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 156

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 156

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Coming to California in 1882 he secured employment on a ranch near Modesto, Stanislaus county ; later he was employed near Merced and in the vicinity of Stockton. During 1886 he came to Bakersfield and secured em- ployment with Carr & Haggin as foreman of the ditch gang. In a short time he left to take a clerkship in a store on Chester avenue and Eighteenth street, Bakersfield, owned at that time by Mr. McKelvey. In the same room were the offices of the Wells-Fargo Express Company and the Western Union Telegraph Company. When the Wells-Fargo Express Company established their office at Kern in 1895 he was chosen as agent and continued to fill the position until his resignation in 1908, upon taking up the work in the rural mail service. Meanwhile, associated with John Kaar, he had erected the First Bank of Kern building on the corner of Baker and Humboldt streets

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and had aided in the organization of the First Bank of Kern, in which he served as a director until he disposed of his stock.

At Limington, York county, Me., occurred the marriage of Charles Henry Shurban and Miss Sadie V. Foss, who was born at Limington and is a grad- uate of the academy in that city. Prior to their marriage she had engaged in educational work. The family of which she is a member ranks among the oldest and most prominent in New England and her father, John R. Foss, was a first cousin of Hon. Eugene Foss, governor of Massachusetts. Some time since Mr. Shurban purchased a block of ground and on one of the cor- ners (Fremont and Gage streets) he erected the residence, where he and his wife are comfortably domiciled. They are the parents of two children, Robert, a graduate of the Kern county high school class of 1913, and now a clerk in the post office at Bakersfield; and Callie, who is a member of the class of 1914 in the same high school. The family attend the Congregational Church. After his arrival in Kern county in 1886 Mr. Shurban made a study of its conditions and possibilities and decided to remain, a resolve which he has no reason to regret, for he has become well known to business men, prominent in the lodge of Odd Fellows, highly regarded among personal friends and successful in his chosen line of work.

FORREST A. CASSADY .- Although the earliest memories of Mr. Cas- sady are associated with California and Kern county, Iowa is his native com- monwealth and he was born in Madison county November 19, 1886, being one of the three sons of Joseph and Maggie (Cunningham) Cassady. known and honored by many of the citizens of Kern county. The family had no means on their arrival in Bakersfield and it required the most tireless industry on the part of the father to provide for wife and children. However, he had become inured to hardships and privations in early life and the struggle for existence did not discourage him. Although a native of New York state, he had lived in Iowa from the age of three years and was familiar with pioneer experiences from early memories in the vicinity of Winterset. After his marriage to Miss Cunningham, a native of Iowa, he settled upon a farm in Madison county and continued there until 1887, when he brought the family to Bakersfield and secured work with Carr & Haggin. In a short time he entered the maintenance of way department with the Southern Pacific Rail- road Company. Later he was promoted to be foreman of the construction department, in which responsible position he remained for twenty-two years. Meanwhile his wife determined to prove up on a homestead. Entering a tree claim near Lerdo, she proved up on the tract and eventually acquired a title to three hundred and twenty acres of land, which was not sold until about 1907. In addition he had bought and developed eighty acres in the Rio Bravo district, but this too has been sold at a profit.

The Cassady family includes three sons now living, of whom the eldest, Frank, is employed with the Kern Trading and Oil Company, and the young- est, Walter, remains with his parents in East Bakersfield. The second son, Forrest A., received his education in the grammar and high schools of Kern county, but left school when only fourteen years of age and took up the battle of self-support. For five years he held a clerkship in the freight depart- ment of the Southern Pacific Railroad Company. Upon resigning that posi- tion he opened the City market, but at the expiration of one year sold the business. During the ensuing year he was employed as foreman in the department of maintenance of way with the Southern Pacific Railroad, but resigned in 1908 and then started the People's market at No. 814 Baker street, East Bakersfield. On July 1, 1913, he purchased a half interest in the Metropole market, No. 810 Baker street, in partnership with A. W. Rench, and they are today conducting not only the largest market of the kind in East Bakersfield, but one of the largest wholesale and retail enterprises of

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the kind in Kern county. In the management of the market they evince a desire to please their customers and to meet their diversified needs and pref- erences. The many responsibilities of the business are met with a keen in- telligence and a high sense of honor. Mr. Cassady's attention has been given closely to business and he is independent in his political views. He belongs to the Knights of Columbus. His family comprises wife and two daughters, Kathleen and Pauline, his wife having been, prior to the marriage in East Bakersfield, Miss May Callagy, for some years a resident of this city, but a native of Iowa City, Iowa, and reared and educated in Creston, that state.

