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 64

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 64

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James Ruddick of the "Old Lodge" saloon, is the owner of a fine sword, formerly owned by General U. S. Grant, who in early days stayed at Knights Ferry with his brother-in- law, Lewis Dent. Later Judge A. E. Baine came into possession of the sword and he gave it to Mr. Oullahan, he in turn presenting it to Mr. Ruddick. It is a straight sword with a black leather scabbard .- March 22, 1867.

Messrs. Matteson & Williamson are prepar- ing to erect a three-story building on the site of their present shop on Main Street near California. The building will cover a space 50 by 75 feet and will cost about $10,000 .- June 17, 1878.

J. D. Peters, who is one of the most extensive wheat buyers in the state, has purchased as high as 10,000 tons in a single day, and he estimates that since 1856, when he first began buying, he has bought in this valley alone over 600,000 tons of wheat and 300,000 tons of barley, besides making large purchases from other parts of the state and from Oregon .- July 3, 1878.

The new street car line along California Street is now finished and yesterday, for the first time, the cars were run. The line extends from Main and Center Streets to the Asylum gate on Park Street. About 8 o'clock Captain Smith, accompanied by one of the drivers, leading a horse, proceeded to the steamer wharf, and there, hitching onto a "bob-tailed" car, it was drawn over the graveled street to the turntable and run onto the track. The car attracted considerable attention as it ran up Main Street. George H. Tinkham was the driver on this pioneer line .- May 19, 1875.

At his residence on the French Camp road, near this city, March 25, 1883, Captain William H. Moss died aged 85 years. Captain Moss was born in Virginia and came to California in 1861, at the breaking out of the Civil War, and being wealthy, started the San Francisco Democratic Press with Beriah Brown, a noted secessionist, as editor. When Lincoln was assassinated on April 14, 1865, the mob de- stroyed the Press and two months later, June 13, 1865, Captain Moss issued the Daily Ex- aminer and published the paper up to the time of his death. Captain Moss was born in very humble circumstances, but his energy and in- domitable will overcame all obstacles and he died one of the wealthiest men in this section of the state .- March 27, 1883.

The Stockton Combined Harvester & Agri- cultural Works about two years ago estab- lished a car department and made a success of the enterprise from the start. Orders are now being filled for about forty combination street cars; ten for San Diego, twelve for Portland, Oregon, and six for Seattle. The Stockton street car company has also ordered four more new cars .- March 16, 1890.

On Monday afternoon, a little after 5 o'clock. Pat Breen, an old resident of Stockton, was shot and killed at his home on the Moquele- mos grant. The previous day Breen sent a dis- patch to the sheriff's office saying, "I want some help at your hands. There is a mob com- ing here tomorrow, led by Christ Heild and Bill Crawford." A party of thirty armed men on horseback and in a wagon rode to Breen's place. Several of them crowded upon the front porch, and one of them, drawing his revolver, , smashed in a panel of the door and shot Breen as he was trying to barricade it. He died in about ten minutes, his wife and two small children witnessing this most cowardly and brutal murder .- September 5, 1882.

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The new county hospital building near French Camp is almost ready for its patients. The house will be ready for occupancy long be- fore the weather is sufficiently settled and the roads dry enough to admit the moving of the patients .- January 25, 1895.

A beautiful fountain, with a brick and cement basin, twenty feet across, has been erected on Courthouse Square. The artesian well was capped with a four-inch pipe, and the water plays some three feet above the outlet .- June 14, 1860.

Joseph M. Cavis, who has been a resident of Stockton since 1860, died at 8 o'clock yesterday morning. He was born in New Hampshire in 1825, graduated from college in 1846 and began immediately to study law. In 1852 he came to California and located in Columbia, Tuolumne County. He there engaged in mining until 1855 and then resumed his law practice. In 1861 he was elected to the Senate from Tuol- umne County and served two terms. Tuol- umne at that time contained some of the brightest minds in California, among them J. M. Barber, James Coffroth, J. W. Mande- ville, Leander Quint, N. M. Orr and J. W. Cavis. In 1863 Mr. Cavis was elected district judge and served for six years. He came to Stockton in 1869 and again took up the prac- tice of law. In 1875 he was the Republican candidate for lieutenant governor, with Tim- othy G. Phelps as governor. Cavis stumped the state making some fine logical speeches, but the ticket was hopelessly defeated because of the actions of Congress on the Chinese im- migration. Mr. Cavis in 1876 was appointed postmaster and held the office until 1889, the last term through the Cleveland administra- tion. He was postmaster under four presidents -Harrison, Garfield, Arthur and Cleveland. Mr. Cavis also served one term as judge of this county, and for twenty years he was a member of the Congregational Church and took an active part in church work. Through- out his San Joaquin life he was a campaign speaker and made no statements unless he be- lieved them true. Hence his speeches carried great weight. As a lawyer he took no cases where he believed his client in the wrong, and as a judge so sympathetic was he, in condemn- ing a murderer to be hanged one day, the tears rolled down his cheeks .- January 5, 1892.

