History of San Joaquin County, California : with biographical sketches of leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present, Part 48

Author: Tinkham, George H. (George Henry), b. 1849
Publication date: 1923
Publisher: Los Angeles, Calif. : Historic Record Co.
Number of Pages: 1660

USA > California > San Joaquin County > History of San Joaquin County, California : with biographical sketches of leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present > Part 48

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Governor Stanford's Proposition

Governor Stanford, awake to all of the rail- road schemes going on in the State, heard of this proposition and came to Stockton. He presented to the Council a proposition : "Un- derstanding that the city of Stockton proposed to loan the sum of $300,000 in her bonds, I de- sire to submit the following proposition : The Central Pacific will build seventy-five miles of their road, from a point in the city to be desig- nated by the mayor and common council, the right-of-way to be given, and when the seven- ty-five miles are completed so that locomotive and car shall pass over it, there shall be de- livered to the company the full amount of the bonds. We guarantee the building of thirty-five miles of the road in one year from that date." Then another railroad proposition

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was read and signed by men who were stock- holders in the Stockton & Tulare road, and they asked the council to delay action for thirty days. "It seems to me, Mr. Stanford's proposition is all that can be desired," said Councilman Humphrey. Evans ' thought it would be well to appoint a committee to make a specified agreement in regard to the line of the road. "It is the desire of the Councilmen to have a statement made upon that point?" Mayor Hickman inquired. "Yes," was the reply. In the audience sitting near the door was Dr. Grattan. "Doctor," said Mayor Hickman, "will you be kind enough to go to the Yosemite Hotel and escort ex-Governor Stanford to the council chamber." The rail- road magnate arriving, he was introduced to the council by Mayor Hickman and cordially received.

"Governor," inquired General Evans, "may I with propriety ask you at what point your road will cross the Tuolumne River?" "I cannot say without a map, but it will be some- where near Empire City." Edward Moore then inquired : "At what point does your road intend to connect with the Western Pacific; any other point than Stockton?" Adroitly Stanford replied : "The company will exhaust their franchise in building one road up the valley. It will form a part of the great trunk line connecting the Southern Pacific with Oregon. It is not the object of the company to overlook and ignore the business of Stock- ton, but rather their aim to enlarge it." Then a conversation took place, the correctness of which is not positively known. It has been re- ported, true or untrue, the writer cannot say, that Mayor Hickman then inquired: "Gover- nor, what do you intend to charge for freight and fares?" Stanford replied angrily : "None of your - -- business," and immediately left the room. The council appointed a committee of three, George Evans, J. M. Kelsey and Ed- ward Moore, to confer with Stanford regard- ing his proposal. They succeeded in having one interview. After that interview he was too busy to see them. What took place be- tween him and the directors of the Stockton & Tulare Railroad is not publicly known, but they sold their franchise to the Central Pacific. During this time the Stanford road, pass- ing outside of Stockton, reached the San Joaquin River. Surveyors had been locating a bridge across the Stanislaus River, and Tur- ton, Know & Ryan with men, horses, carts and scrapers had been waiting orders to commence grading from Wilson's, now Lathrop, or from Stockton. Some mysterious event settled the question, and the southern road moved on from Lathrop, but they, as well as Stockton. lost in the deal. Said Charles Crocker to a friend many years after: "We made a great

mistake that we did not put our road several miles nearer the foothills and commence at Stockton." The Santa Fe now covers that territory. The company built a large hotel at Lathrop and installed therein H. A. Bloss, who had run the restaurant and bar in their Stockton depot. The hotel was opened in May, 1870, with a grand ball and excursion from Stockton. The hotel was destroyed by fire May 10, 1871, and, being rebuilt, was again burned in 1888. The town was named after Charles Lathrop, the brother-in-law of Stanford, and the Central Pacific did every- thing possible to establish a town as a rival to Stockton. A discrimination was made and freight and passengers were carried to Lath- rop cheaper than to Stockton. This was years before the organization of the Railroad Com- mission.

The Stockton & Visalia Railroad

Believing that if Stanford built his road down the southern valley it would greatly in- jure the trade of Stockton, several citizens formed a company, incorporating as the Stock- ton & Visalia Railroad, intending it to paral- lel the Central Pacific's road to Bakersfield. Bills were introduced into the Legislature by State Senator H. M. Orr and Assemblyman Hubner, authorizing the city council and the supervisors to call a bond election for the bonding of Stockton for $300,000 and the county for $200,000, said bonds to be issued to the Stockton & Visalia road. The bill passed the Legislature and was signed by the Gover- nor, although it was strongly fought by the Central Pacific, Western and Southern Pacific directors.

