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 7

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

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CHAPTER IV. THE DISCOVERY OF GOLD

A LTHOUGH historians give but little no- tice to the discovery of gold in Califor- nia, it was one of the greatest events in the first half of the eighteenth century, as it quickly populated the western coast, revolu- tionized the metallic currency of the world and assisted greatly in saving the Union dur- ing the Civil War. Its discoverer, James W. Marshall, came to California across the plains in 1845 ; during the Mexican War he was with Fremont's battalion, and when peace was de- clared he visited Sutter's Fort looking for work. He proved to be an excellent mechanic and as Sutter was thinking of building a saw- mill, he sent Marshall into the mountains to find a good location. He found a site near the present town of Coloma, so men were sent to that point and began digging a mill-race. On the morning of January 24, Marshall, while examining the work, discovered a metal he thought was gold. Not being sure, however, he took specimens to Sutter at the Fort. The old Swiss tested it by the encyclopedia form- ula and pronounced it pure gold, sixteen, car- ats fine. Sutter forseeing the result, was de- sirous of possessing the land and he immedi- ately sent two messengers on horseback to Monterey with a petition to Governor Mason for a pre-emption grant to the land. The Gov- ernor sent back word that the land belonged to Mexico and he had no authority to grant his request.

Sutter, very anxious to keep the discovery a secret, commanded the couriers to tell no one of their mission to Monterey, but the men that night stopped at Tuleberg and showing the specimens, told the settlers all about the gold discovery. Most of them became wild with excitement and wanted to start for Co- loma the following morning. The cooler heads persuaded them to wait until the "Captain" returned. Captain Weber arrived the follow- ing day from the mountains and when told of the gold discovery, was in no sense surprised, for he had received small quantities of gold dust from the Indians while trading at his store in San Jose; knew several hundred dol- lars worth of dust had been taken from San Fernando Creek, and that indications of gold had been seen in the mountains of Santa Bar- bara. Gold having been found at those points why not at Coloma? If the creeks and the . American River bed east of Sutter's Fort con- tained gold, why not the rivers and creeks south of that point? A company was formed,

and traveling to the Stanislaus River, they be- gan digging for gold but found none. The gold lay twenty miles higher up the river. Then marching north they prospected in every gulch and stream, but found no gold until their arrival at the Mokelumne River. There they found a pocket of gold dust. Then trav- eling on they found plenty of gold in every river and on reaching Coloma, they began prospecting and found an abundance of the precious metal. Setting up their camp on the bank of a creek, they named it Weber's Creek, and to this day it holds its name. The com- pany, hastily departing from Tuleberg, did not take a very large quantity of supplies and placing two men in charge to hold their claims they returned to Tuleberg, Captain Weber having preceded them.

The Stockton Mining Company

Under Captain Weber's instructions a joint stock company was now organized, known as the Stockton Mining Company. The word Stockton was used for the first time, Weber selecting the name because of his great admi- ration for Commodore Robert F. Stockton, the naval commander-in-chief and governor of California during the Mexican War. The com- pany was organized for the purpose of carry- ing on a general merchandising business at the creek. Among the members of the com- pany was John M. Murphy of San Jose, Jos- eph Buzzell, Andrew Baker, Thomas Pyle, George Fraezer and Dr. J. C. Isbel. The company again started for the gold fields, tak- ing with them supplies of goods and imple- ments from Weber's store, and twenty-five head of cattle. Weber had agreed to furnish all of the necessary supplies, but not having sufficient stock for an extensive mercantile business, he went to San Francisco in a whale boat, and there bought additional supplies. They were shipped by water to Sutter's em- barcadero, and transferred from there to the creek by ox teams. Among other things which Weber bought was calico, beads, small silver coins and other trinkets to exchange with the Indians for gold nuggets. They high- ly prized the silver coins as ornaments to hang around their necks. The Indians at first had no idea of the value of gold, and Gilbert tells us that Dr. Isbel's wife made a piece of old cotton cloth into short skirts, and the doc- tor sold them to the Indian squaws for ten dollars in gold dust.

