History of Kern 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 119

Author: Morgan, Wallace Melvin, 1868- [from old catalog]
Publication date: 1914
Publisher: Los Angeles, Cal., Historic record company
Number of Pages: 1682

USA > California > Kern County > History of Kern 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 119

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

1230

HISTORY OF KERN COUNTY

field, C'al., and a native of lowa. Both had gone through high school and college together.

During his residence at Palo Alto Mr. Simpson was identified with the Delta Chi of the university and for some years he also has been associated very prominently with the Knights of Columbus. As a legis- lator he regards his task as an exalted privilege, believing that there can be no greater responsibility of citizenship than the aiding of progres- sive movements and the upbuilding of the commonwealth along lines of permanent progress.

HARRY A. JASTRO .- It was the privilege of Mr. Jastro to enjoy exceptional advantages in the preparation for his life activities and of these opportunities he availed himself to the utmost, thus laying the foundation for the broad knowledge he now possesses. Born in Bakersfield October 14, 1875, a son of Henry A. Jastro, chairman of the Kern county board of super- visors, he was sent to the local schools during early boyhood, but at the age of fourteen went to Europe, where he spent six years in study. For a time he enjoyed the advantages afforded by the technical department of the Uni- versity of Berlin. From there he went to Aix-la-Chapelle, Aachen, Rhenish Prussia, and entered the Technical College, where he took the complete course and finished with a creditable standing. After an absence of six years he returned to the United States and shortly after his arrival in Bakersfield secured employment with the Power Development Company. Six months later he went to San Francisco and found a position as draftsman with Cobb & Hesselmeyer, hydraulic and mechanical engineers, then employed as con- sulting engineers for the Power Development Company. With them he con- tinned for eighteen months and later for six months worked with the old San Francisco Gas & Electric Company. These varied positions were most helpful in enabling him to gain a practical experience in all the departments of his chosen calling.

Upon returning to Bakersfield and entering the employ of the Bakersfield Gas & Electric Light Company, Mr. Jastro began in a very lowly capacity, but by dint of perseverance, accurate knowledge of the business and resource- fulness in his daily emergencies, he worked his way up to be assistant super- intendent. When he left the firm it was to enter the employ of the Edison Electric Light Company of Los Angeles and for three years he was con- nected with their engineering and business departments, during the period of the construction of their nine-million-dollar plant on Kern river. For the tunnels of this company he contracted to build eight miles of concrete line, an undertaking of great importance involving large expenditures and many responsibilities. From 1906 until the shutting down of the plant in 1907 he was connected with the engineering and business departments of the Eastern Colorado Power Company, located at Boulder, Colo., on Clear creek. Soon after his return to Bakersfield he became general manager of the Power Transit & Light Company, which during 1910 was absorbed by the San Joaquin Light & Power Company. The latter concern retained him as man- ager at Bakersfield for six months and then appointed him manager of their commercial department, which position he has since filled with accuracy, intelligence and marked professional skill. Along the line of his chosen calling he has been connected with the Pacific Coast Gas Association, while socially he is a leading member of the Bakersfield Club. During 1910 he married in San Francisco Miss Edna MI. Crooks, a native of Boston, Mass., and a lady of exceptional culture. In politics he supports Democratic men and meas- ures. Fraternally he is a member of Bakersfield Parlor No. 42, N. S. G. W., has filled the office of secretary of Bakersfield Lodge No. 266, B. P. O. E., and is ex-secretary and past president of Aerie No. 93. F. O. E., as well as a member of the grand lodge of the order.

ERWIN W. OWEN .- An identification of but a few years with the

1231

HISTORY OF KERN COUNTY

citizenship of Bakersfield and the oil interests of Kern county has been suf- ficient to give Mr. Owen an influential position in this section. When the failing health of his father, Josiah Owen, rendered advisable the presence of a member of the family in Kern county to direct the important interests here, it was the request of the parent that this son should come hither. Ac- cordingly he closed out his interests in Texas, resigned the office of county treasurer of Maverick county, and in January of 1909 became a resident of Bakersfield, where he since has maintained a supervision of the family busi- ness affairs and at the same time has engaged in the practice of law with growing success. As vice-president and a director of the Eight Oil Com- pany and as a stockholder in the Buena Vista Land & Development Company, also as a stockholder in the Colorado Pacific Development Company, he has become closely associated with important industries. He is now a member of the firm of Claflin & Owen, attorneys at law, with offices in the Morgan building.