Stanford was not the only individual that was up to "schemes that were dark and tricks that were vain," as Bret Harte said of the Heathen Chinee, for the Stockton schemers said, "The suburbs of Stockton will receive as much benefit from the new road as the city proper. Let us annex them to the city and make them pay their proportion of the pro- posed bond tax." The railroad citizens wanted the outside assistance and one newspaper went so far as to declare that the building of the road depended upon the annexation of the sub- urbs. The "outsiders" were strongly opposed to uniting with Stockton in her fortune or mis- fortune, and in a mass meeting held in the Vineyard school house, October 16, 1869, about forty persons present, Daniel Severy, chairman, only four voted for annexation. An- other meeting was held January 3, 1870, in which, like most political conventions, every- thing was "jobbed" previous to the gather- ing. The pro-railroad promoters allowed a free discussion of the annexation question, for they had everything "packed" and the

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vote was then taken with thirty-six yes, twen- ty-two no, and the meeting adjourned with three cheers for the Stockton & Visalia Rail- road. In the Legislature H. B. Underhill and T. R. Moseley appeared as the representatives of the Central Pacific, opposing the bill, and Stanford appeared personally before the com- mittee on corporations and argued against it, maintaining that Stockton had no right to bring his property into the city and tax it to help support an opposition railroad. His ar- gument was unsuccessful and General Evans telegraphed to his partner, John H. O'Brien, June 25, 1870, that Governor Haight had signed the annexation bill, the new territory being liable for no old city debts prior to February 1, 1870. Notice that the city council wrangled for some length of time regarding the street through which they would permit the Central Pacific to run, and now they go two blocks east of the old city and bring in the road, thus compelling Stanford to pay city taxes. The annexed city one half mile on each side with boundaries at North, South, East and West Streets (Pershing Avenue), was not subject to the city old debts. An en- thusiastic mass meeting was held in Hick- man's Hall April 6, called by 146 prominent citizens ,and speeches strongly advocating the carrying of the bond election were made by Judge Cavis, W. S. Montgomery, Rev. J. H. Giles, James A. Daly, and Edward Moore, the later declaring that the directors of the Stock- ton & Visalia road would pledge themselves to commence work at once and carry it on un- til the Merced River was reached. The mer- chants all closed their stores on election day, deeming it of the greatest importance. The vote was for $500,000 bonds, city and county. The city voted for both municipal and county bonds, 1329 yes; 14 no; for the county bonds, 1357 yes; 17 no. The county vote was 1965 yes ; 626 no. Woodbridge, Poland, Lockeford, Liberty, Tulare, and Union gave large major- ities against the bonds. The result made hap- py the citizens and they believed the directors would faithfully carry on the work. The bill called for a railroad from tidewater in Stock- ton directly across the Stanislaus River to 'Visalia, and H. S. Sargent and Edward Moore were appointed as the trustees to receive the county bonds, and B. W. Bours, Geo. W. Kidd and J. M. Kelsey trustees of the city bonds. The council gave the right-of-way to the com- pany down Hazelton Avenue, and in May Chief Engineer Bender began his survey to the Stanislaus River. Before he reached the river, he was recalled, for Governor Haight, as a constitutional lawyer, had given his de- cision in another case which might invalidate the Stockton bond issue. There was peculiar work going on somewhere in Sacramento for

it was declared that the Stockton & Visalia road "will go on notwithstanding the com- bination of the Central Pacific, the Sacramen- to Union and Governor Haight."

A long-drawn-out lawsuit now began. On June 16, 1870, J. A. Jackson, of the Stockton & Visalia road, demanded of the common council that they levy a tax to meet the pay- ment of the interest on the bonds due in July. The council refused the demand and June 28th they were served with a notice from John B. Hall and John McConnell, for the Stockton & Visalia, that they had applied to the Supreme Court for a peremptory writ of mandamus to compel the council to levy the tax. The council put their case in the hands of the city attorney, W. S. Montgomery, auth- orizing him to push the case to a final con- clusion, but what was the surprise five months later to learn that four of the most eminent lawyers of the state were pleading Stockton's case, and filing briefs asking the Court for a continuance. "How is this?" the council asked of Montgomery. "I don't know," he re- plied, "the only city representative to my knowledge is the attorney-general, Joe Hamil- ton."

