History of Orange County, California : with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its earliest growth and development from the early days to the present, Part 17

Author: Armor, Samuel, 1843-; Pleasants, J. E., Mrs
Publication date: 1921
Publisher: Los Angeles : Historic Record Co.
Number of Pages: 1700

USA > California > Orange County > History of Orange County, California : with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its earliest growth and development from the early days to the present > Part 17

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).

Salvation Army's Report

The relief work of the Salvation Army in Orange County was as follows: In May, 1918, $628.82 was raised for a war service ambulance. In August, 1918. $10,000 was collected in the county for Salvation Army war work.

In the United War Campaign the national allotment to the Salvation Army was $3,500,000; but how much should be credited to Orange County is not known. In March, 1919, $8,100 was raised in the county for the Salvation Army's home service work.

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HISTORY OF ORANGE COUNTY

CHAPTER XXIV A CHAPTER OF TRAGEDIES

The Killing of Sheriff Barton and the Capture of His Slayers

By J. E. Pleasants

In the year 1855 a team of horses was stolen from the Hardy brothers in Los Angeles, and the thief. Juan Flores, was captured, tried and sentenced to ten years in the penitentiary.

The Hardy brothers, who were living on a part of the William Wolfskill place, were owners of several good draft as well as riding horses. They were doing considerable freighting, the business requiring good stock, and this class of animals was of great value. Their riding horses were of the native stock, but were selected for their speed and endurance, as they were often used to run races.

In the above-named year, one Juan Flores and a companion stole one of these freighting teams and probably intended to make for the Mexican border and sell the horses. Both Flores and his companion were captured and, after a trial, each was sentenced to ten years in prison.

Two years after the event of the stealing took place one of the Hardys had a load of freight to haul from Los Angeles to San Juan Capistrano. He made the trip without mishap and, arriving at his destination during the forenoon, deliv- ered his goods, and put his horses in a corral and fed them ; this done, he started ont to see the town. A few hours later, as he returned to look after his animals in the corral. he noticed several men looking at them : the nearer he approached he thought he recognized Juan Flores among the number ; this did not seem pos- sible, for he remembered it had been but two years since the episode of his having his horses stolen by him and he had received a ten-year sentence. Observing the approach of Hardy the men went away and the matter was forgotten by Hardy for the time.

It so happened that there was a Mexican woman in an adobe building adjoining the corral who had overheard the conversation of the men who were looking at the horses, and recognized Flores among them by his remarks, which were to the effect that the horses in question were the same that he had stolen and received his ten-year sentence for, and it was now a chance for him to get even by waylaying Hardy the next day when he was on his way home, kill him, and take the team to Mexico. His companions, looking upon him as the leader. consented to the plan. This talk frightened the woman and she did not know what to do, for if it were known that she had overheard the conversation her own life would be in danger, and at the same time she did not want to have Hardy murdered. Finally she went to Don Juan Forster, who was a medium through which many of the natives settled their differences, and related the con- versation as she had overheard it. It did not take Don Forster long to decide upon a plan of action. He found Hardy, told him the circumstances, but told him to keep quiet about it and that he would send a runner out that night to notify the sheriff in Los Angeles to come out and capture the bandit. The runner was sent to inform Sheriff Barton, who immediately made arrangements to friis- trate the plans of Flores and capture all of the bandits if possible.

The sheriff notified Hardy's two brothers, one of whom selected his best saddle horse and, after arming himself, joined the sheriff and his three deputies. all starting for Capistrano. Sheriff Barton was a typical frontiersman and had seen many desperadoes, and knew how to handle them. However, he took the precaution to make his will before he started out. Each man was armed with a double barreled shot gun and revolvers. They reached Carpenter's ranch and stopped there for dinner. That night they camped by the Santa Ana River, but the next morning were on the road very early and the ranch of Don Jose Sepul-

