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 89

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 89

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546

HISTORY OF SANTA CLARA COUNTY

Aitken, and casting his vote for Washburn gave him the majority over his opponent. Senator Washburn never forgot the efforts of Mr. Hartley in his behalf. and through his influence Mr. Hartley was appointed postmaster at Brainerd by President Hays and served through his administration and that of Presidents Garfield, Arthur, and a part of Cleveland's adminis- tration up to 1889. He was also interested in the hotel business and a book and stationery store. and was for some time the proprietor of the Villard Hotel at Brainerd. Minn. In 1889 he removed to Tacoma, Wash., and was in business there for eight years, and in 1897 came to California and engaged in mining in El Dorado County, Cal., and also in the state of Oregon, where he continued for two years. During 1910 he removed to Mountain View and pur- chased the hardware store. which has engaged his attention ever since. His son, Charles F., is asso- ciated with him in the business, and by strict atten- tion to business they have built up a fine patronage and the quality of their goods is beyond question.

The marriage of Mr. Hartley, July 22, 1874, oc- curred in Michigan and united him with Miss Mary E. Moorman, the daughter of Francis Moorman of Belding, Mich., and they became the parents of five children: Clara E. is now Mrs. T. D. McLean, a hardware factory representative of Seattle. Wash .; Alfred W. is chief engineer in charge of the Ham- mond Lumber Company at San Pedro, Cal .; Hattie M. is the wife of M. J. Bacon, of the comptometer company at Seattle, Wash., where they reside; James E. is a marine engineer with the Hammond Lumber Company; Charles F. is the partner of his father in the hardware store at Mountain View. There are nine grandchildren. In 1915 a family residence was built at 333 Franklin Street, Mountain View. Mr. Hartley is a stalwart old line Republican and his activities in politics have borne good fruits. Mr. Hartley and his entire family have the respect and esteem of the community. Mrs. Hartley departed this life on March 27. 1922, and rests in Cypress Lawn Cemetery, San Francisco, beside her father.

VARGAS BROS .- Wide-awake as self-made, en- terprising and successful dairymen having one quar- ter of a thousand well-selected cows. Vargas Bros. are equally serviceable to their community. and pro- portionately prosperous, as proprietors of the finely- stocked store at 899 Franklin Street, the principal general merchandise establishment in Santa Clara. The firm is composed of M. J. and F. J. Vargas, both Santa Clara County boys, for they saw the light of day near the San Francisquito Creek, in the vicinity of l'alo Alto. M. J. Vargas was born on December 15, 1879; and F. J. Vargas joined the family circle on October 26, 1881. Their father was the late Joseph P. Vargas, a successful rancher farm- ing near Palo Alto, and he had married Miss Anna Gloria Duarte. Both parents are now deceased; but three of their daughters are living in Santa Clara County. Miss Anna J. Vargas was an overseas Red Cross nurse, attached to Unit 30, who was privileged to return safely to California, after splendid service in France. Rose is the wife of Frank Seimas, the rancher, at Sunnyvale. Flora is Mrs. Joe W. Angelo. and she resides at Sunnyvale, where they have a ranch, her husband clerking for Vargas Bros.

These ambitious boys were reared on the Santa Clara County farm, while they attended the Palo

Alto grammar school, and later Heald's Business Col- lege at San Jose; and then they were employed by their uncle, Manuel Vargas, whom they bought out in 1904. M. J. Vargas married Miss Leonore Mar- shall, of Ross, Cal., and they have three children. F. J. Vargas married Miss Anita Dorsey. Both are members of the Saint Claire Roman Catholic Church of Santa Clara, and they also belong to the Native Sons of the Golden West and the U. P. E. C. They have erected at generous expense ornate and com- fortable residences for themselves, and also four handsome cottages, which they rent.

As merchants. Vargas Bros. deal in the best of everthing within their line, which they endeavor to offer at the lowest possible price, so that their large and varied stock keeps moving. As dairymen they are the principal owners in the enterprise of Vargas Bros. & Mendonza, who milk 250 head of high-grade Holstein cows, and have 450 acres rented and de- voted to this dairy. They are members of the Cali- fornia Milk Producers' Association, and they are among the most welcome members of the Chamber of Commerce of Santa Clara. M. J. Vargas is a stockholder and director in the Santa Clara Branch of the Bank of Italy.