GEORGE P. THORNBURGH .- Since bringing his family to the west he has followed agricultural pursuits and at present makes a specialty of raising hay and of the dairy industry, which are very satisfactory. The one hundred and sixty acres known as the Fujon ranch, which he is holding under lease, is well adapted to this industry, for seventy acres are in hay and thirty-five acres in an excellent pasture. In addition he is devoting con- siderable attention to the raising of grapes and has a vineyard of thirty-three acres on the farm.

Of southern parentage Mr. Thornburgh was born in Leavenworth county, Kan., May 25, 1859, and is a son of John and Rachel (Preston) Thornburgh, the former a native of Tennessee, the latter a Kentuckian by birth. As early as 1854 the father became a pioneer of Kansas, where he helped to lay out the city of Leavenworth and where for years he engaged in farm pursuits. There were eight children in the familv, but aside from George P., only three are now living, namely: Benjamin, Eliza Jane and John W., all of whom remain in Kansas. The early recollections of George P. Thornburgh are associated with the stirring events in Kansas that marked the closing era of the Civil war. The poverty of the family prevented him from securing a good education, but through observation and reading he has become a man of broad information. During 1886 he married Miss Flora Young, a native of Atchison county, Kan., and they settled upon a farm in Leavenworth county, remaining in Kansas until 1907, when they came to California.

Immediately after his arrival in Kern county Mr. Thornburgh rented land and took up ranching, which he still follows. During December of 1911 he came to the Fujon ranch which he is holding under a lease of three years and with the assistance of his family he is making good in his dairying enter- prises. In his family there are nine children, of whom five have left the shelter of the parental roof to take up life in homes of their own. The eldest, Grace May, is the wife of Ora Collins, a hardware merchant of De Ridder, La. Blanche married J. W. James and lives on a farm in Kern county. Otto is a mail clerk, with headquarters at Topeka, Kan. Lester married Miss Myrtle Fowler and is engaged in farming in Kern county. On March 4, 1912, Elma became the wife of W. E. Addington, foreman of the Mitchell garage, Bakersfield. The four remaining children are still with their parents and are as follows: Roy, Edith, Everett and Floyd. In his anxiety to secure educa- tional advantages for his children Mr. Thornburgh has taken a warm interest in every movement to promote the welfare of local schools. Since coming to this county he has served as school trustee, having been re-elected to the office in the spring of 1912. Vineland district, of which he acts as trustee, has a commodious schoolhouse and boasts one of the best schools in all the region south of Bakersfield. Politically he has voted with the Democratic party ever since he attained his majority. However, there is no trace of partisanship in his opinions, but instead he manifests a warm devotion to the welfare of county, commonwealth and nation in all those higher interests that make for the ultimate weal of the people.

J. N. CRAIG .- That Kern county presents exceptional advantages for agricultural development is the firm belief of J. N. Craig. When first he 63

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acquired unimproved acreage in the Weed Patch during the year 1909 he immediately began the task of placing under a high state of cultivation his tract of three hundred and twenty acres, forming the west one-half of sec- tion 13, township 28, range 31. He is successfully engaged in raising alfalfa and stock. Since acquiring the property he has erected a commodious resi- dence of two stories, a substantial barn, a milkhouse and a ranchhouse con- taining a dining-room and kitchen. While the ranch is under the East Side canal, a branch of the Kern Island canal, his facilities for the securing of an adequate supply of water are further enhanced by three wells and two pump- ing plants for the watering of stock. One of these wells is four hundred and twenty feet deep and has a never-failing supply of artesian water.