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veda was reached for breakfast. On the road the party came up with a French- man riding a mule; he stated he was on his way to San Diego and no objection was made to his joining their party. When the men went into the house for their breakfast they stacked their guns on the porch, and these were viewed with some curiosity by the hangers-on about the ranch. Breakfast over, the sheriff and his men came out, took up their guns without examining them, mounted their horses and resumed their journey towards San Juan Capistrano. At a point about midway from the Sepulveda ranch and San Juan some men, twelve or fifteen in number, were seen by the sheriff, who was riding in advance of his deputies, they being strung out along the road, with Hardy and the French- man on his mule, quite a distance in the rear. As soon as the men saw the sheriff they called to him not to fire upon them as they were friends. They came up rapidly and as they were near enough, fired, and with deadly effect, for the sheriff and his three deputies, after emptying their guns with no apparent effect, fell dead in their tracks. As soon as Hardy heard the firing he rode rapidly to the scene ; as he approached he saw the sheriff and his men lying in a heap together, dead. He thought he could do nothing alone, and, wheeling his horse, rode swiftly back towards Los Angeles. His fleet horse soon took him away from the bandits, who overtook the Frenchman, but did not molest him in any way, as they were after Hardy. It was fortunate that he had chosen their fastest horse, for the bandits soon gave up the chase.

Reaching Los Angeles, he told the news of the killing of the sheriff and his men, and soon a party was being organized to go in search of the murderers. In Los Angeles excitement ran high, and it was some time before a party could be organized. In the American settlement at El Monte, not far from Los Angeles, were several settlers who were used to the hard life of the frontier and were none too law-abiding ; they wanted blood and were ever ready for a fight. These joined the posse from Los Angeles and soon, under the wise guidance of General Pico, a brother of Governor Pico, who was very cool in the face of danger, had an understanding that Pico's orders would be obeyed by all. The general decided to catch the men who had committed this wanton murder and he counseled caution among the men.

After killing the sheriff and his men the bandits headed for San Juan Capis- trano, raided the store for supplies, as they were headed for the Mexican border, and possibly looking for Hardy and his team, who had in the meantime gone into the mountains and taken a roundabout way back to Los Angeles, which he reached a week later. When the pursuing party reached the town they found the bandits had fled, and then began one of the notable man-hunts in Southern California.

The bandits made for the mountains by way of Santiago Canyon, were followed by Pico and his men, who tracked them to the top of a ridge where they could not get away, as it was found to be too steep. They had let down one of their horses with ropes, but it was killed in falling, and they then gave up all hope of escape. Flores abandoned his horse and, with two others, took to the brush on foot and made good their escape. One young man who was known by Pico, was called upon to give himself up and for the information he would give, was told he would not be prosecuted. He followed this advice, and after some parley the rest of the band were taken prisoners, bound hand and foot and turned over to the Americans in the party, who took them to a settlement on the present site of Olive. They were placed in an adobe house and kept securely bound and placed under guard. Pico went after Flores and the two others, and by his knowledge of the country, and being an expert trailer, soon captured the former, who was sent back to be kept under guard with the others. He, too, was securely bound and placed on the floor with the rest, and, as usual, the guard was posted over them. During the night Flores rolled over to one of the other prisoners, and with his teeth loosed the thongs that bound him and, this done, his own were taken off, and soon all of the men were free and made

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a break to escape ; they were all captured, with the exception of Flores, who made good his escape and headed for the mountains.

A runner was sent to inform Pico of the escape and he was met coming in with the other two men, whom he had captured alone. Upon hearing the news he was angry, for he had thought the Americans would surely be watchful and not let the prisoners get away. He was determined that these last two prisoners should not escape and, taking them to a large sycamore tree in the canyon, hung them. To show that he had done his duty and partly avenged the death of the sheriff, he cut off the ears of the bandits and sent them to Los Angeles, and then took up the trail of the chief conspirator. These bodies were left hanging, and it was some time the next year that the bones were buried. The writer buried some of them himself. The tree from which these men were hung is still stand- ing on what is known as the Modjeska ranch.

