History of Santa Clara County, California, with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present, Part 164

Author: Sawyer, Eugene Taylor, 1846-
Publication date: 1922
Publisher: Los Angeles : Historic Record Co.
Number of Pages: 1928

USA > California > Santa Clara County > History of Santa Clara County, California, with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present > Part 164

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

near the border, and during the march and cam- paign acquitted himself with honor. At the close of the war he returned to Illinois with his regiment and was discharged at Alton on October 12, 1848. During the winter of '48-'49 the news of the discovery of gold in California had reached Illinois and Captain Adams was among the first in his locality to leave. With a six-mule team and light wagon, accompanied by Allen Pomeroy. William Reynolds and Dr. C. M. Lusk, he left St. Joseph, Mo., April 8, 1849. They passed heavily loaded trains, guarded carefully against Indian attacks, were joined by several other parties, and after many hardships and deprivations from lack of water, arrived at Hangtown August 1, 1849. Cap- tain Adams mined and ran pack trains in various camps in Northern California for two years, then went back to Illinois via Panama and arrived at Ed- wardsville, October 12, 1851. In the spring of 1852 he started for California over the plains with his wife and two children, and arrived in Placerville on September 6 of that year. The winter of 1852-53 was spent at Manhattan Creek near Georgetown, where his brother-in-law. Allen Pomeroy had located a claim for him and he was very successful.

In August, 1853, Captain Adams removed to Santa Clara County and settled on a farm near Gilroy, and the present Adams district school near Gilroy stands on the land which he donated to the county for that purpose in 1856. Those were wild west days, to be sure, when upon arriving at the schoolhouse in the morning, bear and lion tracks were to be found in front of the door and around the building. In 1860 Captain Adams was elected a member of the coun- ty board of supervisors to represent Gilroy and Al- maden townships. In the fall of 1863 he was elected sheriff of Santa Clara County and removed with his family to San Jose; he held this office for three suc- cessive terms: again reelected in 1871-73 and retired in March, 1876. While in office he acquired a repu- tation as a brave and efficient officer and a shrewd detective, second to none in the state. His connec- tion with the pursuit and capture of Vasquez, the no- torious handit of California, is well known by old- timers and the praise he received was well deserved. To Captain Adams is due the credit for making the first exploration of Lake Tahoe. One of a company of eight men, he set out from Georgetown on May 1, 1850, in search for gold, and on May 20 he reached this now-famous lake, exploring this region exten- sively prospecting for the yellow treasure.

In December, 1841, Mr. Adams married Miss Ma- tilda Pomeroy, born in Shelby County, Ky., and they were the parents of eight children: John H. died in Illinois in childhood; Mary married James Hanna and lives at Livermore and has one son living; Alice M., widow of John Gordon, resides in San Jose; Sadie married James Reed and both are dead; Wil- liam H. of the Llagas district; Charles C., also on the Llagas; Abraham L. of Los Angeles has one son and one daughter; Nellie M. married George Stark and resides in San Jose and has one daughter living. Mr. Adams organized the Home Guards in Gilroy during the Civil War and was their captain; he also served as president of the South Almaden Quicksilver Mining Company. He was public-spirited in citizen- ship, was trustworthy in business, faithful in friend- ship, and in his home was most devoted to the wel- fare and happiness of his wife and children. Many

1056

HISTORY OF SANTA CLARA COUNTY

were his good qualities and few his faults. He loved truth and justice and represented a high type of our American manhood.

WILLIAM HUMBOLDT ADAMS .- The life which this narrative chronicles began in a tent at the Sink of the Humboldt in Nevada, on August 12, 1852, while his parents were en route from Illinois to Cali- fornia with ox-teams. He is the oldest living son of Capt. John Hicks and Matilda (Pomeroy) Adams, the former a sturdy pioneer who first came to Cali- fornia in 1849. William Humboldt Adams was reared in Santa Clara County and he attended the Adams district school and later Gates Institute and Business College in San Jose. In 1870 he was a student at the University of the Pacific, and served during 1873-76 as deputy sheriff under his father. In 1876 he went to San Benito County, where he owned a stock ranch, but the dry year broke him up; then he returned to San Jose and engaged in contract teaming until set- tling on his present ranch. In 1896 he removed to the Llagas district, where he had purchased eighty- five acres, twenty of which he set to prunes. When he first settled on the ranch, the land was covered with oak trees and poison oak brush, but he perse- vered until the tillable land was cleared and a fine orchard property was developed.