The directors of the Stockton & Visalia rail- road held their annual meeting December 2, 1870, and elected as director for the year, Austin Sperry, Louis Haas, Edward Moore, A. W. Simpson, Geo. W. Kidd, J. M. Kelsey, James A. Crow, John Sedgwick and Frank Stewart. The road was turned over to the California Pacific in August, 1871, and by Aug- ust 25 they had built a road from Peters to Farmington. Continuing on it reached Oak- dale, October 1, and October 13 the Cham- pions of the Red Cross gave an excursion to Oakdale over the so-called Stockton & Visalia railroad. Three days later, October 16, 1871, the council met, and Edward Moore, as presi- dent of the Stockton & Visalia road, presented a request accompanied by a statement sworn to before a notary public, that the Stockton & Visalia Railroad had been laid from tidewater in Stockton for a distatnce of fifteen miles, and that cars and engine were running on said road. The request asked the council by reso- lution to accept said road, but in committee of the whole November 6, 1871, the council de- clared : "We consider the same insufficient to warrant the council in passing said resolu- tion." The councilmen were: T. B. Buck, C. S. Eickelberger, R. E Wilhoit, R. B. Lane, J. S. Davis, J. W. Hammond, J. C. Gage, Wm. Inglis, John Robertson, and John Nicholas. Suit was then commenced against the com- pany by City Attorney James A. Louttit for unlawful usury of franchise. In the following month, the Central Pacific Railroad Company appeared as the owners of the road. The suits

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regarding the bonds of this road and those of the Western Pacific road were carried on for twelve or fifteen years and finally terminated in a compromise.

Projected Road to Visalia

Foiled, but not disheartened, a third at- tempt was made to run a road from Stockton to Visalia, and February 3, 1873, the Stockton & Tulare, narrow guage, was incorporated, with B. W. Bours, president; Frank T. Bald- win, secretary ; and T. K. Hook, treasurer, and the following directors : R. E Hyde, E. Jacobs, Tulare; H. C. Daulton, Fresno; C. M. Blair, Merced; A. Leach, Stanislaus; and B. W. Bours, T. K. Hook, Dr. Charles Grattan, George F. Smith, and R. C. Sargent, San Joaquin. A mass meeting had been previous- ly held, and $5,500 had been subscribed on the spot for the people's road. The people along the entire route were anxious for a railroad to the waterfront and they promised to give dol- lar for dollar with Stockton. The proposed line of road ran near Modesto through Merced and Snellings to Visalia, the road to run par- allel with the Southern Pacific five miles nearer the foothills .. Archibald Blair was sel- ected as chief engineer, and with a surveying corps comprising James Thorburn, transit- man; James Sharrott and George H. Tink- ham, chainmen; Henry Smith, axeman; Lon McCloud, teamster, and Joe White, cook, the party began their tramp for Visalia, 160 miles. According to orders the chief surveyed a line not exceeding a one per cent grade, sixty feet to the mile, and completed the work in five months. The cost was found so great, espec- ially in "fills and cuts," that the work was given up.

Twenty-five years passed and the greater part of the pioneers of state and county had lain down their burdens. The Central Pacific and its southern branch had brought thous- ands of immigrants into California, new homes were founded, new lands developed, and new cities builded. The population of San Joaquin had also largely increased-from 11,000 to 28,000- and lands that at one time sold for thirty-six dollars an acre had tripled in value. County and city had grown, not because of the railroad, but in spite of it, for in every manner possible discriminations were made against Stockton's trade and transporta- tion facilities. The Central Pacific endeav- ored to injure the city "from pure cussedness" as a newspaper put it, compelling persons trav- elling East to go to San Francisco to purchase their tickets and Pullman berths; compelling all Westward travelers to buy tickets for Sac- ramento or San Francisco; compelling all west-bound freight to be carried to San Fran- cisco and returned at extra cost; carrying

wheat from the south to Port Costa, cheaper than to Stockton, although fifty miles greater in distance; prohibiting the sale of local news- papers on their trains, and their employes from residing or purchasing goods in Stock- ton ; publishing railroad maps and distributing freely throughout the East, with Stockton's location a blank place on the map; working most persistently "to make the grass grow in the streets of Stockton." But beautiful may the flowers yearly bloom over the graves of Leland Stanford, Mark Hopkins, Charles Crocker and C. P. Huntington, for they ac- complished a magnificent work for California, and although they are in peaceful rest, Stock- ton still lives.