In his removal to California Mr. Owen was accompanied by his family, which consists of wife and two children, Erwin W. and Ellen A. Mrs. Owen. formerly Miss Anna Lege, was born and reared in Texas, and is identified with the Daughters of the Republic of that state. Her father, Capt. Charles L. Lege, a pioneer of the Lone Star state, served as captain of a Texas com- pany in the Confederate army and proved his valor by heroic action on more than one fiercely contested battle-field. Mrs. Owen has been a member of the Episcopal Church from girlhood and Mr. Owen contributes to the maintenance and charities of that denomination. In national politics he votes with the Republican party. While living in Texas he was made a Mason in Eagle Pass Lodge No. 626, F. & A. M., also became associated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, while since coming to Bakersfield he has allied himself with the Woodmen of the World.

CHARLES J. LINDGREN .- The life which this narrative delineates began August 5, 1858, at Norrköping in the eastern part of Sweden near the shores of the Baltic sea and closed in San Francisco April 24, 1913. Between these two dates that span an era of one-half century or more there was a con- stantly broadening influence on the part of the man himself in occupative connections, in commercial avenues and in the material upbuilding of Cali- fornia. Throughout all of his life he made a specialty of the building business, but this did not represent the limit of his forceful activities, for in addition he was a heavy stockholder in the Bakersfield Sandstone Brick Company, be- sides holding stock in the Lindgren-Hicks Company of San Francisco, the Golden Gate Sandstone Brick Company and the Holland Brick Company of Antioch. As a contractor his name was inseparably associated with construc- tion work in the state. Many substantial business blocks and public buildings in various parts of the state furnish a silent but convincing evidence concern- ing his skill and ability, among these being the Sacramento county court house, the Humboldt Bank building and the Y. M. C. A. building in San Francisco, the Southern Hotel and its Annex, the Bakersfield opera house, Scribner opera house, Kern county high school, Manchester Hotel building, Manley apart- ments, the Security Trust Company's Bank, the Bank of Bakersfield, and the Brower, Redlick and Tegler buildings, all in Bakersfield, also the Tevis resi- dence at Stockdale, which is among the most attractive homes in Kern county.

The first nineteen years in the life of the late Charles J. Lindgren were passed uneventfully in a part of Sweden offering few opportunities to people of ambition and enterprise, but furnishing a humble livelihood to those who sought such with diligence. In a family of ten children, six of whom are now living, he had only such advantages as the locality and period afforded in an educational way. His parents were John Frederick and Johanna (Johanson) Lindgren. The former, who died at the age of seventy-two, followed the

1232

HISTORY OF KERN COUNTY

occupation of a builder. Many of his buildings, all constructed of brick or stone, still stand as substantial as when first erected and give abundant testi- mony concerning his efficiency as a skilled workman.

Under the careful oversight of such an experienced builder Charles J. Lindgren gained a substantial knowledge of the building business. When he crossed the ocean to America at the age of nineteen he was able to secure im- mediate employment with a force of carpenters. For some time he worked in Chicago, but the possibilities of the west lured him across the mountains. His identification with Bakersfield began in 1889, when the work of rebuilding was begun after the disastrous fire. While he did not remain in the city until his death. his identification with its interests never ceased. When business occa- sionally brought him back to Bakersfield, he found the greatest possible pleas- ure in meeting and shaking hands with old friends. Nor was his circle of friends limited to Bakersfield. Throughout Kern county he had hosts of friends. In Fresno, where he lived for a time and where he had a number of very important contracts, he ranked high as a builder and as a man. In the San Joaquin valley many important structures gave expression to his ability and splendid command of every phase of the building business. During the latter part of his life he maintained offices in the Monadnock building, San Francisco, and officiated as president of the Lindgren Company, one of the most substantial building concerns in America.

