History of Riverside County, California, Part 46

Author: Holmes, Elmer Wallace, 1841-
Publication date: 1912
Publisher: Los Angeles : Historic Record Co.
Number of Pages: 845


USA > California > Riverside County > History of Riverside County, California > Part 46


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SAMUEL BLACK


One of the earliest settlers of Riverside county is Mr. Black, a prosperous and highly esteemed rancher, who in 1906 took up his residence in Hemet, his present interests being centered in his beau- tiful home place, most of which is planted to walnuts, besides which he has productive grain ranches aggregating four hundred and twenty acres. He was born September 10, 1855, in Tyler county, W. Va., and was about three years old when, in 1858, he was taken to Hancock county, Ill., where he attended the public school. His parents, James C. and Margaret (Russell) Black, were both na- tives of Ireland. A farmer by occupation, J. C. Black cleared both his Virginia land and his farm in Illinois, and he and his wife spent their last years in Hancock county. At all times his father's able assistant on the farm, Samuel Black remained with his parents through their lives, and upon completion of his studies in the Luth- eran College at Carthage, engaged in teaching, later farming the home place with great success, also dealing in stock. In 1884, upon the sale of the farm, he located in San Jacinto, Cal., where he pur- chased eighty acres, erecting a good home and otherwise improving the property, which he devoted to farming and stock raising, spe- cializing in draft and road horses. In addition to one hundred and sixty acres which he took up in that year, he purchased two hun- dred and sixty acres two miles south of town in 1910, and in the meantime, in 1906, also purchased his five-acre tract at Hemet.


Mr. Black was united in marriage in Hancock county, Ill., April 2, 1879, with Miss Mattie Ellis, who was born in Illinois and who upon completing her education taught school. They have a son, Robert Russell, fourteen years of age, a student in the Hemet school.


In national politics Prohibitionists, Mr. and Mrs. Black are always prompt to support, regardless of party, candidates best qualified for their prospective duties. Among the public enterprises which he assisted in promoting and toward which he liberally con- tributed, were the extension of the Santa Fe Railway through the valley (an improvement which has proven of incalculable value to that section) and the establishment of the First Presbyterian Church of Hemet, and of the First Methodist Episcopal Church of San Jacinto. Mrs. Black has been connected with the W. C. T. U. for over twenty-five years, for four years serving as president of the Hemet body, and for a like period as secretary of the county organization. She is a member of the Eastern Star Chapter. Mr. Black was made a Mason in Illinois in 1876 and now holds member- ship in San Jacinto Lodge No. 338, F. & A. M.


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JOHN B. COPLEN


Though a resident of Riverside county only a few years, hav- ing come here in 1909, yet by his persistency of purpose and his modern methods of farming Mr. Coplen has accomplished more in the few years he has been following his chosen occupation than many who have been settled here many years. He is regarded as one of the most progressive men the county has and is owner of a valuable ranch of four hundred and forty acres lying about three miles northwest from Corona, its present condition being the result of his own efforts, for when he purchased it there were no improvements upon it, and it now ranks among the best in the county of Riverside.


Mr. Coplen was born in Colorado City, Colo., May 19, 1873, a son of John D. and Anna (Gross) Coplen, natives of Indiana and Rochester, N. Y., respectively. The elder Coplen moved to Colorado in 1860, and cast in his lot with the pioneers of that new country. Settling at Fairplay, he engaged in mining, first for gold and later for silver and met with good success. He later moved to Denver and still later to Los Angeles, after having made a home in Globe, Ariz., for a short time. He and his wife are now enjoying to the full the prosperity which it has been their privilege to attain, and in the balmy climate of Southern California are rounding out useful lives. Three children blessed their union: Laura, wife of J. E. Miner, residing in Globe, Ariz .; Bertha, who married William Miller, of Denver; Colo., and John B., of this review.


J. B. Coplen was reared in Denver, where he attended the public schools and afterwards the University of Denver. His early life was thus spent among the hardy western frontiersmen, and from them he imbibed to a great extent the ambition to accom- plish large undertakings that to many would seem almost impos- sible. His schooling over, he engaged in mining in Colorado, Wyoming, New Mexico and Arizona, where he made some good discoveries. He and his father promoted the Inspiration, which is one of the richest copper properties in Arizona. After selling this they opened and organized the Barney Copper Company, a very rich proposition and considered to be worth a large sum. Mr. Coplen still retains a large interest in this company.