The Tesla Coal Road

In the spring of 1861 coal was discovered in Corral Hollow, a point in the Mt. Diablo Range, about thirty miles from Stockton. Several expert coal miners pronounced it a very valuable discovery, as the surface crop- pings indicated a vast bed of fine coal.

A number of Stocktonians, including D. G. Humphrey, A. W. Simpson, Robert Miller, George Gray, J. M. Hogan, Benjamin Lippin- cott and H. Tinkham, incorporating under the name of the Commercial Coal Mining Com- pany, purchased the property, and sinking a shaft 180 feet in depth, they expected to make their fortune. After spending several thous- and dollars, they found it would take at least a half million to fully develop the mine and market the coal, and all work ceased. In 1894 Hyland E. Barber, a Stockton boy, be- gan quietly to buy up all the shares of the company. He had no difficulty purchasing at his own price, paying as low in some cases as two dollars per share-clear gain, the sell- ers believed-and when he had purchased all the shares, it was learned that he was the agent for the Treadwell brothers, two miners who had made several millions in the Alaska gold fields. Learning of this undeveloped valuable coal mine in Corral Hollow, they sent their expert on coal to examine it, and they pronounced it a mine of great value and there was "millions in it." Tests of the coal were made in mill furnaces, steamboats and loco- motives and they pronounced it excellent coal. After purchase, the Treadwells and others in- terested with them, expended nearly a million dollars in opening the mine and in improve- ments. To market the coal they incorporated the Alameda and San Joaquin Railroad, with E. B. Pond, a former mayor of Son Francisco ; B. M. Bradford, J. Dalzell Brown, a banker, R. D. Frye, and John Treadwell, directors. Plans and specifications were completed for a railroad from the mine to Mohr's Landing on Middle River, a distance to tidewater of eigh-

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teen miles, but the Stockton Commercial As- sociation, learning of the project, believed that under certain inducements, the road could be brought to Stockton, as they would have equal advantages of water transportation and a local market for their product. In May, 1895, John Treadwell and John Coleman visited this city and were shown the greater advantages of Stockton over their proposed terminus on Middle River. The company concluded to make the change at an additional expense of $150.000 and a ten-mile longer run. The com- pany intimated that they would ask no money bonus, but would demand certain concessions. Stocktonians were anxious to learn if they were negotiating for a gold brick or an enter- prise of advantage and benefit to the Gateway City, so a party, comprising P. A. Buell, Frank S. Boggs, Charles M. Weber, H. H. Mc- Williams of the Crown mill and a representa- tive of the Record, Irving Martin, visited the mine May 25, 1895, and they were sur- prised at the amount of work that had been done. In June E. B. Bond, John Coleman and John Treadwell met the Commercial Associa- tion members and demanded the right of way through the city to the water front and county rights to the San Joaquin County boundary line, which it was estimated would cost about $10,000. Although the city "had been milked dry," as one member expressed it, the Asso- ciation agreed to meet the demands. Orrin Henderson, then a supervisor, stating that the official body would give every assistance and the new council just sworn in and Mayor Boggs said they would give the right of way through the streets.

The City Fathers, riding over the route, concluded to give the coal road right of way over Hunter Street to Hazelton Avenue, to Edison, to the Levee. The route was satisfac- tory to the company, but when the ordinance came up for the second reading there was trouble. The Council chamber was crowded and protests were made by the milling com- panies and by Robert Watt of the San Fran- cisco and San Joaquin Valley road, that the coal road was cutting out his company from the water front. Ross C. Sargent, who had given the coal road the right of way through his land, exclaimed, "I am friendly to both roads. Why should not the coal road be given a chance to get to the water front? They didn't ask anything of the town." The matter was finally adjusted, and August 29 the ordi- nance was passed, Councilmen Lang, Martin, Burton and Quinn voting yes, and Koch vot- ing no, the latter contending that because of the narrow strip of land provisions should have been made over the Mormon Channel route. for other railroads to use the tracks. In Sep- tember the company at a cost of $50,000, pur-

chased a piece of property on the water front and immediately erected large and expensive coal bunkers. The rights of way through the county were obtained. Surveyor George Ath- erton staked out the road bed and in Decem- ber the construction train was running to the San Joaquin River. Early in 1896 the com- pany began hauling coal from the mine and depositing it in the coal bunkers. The subse- quent history of this road spells disaster and ruin. Building a large briquette factory with splendid and costly machinery, twice was it destroyed by fire; the second time also de- stroying the coal bunkers. The coal was un- salable, and the heavy outlay, with no reve- nue, nearly bankrupted the heaviest incorpo- rators. The experts had all pronounced the coal first class.