While living in Chicago Mr. Lindgren was united in marriage with Miss Bergquist, who survives him, occupying the elegant family residence on Pierce street, San Francisco. Three children survive their father, Charles J., Gertrude and Edna. In politics Mr. Lindgren was a Republican. Although large busi- ness interests prohibited an active political life, he was ready to support all measures for the benefit of city or state. No native-born son of the west cher- ished for it a deeper affection than that exhibited by Mr. Lindgren, who was loyal to state and patriotic in every sense of the word. As vice-president and a large stockholder in the Bakersfield Sandstone Brick Company he had intimate business relations with the president of the concern, James Curran, whom he selected as executor of his estate by will. An intimacy covering many years only served to deepen Mr. Curran's original favorable opinion of Mr. Lindgren, whose promptness and unswerving integrity attracted him and whose business course he followed with the interest of a true friend. The secret of Mr. Lind- gren's rapid rise he found to be his skill in judging and directing workmen, his honesty in dealing with them and his unerring ability to discern any weak spot in a building or in the method used in construction. Through these qualities he was able to fill every contract expeditiously, efficiently and honorably ; through them he arose from poverty to independence and from an unknown station in the world to a leading position among the contractors of his city and state.

LEWIS A. BEARDSLEY .- An honored and influential position among the pioneers of Kern county was held by the late Lewis A. Beardsley, at one time superintendent of county schools, also principal of the Bakersfield school. The annals of the county record his name and it is further preserved in local nomenclature, for the Beardsley school district and the Beardsley canal give evidence of his early and intimate association with movements for the permanent upbuilding of the locality. More than a quarter of a century has brought its startling changes since he passed into eternity, but the com- munity of his adoption has not forgotten his long and interesting identification with its pioneer history. The canal which he and two other pioneers built still flows through the same channel, although it has been enlarged to meet an increasing demand for irrigation. The school district to which he donated an acre of ground still bears his name and from the old school many children have gone forth to take places of honor in the world of business or agriculture.

The life delineated in this review began at Danby, Tompkins county, N.

1233

HISTORY OF KERN COUNTY

Y., November 23, 1832, and closed in Kern county, November 3, 1886. The family is of old eastern lineage and Darius and Naomi Beardsley, parents of Lewis A., lived upon a farm in Tompkins county for many years. Primari- ly educated in country schools and later a graduate of the Danby Academy, L. A. Beardsley came to California in 1853 and tried his fortune in the mines, without, however, meeting with any conspicuous success. September 27, 1861, at Visalia, he enlisted in Company E. Second California Cavalry, and served with his regiment until October 7, 1864, when he was honorably dis- charged from the army. Immediately afterward he began to teach school at Plano, Tulare county, and after coming to Kern county in 1869 he taught at Glennville. A vacancy occurring in the office of county superintendent of schools, he was appointed to the position and at the expiration of one year was duly elected to the place, then re-elected at the expiration of the first term. Meanwhile for two years he served as principal of the Bakersfield school.

Believing that much of the ultimate wealth of Kern county would come from the cultivation of its soil, Mr. Beardsley entered a homestead of one hundred and sixty acres three miles north of Bakersfield and identified him- self with the agricultural class. One acre of the tract he donated for school purposes and when a school was started there he taught in it for two years. In order to secure irrigation for his farm he interested himself in the develop- ment of a canal and with two others built the original canal that still bears his name. An abundance of water was thus secured for the raising of alfalfa and he put the farm largely in that crop. A pioneer in agricultural development, much of his work was in the nature of an experiment and he was among the first to prove the value of alfalfa in this section of the country.