Pico followed the trail of Flores for some days, seeming to know about where he would eventually be found. The news had spread to Los Angeles of the bandit's escape, and the citizens were thoroughly aroused, for Barton had been very popular. Flores thought to steal a horse at Los Nietos, knowing that Mr. Carpenter kept many good animals. He approached the place at night, and the dogs alarmed the owner, who was asleep on a stack of hay ; as he arose with a gun in his hands Flores could see by the bright moonlight that it would be useless to try to secure a horse there and so passed on. Arriving in Los Angeles he tried to obtain food and shelter, but such was the feeling that had it become known such aid had been given him the persons so doing would have been lynched. He then skirted the town and made for the Cahuenga Mountains. Pico followed him, and at a point about the present site of Hollywood, came upon his man almost exhausted, made him prisoner and brought him to Los Angeles and turned him over to the people, who erected two poles with a bar across, at the present site of the county court house, and hung him. The other bandits were taken to Los Angeles and shared the same fate. The last one of the band was captured in San Jose two years later and was returned for trial. After a year in the courts with the lawyers wrangling over the case, his attorneys had the case transferred to Santa Barbara County.

The good citizens of Los Angeles had patiently stood the delay and thought that justice would be done by the court, but when the case was ordered trans- ferred, took the law in their own hands and, taking him from the officers, made another "example" of him. There was no doubt of his identity, for when he was captured he was wearing the silver mounted belt that had belonged to the sheriff he had helped to kill. There are comparatively few men now living who can recall the incidents noted here. The writer, who is one of the oldest living American settlers of Orange County, was an eyewitness of the hanging of Flores.

A Breach of the Law By Linn L. Shaw

The only case of mob violence in Santa Ana history occurred August 20, 1892, when Francisco Torres was hanged to a telephone pole at the northeast corner of Fourth and Sycamore streets. William McKelvey, foreman of Madame Modjeska's famous ranch home in Santiago Canyon, was brutally murdered July 31. 1892, by this Mexican, who was employed as a laborer under him. Torres fled, was captured at Mesa Grande a couple of weeks after the crime and brought to this city, where he was held for the murder, without bail, and was con- fined in the old jail on Sycamore Street, between Second and Third. McKelvey had many friends in this city and the officers, fearing trouble, placed Robert Cog- burn on guard at the jail. About one o'clock on the morning of August 20 there was an alarm at the jail door and a muffled demand to open it, which order Mr. Cogburn refused to obey. Immediately the door was battered in with a sledge and about thirty men, armed and masked, filed inside. Upon being refused the

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keys to the cell they forcibly took them from the guard, secured Torres and de- parted. Mr. Cogburn attempted to follow them, but, upon being invited to return to the jail at the point of what appeared to him a "horizontal telegraph pole," returned to his duties without any further desire to associate with his determined and systematic visitors. There was evidently no time wasted with the captive, and he was strung up to the pole, where the body remained as a gruesome sur- prise to early risers the next morning. An attempt was made to locate the per- petrators of the lynching through the grand jury, but no indictments were issued and the affair was quietly dropped in official circles.

A Political Episode

Perhaps the most notable political event in Santa Ana's history was the physical undoing of Dennis Kearney, in the fall of 1879. This man was cam- paigning the state in the interest of the workingman's party and the anti-Chinese movement, which at that time was a formidable issue in California politics. He was popularly known as the "sand lot agitator," and, starting from his home in San Francisco, he deluged the state with a ceaseless flow of vituperation and plat- form blackguardism. Up to the time of his arrival in Santa Ana he had been allowed to pursue his bullying style of oratory without molestation, as his own personality and the many followers who flocked to his support all over the state presented an aspect of brute force which no one seemed disposed to investigate.

In his speech here, in addition to the usual program of abuse, he also in- cluded a number of false accusations against the McFadden brothers, who had operated a steamer from Newport to San Francisco, but had been compelled to sell it at a considerable loss to their stronger competitors, the Old Line Steam- ship Company, and it was this transaction to which Kearney devoted his slander- ous tongue.