O ℃ GAGE

ALEXANDER&FRIEDLANOES

E. S HOLDEN,

EARLY SCENES AT STOCKTON

HISTORY OF SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY

Previous to his departure for Yerba Buena, Weber sent word to Jose Jesus, then living at Knights Ferry, to send him twenty-five able- bodied young Indians to dig for gold. Weber was of a firm belief that gold in paying quanti- ties could be found south of Coloma and he wanted to have these Indians learn how to prospect for gold. He would then have them work the streams in this territory. In time the young native sons arrived here, and ac- companied with a guide they rode horseback to Weber's Creek. The Indians, after being properly instructed, found plenty of gold. During this time the company were selling goods and beef at enormous prices and pros- pecting for a pastime. The Indians when well coached in prospecting were sent home with instructions to prospect in the Tuolumne and Stanislaus rivers. If. they found gold, they were to report that fact to the "major domo" at French Camp. Prospecting in the Stanis- laus River near their rancheria at Knights Ferry they found some coarse gold. They took the specimens to the overseer and in accord- ance with previous instructions he sent the news and gold by an express rider to Weber. On receiving the news Weber was greatly pleased and announced that fact by the blow- ing of a tin horn, which was the usual method in that day of proclaiming an unusual event and calling together the crowd. The miners came flocking in and seeing the large pieces of coarse gold, were very much excited over it. A consultation was then held and the com- pany concluded to abandon the creek claim, close out the merchandising business, and en- gage in prospecting in the new gold region. Captain Weber without doubt was behind this entire movement. Leaving two men to close up the business the entire company returned to Tuleberg. Replenishing their stock of goods they moved to the Stanislaus River and began prospecting for gold. With them were quite a number of new men who had accom- panied the Stockton company to this place. The prospectors slowly moving up the Stanis- laus into the mountains found plenty of gold. Then took place that restless, feverish, roving movement so common to the tens of thou- sands who followed later; the men were not satisfied with making big wages in one local- ity but scattered in every direction looking for gold. Then were founded dozens of mining camps, many of them named after the men who founded them such as Carson's Creek, Jamestown, Angel's Camp, Murphy's Camp, Sullivan's Diggings, Wood's Creek, Sainse- vain Bar, etc. In September, 1848, the Stock- ton Mining Company was dissolved.

Stockton's First Mercantile House

The founding of these mining camps was the forerunner of Stockton as a great trading

depot, and Weber's store was the pioneer. Was it keen foresight, sound judgment or just luck on the part of Captain Weber in settling up the wilderness now called Stockton? Call it what you may, the founding of this mer- chandising store formed a very important part. As we have already stated, he founded a trading store in San Jose, planning at some time in the near future to establish a similar store on El Campo de los Franceses. The Mex- ican War caused a postponement of all of his plans. In the fall of 1847, however, he came to Tuleberg and erected a log cabin on the south side of the Stockton Channel, near the foot of what is now Commerce Street, there established a small trading store. His cus- tomers were the settlers, travelers and immi- grants that passed over the road to and from Sutter's Fort to San Jose. The goods, bought in San Francisco, were transported to Stock- ton in whale boats, Eli Randall acting as his clerk. The discovery of gold in the mountains east of Stockton, changed completely the route of travel and hundreds began passing through the settlement eastward and westward bound.

As these travelers must of necessity have food and other supplies Captain Weber now concluded to establish a large commercial house. He planned to locate his store on the peninsula, as the most suitable spot for a wholesale and retail house, but the mistake of the supercargo in misunderstanding Weber's orders caused Stockton to be founded on the block lying between Levee, Commerce, Main and Center streets. Going to Yerba Buena Weber chartered a vessel with instructions to sail to Santa Cruz and for a load of redwood lumber and transport it to Weber's embarca- dero, the settlement being known by a half dozen different names. The supercargo had been ordered, on arrival at Weberville, to un- load the lumber on the north bank, but he un- loaded on the south bank and Weber was com- pelled to erect his store where the lumber was because of a scarcity of laborers, and no bridges nor boats to move it across.

When this, the first commercial house in the San Joaquin Valley, was commenced or com- pleted we do not know. John Doak, who ar- rived overland in the fall of 1847, said in July, 1877, "On arrival I found but one house to be seen, and that a mere shed on the bank of Stockton Channel, somewhere in the vicin- ity of Reed's Landing,' Warehouses now cover that site. There was also a tule tent on the peninsula occupied by Mexicans and In- dian vaqueros employed by Weber. In May, 1865, a pioneer in the press said, "I arrived here in the latter part of September, 1848, with Bernard Murphy and Thomas Knell. We met Daniel Murphy, who had just arrived from San Jose, and a man named Eli Randall,

