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 55

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 55

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CHAPTER XXIII POST AND RAILROAD TOWNS

In the history of the world nations have arisen, grown to great strength and influence in the affairs of the world and then passed away. So is it with the towns of a state. They were founded, grew to more or less importance in the community in which they were located and having filled their place in the county's history, they passed from memory or they be- came sleeping landmarks of the past. San Joaquin County . has had several of the vil- lages, some are forgotten, some are but skele- tons of their former self, and some linger along hoping for a revival of the days of "49". Clements, Lockeford, Waterloo, Liberty, Elli- ott, Mokelumne City, New Hope, Collegeville, French Camp, Linden, Woodbridge, Banta, Atlanta are all towns of the past, post road towns built up and maintained by the staging and teaming of the early days and the farming community. Now staging and teaming is dead and the farmers no longer require community centers, for they ride to town on the steam or traction cars, or sail over the roads in their automobiles.

French Camp

One of the oldest of these towns is the his- toric village of French Camp. We remember that the Hudson Bay Company had their trap- pers at that point in 1837, and that in 1844, Benjamin Kelsey and his family located for a season. After the discovery of gold and the founding of Stockton, it became quite a trad- ing point for the Southern mines, because of the fact that teams and stages could travel from that point to the mines, either, summer or winter. In fact the winter roads were much the best as the rains packed the sand and made durable roads. Because of its trade some persons believe it would be a rival of Stockton. "Because of Stockton's mud," said the Republican as late as March, 1861, "Quite a number of small craft were employed at present in conveying goods from this city to French Camp. Teams do not attempt to come within four miles of town at present, because of the bad roads, and they pay four dollars per ton to have the goods brought to the camp, where the teams can receive it. A gravel road to French Camp even with a high toll upon it would be a great saving to the teamsters besides giving us one driveway out of town." The French Camp turnpike was built to the village soon after this item was published, and the camp then became a mem-

ory. One of the first settlers at the camp was Richard W. Noble and his family, who located there in 1852. Previous to this time Mr. Noble, who had a store at Mariposa, erected an adobe house at French Camp, at a cost of some $14,000. It was built on a knoll in the town; the building with its wall three feet thick being used as a storehouse for his goods. Soon after this he and Archibald Stevenson formed a partnership and opened a store and public house. Then the store of Le Barron & Company was opened and the merchandising place of N. Mckinstry. In 1850, Lansing & Snell opened a hotel and store. And about the same time a man named Earle started a blacksmith shop and bakery. Goods for these places during the winter were transported there up French Camp Slough, and the first man to navigate the stream was E. W. Atwood. He began the navigation of the slough in a yawl, carrying about 1,500 pounds of freight and four passengers. Then the little steamer Mint began running to that point, carrying passengers and freight. The first religious service was held in the home of Colonel Lansing. The following year, 1851, a schoolhouse was erected by subscriptions from the farmers and Stockton citizens and it was used for all public assemblies. A second story was added and this was used for a hall for the Sons of Temperance. In 1853, there were two hotels in the place doing big busi- ness, and five lines of stages started from that point.

Ripon

Ripon, on the Southern Pacific Railroad, is the most southeasterly town in the county, the district bordering on the Stanislaus River. About twenty miles from Stockton it was first settled up in the early '60, most of the settlers locating along the river. Two of the earliest settlers in the Ripon district, were, W. H. Hughes, who took up a preemption claim in 1857, and Perry Yaple, who located there in 1861, previously owning a barley grinding mill in Stockton. Hughes owned the land where Ripon is now located. When the railroad came through in 1872 he gave them the right- of- way and a depot site. The company erected a small station, and named it Stanislaus sta- tion. This station was in use until February, 1912, when it was replaced by the present larger structure. For some length of time Stanislaus City, as some called it, was the

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terminus of the road then being built in Fresno. The company built a cattle corral, and it was the shipping point for a large amount of stock, including the cattle of Trahern & McMullen and also for the large amount of wheat and barley grown upon the sand plains, the grain being shipped in flat cars to Stockton or Point Costa for storage.