Among the employes of the McFaddens was "Tom" Rule, a man of large stature, supreme courage and prodigious strength. The morning following the speech, as Kearney was about to take the stage for San Diego at the old Layman Hotel, he was confronted by Mr. Rule who demanded the name of the man who nad given him the lying information concerning his employers. Kearney recog- mized the nature of the trouble in store for him at once, and immediately lost the nerve which had been so proudly exploited by his followers. He timidly explained that he "would not give away his friends," and upon a second and more imperious demand for the name, commenced backing away from his unwel- come opponent, at the same time endeavoring to draw his revolver. Rule, who was unarmed, hesitated no longer, but struck the pride of the sand lots a heavy blow which landed him against the side of the hotel, from whence the once feared Kearney ran with great vigor and utter lack of dignity to the barroom, out through the dining room and across the street into a drug store, where he was overtaken by the now thoroughly aroused Rule, who pinned him to the floor and pummeled him quite severely. By a strange coincidence Kearney was rescued from his very mortifying position by one of the McFadden brothers, neither of whom had known of Mr. Rule's contemplated raid on their slanderer. None of his adherents had offered him the slightest assistance, and his departure was in marked contrast to his triumphant entry into the town the day before. In his speeches he had advocated hemp and mob law for the hated plutocrats and capitalists, but certainly did not relish an application of his own medicine. He had announced on his home sand lot platform, before departing on this campaign : "I hope I will be assassinated, for the success of this movement depends on that"; but the sacrifice palled upon his appetite when the opportunity for which he had so eagerly petitioned presented itself in apparent good working order. This incident, which was at once heralded over the state, had the effect of imme diately diminishing Kearney's power and influence to an alarming extent, and he soon passed into history as a mere blatherskite.

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Mr. Rule, who was the regular pilot at Newport Bay, was drowned a few years later while attempting to cross the bar at the entrance of the bay in a row. boat, which capsized in the breakers. The hero of the Kearney episode was struck upon the head by the boat as it overturned and his body immediately sank. being recovered several days afterward just inside the bar.

CHAPTER XXV THE OIL INDUSTRY By William Loftus

Some development work had been done in this county previous to 1896, and in the Dan McFarland well, located in the N. W. 1/4 of section 8 twp. 3 S. Range 9 W. S. B. B. M., about ten barrels of oil per day was struck at a depth of less than a thousand feet. But the formations were so difficult and expensive to drill with the machinery then employed that the well was abandoned, and the' field temporarily condemned.

In 1896, E. L. Doheny-a name that will ever be prominent in the history' of the development of the California oil fields as well as those of Mexico-was favorably impressed with the indications of oil. He obtained a lease with an option to purchase the lands now owned and operated by the Petroleum Develop- ment Company, which company is now owned by the Santa Fe Railroad Com- pany. Mr. Doheny entered into a contract with the Santa Fe Company to operate the territory in partnership. He moved onto the property in February, 1897, and the first well, which was drilled to a depth of about 700 feet, was completed. and put on the pump in a few months. It was started off with a production of about fifty barrels per day. This agreeably surprised Mr. Doheny as he, when making the contract with the Santa Fe, only predicted wells of a capacity of from ten to twenty-five barrels per day at such a shallow depth, but it was his: opinion that the quantity would increase with depth and that the formations would carry oil very deep. Up to October, 1898, the Santa Fe and Mr. Doheny. had drilled ten wells, all less than 900 feet deep, which was about as deep as could be drilled in this formation with the methods then employed. Their. best well produced about 100 barrels per day.

The Graham-Loftus Oil Company commenced operations in this field in. October. 1898. They drilled the first well 650 feet deep, and could get no further. The well started off with a production of forty barrels per day. They encotin- tered the same difficulties in No. 2. Four strings of casings were struck within: the first 450 feet. The hole was then filled with water and drilled to 1,465 fcet. with two strings of casings. This was the first well drilled full of water for the purpose of holding up the walls, as far as I have been able to ascertain, though- it may have been used before. The idea was not mine, but suggested to me by Frank Garbut in 1894, at which time I turned it down as impracticable. It is: now used generally throughout the state of California, and I consider it the greatest of the three chief factors that have made the large production of petro -; leum oil in California possible. The other two are the double under-reamer and the steel drilling cable.

The Graham-Loftus well No. 2 started with a production of 700 barrels per clay and blazed the way for deeper and more productive wells. The depth has gradually been increased to over 4,000 feet, and the initial production to approxi- mately 20,000 barrels per day for a few days.

In the fall of 1898 the Columbia Oil Company was organized and started operations on a lease from the Olinda Ranch in Section 9, upon which they developed oil of about 32 gravity Baume. The oil appears to be the same as that in the old Puente wells about five miles northwest, and it is the opinion of

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well-informed oil men that the light oil belt is continuous between these two points. There has been very little development made in this strike, but wherever wells have been drilled they have proven productive.