The Claus Spreckels Railroad

The Gateway City was not the only victim of the Central Pacific, for San Francisco was charged "all the traffic will bear." They were actually slaves to the railroad company, so far as concerned trade, and when efforts were made to obtain money for the building of the valley road, the merchants. "were reluctant to subscribe, as the fear of the Southern Pacific was still a potent influence." However, they resolved to beard the lion in his den, and build a competing railroad down the valley to Ba- kersfield under the name of the San Francisco, Stockton & San Joaquin Valley Railroad. The project was started in 1893 but it hung fire for two years, the merchants fearing the wrath of the Southern Pacific, but it moved forward with a rush when Claus Spreckels in 1895 took the lead by subscribing $500,000, his sons sub- scribing $200,000. The terminus of the road was a most important question, and one of the heavy stockholders said it must be San Fran- cisco, and he favored passing through San Jose, then into the San Joaquin Valley. This news so pleased the Garden City that Febru- ary 21 they subscribed $14,000 for the road and held a jubilee illumination of the city, the cannons booming and the multitude repeat- edly cheering. Stockton, Oakland, San Jose and even Antioch were bidding for the term- inal point, and that, said the practical Claus Spreckels, depends entirely on circumstances. "We'll make diligent inquiry all along the dif- ferent routes, and note the best advantages, and what the people will do for us; these things will have considerable bearing regard- ing the terminus," said Spreckels.

Early in the year, Stockton's people were up and doing, and January 29 they organized the Stockton Commercial Association, its princi- pal object being to protect the commercial in- terests of Stockton. The association elected P. A. Buell, president; Charles J. Jackson,

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vice-president ; Orrin Henderson, secretary ; and William W. Westbay, treasurer; with an executive committee consisting of Sidney Newell, D. S. Rosenbaum, J. M. Welsh, H. J. Corcoran, P. A. Buell, William Inglis, Thom- as Connelly, Orrin Henderson and George W. Tatterson. Assembling in their headquarters, February 5, they were discussing many "ifs and ands," how much money would be re- quired, would the road pay, when and how should they commence canvassing for funds, and genial Louis Hansel quickly decided the question. "The business men of this town should raise $200,000. It takes money to build railroads ; jawbone won't do it." They finally settled at $100,000 as the amount to be raised, deciding to begin canvassing at once, the sub- scriptions not to be binding upon the subscrib- ers unless $100,000 were raised and Stockton , the terminal point or on the main line. The committee began their canvass with $15,000 from the banks, $5,000 from the California Navigation Company, $100 from Louis Hansel and $5,000 from Ross C. Sargent, he to make it $10,000 if necessary. The citizens respond- ed liberally, and in less than twenty days they had $92,000 in sight.

About the middle of February the citizens became anxious and Sidney Newell, J. M. Welsh, George Gray and D. S. Rosenbaum were appointed a committee to proceed to San Francisco and interview the directors of the Valley road. They were informed that as soon as the road was incorporated and the di- rectors elected Stockton would have her day. That the directors might have something tan- gible on which to base their decision, the com- mon council assembled in special session on March 16 and passed an ordinance granting the company the right of way along South or Clay Street and on Edison Street to the water front. From conversations held at different times, it was understood that the promoters considered $100,000 as nothing and they would demand at least twice that sum in yard sites, depots and rights-of-way. Provision had been made for these things should they demand them, and P. A. Buell had bonded several pieces of valuable property. Sending notice of their coming, six of the directors arrived on the evening train March 26, and they were met by members of the association, and es- corted to the Yosemite Club rooms for lunch. The following day, accompanied by their chief engineer, W. F. Storey, who had previously been looking over the ground and necessary site, they drove around the city and then to the proposed route selected by their chief.

That evening the directors went into secret session with President F. A. Buell, to discuss the proposition made to them by the associa- tion, namely, $100,000 in stock, the right-of-

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History of San Joaquin County, California : with biographical sketches of leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present, Part 48

Author: Tinkham, George H. (George Henry), b. 1849 Publication date: 1923 Publisher: Los Angeles, Calif. : Historic Record Co. Number of Pages: 1660

Author: Tinkham, George H. (George Henry), b. 1849
Publication date: 1923
Publisher: Los Angeles, Calif. : Historic Record Co.
Number of Pages: 1660