HISTORY OF SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY

who was keeping store for Captain Weber. We camped two or three days up the slough, after which two of the others went below (San Francisco). Captain Weber having arrived, engaged me to erect a store and kitchen for him. I built the kitchen first, which was the first frame building ever erected in Stockton, and the store was not completed until Janu- ary, 1849." A. H. T. says, "My first view of the village of the San Joaquin was from the deck of a launch which I had chartered, at a cost of $600, from that old pioneer, Robert Parker, to bring a load of merchandise to We- ber's Landing as Stockton was then called. The launch would carry about ten tons and it took six or seven days to make the trip. The trip was made in the latter part of 1848. The stream was tortuous and winding and the dis- tance eighty miles from the mouth of the San Joaquin to Weber's embarcadero. In due time we entered the slough on which Stockton is now situated. After passing up about three miles we found we were near the settlement. It comprised one partly constructed wooden building on the slough belonging to Captain Weber, a few tents occupied by George Belt and Lunt & Grimes as a trading post, and these with a few tule tents were all we found to constitute the settlement. After placing our cargo in a room allotted to us through the kindness of Captain Weber the launch re- turned to San Francisco. We stayed through a long and tedious winter, living on beans, canned meats, ducks, geese and hard bread. Once in a while some daring hardy miner would make his way here, generally on foot, swimming streams and carrying his wet blan- kets, sleeping under trees or in the open air, sometimes drenched to the skin, in his walk of sixty or eighty miles."

The First Murder

There is a stream of blood that runs through San Joaquin County's history from 1848 up to the present time. The mercy and compassion shown to murderers today by juries who have pity for the life of the murderer, but none for the slain, in no manner lessen the amount of crime. And the law of the pioneers, a life for a life, or at least a severe prison sentence without any hope of pardon, checked crime at a time when murder was easy and detection almost impossible because of the surrounding conditions. Among the men located upon the grant were James McKee and B. K. Thomp- son. The record of the last named individual was very bad, as he was credited with being a gambler and having killed three men. As the story goes as told by Gilbert, the two men were in the channel New Year's Day, 1848, and for some reason Thompson shot and killed McKee. At that time there were no

courts nor officers here and Captain Weber had Thompson arrested and taken to Sutter's Fort and tried for murder. A man named St. Clair was then alcalde at the fort, and although it was a deliberate murder Thomp- son was acquitted. He came back to the grant but was shunned by all of the settlers, and soon after with a small company, he started overland for the Eastern States. On the way, while in camp at Sweetwater, he had trouble with Robert Tagart, a nephew of Dr. Isbel. Tagart, taking no chances, shot and killed Thompson, and the company refusing even to give Thompson a decent burial, left him where he fell "to become food for the coyotes and buzzards." McKee was buried beneath an oak tree on the bank of a shallow stream of water, where now stands the three-story brick Giovanessi building, on the south side of Main Street. In digging the foundation for this building, in 1880, workmen uncovered the re- mains, and for a few hours created an exciting sensation. Finally, H. F. Fanning, hearing of the finding of the body, remembered the inci- dent.

The march of the goldseekers began in the fall of 1848, and over the trail from Stockton to the southern mines they traveled, a few hundred in number at first, but increased in five years to tens of thousands. A few located here for the purpose of going into business ; some 'landed here with a load of merchandise intending to push on to the mines, but the road was in such a bad condition, the trans- portation facilities and the price of freight so high, they concluded to locate in Weberville. A. H. T. in speaking of the conditions that winter said, "The teams of ox-carts and pack mules had gone with the winter supplies for the mining camps, the rains had already set in and by November the roads were impassable." One of the first firms to open up for business was a bakery owned by Murphy & Ferguson, who pitched their tent on the Levee near Hun- ter Street. John Sirey & Whitehouse in De- cember, 1848, opened an eating place, now the southwest corner, Hotel Stockton. Captain Weber's store we have already mentioned,

and south of the store, corner of Center and Levee, Nelson Taylor and George G. Belt, set up a tent for the sale of general merchandise. In that same month John Davis built a house on the Levee and opened a saloon. The fol- lowing year the Gillingham brothers, Elmer Lane, and Grayson & Stephens opened general merchandising stores. The firm last named were located at the corner of Center and Levee. They were a very enterprising firm, with their main store in San Francisco. They also opened a branch store in Grayson on the San Joaquin River and had four mule teams engaged in hauling goods. Thompson &

HISTORY OF SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY

White opened a store in a tule hut on the Levee, and R. A. Parker came here and opened a wholesale liquor store. One of his patrons was "little" Jack Keeler, who opened "The Shades Saloon." He was so named to dis- tinguish him from his brother "big" Jack Keeler. Quite well supplied was the settle- ment with merchandise and whisky, but there were others in various lines of business. Isaac Zachariah and his brother opened a little clothing store, 6x10 on the Levee, with an in- vestment of fifty dollars in clothing, and in six months they made over $20,000. They went back East for their families, returned to California and planted an orchard and flower garden on the northeast corner of Park and Grant Streets. In 1854 they sold ripe peaches at three dollars each.