The nucleus of the town was started in 1874, when a man named, A. B. Cook came from San Diego and opened a store. Not pleased with the name Stanislaus City, he renamed it Ripon after his birthplace in Wisconsin. Cook was an enterprising fellow and he had the Government establish a post office there under the name Ripon, and was appointed post- master. Subsequent postmasters were Perry Yaple Jr., and E. C. Dickerson. The post office was always in some store and the place changed owners several times, each new owner being appointed postmaster. Some of the merchants of Ripon were, Henry Bowman, B. F. Yaple, Frank Hutchingson, and E. C. Dickerson and J. H. Little, who erected a store in 1884. The town at this time was of considerable size containing a hotel, black- smith shop, school, two large warehouses, and 14 residences, but the writer complained about the tardiness of the supervisors in construct- ing a bridge across the Stanislaus River. There was no transportation, except by toll ferry, and he declared a free ferry or bridge would bring a good deal of trade that way. Of the substantial buildings in Ripon the first brick building was erected by Perry Yaple, who burned the brick in the summer of 1886. It was a two-story building, the Odd Fellows occupying the second story. This lodge, Mt. Horeb, No. 58, was instituted in Sonora May 27, 1856, by Grand Warden L. L. Alexander. After the discontinuance of gold mining, the lodge began losing its members until scarcely enough members were left to hold the charter. At this time one of the members, Wm. E. Gar- att, removed to Ripon and through his efforts the lodge was removed from Sonora to Ripon. The lodge now has 121 members in good standing. Progressive Rebekah lodge No. 229, Ripon, was instituted March 30, 1906 by the Grand Warden Ella Van Court, assisted by Ann Sorenson of Modesto, district deputy grand president. There were eleven charter members, thirty-eight initiated that evening. When instituted the lodge number was 209, but returning its charter some years ago it ter was again reorganized and given the new number. The town with its 500 inhabitants had several church denominations and build- ings, among them the Dutch Reformed, Swed- ish Mission, Congregational, Dunkards, Chris- tian Science, Free Methodist and Catholic. Along about 1884 the Woman's Improvement

Club, first organized to clean up and care for Ripon cemetery, next turned their attention to the erection of a church building, for the use of the several denominations in the town. They collected by subscriptions and entertain- ments about $800. This was not sufficient money for a building. Then the United Breth- ren of Lathrop, a branch of the Dunkards, pro- posed to erect the church provided the citi- zens of Ripon obtained the lot. The terms were agreed to and the Brethren taking the $800 erected a church edifice at an additional amount of $1,500. The building was erected and used by the different creeds for several years. Then the Congregationalists erected a church of their own, followed soon after by the other denominations. Finally all of the denominations erected buildings, and the United Brethren church was unused for sev- eral years. The Free Methodists now hold services there.

The first school was held in an old shack which had been used as a residence. The par- titions were torn out and wooden desks and seats put in. Some years later the district was divided, River district being on the south side and Ripon district on the north side of the railroad track, and a new schoolhouse was built. This schoolhouse at one time was located in the grove of locust trees, now grow- ing near the town. They were planted by E. C. Dickerson and Oly C. Kroh to protect the school building from the heat of the sun. The first teacher in these schools was George Hanscom, then living in Modesto. He was followed by Miss Ida Kemp, May Esterbrook, E. C. Dickerson, and J. L. Moulton, the two last named marrying two of their pupils, the Yaple sisters. Ripon was up-to-date with its school service and in 1911 the citizens voted a bond issue for the building of a large hand- some school structure. The building was com- pleted in 1912 and dedicated, February 22, with appropriate ceremonies, the principal of the school Thomas H. Uren presiding. Five years later a union district was formed and May 4, 1917, the splendid high school was erected.

The Ripon Finch Murder

Probably the greatest sensation in Ripon was the killing of Phillip Finch by the Rev. James Wells, December 12, 1884. The cause was a difficulty of long standing and seems that in the eastern states Finch had seduced Wells' half-sister. Wells came to California and located at Ripon and Finch followed him and obtained work in the warehouse; at one time he boarded and lodged with Wells' fam- ily. Just previous to the shooting it was re- ported to Wells that Finch had threatened his life. Wells at this time was teaching the Ripon

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schools on the main street, located where now stands the First National Bank. About 4 o'clock on the day of the murder, Finch was walking towards the schoolhouse and some of the men on the street remarked, "Now there'll be trouble." As Finch came near the school- house Wells came out of the building and walked up to Finch. After a short talk, those watching the affair saw Wells draw a revolver and shoot at Finch four times. Two of the shots took effect and Finch was taken into John T. Bloomer's store. He was attended by Dr. B. M: Brainbridge but died shortly after- wards. As two of the witnesses of the murder John B. Matthews and Thomas Fredericks ran to the scene, Wells exclaimed, "I am sorry I had to shoot you, boy, you have been following me for years. You seduced my sister and this morning you insulted my family." Sheriff Cunningham hearing of the murder by telegraph, hastened to the scene, arresting Wells and bringing him to Stockton jail. Wells was indicted by the grand jury for murder, and his trial came up February 25, 1885, in the Masonic Hall as the old court house had been condemned as unsafe. He had sold his little house in Ripon to pay his attorneys, James A. Loutitt and Wm. Dudley. The prosecuting was represented by the dis- trict attorney, Ansel Smith, assisted by Joseph C. Campbell. The jury went to their room on the evening of February 28, and the follow- ing morning reported that they could not agree, standing seven to five for acquittal. At a subsequent trial Wells was acquitted.