At Glennville, Kern county, June 10. 1866, occurred the marriage of Lewis A. Beardsley and Louisa A. Finley, the latter a native of Saline county, Mo., born on Christmas day of 1845. When a babe in arms she was brought to California, in the spring of 1846 the family starting across the plains with ox-teams and wagons. The expedition was of considerable size and met with a number of vexatious delays. Finally some of the members, known in his- tory as the Donner party, decided to try the short cut-off, but fortunately the Finley family did not leave the old route. Finally, after much suffering, they reached their destination in safety, but the Donner party met with a sad fate, all but two perishing from starvation amid the snows of the Sierras. The trials of the Finley family were not ended with their arrival in California, for during the Mexican war they were obliged to guard themselves in a fort and it was not until peace was declared that they could safely resume farm- ing operations. During 1861 they settled on a farm near Plano, Tulare county ; later Mr. Finley returned to the Santa Clara valley and lived at San Jose for three years. Upon coming to Kern county he spent four years on a farm near Glennville where he lost his wife, Sarah (Campbell) Finley, who was born, reared and married in Kentucky. Asa Finley himself was a native of Saline county, Mo., and had spent his life almost wholly in that locality prior to his removal to the west. After the death of his wife he lived with their children and died at Stevinson, Merced county, this state, at the age of eighty-six years. Of his eight children all but two are still living. Mrs. Beardsley, who was third of the number, received her education in Santa Clara Seminary supplementing attendance at country schools. Of her marriage four children were born, all living except George, who died in Bakersfield. The other son, Lewis C., is now in Redwood City, and the older daughter, Mrs. Naomi Bowles, makes her home in Oklahoma, so that the only member of the family continuing in Kern county, aside from Mrs. Beardsley, is the younger daughter, Mrs. Clara Kent, of Bakersfield. For twelve years after the death of Mr. Beardsley his widow remained on the ranch. After she had disposed of the property she came to Bakersfield and erected a residence at

1234

HISTORY OF KERN COUNTY

No. 715 I street, where since she has made her home, meanwhile acquiring the friendship of the people of her community and taking a warm interest in the activities of the Women's Relief Corps of Bakersfield, as well as the Kern County Pioneer Society.

JOSIAH OWEN .- The noble impulse which led men of the courageous pioneer type to identify themselves with the material development of the frontier furnished the impetus that governed the westward migrations of the Owen family. Early in the history of Missouri they were planted upon its soil and assisted in its agricultural upbuilding. From that state Frederick Owen removed to Idaho, where he devoted the rest of his years to agricultural pursuits. Josiah, son of Frederick, was born in Caldwell county, Mo., and received a public-school education in that state. At a very early age he began to study the rocks and minerals on the home farm and along the Missouri streams. The talents so evident in his later years were manifested even in childhood. With no one to encourage him in his studies and with no oppor- tunity for training under educated geologists and mineralogists, he yet rose to an eminence that won the attention of the greatest specialists in the science. This resulted from natural abilities fostered by a painstaking practical study of the secrets of Mother Earth.

During the Civil war Mr. Owen offered his services to the Union and was accepted as a member of the Forty-Fourth Missouri Infantry, in which he remained until the close of the struggle. Early in the '70s he removed from Missouri to Texas and for a time lived in the Panhandle, but later settled in Johnson county, where in 1876 occurred the death of his first wife, Sarah (Cramer) Owen, a native of Ray county, Mo. Three sons were born of that union. namely: Wilbur F., now engaged in mining in Mexico; Oscar D., a horticulturist living at Beverly, Ohio; and Erwin W., of Bakersfield, Cal. After the death of his wife Mr. Owen gave his attention to mining in Mexico and Texas and made and lost several fortunes. His ability, however, had come to be widely recognized and led to his selection by the Southern Pacific Railroad Company to represent their interests as geologist and to develop their coal fields in Sonora, Mexico. In addition he acted as assistant to the state geologist of Texas, Prof. E. T. Dumble, of San Francisco and Houston, Texas. Coming to California during 1899, he settled at Los Gatos, built a residence and improved the grounds until they became among the most beautiful in the city, their interest being enhanced by the presence of plants and trees brought by him from all parts of Mexico. The Los Gatos home is occupied by his widow, Margaret (Crawford) Owen, a native of Texas and a daughter of Col. J. S. Crawford, member of an honored and well-known pioneer family of the Lone Star state. By that marriage Mr. Owen had two daughters, Ethel and Margaret, the elder of whom is now a student in the Leland Stanford University.

As manager of the Kern Trading & Oil Company, a subsidiary concern of the Southern Pacific Railroad Company, Mr. Owen came to the oil fields of Kern county, where in addition to acting as representative for that company he acquired interests of his own, perhaps the most important of these having been stock in the Eight Oil Company. In addition he was interested in the Buena Vista Land and Development Company and owned oil lands in Colorado and Nevada oil fields. Perhaps no one excelled him in a close acquaintance with the California oil fields, especially those of Kern county. These he had mapped out thoroughly and exhaustively. His death, which occurred at Los Gatos December 19, 1909, was conceded to be a deep loss to the geological interests of the west, which he had studied with profound concentration of mind and devotion of spirit. After he settled in Los Gatos he became a prominent member of the General Ord Post, G. A. R., his interest in it continuing until death, and politically he was a Republican.