After having made a success of mining ventures Mr. Coplen made up his mind he would seek other fields of endeavor and accordingly came to California. After travelling about fifteen thousand miles over the southern part of the state looking for a suitable location to engage in raising alfalfa, he selected Riverside


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county as offering the best advantages and the location upon which he decided was the one where he now lives. He made his purchase in 1909, and the following year moved thereon with his family. He erected a comfortable ranch house, one large hay barn 80x200 feet, another barn for stock and machinery 30x100 feet, as well as a tank house and bunk house combined. He put down two wells and installed pumping plants, using one sixty-horse power and one twenty-five horse power gasoline engine, besides which he installed his own electric lighting apparatus and has every building wired for electric lights, the house, bunk house and office fitted with sanitary plumbing, in fact every convenience to be found in any city is found on his ranch. To facilitate shipping he has a switch track built on the place. In all he has about $50,000 worth of improvements on the ranch and is continually adding thereto as necessity demands. No detail is neglected that will add to the comfort of the family and employes, or facilitate the better hand- ling of the business. A tract of one hundred and sixty acres is in alfalfa.


On November 15, 1899, Mr. Coplen was united in marriage with Miss Bessie Wiley, a native of Vincennes, Ind., and a lady of culture and refinement. She is a niece of Dr. H. Wiley, who for more than thirty years was connected with the United States gov- ernment as chief chemist. Two sons, John Wiley and James Bal- lou, have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Coplen. Mr. Coplen is a Mason and a member of the Lodge at Tucson, the Globe Chapter, R. A. M., Consistory of Tucson, and the Phoenix Temple. He is also a member of the Elks and Odd Fellows at Tucson. In all matters for county advancement he is always found a liberal contributor.


CAPT. LEONARD BUCKINGHAM PECK


The title by which this pioneer of Elsinore is known, not alone to the people of his home town, but also to the wide circle of his acquaintances, comes to him through his official service in the Union Army during the period of the Civil war. At the time of the seces- sion of the southern states he was teaching in Kentucky and already had made himself familiar with the question of slavery in all of its aspects, not only by reading, but more especially by observation. Fired with a spirit of zeal in behalf of the freedom of the slaves and the preservation of the Union, he offered his services as a private, and September 20, 1861, was accepted as a member of a company of Kentucky cavalry. At the expiration of his term of service he


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returned to his home state. Ohio, and there recruited a company of volunteers, becoming captain of Company F, One Hundred and Seventieth Ohio Volunteer Infantry. With his regiment he went to the front and served through the period of enlistment, after which he was honorably discharged. Immediately afterward he went to Illinois, recruited another company, enlisted the third time, and was chosen captain of Company H, Fourteenth Illinois Volunteer Infantry, later being placed in command of a battalion of eight hundred men at Springfield, Ill. When the war had come to an end and there was no longer need of volunteers in the army, he was honorably discharged in September of 1865, leaving the army with a record of which he and his might well be proud.


Jefferson county, Ohio, is Captain Peck's native place, and May 17, 1839, the date of his birth, his parents being Robert and Sarah (Hart) Peck, both of whom are deceased. The grandfather, Capt. David Clinton Peck, served in the war of 1812 and participated in the memorable struggle of Tippecanoe. On the completion of com- mon-school studies Captain Peck attended the York Academy and then took up the profession of teaching school, which he followed for twenty-two years. The record for continuous work which he won as a school teacher was broken by the period of his army service. During his connection with the army he formed the acquaintance of William Mckinley, for whom afterward he enter- tained the strongest admiration, and concerning whom he later gave this tribute :


"Search the record of the ages; trace it through all past time; It will disclose no character more beautiful or sublime; The synonym of true greatness, his name will ever be Enshrined in the hearts of freemen and lovers of liberty.


"His lofty and gentle nature, adorned with Christian grace, By kind deeds was exemplified, at all times, in every place. His devotion, true and tender, to an invalid wife, Emphasized both love and virtue, which lessen the storms of life.


"Upon fame's commanding summit, triumphantly he stood, Still contending for man's birthright and the greatest public good; And when by the dread assassin the fatal ball was hurled, His bright star had reached the zenith and its glory filled the world."


