USA > California > San Luis Obispo County > History of San Luis Obispo County, California, with illustrations and biographical sketches of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 74
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In 1857 he was elected to the State Senate from Mon- terey and Santa Cruz Counties, and served during the sessions of 1858-59. In the latter year he was elected District Attorney of Monterey County; and in 1860 he was sent as a delegate to the memorable Charleston Con- vention. He came to San Luis Obispo in 1882, and entered into co-partnership with Hon. Frederick Adams, of which firm he was a member at the date of his ap- pointment.
Judge Gregory was married in 1876 to Miss Amelia
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Hartnell, daughter of Prof. William E. P. Hartnell, who was distinguished as a scholar and teacher in Monterey long anterior to the conquest of California, and who subse- quently was translator of the laws and Spanish docu- ments for the State. Mrs. Gregory is a highly accom- plished and charming lady, to whom the Judge is devotedly attached. They have had three children, two of whom are living.
Judge Gregory is a favorite with the body of the people, who know him as a capable, honest, and mild-mannered gentleman. His great and varied legal experience, his disposition to weigh fairly and to deal justly, render him a fit arbiter of the conflicting interests and rights of his fellow-men. He occupies the Bench at the present time, acceptible to the Bar, and giving satisfaction to all classes of honest people.
THE COUNTY COURT.
The Constitution of the pioneers authorized the elec_ tion of a County Judge, who should be Judge of the County Court, Court of Sessions and Probate Court. Under the first statutes passed by the Legislature, these courts were given extraordinary powers, combining legislative, judicial, and executive, rather conforming to the Mexi- can system, which reposed nearly all power in the Pre- fecto, or in his absence the Sub-Prefecto, or Alcalde. In San Luis Obispo this system conformed well with the spirit of the people, and the Court of Sessions became the absolute power of the county. Don J. Mariano Bonilla, who had been Administrator of the mission, Sub-Prefecto and Alcalde, was elected the first County Judge, and was succeeded in office by John M. Price, elected in 1850, who had also been Alcalde. This gen- tleman presided over the court less than one year, when he was succeeded by
W. J. GRAYES.
The history of Judge Graves in California would take one back to the early pioneer days, and during all the intervening time he has occupied a prominent position as a member of the Bar. Under such circumstances one would now class him as the patriarch of the legal fraternity, but the still young appearing and stalwart frame crowned with the dark locks of the prime of manhood, appear to render inappropriate the venerable appellation to which he is entitled. In the biographies of members of the Constitutional Convention of 1878-79 is the following sketch :---
Hon. William J. Graves was born in Pittsylvania County, Virginia, in 1830. He was educated in the same county, and at an early age commenced the study of law in St Louis, Missouri. During the war between the United States and Mexico, he served as Lieutenant under General Sterling Price, and so added the title of Mexican Veteran to the others he now bears. From Mexico he came to California in the year 1849, first residing in San Francisco, then setting up his tabernacle in San Luis Obispo from 1852 to 1859, afterwards moving around somewhat and finally settling permanently in San Luis Obispo in 1865. The people of his district look on him with very favoring eyes. During the first period of his resi- dence there he was elected to the Assembly of the State
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HISTORY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY.
for 1855-57, and during this latter period has been sent to the Senate for the sessions embraced in the dates of 1873-77. He is a married man, his family consisting of his wife and seven children. Democratic in his political leanings, he was elected a member of the Constitutional Convention on the Non-Partisan ticket, as he is prepared to employ his patriotism and ability in the revision of the organic law of California, independent of any particular organization.
O. M. BROWN
Was elected County Judge at the election of 1852, and took possession of the office in March, 1853. He had previously been County Surveyor, and filled other posi- tions in public affairs. He held the position during the term of two years.
