the new gold discoveries being made in this vicinity were attracting miners, while the rapidly increasing population of the northern placers was gradually forcing the Indian to the south to congregate on the waters of Lake Buena Vista in the Tulare country. The later Fort Miller was one re- sult, and it was the only military protection afforded the entire valley "fron- tier" as far south as Fort Tejon.
The record of early settlements and events in the Fresno territory is scant. Up to 1856, it is officially a part of the archives of Mariposa County. Newspaper there was none until the Millerton Times in January, 1865. It lasted two and one-half months, and then there was a hiatus until April, 1870. Both were weekly apologies, which gave what little news they chose to gather and color in the presentation after it had been popularly threshed over during the week and was as stale as a last year's bird nest. What newspaper publicity may have been given was in far away journals by volunteer correspondents when the mood took them to send them a few lines. The actors, who participated in the early events, have nearly all passed away, and the story is necessarily a patchwork of fugitive-recorded recollections of the pioneers and the traditions handed down through their descendants. These are not always reliable because the memory of man is at best treacherous.
This slow settlement-process was due to various natural causes. It was scattered because the first comers located in the mountain gulches and on streams where there was gold, and the farmer where there was soil and water. Moreover the population was of the floating class, with little thought of permanency in location. Besides, the territory was so isolated and so remote from the county seat that actually for years there were communities without the semblance of authoritative government, unless in the repressive representation by the military at the fort, and it having nothing to do with
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HISTORY OF FRESNO COUNTY
matters civil. No wonder that there were excesses and that human life was valued at so little in those wild and woolly times. For years, there was unrest because of the Indians. The nearest populous stage points were Stockton, 140, and Visalia, 120 miles, by the routes traveled then. Yet Mil- lerton was a lively enough mining village in 1853, during which and for later years it was at its zenith, but with some of its glory and life departed on the abandonment of the fort and the removal of the soldiers in September, 1856, not to be reoccupied until August, 1863, because of rumored activities in the valley during the Civil War by adherents of the southern cause.
EARLIEST TERRITORIAL SETTLEMENTS
The earliest settlement in the territory was of course Savage's trading post of 1850, above Leach's old store on the Fresno River, which was after- ward part of the county's northern boundary line. Next was very likely Rootville, the mining camp on the San Joaquin on the later site of Millerton, antedating even Fort or Camp Barbour, temporary headquarters of the commissioners during a part of the Mariposa Indian War and succeeded by the permanent Fort Miller. The peace treaty was signed in the camp on April 29, 1851. Upon return from the starvation campaign against the Chow- chillas before that date, Fort Miller was being built for the protection of the settlers. It was named for Captain Miller, its first garrison commander. but was not established until 1852, and Rootville and Fort Barbour changed names accordingly. There was a Fort Washington further down the river on the site of a vaquero corral of 1849, according to tradition; but this is little more than a tradition.
This fort was below Rootville at Gravelly Ford on the river, and was the location of Cassady & Lane's post, where Cassady was killed and a previous massacre of several persons had occurred in the series that led to the Mariposa Indian War. It was hurriedly thrown up as an earthwork defense in expectancy of hostilities and was located above the present Lane's (Yosemite) bridge and below Little Dry Creek on land afterward of the V. B. Cobb ranch. The school district there still bears the name of Fort Wash- ington. Cassady was surprised and killed while beyond reach of succor in search of stray stock. Certain it is that Cassady & Lane had post and camp operating in January, 1851, and possibly before.
After peace on the treaty signing. Savage put up a second store in the summer of 1851 on the Fresno, moving in the winter further down the stream to Bishop's camp or fort, before which the Fresno reservation had been selected on the Fresno. That summer Coarse Gold Gulch was a bus- tling mining camp, and Texas Flat was booming, Rooney & Thornburg keep- ing a store there. Fine Gold Gulch was probably also in existence then. Another Indian war threatening in October, 1851, Coarse Gold was depopu- lated by the miners, save for a half dozen, including William Abbie, but be- fore December they returned and C. P. Converse and T. C. Stallo opened a store one and one-half miles below Texas Flat in charge of Samuel H. P. Ross, nicknamed "Alphabetical" Ross, afterward district attorney of Merced County.