Born in Florence, Italy, July 8, 1874, Mr. Craig is the son of the late Eugene and Mary Craig, natives respectively of Pittsburg, Pa., and New- port, R. I., the former a sculptor and painter of prominence. Educated in private classical schools in Germany and France Mr. Craig later became a student in the Academy of Fine Arts in Florence, where his father had been an honorary professor. As a student in the department of architecture he remained in the academy for two years. Upon coming to America and set- tling in Los Angeles in 1899, he became interested in the development of the west and made a study of conditions in various localities. For a time he operated a ranch in Lower California. In 1902 he was united in marriage with Miss Edith Murray, of Los Angeles, and they afterward spent three years in European travel, returning to Los Angeles and from there coming to Kern county. In his devotion to the progress of Kern county and the agricultural prosperity of the Weed Patch, he is surpassed by none of the older residents, and his identification with the locality already is bearing fruit in an improved agricultural outlook, a more intense interest in local develop- ment and a deepened faith in this region as one of the garden spots of the west.

RAY OWEN .- Upon the establishment of a postoffice at Shale in April of 1912 Mr. Owen received the appointment as postmaster and when in the same year the Wells-Fargo Express Company opened an office at this point he was selected to serve as agent. In addition to filling these positions he acts as manager for the Holmes Supply Company at Shale. Although it was only in April of 1910 that Mr. Owen came to the oil fields of Kern county, thus identifying himself with an industry in which he had 110 previous experience, already he has acquired a wide general knowledge of the business and a considerable acquaintance among the oil operators, with all of whom he is popular.

Mr. Owen is a native of Crawford county, Mich., born November 9, 1885. His education was that afforded by the public schools of the country. At an early age he became self-supporting. As clerk with mercantile and other houses in the east he gained his first practical knowledge of business affairs. For a time he was employed in Bishop's candy and cracker factory. During a period of four years and ten months he remained with the general mercantile firm of T. E. Douglass & Co., meanwhile receiving a merited increase in salary as his knowledge of the business made his services more valuable. During 1909 he left Michigan and came to California, making his home in Los Angeles and Covina until August of 1911, when he came to the oil fields. In April of 1912 he received the appointment as postmaster at Shale, also acts as agent for Wells-Fargo Express Company, and as manager for the Holmes Supply Company he has since been a leading busi- ness man of the new town where he is an influential factor in material development, maintaining the keenest interest in the development of the surrounding oil territory. Since coming to this county he has become a member of the Knights of Pythias at Taft.

JAMES ERNEST ROBERTS .- A native of Dallas, Texas, born April

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HISTORY OF KERN COUNTY

16, 1879, James Ernest Roberts was brought to the county by his parents in 1882. His father, James C. Roberts, is an old settler of Kern county and is represented elsewhere in this history. Ernest Roberts attended the public school and when about sixteen entered the Kern county high school, and was graduated from the commercial department. At seventeen he began his connection with the Kern County Land Company, becoming zanjero on the Colloway canal. Then he became foreman of the Kern Island ranch, and later was cattle foreman at the Greenfield ranch, but he resigned the latter position to accept the superintendency of the Sol Jewett ranch, which he held a year. He resigned then to engage in the mercantile business in Bakersfield, but in 1905 he sold his business to start farming on eighty acres of land, a mile and a half west of his present home place. This tract he rented for three years, at the end of that time buying his present place of forty acres, which he has developed into one of the best ranches of its size in the vicinity. It is under the Beardsley canal and is all under cultivation, being devoted to alfalfa, producing from six to eight tons to the acre. Each year he rents land from the company on which he raises barley and corn, and he has been very successful; he has raised as high an average as a ton and a half of corn to the acre on one hundred and sixty acres, which is a banner crop for the valley.

In Bakersfield, August 31, 1902, Mr. Roberts married Mary McCaffrey, who was born in Kern county, December 7, 1879, the daughter of John AIcCaffrey, who is represented elsewhere in this volume. Mr. and Mrs. Roberts have two sons, Ewell and Cecil. Mr. Roberts has fraternal affilia- tions with the Woodmen of the World. As a farmer and as a man of affairs he brings to the solution of his difficulties a knowledge of details which renders him successful beyond many of his competitors.