In addition to the memorial encomium from which the fore- going verses were taken, Captain Peck has written other poems that breathe a spirit of patriotism and an admiration for the true and the good. When a search for a more equable climate than the east afforded brought him to the shores of the Pacific ocean, he arrived


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in Elsinore July 19, 1884, and since then has been identified promi- nently with the material interests of the town. Always a local leader in the Republican party, he has served as a member of the county central committee, for more than twenty years has been a member of the board of education, served about ten years as a justice of the peace and city recorder, for nine years or more filled the office of postmaster at Elsinore, has also served as deputy county clerk, deputy county assessor, city clerk, ex officio city assessor of Elsinore and notary public, all of which positions he filled with characteristic intelligence and fidelity. In the suburbs of Elsinore he has a beau- tiful home, where in the twilight of a useful existence he is sur- rounded by the comforts accumulated in former years and blessed by the confidence and deep regard of friends. In the quiet of his peaceful days his mind reverts often to the stirring scenes of the past and to the memorable epoch of the Civil war, "all of which he saw and part of which he was." Among his recollections is that of a trip by boat on the James river. In a conversation with the cap- tain the latter told him that he witnessed the capture of John Wilkes Booth after the murder of President Lincoln and himself carried the dead body from the place where it fell, back to the city of Washington. As the captain knew Booth personally he was quite positive concerning his identity. At the time some believed Booth to have escaped and insisted that the dead body was that of another man, which assertion the captain, from his personal acquaintance with Booth was able to refute.


During one of his furloughs from the army Captain Peck formed domestic ties. His marriage was solemnized in Ohio Sep- tember 14, 1864, and united him with Amanda Atkinson, who passed away in Elsinore April 20, 1898. Nine children were born of their union, eight of whom attained mature years. George A., born July 6, 1866, died in Pasadena January 26, 1911; Leonard S., born March 18, 1868, is now engaged in mining at Bodie, this state; Frank W., born January 22, 1870, died in early manhood at Gila Bend, Ariz .; Junius C., born January 30, 1872, is now engaged in mining in Nevada; Clarence E., born November 23, 1873, while on the police force, was accidentally shot by a comrade policeman, dying August 4, 1911, at Pasadena; Carver C., born April 5, 1876, resides in Elsi- nore; John E., born May 1, 1878, is a medical student in the Uni- versity of Southern California; Vernon L. was born March 26, 1880, and died at the age of four months; and Reullura A., who was born November 19, 1882, is the wife of Clyde Thompson, of Los Angeles. The family are identified with the Methodist Episcopal Church, while in fraternal relations the captain holds membership with Elsinore Post No. 103, and for years has been interested in the activities of the Grand Army of the Republic.


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EMERSON B. COLLIER


The unsurpassed resources and genial climate of Southern Cali- fornia have attracted to permanent residence a large proportion of the flower of eastern and central culture and civilization, the de- scendants of men who bore the hardships and endured the priva- tions incident to the pioneer development of the country and the inheritors of the heroic spirit that laid the foundation of our na- tional government broad and deep and powerful. It would be im- possible to select any special names as representative of a complete list of the citizens to whose intelligence and industry the present standing of Riverside county is due. All have been contributors to local growth. Even the humblest individual has been a factor in the steady progress, while the weathy have been large contributors through their abundant command of capital. Perhaps the most im- portant force in the material growth of the community has been the connection therewith of people of the middle class, the men who, escaping poverty on the one hand and unblessed with wealth on the other hand, have labored faithfully and well to secure the present results, and in this important class belongs Mr. Collier, who has made Corona his home since the fall of 1900 and for some years prior to his removal hither had been identified with the fruit- packing industry in Orange county.


The southern part of Iowa is the native locality of Mr. Collier, who was born at Osceola, Clarke county, December 7, 1870, being a member of the family of Jesse and Cynthia Collier, natives of Iowa. At the age of eight years he accompanied his parents to Kansas and settled in Smith county, near the northern border of the Sun- flower state, where he continued the studies of the local schools until he graduated in 1888 from the high school. Immediately afterward he secured a position as clerk in a drug store at Lebanon, Smith county, and there continued for five years, finally resigning the clerkship in order to assume the management of a farm owned by his mother. Two years were spent on the farm and he then came to Southern California, where he chose a location at Tustin, Orange county. There he learned the rudiments of the fruit-pack- ing business and attained a proficiency in that department of horti- culture. While residing in Orange county he enlisted in Company L, Seventh Regiment, N. G. C., and volunteered for service in the Spanish-American war, in the United States army, serving seven months, when he was discharged.