Asa Johnson came then, with three negroes and a wench, in the summer of 1852. He killed Thomas Larrabee and upon acquittal left the country. Stallo & Converse discontinued their store in the spring of 1852 and were succeeded by the Walker brothers, James N. and C. F., who continued until 1859. James was twice in the legislature in 1863 and 1871, and was sheriff and tax collector, elected in 1867 and in 1869.
In 1852 John Ledford and Geo. M. Carson erected a store at Fresno Crossing, but soon sold to J. L. Hunt, elected in 1856 as one of the first county supervisors and four times reelected between 1860 and 1865, and to J. R. Nichols, who sold to J. M. Roan, who did not qualify in 1856, wherefore
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HISTORY OF FRESNO COUNTY
Hunt's special election but who went to the legislature in 1858. In October, 1854, Jefferson M. Shannon and S. B. Coffee engaged at Coarse Gold in the hog business, making large profits in selling pork for three years at twenty-five cents a pound and more, to Chinese miners. In 1854 T. J. Payne had a store at Fine Gold in charge of J. S. Ashman and one Julius William Aldrich. Ashman was sheriff four times, elected in 1865, 1871 and 1875 and appointed in 1874. In 1856 T. J. Allen kept restaurant and bar at Roan's store on the Fresno, officiating also as justice of the peace and being a law unto himself in holding a trial before a jury of three for a civil debt of $350 when the jurisdiction of a justice of the peace was limited to $299.99. But almost anything "went" in those days.
Among some of the foremost at Millerton were in 1852-53: Dr. Lewis Leach, C. P. Converse, T. C. Stallo, Hugh Carlin, T. J. Allen, Hugh A. Car- roll, L. G. Hughes, Ira Stroud, Charles A. Hart, first county judge and sub- sequent owner of the Millerton townsite and of the fort, which was his home until death, Dr. Du Gay, Henry Burrough, John McLeod, William Rousseau, besides others. In 1854 Ira McCray and George Rivercombe, first elected county treasurer, and again in 1859 and 1860, engaged in the hotel and livery business at Millerton, Rivercombe retiring early, leaving McCray to "coin money" over his bar, his gambling tables and his ferry directly opposite the court house entrance. In 1855 George Grierson, Otto Froelich and Gomer Evans located as general merchants, Grierson returning with family in May, 1868, to Denmark, Evans removing to San Francisco as bookkeeper and cashier for Parrott & Co., the bankers, and Froelich con- tinuing until 1872, when with the general exodus he came to Fresno and became prominent in banking and commercial circles.
On the Upper Kings, about 1852, was a thriving settlement with John Poole establishing the first ferry across the river and located there was William Y. Scott, the second sheriff of the county elected in 1858, for whom the place was named. Scott was popularly known as "Monte" because when he and Hazleton came to these parts they brought with them a monte layout. Scottsburg was washed away by a flood, but the settlement was rebuilt on higher land. It named itself Centerville and was in its day a flourishing community, but because of a like named older village in Alameda County it locked horns with the postal authorities and was not recognized officially save as "Kings River." Centerville as the name staid, was at one time the most populous village in the county, saving Fresno, the seat, and held the balance of political power. Today it is a collection of weatherbeaten rooker- ies, and little more than a memory of the past, having been superseded by the bustling town of Sanger in the Kings River bottoms in the center of the pioneer orange and citrus belt of the county. Among the earliest Cen- tervillians may be named: W. W. Hill, supervisor in 1863, and treasurer from 1867, until his death in 1874, the Smoot and Akers families, P. W. Fink. A. M. Darwin and E. C. Ferguson, John A. Patterson, William Hazle- ton, C. F. Cherry, Jesse Morrow of the Morrow House, which stood so long on the site of the federal building in Fresno, Richard and William Glenn, William Deakin, William J. Hutchinson, the village blacksmith and county assessor from 1883 to 1891, and others engaged in agriculture and stock raising.