JOHN HALLORAN .- The Kern County Land Company had no more conscientious or trustworthy employe than John Halloran, whose term of service under them covered about twenty-three years, during which time he proved himself a most valuable worker. He has spent the last thirty years of his life in Bakersfield, whither he came to seek his fortune. He was born in County Clare, Ireland, June 24, 1864, and until he was seventeen re- mained at home with his parents. Embarking for New York he first obtained work in Catskill, Greene county, N. Y., becoming an employe of Peter Shell, for whom he labored for five years. Being a great reader he found many articles on California and its prosperous conditions, and at last an article in a Los Angeles newspaper caused him to make his decision to come to California, and in 1884 came to Kern county, where he has since made his home. In 1903 he purchased sixty acres of land, which has been improved and is now in a high state of cultivation.

In Kern county, in 1898, Mr. Halloran was married to Miss Delilia McCaffery, who was born in New York and came with her parents to Kern county in 1876, when she was but three years of age. Her parents settled here and made it their home, and here their deaths occurred. Mrs. Halloran had eight brothers and sisters, all but two of whom live in Kern county, among them, Peter, who is a foreman at McKittrick ranch ; James, who is farming in Kern county; Thomas, who is employed by the Kern River Mills ; and a sister, who is the wife of Dan Woodson, a farmer of Kern county. Mrs. Halloran was reared in Bakersfield, where she attended the public schools, and she now presides over her home with quiet grace, taking the greatest interest in the education of her children and the systematic conduct of her household. Three children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Halloran, Curtis, Lizzie and Francis, all of whom reflect credit upon their excellent training and the refining influence of their parents. They are all members of the Catholic Church, and in political sentiment the father unites with the Republican party.

FRANK ORR .- A native son, Frank Orr was born in 1858, in Sacra-

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mento, where his parents, Chambers and Martha J. Orr made their home for a considerable pericd. The mother died in middle age; the father, who had crossed the plains shortly after the discovery of gold in the west, tried his luck in the mines without encouraging success and then turned to carpen- tering. As a contractor and builder he assisted in the pioneer development of Sacramento and San Francisco and even came as far to the south as Bakers- field, where he had the contract for the building of the Masonic Temple. Up to the time of his death he continued in the building business. His son, Frank, who was next to the youngest among four children, passed his early years in Sacramento, where he attended the public schools. Early in life he began to earn a livelihood for himself in the employ of the Southern Pacific Railroad Company. At first he was given the humblest duties, finally became an engineer running out from Bakersfield, where he ran a switch engine in the yards. During that period of labor he bought a lot and built a cottage in Kern, now East Bakersfield.

Resigning from the railroad service about 1899 after a long period of faithful identification with the Southern Pacific Company, Mr. Orr spent some time as a prospector and miner in Inyo county. Although he gained no wealth from his expeditions, he found the work exciting and interesting, and he still retains mining interests, but since 1909 he has given his attention principally to the proprietorship of the Lone Pine house at Mojave, which he owns and manages. His wife, who assists him in the supervision of the hotel, was in maidenhood Miss Stella Holmes, a native of Bradford, Pa., and the daughter of Frank and Harriett (Tellus) Holmes, natives of Bradford, Pa. Her father. a druggist, removed to Toledo, where Mrs. Orr was reared and educated. She has three brothers, one a general manager and two superintend- ents with the Central Union Telephone Company of Columbus, Ohio. While he has not been a partisan in political sentiments Mr. Orr stanchly believes in the platform and principles of the Republican party. Fraternally he holds membership with the Loyal Order of Moose.

JOHN CLICKARD .- Born near Peru, Miami county, Ind., February 11, 1855, John Clickard was the son of George and Mary A. (Wallig) Clickard, natives of Germany, who were farmers in Washington township, Miami county, Ind., where John was reared on the farm and also learned the car- penter's trade. Having advanced in the public schools until he obtained a teacher's certificate he taught school and in that way made the money to complete a course in pedagogy and law at the Northern Indiana Normal at Valparaiso. After receiving his diploma he was admitted to the practice of law in Peru, Ind. For a while he followed his profession, but a spell of sickness came on, and after his recovery he gave up the practice of law and continued teaching. While residing in Peru he served two terms as alder- man.