ROMUALDO PACHECO
Succeeded Brown in the office of County Judge, being elected in 1854. The name of Pacheco is one of the best known of the old families of California, conspicuous in the history of the country both before and after the annexation. Romualdo Pacheco was born in Santa Barbara in 1831. His father was Romnaldo Pacheco, a Colonel in the Mexican Army, and stationed in Califor- nia, and his mother, Doña Ramona Carrillo y Pacheco, afterwards Mrs. Wilson. Upon the arrival of Governor Victoria at San Diego, in 1830, coming to take charge of the Government of California, he was met by Colonel Pacheco and an escort, which accompanied him in a triumphal march through the country, occupying several months on the way to the capital, Monterey, California. Pacheco was the adherent of Victoria, and upon the insurrection of Avila and others at San Diego in 1831, marched south to suppress it. On the 5th of December the Governor's party met the insurrectionists at the Cahuenga Pass, near Los Angeles, and although an agree- ment had been made to settle the affair without blood- shed, Avila had resolved to kill the Governor on sight. Meeting him he rushed forward on horseback with his lance and attempted to thrust it into the Governor but it was parried by Pacheco, when Avila turned upon him and lanced him through the body. Governor Victoria, quickly recovering from his surprise, shot the assassin, and Pacheco and Avila fell dead to the ground together. Colonel Pacheco left a young and beautiful widow, and two sons, Mariano and Romualdo. A few years later the widow became the wife of Capt. John Wilson, formerly a sea captain, but then a merchant of Santa Barbara. Subsequently he obtained the grant of the Los Osos Rancho, in San Luis Obispo, and moved upon it, and there was the home of young Romualdo Pacheco. The many successes in political life of this gentleman are referred to in the chapters on the political history of the county. The venerable mother, Doña Ramona Wilson, also mentioned in connection with the Fremont invasion, still survives, residing with her son-in-law and daughter, Mr. and Mrs. F. Hilliard, in San Francisco.
JOSÉ MARIA MUNOZ
Succeeded Pacheco as County Judge, being elected in 1857. This gentleman was a native Californian, well educated in his own language, but unable to speak Eng-
lish. The opposing candidate was ex-Judge J. M. Bo- nilla. Judge Muñoz held the office until succeeded by Dr. Havens, who was elected in 1861. He was a can- didate for Sheriff on the Republican ticket in 1865, but was defeated by De la Guerrra, the Republican vote be- ing divided between Muñoz and George Stone. He was again a candidate in 1867, with a similar result, and again in 1869. Judge Muñoz was drowned, with the wreck of a steamer on which he was traveling to San Francisco, leaving a widow, who still resides in San Luis Obispo, occupying one of the pleasantest homes of that pleasant city.
JOSEPH M. HAVENS.
Reference is made to Dr. Joseph M. Havens in the sketch of the fraternal societies in this book. Dr. Havens was a pioneer of California of 1849, settling in the mines of Calaveras County. He located in San Luis Obispo late in the decade 1850, and in 1861 was elected County Judge. He was a well-educated and highly-respected gentleman, a physician by profession, and is remembered as the father of Masonry in San Luis Obispo.
WILLIAM L. BEEBEE.
No name is better known or more highly respected among the pioneers and the present people of San Luis Obispo than that of Judge Beebee. He is a native of New York, born in 1829. In 1847 he arrived in Cali- fornia in a United States storeship, making his home in San Luis Obispo, where he has resided, excepting at short intervals, to this day. In 1848 he followed the rush of gold seekers to the Sierra Nevada, but did not make a long stay in the placers. With the organization of the county in 1850, then scarcely of the legal age of manhood, he entered upon public life, and has ever since been foremost, though never obtrusive or seeking office, in public affairs. Justice of the Peace and Associate Judge from the earliest days, the honored title has grown to him as a Christian name. His residence in those years was on the beautiful rancho of 1,000 acres, about nine miles south of San Luis Obispo, formerly known by the name of its owner, but of late years as the Finney Dairy, Judge Beebee having sold it to the Steele Brothers in 1867. Judge Beebee has filled many official positions, being one of the first Supervisors, and in 1863 was elected County Judge to succeed Dr. Havens, and was again elected in 1867. The last election was contested by Charles Lindley, his competitor in the campaign, and after long, perplexing and expensive litigation, Beebee was confirmed in his seat. In 1871 he was again the nominee of the Republicans for County Judge, but was defeated by McD. R. Venable. Since retiring from office he has been actively engaged in business, being of the great lumber-dealing firm of Schwartz & Beebee, and very successful in the enterprise. Few men have passed through the exciting scenes of California pioneer life, oc- cupying positions of high trust and responsibility, with a more unsullied record than Judge Beebee. Landing upon the coast in his youthful days, when society was disorganized and temptations great, he has maintained
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CHURCH, BENCH, AND BAR.
the even tenor of a gentleman, and, in the prime of his life, is one of the honored and wealthy citizens of the county he has so long made his home. He has been twice married, Mrs. Alide M. Beebee dying November 4, 1879, leaving a son bearing the name of his father. November 14, 1880, he was married at Calvary Church, San Francisco, by Rev. Dr. Hemphill, to Arletta S. Bes- wick, of San Francisco, and the family now occupy one of the pleasantest and most elegant homes of San Luis Obispo.