1235

HISTORY OF KERN COUNTY

JEAN BOREL .- This veteran of the Franco-Prussian war, who for a quarter of a century was engaged actively in the sheep industry in Cali- fornia, but now is living retired, is a native of Canton Daspre sur Buis, Hautes-Alpes, France, and was born in December, 1849, being the fifth in a family of ten children, seven of whom are still living. The parents, Pierre and Marie (Gilbert) Borel, were engaged in husbandry in the Alps moun- tains and the children were trained to be helpful at home, so that they were well prepared for the responsibilities incident to self-support. Attendance at the country schools and work on the home farm kept Jean Borel busily occupied in the years of his youth until seventeen, when he enlisted in the French army. For five years he served faithfully and well in the Second Company, One Hundred Fourteenth Infantry, in which he rose from the ranks to be sergeant. During the Franco-Prussian war he was in active and continuous service. Many times he was in peril of his life. Some of the battles (including that of Sedan) were peculiarly dangerous and decisive, but it was his good fortune to receive no wounds, so that he was able to take his place in every engagement. One of his most thrilling war experiences was the siege of Paris, which lasted about six months. At the close of the war he received an honorable discharge.

After a period of employment as a workman and later as foreman on a construction job for a railroad, Mr. Borel left France to cast in his fortunes with the new world. For a year he herded sheep. Meanwhile he was studying the business as conducted in California, so that when he bought a flock of his own in 1885 he was in a position to handle it intelli- gently. During the ensuing years he met with a growing success. After a long and prosperous identification with the same business, in 1910 he sold his flock and retired to private life, purchasing property in East Bakersfield, where he has built a residence. His time is devoted to the oversight of his property interests. When a young man in France he was united in marriage with Miss Marie Bertino, who passed away in that country.

ANDREW ALFRED BURNES .- Talents that are winning recognition in widely different lines of activity characterize Mr. Burnes of Bakersfield. The fact that he is achieving success is all the more remarkable when it is known that his boyhood was signally lacking in opportunities and was made gloomy by the loss of his parents, Joseph and Susan Burnes, honored members of a farming community in Arkansas. The second among three children, he was born near Fayetteville, that state, on the 22d of February, 1883, and upon being orphaned at the age of six years was taken into the home of an uncle, Henry Burnes, a struggling farmer whose means were so limited that the lad was forced to assist in the maintenance of the family. For a few months of each year he was allowed to attend school. but for the most part he worked in the fields doing a man's part when yet a mere lad. His present large fund of information has been obtained by study and self-culture since he was eighteen years of age. In addition to complet- ing an engineering course in the International Correspondence Scho 1 of Scranton, Pa., from which he received a diploma, he is now taking a course in mechanical drawing under Fred W. Dobe, of Chicago.

Having heard and read much concerning California, in November of 1900 Mr. Burnes came to this state. For several months he was employed in a copper mine. Later he secured work as a stationary engineer in the building of the Folsom, Fair Oaks, Upper and Lower Stockton macadam roads in Sacramento county. During April of 1911 he came to Bakersfield and entered the employ of the Valley Ice Company, whose machinery he helped to erect and whose plant he assisted in completing. Since then he has continued in the employ of the company. During the spring of 1912 he was promoted to be night engineer, which position he has held up to

1236

HISTORY OF KERN COUNTY

the present time. In addition to understanding thoroughly this department of engineering he is well posted as an electrical engineer and also has made a special study of refrigeration. For some years he has been an interested member of the International Union of Steam and Operating Engineers.

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

History of Kern 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 119

Author: Morgan, Wallace Melvin, 1868- [from old catalog] Publication date: 1914 Publisher: Los Angeles, Cal., Historic record company Number of Pages: 1682

Author: Morgan, Wallace Melvin, 1868- [from old catalog]
Publication date: 1914
Publisher: Los Angeles, Cal., Historic record company
Number of Pages: 1682