A. RAY ANDERSON .- A native son of Santa Clara County who has been associated with its prog- ress during all his years, A. Ray Anderson is well known for his constructive work on the highways of the county, adding greatly to the comfort and con- venience of its inhabitants. The son of Phillip and Rebecca (Cahill) Anderson, he was born at Ber- ryessa. July 8, 1884. Phillip Anderson was born in Aberdeen, Scotland, and when a young man crossed the ocean to Nova Scotia, settling for a time at Amherst. Leaving the Maritime Provinces, he came to San Francisco by way of the Isthmus of Panama. remaining there for six months. Coming from there to Santa Clara County, he opened up a blacksmith shop at Berryessa. being a pioneer smithy of this locality, and his shop was known far and wide for the excellence of his work. Mrs. Anderson was a native of Nova Scotia, of English descent, and she also came to California by the Isthmus. She passed away in 1888, Mr. Anderson surviving her until 1919. This worthy couple were the parents of seven chil- dren: Margaret Alice of Berryessa; William W., a rancher at Berryessa; Mabel V .. of San Fran- cisco; Leslie C., who died in March, 1917; Roscoe A. of Los Angeles: A. Ray and Emily Oressa.

A. Ray Anderson attended the Berryessa school and finished his schooling at the San Jose high school. When he was twenty years old he took up the machinist's trade, learning it thoroughly in every detail until he became a competent engineer. For the past ten years he has been associated with the Santa Clara Road Commission as an engineer hand- ling the steam roller and grader, and the tractors used in the road leveling work. An expert in this line he has covered a great share of the mileage of the county, both in construction and maintenance work. A Republican in politics, Mr. Anderson is a member of the Eagles and of San Jose Parlor, N. S. G. W. Many years ago his father purchased a ranch of 252 acres in the hills east of Berryessa, on the Berryessa Road, and Mr. Anderson is now an owner of part of this ranch, which he inherited.

8 LLinehan

549

HISTORY OF SANTA CLARA COUNTY

PETER L. LINEHAN-Broad experience, close application, enterprise and natural mechanical ability have brought Peter L. Linehan to a foremost position in the business circles of San Jose and Santa Clara County. He is one of the pioneer plumbers of San Jose and so comprehensive a knowledge has he of that trade that he wrote the original plumbing ordin- ance that was adopted by the board of health and that is now a municipal law. A native of New York. Mr. Linehan was born in Rensselaer County, Jan- uary 28, 1865, a son of James and Mary ( McGann) Linehan, both natives of County Clare, Ireland. They came to the United States and located in New York, and from there came to California in 1869. They took passage on the S. S. Alaska for Panama and from the Isthmus boarded the Golden City for San Francisco, arriving there the last day of December. The Golden City was lost on its return trip to Pan- ama. Three days after arriving in this state, Mr. Linehan came to San Jose, and with the exception of about two years spent on a ranch at Half Moon Bay, they spent their remaining years here. Mr. Linehan died in his eighty-fourth year and Mrs. Linchan at the age of seventy-six. They reared a family of nine children: T. J., who died at the age of forty; Della. now the widow of A. H. Volkers, and living in San Jose: James H., who was a plumber by trade, married and died, leaving two children; Peter L., of this re- view; Mrs. Alice Carmichael. deceased; Mrs. Mar- garet McDonald died, leaving one son, Emmett, now an attorney in Washington, D. C .; Jennie, the wife of George Scott, died in December, 1921, in San Fran- cisco; and Katie and Anna, both died single.

Peter Linehan received a common school educa- tion and at the age of fifteen went to work on the Murphy cattle ranch and continued for two years. He next served an apprenticeship at the plumbing trade under James A. Hagan and when he had mastered the details of the business he continued with that firm after Mr. Hagan turned the business over to his son, Charles A. Hagan. The last four years that Charles A. was in business, during his ill- ness, and until his death, Mr. Linchan was manager of the establishment, serving in all for eighteen years and ten months under the Hagans. It was just be- fore Charles A. Hagan died that Mr. Linehan pur- chased the business and for six years was sole owner. Then he sold a half-interest to Joseph W. Delaney and they carried on the business under the firm name of Linehan & Delaney for eighteen months, when Mr. Linehan sold out to his partner. The following three years were devoted to perfecting an acetylene gas generator and burner, known as the Star Gener- ator, on which he secured patents. He then turned his attention to making gas from crude oil and cold compressed air for heating furnaces. After this ven- ture he again turned his attention to his old trade and has continued active up to the present, doing a gen- eral plumbing business, keeping busy mostly with emergency calls. Mr. Linehan was one of the organ- izers and the first president of the San Jose Plumbers' Union and at the time of the Federated Trades pro- cession held here in September, 1889, he acted as Grand Marshal.