Mr. Adams' marriage on May 9, 1877, at Emmet, San Benito County, united him with Miss Nellie Ackley, a daughter of Samuel Ackley, a pioneer of San Benito County, and they are the parents of five children: Gertrude I. is the wife of Roy Ackley, an orchardist at Llagas; Harry J. is married and with his wife and two children reside on the Llagas; W. H .. Jr., died at the age of thirty-five, survived by his widow and five children, who reside in San Fran- cisco; Earl S. is married and has two children and re- sides at Gilroy; Ruby M. is the wife of Wesley W. Burden; they have two sons and Mr. Burden is man- ager of the Adams home place. Mr. Adams is an ac- tive member of the California Prune & Apricot As- sociation and politically is a stanch Republican; for eighteen years he has served as trustee of the Llagas school district.

IRA H. GRIM .- Although one of the more re- cently established business enterprises of Campbell, the Orchard City Garage has already secured a large share of the public patronage, owing to the enter- prising methods and capable management of its own- er, Ira H. Grim. A native of West Virginia, he was born March 10, 1887, and in the public schools of that state he acquired his education. While in Columbus, Ohio, in 1908, he enlisted in the U. S. Army and spent three years in the Coast Artillery. Coming to California he was stationed first on San Francisco Bay and then on the Mexican border and at the expiration of his enlistment he was honor- ably discharged from service as a corporal. Liking the Pacific Coast region he decided to cast in his lot with Californians, and engaged in the automo- bile business at Los Banos. He went from there to San Francisco, being for three years in the em- ploy of the Pacific Gas & Electric Company, and while residing in that city he was also connected with the Ford Motor Company. In 1914 he went to Rhode Island in the interests of the American Automobile Protective Association and during the World War was a government employe. In 1918 he arrived in Campbell, becoming connected with

the automobile industry, in which he has since con- tinued actively. He established the Orchard City Garage which was located on Dillon Avenue, until the new garage on Campbell Avenue was completed for him and here he carries a full line of automo- bile parts, accessories, and is equipped to do all kinds of repairing, employing three men to aid him in his operations. He is an expert mechanic and owing to the first-class work turned out of his garage it has found favor with automobile owners, his business having already assumed large propor- tions. Enterprising and progressive, he is a mem- ber of the Campbell Improvement Club, the San Jose Chamber of Commerce. California Auto Trades Association, Orchard City Garage, and a charter member of the San Jose Commercial Club.

In Oakland Mr. Grim married Miss Mary Downey, a native of England, and they now have three chil- dren: Robert, Arnold and Betty. He supports the platform and candidates of the Republican party and in public affairs has always taken a deep and help- ful interest. He is a capable and enterprising young business man who is contributing to the commer- cial development of his community.

EUGENE D. WEBSTER .- Born in the town of Sylvester, near Albany, Green County, Wis., June 12, 1846, Eugene D. Webster is a son of Benjamin and Laura A. (Babcock) Webster, both parents na- tives of New York state, of an old New England family who migrated west to Wisconsin during the year of 1844, where they followed farming. In 1862 Benjamin Webster enlisted in the service of his country in the Thirty-first Wisconsin Volunteer In- fantry, but on account of poor health was mustered out a few months later. When Eugene D. Webster was but a young boy of sixteen, he enlisted and en- tered camp at Racine. Wis., later being sent to Ken- tucky in Company 1, Thirty-first Wisconsin Volun- teers, and was engaged in forty-two battles and skirmishes. He took part in the battles before At- lanta, and was under General Sherman in his famous March to the Sea; was at the taking of Savannah, Ga .; then in the battles of Goldshorough, Raleigh and Bentonville until Lee's surrender. Later, as one of Sherman's men, he took part in the Grand Review in Washington, and was honorably discharged at Madison, Wis., on July 24, 1865. During the war his parents had removed to Jackson County, Wis., whither he followed Upon his return to civil life, he engaged in the hotel and livery business and was very successful. He was united in marriage Janu- ary 7, 1877, with Miss Mary Rogerson, a daughter of John and Harriett Rogerson, pioneers of Madison, Dane County, Wis. They are the parents of two sons, Albertus R., and Thornton D., both of San Jose. For many years Mr. Webster followed his chosen line of work in Neillsville, Clark County, Wis., be- coming prominently identified with the affairs of his local community, serving as councilman for a num- ber of years. Having sold his business in Wiscon- sin, Mr Webster came to San Jose, Cal., July 12, 1902. He purchased a ranch west of Santa Clara consisting of forty acres planted to prunes, peaches and walnuts, and was active engaged in horticulture pursuits until 1915, when he sold his ranch and erected a residence on Minnesota Avenue; later this was sold and his present residence was built at 11 South Lincoln Avenue. He is a Republican and is

1057

HISTORY OF SANTA CLARA COUNTY

a prominent figure in G. A. R. circles, being a past commander of Bacon Post G. A. R. in Neillsville. Fraternally he is a member of the Neillsville Lodge of Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias. He is also a member of Liberty Lodge No. 299, F. & A. M., Santa Clara, and is a Scottish Rite Mason.