Yesterday afternoon the board of police and fire commissioners held a meeting and adopted the following resolution : "Whereas, large bodies of people are congregating in this city in connection with the railroad strike, and a break is liable to ensue and the force of regular police would be inadequate to quell the trouble and protect life and property ; therefore be it "Resolved, that L. C. Mowry, O. B. Harvey, S. L. Lawrence, J. C. Sullivan, George A.

Black, Thorn McCloud, W. H. Woodbridge, L. M. McLaren, W. R. William, A. G. Payne, J. W. Webb and F. E. Butterfield be appointed special policemen, with compensation fixed at $2.50 per day."-July 4, 1894. (This refers to the railroad strike only.)

The new steamer recently built by C. M. Small on the north bank of Mormon Channel, 400 tons carrying weight, is now at the wharf loading with wheat for San Francisco. She is in command of T. C. Walker and is named Alice Garratt, after a daughter of William T. Garratt of San Francisco, one of the stock- holders .- August 2, 1873.

The Stockton Dramatic Club organized last Saturday evening and elected the following officers : Louis B. Noble, president ; J. A. Hos- mer, vice-president ; C. H. Platt, secretary, and Walter B. Starbird, stage manager ; committee on plays, J. E. Budd, J. H. Hosmer and W. B. Starbird. The following correspondence was received and answered: "Gentlemen, would it not be possible for you to give a dramatic entertainment for the benefit of the Kansas suf- ferers. Our citizens would support it liberally. Signed : J. D. Peters, A. W. Simpson, H. H. Hewlett, L. M. Cutting and others." In re- sponse : "We will be most happy to play at any time for a charitable object and will name Monday, March 6, 1875, as the date for the Kansas sufferers. We will then present the play of 'Caste,' followed by the laughable farce of 'Toddles.'"-February 22, 1875.

The concert and ball given in Mozart hall last evening was the most brilliant affair ever given in this city. The ball was preceded by a concert by the Fourth U. S. Artillery band of San Francisco, and some of the leading vocal- ists of the state, among them Mrs. R. K. Marriner, Walter C. Campbell and S. D. Mayer, the famous organist. The elite of Stockton were present. Among them were noticed Mrs. W. A. Simpson, N. M. Orr, Dr. Clark, George E. McKensie, Otis Perrine, Dr. J. M. Kelsey, Wm. Bivens, the Misses Julia Weber, Alice Brown, Kittie Henderson and Mary Marshall .- December 12, 1873.

A hurricane and tornado accompanied by hail and a heavy rain passed over Milton yes- terday at 1:15 o'clock. The hurricane was only eighty yards in width, lasted only a few min- utes, but it almost destroyed the town. A dwelling and new blacksmith shop belonging to John Grider was blown to pieces. A. D. Fox's new hall was blown off of its foundation. John's hay barn was completely demolished. The new schoolhouse was blown eight feet away. Flying timbers filled the air, roofs were blown off and several persons severely in- jured .- December 17, 1873.

Saturday evening last, Chas. Dohrmann, of the firm of Dohrmann & Company, grocers,

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and Miss Pauline Wetzlar, assistant teacher in the Stockton Seminary, were married at the First Presbyterian Church by the Rev. E. S. Ely. The edifice was crowded with the friends of the happy couple .- June 23, 1870.

The Odd Fellows will soon begin the erec- tion of a handsome three-story brick building on the corner of Main and Hunter streets, the estimated cost being $45,000. The building in size will be 67x96 feet and the foundation walls 43 inches in thickness on solid hardpan. The basement will be seven feet in height, the lower story fifteen feet, the second story four- teen feet and the third story twenty feet. The members expect to dedicate their new building the latter part of next year .- August 3, 1867.

Yesterday in Odd Fellows' hall we were shown eight magnificent new chairs manufac- tured in San Francisco to order at a cost of fifty dollars each. They are of the Queen Eliza- beth style of construction, manufactured of straight grained Eastern oak, and upholstered in plush, in colors suitable to each station .- October 2, 1865.

Joseph D. Peters will soon erect a hand- some two-story residence on Sutter Street, near Lindsay. It will be complete in every particular and add materially to the appearance of that aristocratic locality .- Sept. 4, 1861.