Another busy settlement was the New Idria quicksilver mine on the West Side (now in San Benito County) with its Cornish and Mexican min- ers. Its development was long retarded by protracted litigation over the William McGarrahan claim, which was prosecuted in the end to the United States supreme court. It was about 1854 that L. A. Whitmore established the first ferry across the lower Kings at where the town of Kingston was located. He was killed and O. H. Bliss succeeded him and maintained it but discontinued it for a bridge and sold the property after a time to John Sutherland. Mr. Bliss had flower beds, green hedges, arbors and bowers
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HISTORY OF FRESNO COUNTY
about the ferry station, it being remembered as a veritable garden oasis in the desert. He announced his activities in the following fashion :
O. H. BLISS Notary Public and WELLS, FARGO & CO.'S AGENT KINGSTON FERRY Mr. Bliss has a fine and commodious LIVERY STABLE For the accommodation of travelers BLISS' FERRY at Kingston is the best and safest crossing on King's River.
A FIRST GLIMPSE OF MILLERTON
The earliest glimpse of Millerton is furnished in the itinerary notes of Mineralogist William P. Parks, who, in 1853, was with the Williamson government topographical survey of the California interior for a transcon- tinental railroad route. The party left the United States arsenal at Benicia Barracks, July 10, 1853, coming up the valley via Livermore Pass and Elk- horn and camped several days at Fort Miller on arrival July 25. The itiner- ary notes :
"Gold is found in the bed of the river in. considerable quantity. It is mostly very fine scale gold and it is difficult to separate it from the black sand, which is abundant and heavy. Groups of gold washers and Chinamen were engaged along the banks, either washing out the gold in a common pan or using the 'cradle.' A panful of sand and gravel taken up anywhere on the surface of the first bench of the river would 'show color' on being washed out. This term 'color' has passed into general use among the miners, denoting the presence of just sufficient gold to be well recognized. One of the miners was working his claim with a cradle and employed two Indians to dig and bring the auriferous earth and gravel. He was obtaining about one ounce per day.
"Some of the officers of the army at Fort Miller were constructing a canal along the bed of the stream into which they were intending to turn the water of the river when at its lowest stage and thus be enabled to obtain the sand of its bed which was supposed to be extremely rich in gold.
"The Indians collect about the fort in great numbers during the winter, as many as five or six hundred being there at one time. They live in the usual manner-in brush huts-a short distance below the fort. They make beautiful baskets or trays of a strong round grass, which they weave so tightly and evenly that the baskets will hold water, and they are sometimes used to hold water while it is made to boil by throwing in heated stones. One mile below the fort is the ferry across the river. The trade is chiefly with. emigrants, miners and the Indians.
"During our stay at camp. Captain Love at the head of a party of rangers arrived, bringing with him the head of the notorious robber chief, Joaquin Muerto (Murieta). They had surprised Joaquin with his party in a pass of the Coast Range and after a short fight, shot him through the head. (Note was also made that the rangers had been obliged to swim one of the sloughs in what is now called the West Side and that one of the prisoners was drowned.)
"The temperature of this valley or at least of our camp ground is worthy of note. Each day was like the preceding and the unclouded sun seemed to have a remarkable heating power. The high hills on each side prevented a free circulation of air and reflected back the heat. The thermom- eter during the middle part of the day seldom indicated a temperature lower than 96 degrees F. and generally stood from 100 degrees to 104 degrees in the shade, in some localities 115 degrees."
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HISTORY OF FRESNO COUNTY
LISTED ON ASSESSMENT ROLLS
It goes without saying that in those unsettled early days of the 50's directories were unknown. In fact none was published in the county until the small affair of the spring of 1881, the names for which were "chased up" by R. W. Riggs, the photographer and historian of Pine Ridge, and S. L .. Pettit, a nephew of Petroleum V. Nasby, the humorist philosopher. The pretentious county directory was in 1899-1900, but the assessment rolls for 1856 and 1857, unearthed for this history, list the subjoined established indi- viduals and business partnerships for the first two years of county organiza- tion, and it is to be presumed that few were overlooked. Incidentally the rolls disclose the fact that canines were assessed $1.50 for the male and $3 for the female dog. The listed are :
1856-B. A. Andrews, Harvey Akers, Henry Adams, Frank Armstrong, Aaron Arnold,. R. A. Appling, Thos. J. Allen, J. B. Aldrich, Fernando Ardero.