In 1899, Charles V. Hall, George Owens, Martin Barbour and James Lynch leased fifty-eight acres of land from the Olinda Ranch in section 8. After drilling a hole about 400 feet deep, Owens, Barbour and Lynch, who were experi- enced oil men, sold out their interests to C. V. Hall, whose experience consisted of a few shallow wells drilled in the city of Los Angeles, and who was conse- quently "not supposed to know a bad thing when he saw it." At about 1,500 feet he had a flowing well, and opened up what has proven to be the richest portion of the field. One well on this lease is credited with a production of about 20,000 barrels per day for a few days.

In January, 1894, the Union Oil Company of California purchased about 1,200 acres from the Stearns Ranch Company in sections 5, 6, 7 and 8, Twp. 3, S. range 9 W. sections 1 and 12 twp. 3 S. range 10, W., 100 acres of the east end of which they leased to the Columbia Oil Producing Company. This lease has proven very prolific producing property. To compromise a legal claim on the 1,200 acres, the Union Oil Company gave 200 acres from the west end, which has proven very productive also. It was purchased by the Brea Cañon Oil Con- pany. E. L. Doheny was the promoter of this company, which proved very successful.

The value of the oil deposit is not determined, however, by the product of a few large wells, but is estimated by men familiar with the business by the amount of oil sand and the per cent of saturation, which means the amount of oil per acre. In this respect the Olinda-Fullerton field is considered the best in the state, which means the best in the United States.

The proven area of this field is about 2,000 acres. Judging from my own experience and the information I have obtained from others, I estimate the average thickness of the oil and sand at two hundred feet. Geologists estimate the saturation at ten per cent, which would give about 155,000 barrels per acre, or an aggregate of 310,353,000 barrels. Divide this by two for safety, and we will have the very considerable sum of 155.176,500 barrels. Throw off the odd figures and in round numbers say 155,000,000 barrels.

When we take into consideration the fact that the probable oil area is double the proven, and the possible very much greater, we begin to appreciate the value of the oil deposits in Orange County. To date (1910) there has been produced approximately 20,431,481 barrels. The average price has been about sixty-five cents per barrel, aggregating $12,550,922. The equivalent in coal, at six dollars per ton, would cost $33,102,665, a saving to the consumer of $20,551,743.

In 1910, the writer of the foregoing article said: "The evolution of the oil business has been very rapid, and in my judgment, will so continue. Machinery and facilities for drilling deeper will be employed and quantities of oil will be produced from greater depths than is now generally considered practicable." This prediction has been literally fulfilled in the intervening years since it was made, as can be shown by the increase in the assessed valuation of the county and by mentioning some of the important developments of the industry.

Following are the county assessments for the past six years; it will be noted that the greatest gains are in the years when there was the largest development in the oil industry.

1914-1915 $54,546,951

1915-1916 55,266,628

1916-1917 57,532,662

1917-1918 69,680,472

1918-1919 73,910,565

1919-1920 96,906,815

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The county assessor, in listing the oil wells for taxation, follows the law where it says, "All property in the state, . . . shall be taxed in proportion to its value." Some of the large producers have protested against his valuations; but the courts have sustained the assessor. The Standard Oil Company paid taxes on the production of its wells for the year 1919-1920, to the county assessor, $443,670.36, and to the county tax collector, $15,050.84, making a total of $458,721.20. For further proof of the development of the oil industry and of its great value to the county, note the following reports gleaned from the Santa Ana Register:

The Union Oil Company opened up the Placentia-Richfield district in March, 1919, by bringing in an 8,000 barrel gusher on the Chapman property, which has been a regular producer ever since.

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History of Orange County, California : with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its earliest growth and development from the early days to the present, Part 17

Author: Armor, Samuel, 1843-; Pleasants, J. E., Mrs Publication date: 1921 Publisher: Los Angeles : Historic Record Co. Number of Pages: 1700

Author: Armor, Samuel, 1843-; Pleasants, J. E., Mrs
Publication date: 1921
Publisher: Los Angeles : Historic Record Co.
Number of Pages: 1700