Manteca

Manteca is one of the progressive towns of San Joaquin County and its progressiveness is shown in the fact that in 1910 with a popula- tion of 100 it now has a population of nearly 2,000. Like all of the county towns its first settlers were honest, hard working farmers, who located in the district to till the sandy . soil and raise wheat, hay and barley, the prof- itable crops at that time. It is not positively known who were the first settlers, but a man named "Billy" Jenkins is said to have located in that section of the country as early as 1858 on 320 acres of land. About the same time Wm. H. Lyons, a young Stockton attorney, took up some land there on a soldier's war- rant. He did not live there, but took up the land on speculation. Joshua Cowell in 1863 located a half-section of land which included the present town of Manteca and building a little home began raising wheat and barley. Later when those crops were unprofitable he and his fellow ranchers began raising rye. In 1864 Peter Clapp, James Reynolds, Alvin Shedd, and George and Orsemus Sperry and Cutler Salmon, located in that township and

became prosperous ranchers. The settlers were few in number, and although neighbors they lived several miles apart, for each farmer eventually owned large tracts of land. They defined the boundaries of their lands by means of deeply dug ditches making an em- bankment on the inside.

A man named Martin in 1864 built a little residence of brick in that locality and later it was occupied by Peter Clapp. The house now sheathed with wood is in the limits of the town. Another old time building of sixty- seven years ago is the former home of George Sperry. The Southern Pacific in 1870 built a line of road from Lathrop to Ripon, then the center of the grain growing district. Joshua Cowell gave them the right of way and the company erected a small freight platform and station where now stand the present depot erected in 1910. The station was known as Cowell's station. His brother had a ware- house about a mile below, called Cowell's warehouse, and as there was a confusion of names, the railroad company named the sta- tion Manteca, a Spanish word meaning butter. It had a prophetic meaning for today Manteca is the largest butter producer in the county. Joshua Cowell, now eighty years of age, justly called the "Father of Manteca," started a small creamery in 1896. It was not a success. A merchant named J. J. Overshiner in 1898 erected a small building across the track from the depot and opened a general merchandising store, and in connection there was a butcher shop. The Manteca-Rochdale store was opened in 1901, and the following year a blacksmith opened, where now stands the Bank of South San Joaquin. Another butcher shop was opened corner Yosemite Avenue and Hogan Road. John A. Boberg in 1909 started the Manteca lumber yard and taking in Carl Palm in 1911 they opened the Manteca hard- ware store. The first brick building was er- ected by Joshua Cowell in 1911 on the south- west corner of Yosemite Avenue and Hogan Road at a cost of $9,000; the Odd Fellows leased the hall in the second story. Cowell in 1913 erected a much handsomer two-story brick building diagonally opposite the first building, the one now occupied by the Jacob store. The Odd Fellows in 1913 purchased a lot for $1,200 opposite the Cowell building and erected a handsome building at an approximate cost of $12,000. Renting the lower story, the upper story was fitted up especially for lodge work. The property is now valued at $20,000. As early in 1914 J. W. LeTourneau, Johnson & Carlon, McPherson & Son were in the gen- eral merchandising business; Woodward & Douglas, Olsen & Hansen, Woodward & Hines, were selling real estate; Brow's drug store; Manteca Lumber Company ; the Wig-

1! Rip

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HISTORY OF SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY

gin and the Manteca Hotels; Cowell's Stable ; W. H. Harrell blacksmith; meat market; Cadwell's barber shop; bakery; paint shop; plumber; cannery and creamery; planning mill ; Mrs. Baker's ice cream parlor ; Dr. R. H Goodale, physician; Dr. Moore, dentist; tele- phone exchange, Wells Fargo agency, post of- fice and two banks.

There are five different denominations and churches in Manteca, including the Methodist, Union or Baptist, Christian, Catholic and Christian Science. The Union Church, first used as a Brethren or Dunkard Church, was built in 1912 in North Manteca, the Manteca Improvement company having given them two lots for that purpose. It is now used as a Union Baptist Church, the present pastor be- ing the Rev. A. P. Brown. The Methodist Church is on West Yosemite Avenue. On the same avenue stands St. Anthony's Catholic Church. The first services were held in Cowell's hall by Father McGough, this being a mission church in Stockton parish. The church was dedicated June 18, 1916, and Father Marchisio has been in charge since the dedication. In October, 1919, St. Anthony was set apart as a parish.