1857-Ah Sam & Co., Ah Quie, John Anderson, J. S. Ashman, Wm. Adshead, Ah. Kow, C. Abell.
Wm. T., Jerry and Chas. Brown, Wiley and Henry Burroughs, Brown & Hadden, David Beebe, Thos. Boyce, Benj. M. Branson, Leo. Boldero, W. W. Bourland, John Besore, John Bostick, J. H. and Alex Ball, A. C. Bullock, F. L. Barthold, Isaac Baker, Geo. F., J. W. E. and Q. M. Brown, T. B. Brown & Co., Robert Bransford, A. H. and W. C. Bradley.
1857-M. D. Bullard, P. A. Banta, C. Benbrook, Bufford & Bullock, Burroughs & Hughes, M. Bergen.
W. J. and Samuel B. Campbell, Hugh A. Carroll, E. J. Curry, W. D. Chapman, Wm. P. Cruikshank, Geo. M. Carson, S. M. Cunningham, S. B. Coffee, J. G. Clark, Samuel Chidester, Hugh Carlin, Chung Chong & Co., Carman, McIntosh & Wilson, Ocenitio- Coetro, S. F. Cummings, Chas. P. Converse, Andrew Cathay.
1857-A. Coffey, Carson & Parks, Coffee & Shannon, Crow & Thwing, J. P. Cruik- shank, Hewlett Clark, Homer Cogswell, A. Chambers, E. G. Campbell, C. Castro, Carman & Co., J. G. Collins, W. C. Carville, A. P. Cromble.
Samuel Dinley, Moses Damron, Jack Delo, Donelson & Linton, Wm. & L. D. Doug -- lass, F. B. C. Duff.
1857-A. Drumm, Wm. Darwin.
Gomer Evans, Raphaele Europo, F. M. Edgar, F. M. Eagan, Selander Enbank.
Levi D., Josiah and Wm. Ferguson, Mathew Frouth, Fitzgerald & Co., Robt. I. Finch,. Samuel Frakes & Co., J. B. Folsom, Fisher & Gill, Geo. N. and Robt. J. Finch, Fort Miller W. & M. Co., reduced from $25,000 to $10,000.
1857-Frakes & Yancey, Faust & Parish, Wm. Faymonville, Richard, James M. and W .. Glenn, Geo. M. Garish, John Gilmore, Stephen Gaster & Co., Jos. R. Gashwiler.
1857-A. B. Groverny, Pat Gibney, Geo. Grierson, A. Gore, Geo Goforth, Daniel Gibbs.
Thos. Huckleby, Wm. J. Harris, Jacob Howell, John R. Hughes, Hughes & Co., John L. Hunt & Co., Chas. A. Hart, Herold & Harrison, Hildreth & Rea, W. W. Hill & Fink,. John Hughes.
1857-Henry Hickman, Hunt & Nichols, Ly Mon Mong, J. T. Hamlet, Geo. S. Harden, H. E. Howard, Hazelton & Patterson, Henry Hays, Thos. and J. E. Haddon,. J. F. Hitchcock, David Huckleby, Clark Hoxie, Harrison & Herrill, Thos. Hurst, A. Heath, E. P. Hart, Henrice & Co.
1857-Wm. and Robt. Innes.
Jacobs & Co., Henry Jewett, Johnson & Co., John Johnson.
1857-D. J. and E. Johnson, Martha Jones.
Ah Kong, Sin Kay, Keith & Ridgway.
1857-Edwd. King.
John Ledford, Samuel S. Lovejoy, A. Layne & Co., Dr. Lewis Leach, S. H., M. B. and Jonathan Lewis, Levi Loler.