In 1897 he came to Tulare county, Cal., and for a time engaged at the carpenter trade at Sugar Loaf Mountain. In 1900 he came to Woody, locating his present homestead and while improving it he worked as foreman rig builder in the Kern River and McKittrick oil fields. He also spent considerable time constructing the buildings for Joseph Weringer at Weringdale and the Greenback mine. All this time he has engaged in the cattle business, leasing considerable land adjoining his homestead for that purpose.

Mr. Clickard was married in Peru, Ind., being united with Miss Sarah Pierce, who was born in the same county, and they have four children as fol- lows: Nellie, Mrs. Smith, resides near Woody; Frank, Bessie and Ruth, who reside at home, the son being interested with Mr. Clickard in stock-raising. Fraternally the father was made a Mason in Peru, Ind., and is now a member of Bakersfield Lodge No. 224, F. & A. M. Politically he is independent, pre-

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ferring to cast his vote for the men of his choice rather than be bound by party ties.

GABRIEL CHAVEZ .- A native son of the commonwealth is Gabriel Chavez, who was born at New Almaden, Santa Clara county, March 18, 1876. Being left an orphan he came with his uncle to Kernville, Kern county, in 1882 and from that time he began making his own way as best he could, working for his board and going to school until he reached an age when he could be employed at mining, and later on he worked on ranches. In 1901 he entered the employ of the Kern River Company as driver with the engineer corps. A year later he was given charge of the stock and stables, serving thus until he was made foreman of the Beatty ranch at Kernville for the com- pany, which position he has held ever since. The ranch is now owned by the Pacific Light and Power Corporation. In connection with the supervising of the ranch he also looks after the headwork of the canal and displays good judgment in the dispatch of the different tasks that arise in the discharge of his duties.

In March, 1911, at Kernville, occurred the marriage of Gabriel Chavez with Miss Alice Tuttle, a native of New York state. Fraternally he is a member of Kernville Lodge No. 251, I. O. O. F., while in his political views he is an ardent Republican.

MRS. LIZZIE McGUIRK KERSEY .- The present postmaster and mer- chant at Piute, Lizzie McGuirk Kersey, is a native daughter, born on Bear River, Yuba county, Cal. She is the daughter of Andrew McGuirk, a pioneer of the state, who was born in County Kildare, Ireland, and came to California in the early '50s, being engaged in mining in the Sierra Nevadas. He was married in Grass Valley to Mary Casey, also a native of Ireland, and they removed in 1860 to Visalia, where he was engaged in packing to the mines at Kevesville and also to Coso, Inyo county. On the last train he sent to Coso the Mexican packer was killed by the Indians and the goods stolen.

In 1865 Mr. McGuirk located at Havilah, where he followed mining and teaming until 1870, then settling on a homestead in Walkers Basin, where he died in 1875. His wife survived him many years and died in Randsburg in 1903. Of their union there were eight children, five of whom are living. Mrs. Kersey being the third eldest. She received her education in the public schools of Havilah and Walkers Basin and at St. Vincents Convent, Santa Barbara. Her first marriage was in 1876, uniting her with James Scobie, a native of County Antrim, Ireland, who was one of the early prospectors and miners in Kern county, being located at what is now Piute as early as 1865. Later on he was one of the discoverers of the Panamint mines. He died in Walkers Basin in 1888, leaving one son, James Scobie, who is now assisting his mother. Her second marriage was in Bakersfield to William Shinsey, whom she after- wards divorced. The three children of this union, Edward, Annie E. and William V., are with her and have been reared with care and each of them given a commercial education and are graduates of the Bakersfield Business College. The mother. is now Mrs. Kersey. Ever since 1876 she has engaged in farming and cattle-raising at Piute, where she owns six hundred acres in a body, her brand being a capital N and a cross. She is also engaged in mining and mercantile business and in her store at Piute she has the post office, for she has been the postmaster for the past eighteen years. In con- nection with her store she owns a pack train, engaged in packing goods and material to the different mines in the district. For many years she served as a member of the school board, most of the time as clerk of the board. Politically she is a Democrat and is a member of the County Central Com- mittee.

EDWARD A. DAVID .- From his earliest recollections he has been familiar with farming. The clearest recollections of childhood are those asso-

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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 156

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