As previously stated Mr. Collier has been a resident of Corona since the autumn of 1900. The immediate cause of his removal to this place was that he might assume the management of the Corona 29


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Packing Company and in that capacity he continued for seven years, resigning in 1907 in order to accept the position of manager of the fruit-packing plant of F. H. Speich & Co. Two years later he retired from that company and became manager of the Flagler Fruit and Packing Company, in which responsible post he has con- tinued to the present time. Besides filling acceptably the duties of business affairs he has maintained a warm interest in public mat- ters, and has sustained an active part in local Republican matters, and for five years, 1904 to 1909, served on the board of trustees of Corona, the last two years being president. During a service in the legislature in the session of 1909 he represented the seventy- eighth district efficiently and honorably and gave to the people an official record unsurpassed for intelligence and trustworthiness. From early life he has been a communicant of the Roman Catholic Church and of recent years he has been a prominent worker in the Knights of Columbus, an order composed of members of that relig- ious body. The Benevolent Protective Order of Elks of Riverside also have the benefit of his association with their charities. His marriage took place in 1900 and united him with Miss Jennie R .. McCuen, a young lady residing in San Francisco. They and their daughter, Aletha, born in 1905, have a comfortable and . pleasant home on Victoria near Ninth street and they number among their friends some of the best families of the colony.


HARRY F. GROUT


Travel through various sections of the United States, some- times in the interests of business and at other times in the pursuit of recreation and pleasure, has enabled Mr. Grout to acquire a com- prehensive knowledge of our country. An impartial opinion, based upon information gained through habits of close observation and thoughtful study, leads him to favor Southern California as offer- ing advantages unsurpassed by any other region. Rich in its soil and climate, he believes the district to be no less fortunate in the character of its population. for the people attracted hither as per- manent residents have been unusually cultured, broad-minded and energetic. Having given his time closely to commercial pursuits, he is more familiar with them than with other lines of occupation, but it is his observation that men of intelligence and mental acumen are prospered almost without exception in this part of the country.


A son of Stephen and Henrietta Grout and a member of an


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honored New England family, Harry F. Grout was born in East Dorset, Bennington county, Vt., June 17, 1872, and received his primary education in the public schools of his native town. Upon the completion of the studies of the common schools he entered the Burr & Burton seminary at Manchester, Bennington county, Vt., and continued in that institution until he was graduated with the class of 1890. In order to see something of the United States he took a trip across the continent and visited Los Angeles and other western points, spending one year in a sojourn for pleasure and observation. Upon his return to Rutland, Vt., he secured employ- ment with the Western Union Telegraph Company as operator, remaining for four months. During December of 1891 he went to South Carolina and engaged as manager of the wholesale depart- ment of J. J. Dale & Co., cotton-growers at Beaufort, Beaufort county. For two years he remained in the south, meanwhile learn- ing much concerning the customs and institutions of that section of the Union.


Returning to Vermont in December of 1893, Mr. Grout engaged with the Howe Scale Company of Rutland as office manager and continued in that capacity until the fall of 1898, when he resigned in order to remove to the west. Los Angeles offered a favorable location for business pursuits and in that city he secured a position as salesman with L. W. Godin & Co., shoe dealers. During 1900 he formed his present partnership and came to Riverside, where the firm of Backstrand & Grout since has risen to a position of prom- inence in business circles, furnishing employment to about fifteen clerks and carrying a large and varied assortment of shoes, clothing and dry-goods. The conservative judgment of the senior member, supplementing the enthusiastic energy of the younger partner of the firm, secures and has developed a business combination of unrivalled strength and enviable standing.