The first teacher of the district school was Miss Wodward, the school being some dis- tance from Manteca. This was in 1867. She had pupils of all ages, one of them being Josh- uta Cowell, then a young man of twenty-five years. In the meantime Manteca had become quite a settlement, and in 1912 the school was removed from its former location on the river to the brick building now occupied by the Jacobs store. The building was erected by Mr. Coweli. A few years later a fine eight-room grammar school was erected at a cost of $30,- 000, and a large twenty-room Union high school is just completed in East Manteca at a cost of $200,000.

The town has two banks, each being located in its own brick building on Yosemite Avenue. The first Bank of Manteca was located in a brick building erected by Joshua Cowell. It was incorporated November 28, 1911, with a paid up capital of $25,000. The first president was Joshua Cowell and the directors, Fred Norcross, Joshua Cowell, J. N. Norcross, Ed Powers and John Boberg. Some two years ago the bank increased their capital stock to $100,000 changed the name to First National Bank, and moved to a building erected esceci- ally for their use. The Bank of South San Joaquin was incorporated May 18, 1918, with the following officers: Frank Guernsey, pres- ident; P. L. Wisdom, vice-president; Hugh Campbell, secretary, treasurer and cashier ; Arbor Barth and George Williams, assistant cashiers; and J. J. Overshiner, J. M. Lindsey, John A. Boberg, J. J. Napier and the officers as directors.

The town has several secret societies, in- cluding Tryon Lodge of Masons, who meet in the hall of the pioneer Cowell Building; the Woodman of the World, organized March 11, 1921; the Loyal Order of Moose, instituted August 25, 1920; the Odd Fellows organized December 2, 1911; Phoebe A. Hearst Parlor, N. D. G. W., instituted April 12, 1919, and Manteca Rebekah Lodge No. 332. These lodges all meet in the Odd Fellows' Building. The Phoebe Hearst Parlor officers were in- stalled by Grand District Deputy Mamie Pey- ton of Stockton and her grand officers.

The Manteca water works was started by A. Bucilleri, who used large quantities of water in his cannery; a large iron tank was erected on the west side of the railroad togeth- er with a pumping plant and arrangements made to supply the citizens with water for domestic and fire purposes. Three-inch pipes were laid to the street corners and to these pipes hose can be attached. The present fire department is composed of two companies with Elwood Leventon chief engineer and E. W. Sullivan and A. G. Pennebaker, assistants. Including these officers the following are the fire fighters: George W. Swanson, George E. Buthenuth, Benny Fauls, L. F. E. Costa, J. C. Kerr, J. W. Parr, John Jewart, Henry Hyman, Budd Hinkson, C. E. Field, Milo Monson, L. J. Delmege, Jack Greenberg, M. Litchfield, D. E. Stewart and H. B. Alger.

Fred W. Wurster, a Stockton boy, publish- ed at Ripon a little newspaper called the Irri- gation Bulletin. It was devoted almost en- tirely to irrigation projects. In 1909 the plant was removed to Manteca and sold the follow- ing year. to Fred Holman. He changed the name to the Manteca Bulletin. A rival news- paper called the Enterprise was started in 1916 by J. B. Dixon, who sold out in 1917 to a Mr. Bessac. In 1918 the paper was consoli- dated with the Bulletin. The Bulletin is a four-page weekly with a circulation of 1,000 copies and is at present owned by J. D. Dean, who bought the plant in May, 1918.

East Union Cemetery, where lie the bodies of many of the pioneers who located in Man- teca section, was set apart for a burial place in 1872, Alvin Shell at that time giving to the association a small tract of land. Some twenty years later, 1893, Joshua Cowell deeded land just opposite the cemetery for a church, and the Union Church Society erected a small temple of worship. The society was organized in 1887 with Mrs. Emily F. Cowell, president; Mrs. Luda S. Reynolds, secretary; and Mrs. Anna Reynolds, treasurer. Burials were made in the cemetery from time to time, but as the years passed no care was taken of it and it became a disgrace to the community. Finally the society determined to improve the grounds

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they having in the meantime obtained the church lots, making five acres in all. Obtain- ing money by subscription the grounds were cleaned up and a handsome gate and arch of cement and marble erected at the entrance. In the pillars supporting the arch there are mar- ble tablets on which are engraved the family names of sixty of the pioneers.