Monroe Robinson, the first blacksmith, was still in business in 1852 on Channel Street near San Joaquin ; James Journeay, who made the first wagon from oak-tree timber, later be- came a livery stable keeper and then a rancher. Wm. H. Fairchilds erected a blacksmith shop for the Owens brothers. They made plenty of money and returned East. That winter the shop was sold to Westbay, Churchill & Pierce ; it was a rather unique building, being sided with oak-tree limbs and then covered with adobe, and the forge and chimney were con- structed of adobe brick. In the spring of 1850 "Uncle John" Andrews had an eating and refreshment place in a tent, where later stood the Presbyterian Church. Hety & Reynolds kept a hay store on Weber Avenue, later Lane's mill. The building was not expensive, a tent made of brushwood. Captain Jordan sold lumber from a store-ship and Dr. Moses Hammond was another dealer in lumber. The post office was in a store on the Levee, midway between El Dorado and Main. It comprised a box set on the counter, and J. Gould Buffum, a printer who came out with Stevenson's regi- ment, was the postmaster. The first tailor was B. Howard Brown, who in his later years kept a produce stand on the Levee near Cen- ter. Arriving in California in April, 1850, he came to this city, bringing with him from the East a bolt of shirting and of overall cloth. He engaged the pastor's wife, Mrs. James Woods, and a Mrs. Lane to roughly sew the garments as he cut them out. They made a dozen pair a day and he made big money selling them at four dollars a garament. Later he opened the "Blue Wing" saloon and refreshment resort, and sold boiled eggs at three dollars a dozen, oysters one dollar a can, ice cream twenty-five cents a plate and drinks at a quarter each ; cigars that cost him two dollars per hundred he sold at two for fifty cents.

Christmas and July 4th

"The first July 4th celebration in Stockton," said Francis D. Clark, later secretary of the

New York California Pioneer Society, "was a banquet in 1849 in Sirey's & Whitehouse store. The price of admission was thirty-two dollars. At the dinner were Nathaniel Lyons, one of the first generals to be killed in the Civil War, Meyer Miller, Lewis. Tredwell and several others, all of whom attained military rank in in the Civil War."

In the previous year, 1848, the settlers cele- brated Christmas in great style. In the morn- ing Peter MacQueen, a former sergeant in the Stevenson regiment, later a San Joaquin far- mer, took up a collection and, visiting the three trading stores, bought the ingredients for an old fashioned Scotch punch, MacQueen mix- ing the ingredients to the "Queen's" taste. As they sat in the little cabin drinking from the "wassail" bowl as it was passed around and telling stories of hunting and adventure, little did they dream that their little group of twenty persons would be increased in number to over 50,000 by Christmas of 1920. In the afternoon Captain Weber invited the settlers over to his residence to enjoy a Christmas dinner. They crossed the channel in whale boats, and upon returning to the camp, concluded, as a final climax to the celebration, to put up a ten- gallon keg of whisky at auction. As each bid- der had to test the liquor to see if it were the pure stuff, the keg was half empty before it was sold, and by that time the would-be pur- chasers were so drunk they never knew who bought the keg.

The Great Fire of Christmas, '49

The Christmas of 1849 was indeed sad, for on the previous morning a fire broke out and in less than an hour the entire settlement bounded by Main, Commerce, Levee and Center, was destroyed. And yet on Christmas day no growling nor grumbling was heard, for the settlers were a hopeful group, ever ready to meet misfortune with a smile. Although the places of business were nothing but brush- wood, tule or canvas shacks, the loss was over $200,000 because of the destruction of all of their food supplies, clothing, blankets, etc., for these articles were scarce and very high in price. They suffered severely from cold as they were compelled to sleep out in the open air, and the thermometer ran below zero. There were no fire engines in the town and the citizens tried to check the flames by forming a bucket brigade and forming two lines of men from the fire to the channel, they passed up full pails of water on one side while the empty pails went down on the opposite side. Thus was formed what was later known as the Weber bucket brgade.