During the period of his residence in Rutland, Vt., Harry F. Grout was there married, June 23, 1897, to Miss Vida E. Billings, by whom he is the father of a daughter, Doris, now a pupil in the Riverside schools. Political matters have not engrossed the atten- tion of Mr. Grout nor has he, while voting the Republican ticket, displayed any partisanship; on the contrary, his has been the inter- est of the broad, liberal-minded and impartial citizen, solicitous to promote the welfare of his adopted city and willing to aid by time and means any movements for the general welfare. Fraternally he holds membership with Riverside Lodge No. 643, B. P. O. E., also with Riverside Lodge No. 282, I. O. O. F. He is a member of the board of public utility and a director of the First National Bank, and in 1911-12 served as president of the Chamber of Commerce.


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GAYLOR ROUSE


Within a few years after the close of his army service during the Civil War Mr. Rouse first became interested in mercantile pur- suits and while yet a resident of the east he laid the foundation of a successful business career through his devotion to the work and his manifest adaptability to its special demands. Metropolitan expe- rience at the very outset of his business career enabled him to thor- oughly and quickly grasp the principles underlying successful mer- cantile enterprises. Upon his removal to California he continued merchandising along the lines made familiar by his eastern work and gradually, through a wise policy of commercial management, he has risen to prominence in his locality, being at the head of G. Rouse & Co., one of the most successful mercantile firms of Riverside.


A son of Collins and Dolly Rouse, descendants of old eastern families, Gaylor Rouse was born at Watertown, N. Y., on New Year's day of 1842 and received his primary education in his native city. During the fall of 1858 he entered the academy at Belleville, Jefferson county, N. Y., and continued the regular course of study in that institution until he was graduated in 1862. Immediately after leaving school he enlisted in the Union army as a private sol- dier in Company G, Tenth New York Heavy Artillery, and accom- panied his regiment at once to the front, where he saw considerable active service. During his term he was promoted to a lieuten- antcy and served on the brigade staff as assistant inspector general. When the war closed he received an honorable discharge and retired from the army with a splendid record for efficiency. Going to Washington, D. C., he secured a clerkship in the war department and remained in that position until 1868, when he left the service to embark in merchandising.


The opening of a retail store in Philadelphia, N. Y., proved the beginning of a successful connection with the dry-goods busi- ness, in which Mr. Rouse continued in that town until 1878 and then sold out in order to remove to the west. Upon his arrival in Cali- fornia he embarked in the dry-goods business at Antioch, Contra Costa county, and there, in August of 1879, he married Mrs. A. R. Jessup. By a former marriage in New York state Mr. Rouse has one son Charles G., now connected with the firm of G. Rouse & Co as vice-president.


On his removal from Antioch after a residence there covering eight years, Mr. Rouse established a men's clothing house in Santa Barbara, this state, and remained in that city for three years. From that place he came to Riverside and embarked in the retail dry-goods business. During 1900 he organized a stock company


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and became president of the concern, which now ranks among the most successful enterprises of the county and carries a varied line of furnishings for both men and women. While giving careful at- tention to the details of the business, Mr. Rouse finds leisure for participation in local activities of a general nature, and is a member of the Episcopal Church. Memories of old war days are borne in mind through participation with the Grand Army of the Republic and the Loyal Legion, and he is a Knights Templar Mason.


WILLIAM E. GALLWAS


In Mr. Gallwas, West Riverside has a man of unquestioned honor and good executive ability and he is held in high esteem by his fellow citizens. He was born January 2, 1873, in Madison, Jef- ferson county, Ind., a son of Frederich A. Gallwas, a native of Germany and a tailor by trade. He served his apprenticeship at the trade in his native country and in early manhood immigrated to America, locating in Madison, Ind., where he began at his trade and where, in 1856, he was united in marriage with Miss Maria Reihn, also a native of Germany, and who, like her husband, had come to the United States at an early age. Madison continued to be the family home for twenty-five years, when, in 1875, the family moved to Los Angeles, and here Mr. Gallwas continued to work at his trade until 1887. This date marks his change of residence as well as occu- pation, as he embarked in farming upon his removal to San Bernar- dino county, settling in the part that is now known as Glenavon district, Riverside county. Here he filed on a quarter section of wild land and thereafter devoted his time and attention to its develop- ment and cultivation for the following twenty-two years, after which he retired from active work and is now living in quiet contentment in Ontario, Cal., and at the age of eighty-two years is hale and hearty. His wife and companion for more than fifty years passed away in December, 1910. They had nine children, eight of whom are living.




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