HON. JAMES R. WELCH .-- A jurist of state wide reputation, Hon. James R. Welch has been on the State Superior Bench since 1904, in Santa Clara County. He has frequently been called to other counties of the state to sit in important cases and has also sat as Justice pro tem in the Appellate District Court. Santa Clara County being one of the busiest counties in the state in legal matters, Judge Welch, during his occupancy of the bench has disposed of many large cases of statewide interest. He presides over Department One of the Superior Court, and is the senior member of the bench in and for Santa Clara County. He stands amongst the foremost thinkers and jurists of the state.

He was born February 2, 1860, near Plainview, Macoupin County, Ill., where his father was a well to do farmer, stockraiser and owner and operator of a flour mill. In 1866 his father moved to Missouri where with his family he resided a short time. The family suffered great monetary loss in the financial depression in the '70s, and when a lad of fourteen, young Welch was thrown on his own resources. He set about deliberately and persistently to get an education. He crossed the plains in a prairie schooner in 1877 and located in Boise City, Idaho, where he succeeded in preparing himself to enter the highest public school of the capital city. At the age of twenty years, he became a teacher there in a position next to that of the principal.

In the Indian outbreak in the late '70s he entered service under Capt. Maxon against the depredations of the Indians. This old soldier did not raise his company to stay at home, but went out on the sage brush plains and drove the marauders into the mountains of Montana. Mr. Welch came to San Jose in 1882, and has since resided here. He entered the University of the Pacific in 1882 and graduated in 1887 with the Ph. B. degree. Three years later the degree of A. M. was conferred upon him by his Alma Mater. During a vacation period while he was a student at the university, he graduated at Heald's Business College, and throughout his entire college course, was principal of the commercial department of the university. Upon graduation he took up the study of law alone and was admitted to the bar by the Supreme Court of the state in 1888. The legal records of Santa Clara County would not be com- piete without a reference to the Union Savings Bank, California Cured Fruit Association and the Tarpey- Nicholson 40-year old litigation, as well as many other important cases in which Judge Welch suc- cessfully participated before he went on the bench. During the fifteen years as an attorney, his rise was rapid and sure. He was city attorney of San Jose from 1894 to 1897, when he resigned to devote his en- tire time to his private practice.

Judge Welch's family consists of a wife and four children-three daughters and one son. He is a Mason and an Elk, and also a member of the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity. He registers as a Republican. In addition to his official duties he takes an active interest in public and civic affairs. He is a fruit

grower and at the present time a member of the voting board of the California Prune and Apricot Crowers Association, and is ardent in the cause of the growers of the state in successfully marketing their fruit cooperatively. He has also espoused the cause of Santa Clara County and the State against the city of Santa Cruz in that city's endeavor to divert the Skyline Boulevard from the Summit Ridge of the Santa Cruz Mountains to a canyon route. He has re- cently present arguments before the State Highway Commission in favor of retaining and building the Skyline drive along the crest of the Mountains, as a great scenic trunk line, for the use of the whole state. Before many chambers of commerce, civic and commercial organizations of the state, he has been untiring in his advocacy of this highway and its routing along the skyline of the mountains.