MCD. R. VENABLE.
The judicial election of 1871 was held on the 18th of October of that year, and the choice of the people for County Judge of San Luis Obispo fell upon McDowell R. Venable. This gentleman was born in Virginia in 1836. He served with distinction during the War of the Rebellion, being in the army of Gen. Kirby Smith in Texas at the close of the war, which there disbanded upon the collapse of the Confederacy. In 1869 he came to San Luis Obispo, soon taking a high position at the Bar, and was elected County Judge as above stated. In 1875 he was the only candidate for County Judge, and received nearly the entire vote of the county .* Judge Venable continued in office until the adoption of the New Constitution, by which the office was abolished. Since then he has enjoyed a lucrative practice in his pro- fession, and with his interesting family resides upon his fine property in the suburbs of San Luis Obispo.
DISTRICT ATTORNEYS.
The records of election make no mention of the office of District Attorney in 1850, but the Court of Sessions appointed O. M. Brown to serve as such officer. He was afterwards elected County Judge.
PARKER H. FRENCH
Was appointed District Attorney in 1851. This redoubt- able person is well remembered by the pioneers of Cali- fornia. He was a man of great energy and an advent- urer of the first class. Why he became a resident of the quiet county of San Luis Obispo, in view of his character, it would be difficult to surmise. Coming to California in 1849, with a large party of adventurers from various parts of the East, via the route from Texas through Mexico, he was arrested in Durango for some of his bold and high-handed proceedings, and for this arrest he subsequently presented a claim of $300,000 against the Government of Mexico, which became an interna- tional question between the two Governments, but was finally rejected. After serving his term of District At- torney, French was elected in 1853 to represent San Luis Obispo in the Assembly, and bade good-bye to this county. In 1855 he was the editor of a Know Nothing paper in Sacramento, and in the same year joined the fillibuster- ing expedition of William Walker to Nicaragua. There he became Minister of Finance to Walker's Republic of Nicaragua, and was sent as ambassador to the Republic of the United States. Notwithstanding his credentials
from such high authority, he was not recognized as am- bassador, nor as occupying any official position. He afterwards engaged in business in St. Louis, Missouri.
HUBBARD C. M. ELY
Succeeded French as District Attorney, being elected to the office in 1853. Ely was followed in office by W. J. Graves, elected in 1855, and he, being elected to the As- sembly the following year, was succeeded in office by James White, appointed by the Board of Supervisors.
Walter Murray, was elected in 1859.
P. A. FORRESTER.
The name of P. A. Forrester often recurs throughout this book, showing him one of the active and prominent men in the business and public affairs of San Luis Obispo County. He was born in Pennsylvania some fifty years ago, coming, when a young man, to California and to this county, which has long been his home. Here he has occupied the positions of County Clerk, Superintendent of Schools, and District Attorney, being elected to the latter office in 1861, holding it until 1864. During the quicksilver mining period of 1861 and following, Mr. Forrester was one of the prominent mine owners, and realized quite a fortune in his enterprises. He has oc- cupied many positions of trust, filling all with satisfaction to the public. In March, 1883, he was appointed by Governor Stoneman, State Commissioner of Immigration, which office he now holds, making him a temporary resi- dent of San Francisco.
JAMES WHITE
Was elected to the office of District Attorney in 1863, and succeeded Mr. Forrester in the position. In an obituary in the Tribune is the following notice of this gentleman :---
James White, Esq., died of lung fever May 14, 1872, in San Luis Obispo, aged sixty years. The deceased came to this county from Alameda, in 1856. He was originally from the State of Indiana. Since 1856 he has practiced law in this place. In 1856 he was appointed by the Board of Supervisors to be District Attorney of this county. In 1863 he was elected to the same office by the people, and re-elected in 1865 without opposition. The deceased presented very peculiar traits of character. He was a bitter enemy, but would often sacrifice him- self for his friends. He was fixed in his opinions, and pursued them regardless of cost. Although the commu- nity in general was opposed to him, he left not a few friends who were ready to support him at all hazards. At his death may all enmities be forgotten, and the uni- versal verdict be Requiescat in pace.