1857-Robert Larrimore, J. H., T. M. and W. M. M. Lewis, P. Lynch, Samuel Langdon. Samuel McClatchey, Henry Matterson, Gabriel Moore, A. McRobinson, Mayfield & Co., J. R. Munn & Co., Samuel McIntosh, Levi Mitchell, J. Y. Moore, Ira McCray & Co., W. A. McCreary & Co., Andrew McKenna, Bertha Mathew, Robt. Murray, Beveano, Moraga, Labran Mathews, Herman Mathews, Herman Masters, R. P. Mace.
1857-Henry Myers, Henry Mann, J. D. Mace, Thos. Maguire, Jesse Morrow, Mont- gomery & Co., James Mathews, Wm. Martin, W. T. and J. P. Moore, Chas. Mitchell. H. R. Nobles, Neleigh & Co., 26,660 acres at $33,330.
P. B. Neal, Jose Orevania, J. B. O'Reily, Domingo Ortego, Ramon Ovasa.
John Poole, John A. Patterson & Co., Leonard Patton, H. S. Pope, Chas. Peterson,. Parsley & Faust, H. E. Parrish, Frank Phillips, K. L. Perry.
1857-Edwd. Pratharo, Billy Patterson, W. H. Parker, Henry F. Pitts, W. E. Price. Rodgers & Laverty, James Richards, Harry Rickard, Andrew Reinlein, Reed & Swan,.
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HISTORY OF FRESNO COUNTY
Leonard, Daniel and James B. Reed, J. Y. Ross & Co., J. M. Roane, Jos. Raggio, Wm. Ramsey.
1857-A. M. Rogers, J. R. Richards, R. Robbins, Royal & Gaster, Jonathan P. Ross, Rhoades & Co., Hugh Regan.
Geo. Sharpton, Albert H. Statham, Smith & Crumley, John L. Stewart, Levi Stein- hoff, John P. and John Simpson, M. E. Sinsabaugh, Ira Stroud, Stroud & Co., L. C. Shackford, M. M. Saxton, Henry Strong, Noah Stilts, Alex. Saier, David Swan & Co., Geo. Sovereign, Wm. Y. Scott, Stewart, Neleigh & Crosby, nine leagues of land $50,000, Domingo Salinger, Cyrus Sanford, R. Sheldon, T. C. Stallo, James Sayles Jr., Wm. Savage, Chas. Simpson.
1857-J. S. Smith, Sim Kee & Co., Stroud & Bowles, Samuel Smoot, James Smith, E. D. Seales, David Selander, C. D. Simpson, John Sylvester, F. Smith, Wm. Suther- land, A. Strickard, J. G. Simpson, Jas. F. Stewart, Steinhoff & Mitchell, G. W. Stall.
Jas. Tucker, W. H. Thompson, G. B. Taylor, Chas. R. Thurman, Stacy Taylor, A. Thibault, Peter Tracy, W. B. Taylor & Cormack, Frank Temple & Co.
1857-J. A. Tivey, Wm. Neely Thompson.
1857 -- James Urquhart.
John Villet, L. D. Vinsenhaler. 1857-Thos. Vinsenhaler.
J. W., Geo., John, James E. and A. Williams, Ah Wong Lee, Wan & Co., Walker & Co., J. N. and C. F. Walker, Levi Womack, Jas. W. Waters, B. Wilson & Sanford, Woodworth Wallace, Waters Paris, Woodworth & Co., H. A. and Jas. Wallace, Morgan J. Wells, John G. Ward, M. D. Wilson.
1857-Michael Woods, H. B. Workman, L. A. Whitmore, Enoch Wright.
1857-J. A. Young.
CHAPTER XIV
MEMORIES CLUSTER THICK ABOUT MILLERTON. A MENTAL PICTURE OF THE FORT. PICTURESQUENESS OF THE MINING DAYS. FREIGHT TEAMS, MOUNTED EXPRESS AND STAGES ENLIVENED THE VIL- LAGERS. A RED LETTER WEEK IN 1853 FOR EXCITEMENT. EN- FORCING STATE FOREIGN MINER'S TAX AND CONSEQUENT RESULTS. JOAQUIN MURIETA AND HIS STATE REIGN OF TERROR. GARCIA AS THE MONSTER OF THE BANDIT BAND. CAPTURE BY RANGERS NEAR TULARE LAKE. REWARDS OF $6,000 PAID BY THE STATE, WITH REJOICING GENERAL.