ALVA CURTIS KEESLING .- Among the early settlers of Santa Clara County, no name is more familiar than that of Keesling, and the subject of this sketch, Alva Curtis Keesling, is a worthy rep- resentative of that honored name. He was born near Lake Minnetonka, Hennepin County, Minn., on November 8, 1857, the son of Thomas Bulla and Elizabeth (Hasty) Keesling, who came to Califor- nia in 1873 and settled in The Willows and became one of the most successful fruit growers in the county. The father was born in Preble County. Ohio, in 1824, his father, John Keesling, a native of Wythe County, Va., and his wife, Melinda (Bulla) Keesling, a native of North Carolina, having moved into Ohio in an early day. The family removed to a point near Newcastle, Ind., where the father went to school and worked on his father's farm. The father was commissioned postmaster of Mechanics- burg, Ind., in 1848 by President Tyler and he held that position for eight years, meanwhile conducting a general store and a sawmill, the postoffice being in his store. He heard as a boy many and wonder- ful tales of the great West beyond and resolved to some day cast his fortunes in this land of greater opportunities, so in 1856 he removed with his fam- ily to Minnesota and settled where Minneapolis now stands. At that time there were but few shan- ties on the west side of the river, although on the east side was the town of St. Anthony's Falls. He bought twelve acres of land now in the center of Minneapolis, and remained there for sixteen years. during which time he was employed in a sawmill and at gardening. Having always had a fondness for horticulture, which was unsatisfactory in Minne- sota owing to the intense cold, he made a trip to California, settling in the Santa Clara Valley in 1872. In 1848 he married Miss Elizabeth Hasty, a native of Preble County, Ohio, her parents also re- moving into Indiana during its early settlement. Her parents were Thomas Hasty, a native of Ken- tucky, and Anna Raper, a native of Virginia. They were the parents of eleven children, of whom Alva Curtis is the fifth.

He was educated in the grammar and high schools of San Jose; then went to work for his father on his ranch. In 1883 he purchased a ranch on Fruit- vale Avenue; then in 1906 he purchased his home on the Los Gatos and San Jose roads, consisting of ninety-six acres, mostly in fruit; he has erected a fine residence, commodious and modern in every re- spect. He has been secretary and manager of the

1058

HISTORY OF SANTA CLARA COUNTY

Campbell Telephone Company since its organization in 1906. He is a member of the California Prune and Apricot Association.

The marriage of Mr. Keesling united him with Miss Edna Hobson, the daughter of Stephen Hob- son, and they are the parents of five children: Mil- dred C. is the wife of George L. Husted of Camp- bell; Rollo H. and Mervin are at home, Mervin being associated with his father and has an interest in the home place; Audrey A. is the wife of Dr. E. A. Abbott of San Jose and Wana is attending Stanford University. There are seven grandchildren. In local affairs, Mr. Keesling has served his com- munity as school trustee; also has been master of the Orchard City and Pomona Grange. In national politics he is a Republican, and is a stanch supporter of prohibition. He is one of the most substantial citizens in the county and never fails to support all measures for the advancement of the county.

WILL GREEN HARTON .- Among the native sons of California, Will Green Harton is achieving prominence in a business way in San Jose, and well deserves the success that is the reward of strict in- tegrity and a firm determination to progress. He was born in Fresno County, Cal., December 12, 1889, an only son of Charles Harton and Lulu ( Green) Harton, the latter a daughter of Gen. Will S Green, an early settler of Colusa County. He landed in Colusa on July 6, 1850, piloting the new steamer Colusa up the Sacramento River, and for five years more than a half century he was a citizen of that town, of which he first saw the site from the pilot house of the pioneer steamer.

Early in his experience in the Sacramento Valley, General Green saw that to reach their highest pro- ductivity there must be a drainage of the rich bot- toin lands, for protection against floods, and irriga- tion of the rich plains for protection against the normal drought of the dry season. He was one of California's first apostles of agriculture, and land was the text of all his epistles. As an engineer, he surveyed the land. As a legislator, he drew the land code of the state. As surveyor general of the United States, he protected the public domain for the settlers who would till it. As treasurer of the state, he conserved and economized the taxes paid by the owners of the land. As the foremost editorial writer of the state, he considered the land as first material object of human interest. He developed the first plans for irrigation and drainage of the Sac- ramento Valley; and though high-salaried engineers have wrought upon the same problem, his plans stand unimpeached. On account of the vastness of the great work which he conceived, he came to be the final authority upon more things of vital concern to the state than any other man in California This is but a brief resume of the important things for which he gave the best years of his life.