The marriage of Peter L. Linchan in San Jose, January 31, 1887, united him with Miss Lydia Esther Smith, daughter of the late Thomas and Esther (Patterson) Smith, and a native of Boston, Mass. Mr. Smith went to Virginia City, Nev .. at an early

day and followed mining until he came to San Jose and it was here that he became a well-known figure about the county buildings, serving as superintend- ent for twenty years. Mr. Linchan now has in his possession the first clock that was put in the crimi- nal courtroom, presided over by the late Judge Bel- den and others, and which was given to Mr. Smith when the new clocks were installed. This clock is still keeping excellent time. Mr. and Mrs. Smith both died in San Jose. Of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Linehan one daughter, Lydia Esther, was born. She is now the wife of Otto Rapp, a rancher living at Morgan Hill. Mrs. Linehan passed away in San Jose on September 24, 1891.

It must not be presumed that Mr. Linehan has de- voted his entire time to his own affairs; for two terms he served as president of the Y. M. I. of San Jose and has given liberally of his time to assist in the promotion of various movements for the betterment of society in general. He possesses a fine tenor voice and for twelve years was first tenor in St. Pat- rick's Catholic Church, where for eight years his gifted wife was first soprano. While he was leading the singing there he and Miss Sullivan. later Mrs. O'Connell, arranged the music for the centennial celebration of Mission San Jose. He was an active member of the Wilkins Glee Club of this city during the two years of its existence; also a member of the Acme Literary and Musical Society and took part in many amateur theatricals. He is a personal friend of Eugene T. Sawyer, editor of the History of Santa Clara County, and acted with him in several pro- ductions in the early days. In fact where there was musical or literary entertainment Mr. Linehan could always be counted upon to do his share in carrying through the interesting programs that were ar- ranged for the entertainment of the many who de- lighted in that line of social uplift. He is an inter- esting talker and is widely and favorably known throughout the county where he has lived for a period of more than fifty years.

OLANDO J. SMITH .- Prominent among those who have done much to make automobiling one of the pleasant and profitable features of Twentieth Century life in Santa Clara County is undoubtedly Olando J. Smith, the popular proprietor of the Berry- essa Garage at Berryessa, in which. town, on May 27, 1880. he first saw light. His father was Christo- pher Columbus Smith, and his mother, before her marriage, was Sierra Nevada Ogan, so called from the fact that she was born when her parents, Mr. and Mrs. John Ogan, were crossing the Sierras on their way to California from Missouri in 1853. Chris- topher Columbus Smith came to California from Illi- nois in 1852 with his parents, William Jarvis and Nancy Smith, and settled in Santa Clara County; and ever since then the family have made their home at Berryessa - for a long time on the ranch on Capitol Avenue now operated by the Curry brothers, since the folks of both Mr. and Mrs. Smith were farmers, the Ogans having owned the ranch at the corner of Sierra and Piedmont roads, where W. W. Anderson now resides. Mr. Smith died in 1910. esteemed by all who knew him, and by none more than those with whom he had had long and inti- mate dealings. His widow. Mrs. Sierra Nevada Smith, is still living. She belongs to the first gener- ation of California girls and is bright and interesting.

550

HISTORY OF SANTA CLARA COUNTY

She has seen most wonderful transformations in this section. When she was a little girl the streets in San Jose were lighted by means of oil-burning lamps, probably sperm oil at that, as kerosene was very scarce in California at that time. She was present when the first railway train arrived at San Jose-an occasion for great jubilation. There were but two small orchards in the vicinity of San Jose then. Then, as now. the young folks liked to dance. Her father. John Ogan, lived to be eighty years old. He was quite a musician, as musicians went in those days, and he often helped the young folks to a good time, playing his "fiddle" at their dancing parties. Mrs. Sierra Nevada (Ogan) Smith was the youngest of nine children. The Ogans belonged to the Chris- tian Church, while the Smiths were Baptists.

Ten children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Smith, and seven are still living. Lola became Mrs. Sleightam. of Rio Vista, and is now deceased; Mamie is Mrs. W. W. Anderson, of the old Ogan ranch at Berryessa; Charles lives at Susanville; Olando is the subject of our story; Beede is Mrs. Nesbit of Con- cord; Euphemia is Mrs. Mathews of Fallon, Nev .; Hazel and Lila are deceased; Robert is at Berryessa, near to Maude N., who is Mrs. Arnold Gifford.