N. D. WITT.
Walter Murray was again elected to the office of Dis- triet Attorney in 1867, and was succeeded by Newton Dennis Witt, who was elected in September, 1870. He was born in the State of New York, in November, 1823, where he lived until he was eleven years old, when his parents removed to the State of Ohio. He served in the United States Army during the Mexican War, at the close of which he came to this State, from Illinois in 1850. He was engaged in mining until about the year 1856, at
*In the Political History this vote is given, by mistake, as for District Judge.
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HISTORY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY.
which time he became connected with a newspaper called the Butte Record, in the county of that name. In 1860 he removed to Mendocino County, where he held the posi- tion of Deputy Sheriff, under Hon. L. M. Warden, who was Sheriff of that county, until 1868. He came to San Luis Obispo County with Mr. Warden, and in 1869 was elected District Attorney, which office he filled with credit to the end of the term, after which he practiced law in the courts of the county and district. He was appointed Police Judge to serve out an unexpired term, at the close of which he was elected to that office by the citizens of San Luis Obispo, at the municipal election. The duties of the offices held by Mr. N. D. Witt, in San Luis Obispo County and City, were performed in an honest and able manner; and though his political opinions were strong and somewhat extreme, they were never allowed to influ- ence his actions in public life.
Mr. Witt died in San Luis Obispo on the 21st of April, 1878, in the fifty-fifth year of his age. He was a mem- ber of St. Davids Lodge, No. 209, F. and A. M., under whose auspices he was buried, in the Odd Fellows Cem- etry, with appropriate ceremonies. The Tribune records that the procession that followed his remains to the grave was one of the largest that ever turned out in the city of San Luis Obispo.
A. A. OGLESBY
Was the next to fill the office of District Attorney of San Luis Obispo County, being elected in September, 1871, defeating Walter Murray, the Republican candidate for the position. Mr. Oglesby, during at least a portion of the time of his incumbency, was also editor of the Demo- cratic Standard, and Mr. Murray of the Tribune, and a sharp political controversy was maintained between the rival papers. He was re-elected in 1875. Mr. Oglesby was a young man of bright talents, and has left the repu- tation of being an eloquent speaker. He is no longer a resident of the county.
ERNEST GRAVES.
As Superior Judge of the county a sketch has been given of Louis McMurtry, who was elected District At- torney in 1877, as the successor of Mr. Oglesby. By the election of 1879, Ernest Graves was elevated to the office of District Attorney, being nominated by the Work- ingmen and the New Constitution Parties, and defeating at the election W. B. Dillard, who had been nominated by the Republican and Democratic Parties. Mr. Graves is the son of the distinguished lawyer and pioneer, Hon. W. J. Graves, his mother being the daughter of Don José de Jesus Pico, one of the oldest and most promi- nent families of the native Californians. He was born in San Luis Obispo County, which has always been his home, and which delights to honor her native sons. Mr. Graves was re-elected to the office in 1882, and is the in- cumbent at the present time.
F. ADAMS.
Since the organization of the county the Bar of San Luis Obispo has numbered among its members several able and eloquent lawyers, and in its present representa-
tion stands the equal of any in the State. In the early years there were few lawyers, the veteran Graves standing alone as the representative of the past. In the sketches of the officers of the courts nearly all the pioneer law- yers have been mentioned.
Hon. Frederick Adams has not held office in San Luis Obispo, but stands one of the leading members of the Bar and of the most prominent citizens of the county. He is a native of Pennsylvania, having been born in the old "Keystone State," in 1832. His father was of Scotch descent, and a distinguished surgeon in the United States Army. Having accompanied exploring expeditions in the Northwest and on the great plains during the early years of his life, he resigned from the army and settled in St. Louis, Missouri, where the child- hood of Frederick Adams was passed. The father de- sired that the son should follow him in the profession of physician and surgeon, and the boy received instruction tending to that end, but the father dying while the son was young, was not able to carry out the design. The edu- cation received, however, proved of great service to him in many instances in after life.