The Rush of '49

There was such a crowding of events, the one into the other during the first ten years

HISTORY OF SAN JOAQUIN COUNTY

of San Joaquin County's history, that it is impossible to separate them. And we have recorded "A rush and whirl of human beings" without laying any foundation for that event. Hildreth, the historian, gave the best descrp- tion in concise words that I have ever seen of the rush of 1849. He wrote: "The discov- ery of the immense mineral wealth in Cali- fornia at a time when it was passing into the possession of the United States promised to produce as powerful an effect upon the Ameri- can mind as that of the New World did upon the Old when its riches were explored by Co- lumbus. From East to West, from North to South, the spirit of emigration invested the hearts of the people. It seized the old as well as the young. It pervaded city and county, mountain, glen and valley; it decimated the ranks of every profession. In almost every town and village throughout the land adven- turers started, associations were formed, and eager companies of hopeful, ardent and enthu- siastic pioneers, who resolved on seeing the new El Dorado for themselves, started across the plains. The highways and thoroughfares in every part of the land were alive with the multitude seeking a place of departure. The wharves of the seaports were thronged with those who were willing to pay any price for a passage and submit to any privations by the way, so that by some means they might reach the golden shore. Ships were everywhere in great demand. A system of crowding and packing, second only to that of the notorious African slave trade, did not deter or dishearten the adventurers. Band after band hurried away, some by the Isthmus, some for the dreary and exhaustless overland route, and others, again, for doubling Cape Horn, with all the tedium and discomforts of a six-months voyage. Without experience in traveling, un- used to the hardship and privations of pioneer life, poorly provided with even the necessaries for the voyage, thousands left their homes only to perish by the way or to seize the first opportunity to return."

Population

The news of "gold in California" flew to all parts of the civilized globe and in a few months thousands took up the cry, as Hildreth said, "On to California." Stevenson's regiment of nearly 1,000 men was already here, having arrived in 1847. The first arrivals came from the Southern states by the way of Mexico. They landed in the territory as early as May, 1848. A few arrived about the same time by the way of Cape Horn and by the Isthmus route. The multitude arrived in California, however, by sailing vessels in August, Sep- tember and October, 1849. We cannot tell the number of arrivals for no census was taken until 1852. A record was kept, however, by

the harbor master at San Francisco, and he reported that from April 12 to December 31, 1849, 22,069 Americans and 7,000 foreigners entered the Golden Gate. Of the entire num- ber 800 were females.

The legislature of 1850 ordered that a cen- sus of the state be taken. The census man- ager reported in 1852 that the inhabitants num- bered 91,625, and of this number 25,146 came from foreign lands. There were 3,050 from England, 2,452 from Ireland, 2,926 from Ger- many, 1,446 from France, 228 from Italy, 660 from China, and 6,656 from Mexico, Chile and other south coast countries. Regarding our own United States, 10,756 came from the New England States ; 16,000 from the Middle States, namely New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware ; 17,817 from the Southern States, and 14,340 from the Western States. As to sex, there were 44.770 males and 1,586 females, their ages ranging between twenty and thirty years. There were 21,450 males and 180 females between thirty and forty years of age, 4,439 miles and 833 women over forty years of age. The children under fifteen numbered 5,557.

Coming now to San Joaquin County, in which we are most interested, we find a popu- lation of only 3,042-214 being women. Twenty-seven of these women were colored, brought here by their former masters from the South. The foreign-born population numbered 1,361. There were 148 children under fifteen; 215 boys and 36 girls between fifteen and twenty ; 1,711 young men and 64 young women between twenty and thirty years ; 912 men and 42 women between thirty and forty, and 574 persons, 19 being women, over forty years of age. Not a man or woman in the county was 70 years of age. The census marshal found in the county 868 families, each family in a sep- arate home. Notice carefully these statistics, the small number of women and children in proportion to the men and the age of the men, nearly all of them under thirty-five years; the large number of foreigners, over one-third of the country's population. Three-fourths of the men were unmarried and they rushed to California to make their fortune in a few months and return home. Not making their "pile" as quickly as they anticipated, some sent East for their sweethearts to come to California, others went East and marrying the "girl they left behind" returned again to the land of gold. Intellectually they were the brightest body of men that ever assembled in one spot. Hundreds of them came from the academies and colleges of the New England and Southern states and from the best schools of the Old World. Those not educated in book learning had served apprenticeships in all kinds of mechanical lines, hence many of them were first-class carpenters, brick masons, black-

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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 7

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