Governor Irwin has appointed William H. Hall, a son of John B. Hall, as state engineer, with a salary of $6,000 per year. Mr. Hall, whose well-known reputation as an engineer has been gained by years of service, is a young man reared in Stockton and educated in our public schools. Stockton has sent forth three famous engineers-William Hammond Hall, John Hays Hammond and Ewald Grunsky. All three were reared in Stockton and attended our public schools .- April 12, 1876.

Dr. W. P. Tilden, who was a hotheaded Union man, fired a salute of thirty-four guns because of the news that North Carolina has refused to secede from the Union. The seces- sionists were angry that a state official should publicly rejoice, and one of the inquired, "Has the firing of a cannon and the raising of flags a tendency to cure insanity?" Tilden replied : "While injurious to none of the cases under by treatment, it is beneficial to some classes of insanity, the victims of which are extremely sensitive to every expression of patriotism, whether by the firing of cannon or the raising of flags. This class is peculiar to the United States and in the clinic of medicine is known as secessia." It was Dr. Tilden who first intro- duced the custom of giving dances for the most insane patients, a custom continued for several years, as they were helpful to many of the unfortunates .- November 22, 1861.

Mr. Garnett, who is farming on the ranch of Dr. F. W. Todd on Roberts Island, expects to

sow the entire 262 acres to barley. When he began work it was virgin soil, nothing but tules, but he succeeded in plowing some 200 acres, for which he receives $5 per acre. He has been plowing under green tules ten feet in height .- November 7, 1878.

Yesterday morning Samuel L. Terry died at his father's home of a complication of diseases. Mr. Terry was one of the brightest young law- yers in California. Born in this city in 1855, he attended the public schools, studied law with his father and received his license to practice at the age of twenty-one years. In 1822 he was elected city attorney, accepting the office only two days before election. He was a past president of the Native Sons, an Odd Fellow and a Mason, and in 1880 was elected as the highest state officer of the Knights of Pythias. He was one of the most popular young men of the community and his loss will be deeply felt. -April 2, 1885.

The sale of the postoffice site was completed yesterday, when United States District Attor- ney William M. Garber paid to J. M. McCarty $17,500. This was all that the Government would allow for the property, the citizens be- ing compelled to make up the difference- $4,000. A number of lots were purchased and deeds for their sale were recorded yesterday. The property, 121 by 124 feet, was purchased from Mrs. Elizabeth Slaughter, Matthew and Margaret McCarty, James and Ida White, and Clara and James C. Gage. The full amount paid was $21,490. Of this amount Mrs. Slaugh- ter received $10,750, Mr. McCarty and wife $4,875, J. M. White and wife $3,428, and Clara Gage $2,437 .- July 27, 1892.

A wealthy drunk was picked up in the bowl- ing alley last Monday by Officer Myers, and on being locked up $150 in money and $450 in gold dust was found on him. He was captured. none too soon for the safety of his coin .- July 29, 1858.

A large number of the friends of Henry A. Moore and wife assembled at their residence Saturday evening to assist in celebrating the twenty-fifth anniversary of their wedding. The worthy couple, with their five children stand- ing around them, looked as happy as when twenty-five years ago they stood at the altar in Boswell, Ark. Their wedding trip was a six months' voyage across the plains. Mrs. Moore is a sister of John R. and Charles Will- iams, Mrs. Debnam and Mrs. Edward Moore .- February 26, 1878.

Workmen are now engaged in erecting elec- tric towers in different parts of the city. The masts are 100 feet in height and one will be placed on Weber Point, one at the corner of Fremont and Hunter Streets, another at the southwest corner of Washington Square .- March 21, 1888.

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The Board of Supervisors yesterday let the contract to remove the remains in the county hospital cemetery to Otto Von Detten, fixing his bond at $500. He was the lowest bidder and will receive for removing the county dead, consisting of bones only $1.74 each; for the partly decomposed bodies $2.97, for the re- mains of smallpox patients $5 each, and for those who died of diphtheria $3.97 .- January 4, 1894.

The Young People's Literary Society of the Congregational Church presented the play "Caste" in the theater last week to a crowded house. All of the players did remarkably well, especially Flora Baker and Esther Eccles and Lulu Hogan as "Polly," the servant. Miss Baker has never appeared before on the stage and Miss Hogan, always good in lively parts, reminds us of the piquant Alice Harrison of the California theater. The farce of "Box & Cox" closed the performance .- May 10, 1878.