In 1849; Adams joined the topographical engineers to locate the boundary line between Mexico and Califor- nia, and crossed the plains to this State in that year, ar- riving on the Colorado River, at the mouth of the Gila, the last of December of that year. The broad and turbid river rolled between him and the land of promise, and the delay in crossing was fatal to his aspirations of being ranked among the pioneers of '49! But from early in January, 1850, Adams has been a pioneer of Califor- nia, of Oregon, and of Idaho. Coming to California as a youth just entering manhood, with a constitution of iron and Herculean strength, with a courage that knew no fear and an energy that knew no obstacles, he was just the one to go forth in the development of the new State, and to penetrate all its wildness. The mines of course received his first attention. In the wars in the North, with the Pit River, Trinity, and Rogue River In- dians, he took an active part, being Captain of a com- pany of volunteers, and has partaken in many most desperate engagements. For a number of years he re- sided in Oregon, was there a member of the Legislature, and was appointed by President Lincoln Judge of the Territorial Court of Idaho. From this he is given the title of Judge, by which he is usually addressed. After leaving Idaho, Judge Adams resided at Yreka, practicing law and editing a newspaper, always taking a prominent part in politics, and making it fully understood that he is a Republican with pronounced ideas of American progress, but generous to all. We next learn of his res- idence at Santa Cruz, where he took a prominent posi- tion at the Bar of that county. While a resident of Santa Cruz he formed the project of the Temperance Col- ony at Lompoc, in Santa Barbara County, and with other capitalists purchased the Lompoc Rancho, and successfully carried the project into execution. While engaged in this his business brought him often to San Luis Obispo, and, in 1880, he made that city his home, where he has since resided with his family, building, early
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THE VIGILANCE COMMITTEE.
in 1883, one of the prettiest residences in the city, lo- cated upon a spacious lot on Chorro Street, between Marsh and Pismo. As previously stated, Judge Adams is a Republican, always taking a prominent part in all political questions, and being an eloquent and powerful speaker, exerts a leading influence in his party and in all public matters.
ROBERT C. BOULDIN.
Among the prominent lawyers who have practiced at the Bar of this county was Judge Robert C. Bouldin, who came to San Luis Obispo in 1874, and died here of heart disease December 16, 1879, at the age of forty- seven years. Judge Bouldin was born at Lawyers Rest, Charlotte County, Virginia, in August, 1832. He was from one of the prominent families of that State, his father being an eminent lawyer, and, at the time of his death, a Member of Congress, dying of heart disease upon the floor of the House of Representatives while engaged in an important debate. A brother, Judge Wood Bouldin, of the Supreme Court of Virginia, also died of the same disease. Robert C. Bouldin was edu- cated at the University of Virginia, thereafter married and entered into the practice of the law. At the out- break of the Rebellion 'he joined an independent cav- alry company and entered the service of his native State, continuing in the army until the surrender of Lee and the close of the war, although, at last, disabled from active duties by the inroads of the fatal disease he in- herited. After retiring from the army, he was, in 1865, elected Judge of the County Court of his native county, and continued in the office until he resigned in 1874, to make California his home, seeking the genial climate of San Luis Obispo for his health. He was regarded as having no equal at the Bar in questions of common law and equity, and his early death was regarded as a serious loss.
A meeting of the Bar of San Luis Obispo County was held on the 19th of December, 1879, to adopt reso- lutions expressive of the feelings of the members upon his demise. Judge McMurtry presided, and P. A. For- rester was chosen Secretary. After eulogistic remarks by several members, R. M. Preston offered the following resolutions which were unanimously adopted :-
Resolved, That the members of the Bar of San Luis Obispo County have received with profound sorrow the announcement of the death of Judge Robert C. Bouldin, late a member of the Bar of this county; also
Resolved, That in his decease his family have lost a kind husband and father, the Bar an honorable and learned Attorney, and the community a good citizen; further
Resolved, That as a mark of respect to the memory of deceased these resolutions be spread upon the jour- nals of the several courts of record in this county; that a copy be transmitted to the family of the deceased, and copies be furnished the Southern California Advocate and San Luis Obispo Tribune, for publication. On motion of F. K. Miller, Esq., the Secretary was directed to forward a copy of the resolutions to Judge Fawcett, with request of the Bar that the same be entered upon the record of the District Court.
R. M. PRESTON
Was a practitioner at the Bar of San Luis Obispo after 1876. He had previously, for a number of years, been a resident of Morro, and in that year was elected to the Assembly, serving one term, and making an honorable record. Returning from his duties at the capital, he made his home in the city of San Luis Obispo, and com- menced the practice of the law. This he continued until 1881, when declining health compelled him to relinquish business, and he moved to Santa Rosa, Sonoma County, where he died March 22, 1882, in the fortieth year of his age.
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