The progressive citizens of the town wisely, as early as 1909, organized a Board of Trade with the following officers: F. F. Langford, president; F. M. Cowell, vice-president ; E. N. Pierce, secretary ; and Joshua Cowell, treasur- er. Through their efforts in 1818 Manteca was incorporated as a city of the sixth class. The first elected officers were: Joshua Cowell, mayor; C. E. Littleton, F. M. Cowell, Andrew Veach and H. S. Erstad, trustees; George H. Singleton, clerk; J. F. Scott, attorney ; E. H. Jeffries, engineer; John Boberg, treasurer ; and Maro Litchfield, marshal and tax collect- or. In the second election R. E. Leventon was elected mayor and E. Kepple, F. E. Stetler, R. P. Fuller and J. E. Heeber, trustees; F. M. Roundtree, marshal and tax collector; E. Powers, treasurer; Daisy E. Duvall, clerk.

Were it not for irrigation this article of Manteca could not have been written. It is true that the Spreckels $2,000,000 beet sugar mill, employing some 300 men during the beet grinding season, gave Manteca an uplift, but it was the water that came flowing into their fields in 1903 that meant prosperity. On No- vember 21 they celebrated the event at a small station five miles southeast of Lathrop. It was a proud day in the life of H. W. Cowell who, with Nate Harrold, spent his fortune in pushing ahead the project. The farmers from the surrounding country came in crowds to the celebration, and over 200 Stockton citizens attended, accompanied by a band.

Lathrop

Lathrop is a town of the past, a silent re- minder of the time when Stanford and Com- pany endeavored to found a town as a rival to Stockton, but they did not figure on Stock- ton's waterway to the ocean, which built up the city to a population of 10,000 before there were any railroads in existence. The company laid out the town August 1, 1887, subdividing the tract west of the railroad hotel into six- teen oblong blocks. Up to this time it had been known as Wilson's station. The com- pany named it Lathrop in honor of Stanford's brother-in-law, Charles Lathrop. Every induce- ment was made to have settlers locate there, as it was a terminal point for trains, thus causing many railroad men to move their fam- ilies there, and the stopping there for twenty minutes of each passenger train for meals in the railroad hotel. This hotel, one of the larg- 19

est in the state at that time, was built at a cost of $50,000. It was placed in charge of H. A. Bloss, the popular hotel man, who had been conducting the eating place at the Stockton depot. The hotel was opened to the public May 10, 1871, with a grand ball and a sump- tuous supper. Merchants and others began to locate there and some of them were not desir- able residents to the company as they opened opposition eating places to the railroad house. As every passenger train arrived times were lively as the opposition hotels would solicit patronage. Then the company prohibited all solicitations on their property, and there were several fights and lawsuits. Passengers, how- ever, continued to patronize the cheaper ho- tels. Then the company won out by running a long line of box freight cars on the sidetrack just before the arrival of every passenger train. Lathrop reached its highest growth in 1879. At that time it had a population of about six hundred, with three hotels; two res- taurants, two general merchandising stores, a school, Knights of Pythias lodge, a Dunkard and a Catholic church. In February, 1886, the hotel caught fire and was totally destroyed by fire. The railroad then transferred their round- houses to Tracy and made that town the term- inal. That was the death blow to Lathrop.

The Murder of David S. Terry

Soon after the rebuilding of the hotel Lath- rop became famous through the killing of Judge Terry by David S. Nagle, a body guard of U. S. Supreme Justice Stephen J. Field. The two judges had been enemies since they sat together on the Supreme bench of Califor- nia. Terry at one time publicly denounced Judge Field as "the most corrupt judge ever on the bench." In 1883 a woman named Sarah Althea Hill claimed by a secret marriage to be the wife of Senator William Sharon, a wealthy mining man formerly of Nevada. Sharon denied the marriage, and to prove it the case was contested in 1884 in the San Francisco court. Her attorneys were David S. Terry and George W. Tyler, a former coun- ty judge in San Joaquin. She won out, as her marriage contract was declared valid. Sharon then removed his residence to Nevada, so as to bring the contest before the Federal Court, Chief Justice Field, presiding. Frank G. New- lands, the son-in-law of Senator Sharon, was a close friend of Chief Justice Field. In the meantime some curious events occurred. Sharon died in November, 1885; in the follow- ing month, Mrs. Cornelia Terry died broken hearted, and in less than two months, January 8, 1886, Terry married Sarah Althea Hill. Mrs. Terry now claimed Sharon's property as his heir, and the contestant was Frank Newlands. The case was tried in the U. S. District Court

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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 55

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