About Millerton and its protecting appendage, Fort Miller, the first of these for a decade and a half after county organization, the social, political, governmental and population center, cluster most of the memories of the long ago. No more alluring natural spot than the fort site could have been selected. It was on the shelving, grass-grown, south bank of the river at one of the widest reaches, so that it was never in danger of flood such as twice visited Millerton, the last on a Christmas eve washing away nearly half the village and causing a property loss from which it never recovered. In that flood the water in the river rose a full twenty-four feet, maintained with little appreciable fall for as many hours. Fort site was a garden spot in spring and autumn, but in summer because in a pocket of sheltering. surrounding low hills, a perfect bake-oven.
Fort Miller was located at the highest practical point on the river, all things considered. Above it and Fine Gold Creek, the stream is impassable, rushing out of a mountainous precipitous gorge. It was to place it within easy reach of the hill country beyond, and especially to afford protection to the miners at Cassady's Bar, across the range and due east and south of the fort on the river bend, that the ancient trail, traversable to this day, was laid out across the hills back of the fort. At Millerton the river runs due east and west, the fort facing the stream to the north. Its northern edge was built up to and partly hung over the river bank in early days. It is
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HISTORY OF FRESNO COUNTY
not to say either that the river at the fort was always confined to the present bed. The fort is at the mouth of a long and serpentine ravine running far above and back into the foothills and mountains beyond.
The site was originally thickly covered with oak trees. These were felled for the logs in construction, as well as to leave a clearing as a mili- tary prerequisite. The fort enclosure was a quadrangle, surrounded by a stone and adobe wall, five or six feet high, and faced the river. From Miller- ton, the fort is not visible, the western view being shut off by a rocky promontory which projects to the river bank about halfway between fort and village, which are a mile or more apart. The nearest courthouse eave- corner is barely discernible from the fort. The latter was not unlike many another.
The guardhouse was long ago razed, leaving only the rock-walled, iron- barred, ventilation-holed excavated dungeon. It stood at the northwest corner of the quadrangle and near it was presumably the main fort entrance from town. Facing the parade ground and at the upper edge, with the flag staff in the center, was the roomy, one-story headquarters and commandant's residence with veranda, and on the line to its left two smaller adobe officer's quarters. The parade ground was enclosed on the right by the long, low, wooden barracks shed and on the side backing the river were the stables and the quartermaster's department sheds in continuation of the barracks. In rear of headquarters, the sloping hillside was dotted by the post garden, the smithy, the bake-oven, powder magazine, the two-story, sunny hospital, and nearly on top of the hill spur the little post cemetery.
The ancient blockhouse, the oldest standing building in the county today, in the construction of which not a nail entered as the logs were dove- tailed and mortised, stands outside of the quadrangle. A group of military and farm structures clustered on the blockhouse side at one time, so that the fort surroundings had the appearance of being quite a pretentious set- tlement. Blockhouse, standing now in solitude, is often overlooked by sight- seeing visitors. Indeed many labor under the delusion that Millerton and fort site are one and the same thing, and that the courthouse was a jail instead of a general county government building, jail included in the base- ment.
The post had accommodations for a garrison of two cavalry troops or two batteries of artillery serving as infantry, with detachments in charge of light field pieces. Its military history is brief and comparatively speaking uneventful.
The kitchen addition to headquarters, and connected with. the dining room at the eastern angle, is a blockhouse of hewn timber, held in place by tiprights and the interstices filled with mud to make solid walls. Under roof protection, the soundness and preservation of these oaken logs showing the marks of the hewer's ax are worthy of note. In the garden in the rear of headquarters are umbrageous and prolific orange trees, which in earlier days were a seven day's wonder, to see which people travelled miles. They were, so it is said, the first orange trees set out anywhere in the valley, this side of Stockton.
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