Mrs. Harton passed away when her infant son was only one year old, and he was given into the care of his illustrious grandfather. When he had reached the age of fourteen, he was sent to Bingham Military Academy at Asheville, N. C., a preparatory school for Webb's Training School, located at Bellbuckle, Tenn., from which institution he graduated when twenty years of age. General Green passed away in 1905, and Mr. Harton was thrown upon his own resources. He spent several years in various parts

of the Middle West, working at whatever he could find to do to earn an honest living. At the outbreak of the World War in 1917, he was a resident of Southern California and he enlisted in the navy at San Pedro in the submarine service. He was im- mediately put into an officers' training school, re- ceiving actual experience on submarine chasers, and thus twelve months were spent up and down the coast. At the close of the war he was released from active service, but is subject to call at any time. He removed to San Jose during the year of 1919 and was employed as sales manager of a local automobile firm; later he established his own business, selling used cars. With a small capital he began business and in 1921 Dr. F. B. Pierce was taken into the partnership and the Harton-Pierce Motor Company was formed, Mr. Harton taking full charge of the business management. The company has the exclu- sive sale and service for the Oakland car, specializing on the "Oakland Sensible Six." The company realizes that their patrons' interests are a part and parcel of their success and that their business de- pends upon thoroughly satisfying their customers.

The marriage of Mr. Harton in January, 1920, united him with Miss Muriel Warner, a daughter of John Warner, a pioneer merchant of Santa Clara Valley. Fraternally he is a member of the Masons, Elks and American Legion, as well as of the N. S. G. W. Upright and honorable in every relation of life, Mr. Harton has won the esteem and respect of business associates and counts his friends and acquaintances by the score.

ALBERT H. CURTNER .- A worthy native son whose memory will long be cherished by a wide circle of friends who were indebted to him for some- thing that made life more attractive and inspiring. was the late Albert H. Curtner, who was born on the Henry Curtner estate, at Warm Springs, in Alameda County, on October 7, 1878, next to the youngest son of Henry and Mary ( Myers) Curtner, now also deceased-honored pioneers and citizens of Califor- nia. The mother died when Albert was about five years old; he was of a studious disposition, and the preparatory work of his schooling was completed at Washington College, near Irvington, in his sixteenth year. At seventeen he entered Leland Stanford University. In time, he majored in higher mathe- matics and electrical engineer, and he became a student fellow. Then he took up the intensive study of economics and sociology; becoming deeply ab- sorbed in his work.

On October 24, 1900, Mr. Curtner was married to Miss Amy E. Welch, the daughter of the late Lorenzo Welch, the farmer and honored pioneer of Contra Costa County. As a child of twelve years, he came out to California with his parents by way of the Isthmus of Panama, and when twenty-six years of age he was married to Miss Sarah Frances Howard, whose father had crossed the plains in 1850. She was born in California. Her father tried his luck in finding gold, and eventually he settled in the San Joaquin Valley, in Contra Costa County. Miss Amy was next to the youngest of her family, and she was attending the University at Palo Alto, and should have graduated with the class of '03 if she had not married. Five children blessed this happy union. Dorothy and Alberta are students at Mills

John Slangfull

1061

HISTORY OF SANTA CLARA COUNTY

College; Virginia, Evelyn and Albert H., Jr., are at home carrying on their school work. Mrs. Curt- ner and her family attend the Christian Church.

Mr. Curtner acquired by gift from his father a ranch and orchard near Sunnyvale, which was the family residence up to the time of his premature death; although he was temporarily living in South- ern California when he died on March 17, 1915, fail- ing health having led him to seek the higher altitude at Monrovia. He was always a Republican, but he never aspired to public office. Just before his death he sold the ranch, and now Mrs. Curtner lives at 75 South Thirteenth Street, San Jose, where she dis- penses a generous hospitality.

JOHN J. STANFIELD .- A man of enterprise and much force of character who left an indelible impression on the business and horticultural inter- ests of the Santa Clara Valley, was the late John J. Stanfield, a native of Belfast, Ireland, born August 12. 1834. His parents were born in Scotland and England and he was reared and educated in the schools of the city of Belfast. He started out for himself and going to Liverpool he was employed there until he got the gold fever and came in a sailing vessel around Cape Horn, landing in San Francisco in 1858. However, he did not go to the mines, but remained in San Francisco. He was in the employ of Dr. Woodard in the What Cheer House tor three years, when he came to Santa Clara County and purchased 260 acres of land in the Union dis- trict. He engaged in farming and later set out or- chards and a vineyard, becoming successful in the field of fruit raising. He was one of the organizers of the Bank of Los Gatos in which he was director and vice-president, was an organizer and director in the Farmers' Union in San Jose and interested in other enterprises that his influence helped build up.

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

History of Santa Clara County, California, with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present, Part 164

Author: Sawyer, Eugene Taylor, 1846- Publication date: 1922 Publisher: Los Angeles : Historic Record Co. Number of Pages: 1928

Author: Sawyer, Eugene Taylor, 1846-
Publication date: 1922
Publisher: Los Angeles : Historic Record Co.
Number of Pages: 1928