'Weber's Garden is one of the most attractive places in Stockton. It is situated in front of the steamboat landing on the peninsula and to make it secure, Captain Weber has spent thou- sands of dollars in bulkheading the banks of the channel. In a high enclosure is his private garden and residence. Surrounding this is a public garden open to visitors. This garden has cost Captain Weber thousands of dollars. It is our only park .- August 26, 1861.

Henry H. Hewlett has sold the property on the northwest corner of Main and Hunter Streets to L. and A. Meyer of San Francisco. The lot, 20 by 50 feet, was sold for $16,000. The Meyers intend to buy adjoining property, it is said, and erect a fine brick building. The National Bank, which now occupies the cor- ner, will be moved in September to the Yosemite Building .- July 13, 1892.

Schuyler Colfax will arrive this afternoon by stage from Mariposa, and he will be met at the Agricultural Society's grounds by Mayor Gray, the Common Council, Odd Fellows and citizens, and escorted into town. This eve- ning he will speak in Agricultural hall on the Pacific railroad, after which he will visit Char- ity lodge of Odd Fellows in social session and confer the degree of Rebekah, Mr. Colfax be- ing the creator of this degree on August 15, 1865 .- May 20, 1868.

The rat killing pit at Fred Gerlach's U & I saloon on Center Street was the scene of con- siderable commotion last evening. About fifty men had gathered to see lively young dogs kill rats. A little later two Mexican women well filled with seltzer water went into one of the boxes and called for liquor. One was armed with a revolver, and just as the rat kill- ing became most exciting the woman in some manner accidentally fired the revolver. In about two minutes the back room was cleared,

the men rushing and tumbling over each other trying to get into the open. They believed the police were after them and in the scramble one of the big glasses in the transom was smashed into a thousand pieces. The police were called, not to arrest the men, but the Mexican woman .- October 22, 1893.

Carriages were flying about. the city at all hours last night, carrying well dressed ladies and their guest to and from the leap year ball in Masonic hall. It was a very select affair, consisting only of twenty-four couples, and was greatly enjoyed by the merry dancers and about 100 invited guests. The Misses Acker- ley, Kelsey and Baggs furnished the favors, and the German was led by Misses Elliot and Jackson. The young ladies called for their guests and partners in carriages and through the evening acted as attendants and managers of affairs. Among those who took part were the Misses Elliot, Cutting, Kelsey, Trahern, Simpson, Tully, Sharp, Taylor, Creanor, Deb- nam, Littlehale, Bours and Mrs. H. S. Smith. The gentlemen present were Ralph and Frank Lane, Bert Moore, George Sperry, George Wil- hoit, Charles Hutchinson, Robert Reid, Frank West, W. G. Starbird, H. W. Earle, Frank Stewart, J. D. Young, William Bours, Eugene Grunsky, Eugene Wilhoit and Theodore Elli- ott .- January 3, 1888.

Under the direction of the Philomathean Society, a spelling match, in which teachers, pupils and citizens took part, was held in Mo- zart hall last evening. Over 400 persons were present to witness the contest, the first prize, $10 in coin, was won by B. F. Bagley, a mem- ber of the society and a school trustee. The second prize, a $10 order for photographs from J. P. Spooner, was won by Miss Minnie Hark- ness, the first high school pupil to graduate at the age of seventeen years. Thomas Louttit took third prize, a Webster dictionary .- April 10, 1875.

A reception was tendered the Stanford Glee club by Mrs. Phil B. Fraser and her daughter, Mary, yesterday afternoon from two until five o'clock. Mrs. Fraser was assisted in receiving by Mrs. David S. Rosenbaum, Mrs. Bert C. Moore, Mrs. Ralph P. Lane and Misses Hart and Dudley. The spacious rooms were beauti- fully decorated with smilax, cut flowers and evergreens .- April 1, 1894.

The old town clock, which so faithfully measures the lapse of time and rings the hours on the city hall bell, was imported to this city in 1867 by Charles Hass, the jeweler. He pur- chased the clock in Boston and it was exhibited in the agricultural fair that year. James Little- hale, by his own exertions, then succeeded in getting $500 in subscription for the purchase of the clock, the city and county officials appro- priating a like amount, $1000 in all. A cupola

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and clock tower were then erected upon the court house by James Brown (father-in-law of Supervisor Tretheway) and the clock first be- gan timing the hours in October, 1868 .- April 12, 1880.

The Presbyterian Church was filled to the doors last evening, it being the occasion of a lecture by the Rev. Robert McKensie on "The Abiding Elements in Scottish Character." The lecture was delivered for the benefit of the Caledonian Society, and during the evening Miss Maggie Hubbard, the organist, played several Scottish songs dear to every son of Scotland, among them being "The March of the Comarin Men," "The Campbells are Com- ing," and "Bonny Prince Charley," with pleas- ing effect. Mrs. Gertie Starbird sang several Scottish songs and charmed the audience with her magnificent voice. Joseph Fyfe introduced the lecturer, who gave a most interesting ac- count of the Scots, land and people .- May 24, 1879.

There is considerable complaint among the teachers of the public schools regarding their contracts. The school trustees bind the teach- ers to teach one year, while there is no contract compelling the board to keep the teacher any length of time. The contract has been signed by many teachers reluctantly, as several young who hoped to get married during the year be- lieve they will have to teach the entire school term .- July 7, 1894.

The Forefathers' festival was celebrated Sat- urday evening in the parlors of the Congrega- tional Church, it being an annual observance of the landing of the Pilgrim Fathers, Decem- ber 20, 1620. Fully 200 members of the church sat down to an inviting feast of salads, mince and pumpkin pie, coffee, etc. The toastmaster, C. W. Norton, first called on the Rev. Irving Lovejoy to respond to the toast, "The Pilgrim Fathers." Other toasts were: "The Congrega- tional Idea in Other Churches," Rev. Thomas A. Boyner; "The Pilgrims and the Sunday School," R. W. Drury ; "Reminiscences of Our Church," Mrs. Hannah Thresher; "The New Building," Rev. R. H. Sink; vocal selections were rendered by Frankie Brown, Tom Ken- yon and Annie Dewey .- December 12, 1902.

Last evening Walter R. Henderson, at the residence of his parents on Hunter Street, gave one of the swellest parties of the season. The preparations made to insure the pleasure of the guests were elaborately and carefully arranged. The floor of the north and south parlors were covered with canvas, and the handsome chan- deliers and walls were decorated with flowers and evergreens, the artistic work of Dr. Hen- derson's talented daughter Ella. The guests all appeared on the floor in dominoes and after the twelve dances unmasked. During the eve- ing the dining room was open to the guests

and bountifully supplied tables were spread with refreshments of all kinds. Over sixty couples were present and among the dominoes we noticed Mrs. Henderson in brocaded satin with point lace, diamond ornaments ; Ella Hen- derson, in garnet plush and silk, trimmings of lace and natural flowers; Delia Wolf in em- broidered black velvet and satin, diamonds; Emma Gerlach, nun's veiling and satin, trim- mings of Spanish lace; Gertie Biven, pink silk, satin trimmings; Belle Davis, pink domino, diamonds; Nellie Blossom, pink domino, dia- monds; Mrs. Chas. J. Hass, white silk, em- broidered skirt, pink crepe trimmings of satin and Spanish lace, diamonds; Susie Chase, pink domino; May Goodell, pink domino; Abbie Gray, nun's veiling, Spanish lace trimmings, diamonds; Hannah Gray, light blue silk, lace trimmings, diamonds; Sophia Belding, cardi- nal satin with gray silk, diamonds; Mamie Huggins, cream colored moire silk, lace trim- mings, with natural flowers; Lottie Weaver, white grenadine over black with natural flow- ers ; Bessie Trahern, white satin and plush, lace overdress, diamonds; Carrie Parsons, garnet plush and brocaded satin, with flowers .- Feb- ruary 6, 1883.

The San Joaquin Medical Society held its an- nual meeting July 28 at the residence of Dr. W. R. Langdon, corner of American and Fre- mont Streets, and Dr. Elias A. Stockton was elected president; Charles A. Ruggles, vice- president; W. R. Langdon, second vice-presi- dent; Samuel Langdon, George A. Shurtleff and A. T. Hudson, censors, and F. W. Todd, secretary and treasurer .- August 1, 1878.

A. J. Hahn has purchased the interests of his sister, Mrs. Julia Brueck, in the Commer- cial Hotel and hereafter it will be personally conducted by him. At that time, 1894, the hotel was doing a fine business and the prin- cipal boarding patrons were the mechanics who worked in the vicinity. At the time I was driving the street car mules on the San Joa- quin Street line and I took dinner in the hotel. There were three long tables and all the food except tea and coffee was placed on the table before the dinner bell rang. You should see the boarders tackle the food! And eat, well some of them had no manners. Pies, equally distant apart, were cut into four pieces and set upon the table. Some of the boarders would grab half a pie. I know, I like pie .- October 16, 1894.

A large crowd collected upon the wharf yes- terday to witness the departure of the two splendid steamers, the Sophie McLane and the S. B. Wheeler, as they were about to try their respective capacity for speed. A gallant cheer arose from the spectators as they left, and there was great excitement as thousands of dollars have been bet on the results .- Aug. 15, 1851.

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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 64

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