Olando Smith attended the Berryessa school and took charge of his father's ranch, shortly after the latter died. This ranch was a farm of 260 acres, no little responsibility; and later he discontinued farm- ing, and took up the carpenter's trade. On July 4, 1911, he went to Patterson, in Stanislaus County. and engaged in contracting and building. He put up a large number of the structures there when the town was built, and he stayed in the progressive town until the first of October, 1919. On that date, Mr. Smith returned to Berryessa and built a corrugated steel garage at the junction of the Berryessa Road and Capitol Avenue. and since that time he has been associated with his brother-in-law, Arnold Gifford, in the conducting of a general garage and repair business. They have a finely-equipped machine shop, and they also maintain a gasoline and oil station.

On November 11, 1911, Mr. Smith was married to Miss Clara Stewart, a native of San Jose and a daughter of Henry and Bessie Stewart, the former deceased. Mr. Smith is a Republican, but no one takes greater pleasure in throwing partisanship to the winds, when it comes to supporting the best local measures and men.

ROY W. BRIDGMAN .- Prominent among the educators of Santa Clara County whose scholarship, training and fidelity to duty, and routine, exacting work have contributed so much to make San Jose and the environing country one of the most attrac- tive home regions in all the Golden State, may well be mentioned Roy W. Bridgman, the popular prin- cipal of the San Martin Grammar School, living in San Jose. He was born at Rich Hill, Bates County. Mo., on July 14, 1874, the son of Henry C. Bridg- man. a descendant of a well-known Connecticut fam- ily which originally hailed fro mEngland, and for six generations at least domiciled in the United States. He married Miss Anna M. Carr. also of English descent, and in 1879 moved to Calaveras Valley, Cal., where they lived for about a year. He was a farmer, dealing largely in cattle; and as his methods were progressive and up-to-date, he succeeded as well as

the primitive conditions of that time and place would permit. Four children were granted this worthy couple, and two are living today-our subject, the third eldest, and Judson, the firstborn, of Shelter Cove, Cal. Grace died at the age of nineteen, and so did her sister, Kate.

In 1880, Henry C. Bridgman came to Santa Clara County to farm, and Roy attended first the grammar and then the high school of San Jose. After grad- uating from the high school he studied for a year in the pharmaceutical department of the University of California. Having passed the state board examin- ations and becoming a registered pharmacist, he fol- lowed the profession in different cities in California and Nevada. Being desirous of engaging in educa- tional work, Mr. Bridgman entered the San Jose Normal, where he was graduated with the class of 1910. He then spent three years as a teacher in the San Jose Night School, while attending Stanford University. In 1913, he took his Bachelor of Arts degree at Stanford, and the following year received his M. A. degree.

The story of Roy Bridgman is the record of a typically energetic American lad of the unusually ambitious and progressive type. At the age of nine, while attending the grammar school, he delivered the San Jose Mercury, and when he was fourteen and fifteen. while attending school. he also worked in Mr. Farthing's glove factory. While a student at the State University, he clerked for Levi Elbert, the San Francisco druggist, and on his return to San Jose, he had charge of the estate of Samuel Alley for a short time. He then joined Walter Johnson, the San Jose druggist, and soon afterward, he had charge of a chain of drugstores at Tonopah, Manhat- tan and Goldfield, Nevada, for a year. Coming back to San Jose again, he had a clerkship with Webb, the druggist, and later was with the Moorehead- Fleming Drug Store.

Since entering into his work as an educator he has been principal, first of the Franklin school, and then of the Meridian, in San Jose, while during 1920-21, he was principal of the Santa Clara schools, then taking the principalship of the San Martin school.

At San Mateo. on August 14, 1906, Mr. Bridgman was married to Miss Ethel White, a native of Ala- meda, Cal., and the daughter of E. J. and Carrie (Schmidt) White. Mrs. Bridgman moved to San Jose when she was a girl, and she attended both the grammar and high school, and she is also a grad- nate of the San Jose State Normal; and having en- gaged in teaching in 1914, she was a teacher in the Gardner School. Her home in Alameda, where she was born, was on the site of the present Elks' Hall. Mrs. Bridgman's parents were carly settlers of Cali- fornia, and her mother was a cousin of William Erkson, San Jose's former city clerk. For a number of years, Mr. Bridgman has made his home at 343 South Second Street, San Jose, where he owns an apartment house. He is a Mason, and belongs to Golden Rule Lodge No. 479, F. & A. M., San Jose; and also belongs to San Jose Lodge No. 522, B. P. O. E. He is a member of the National Educational Association, National Geographical Society, Santa Clara County Schoolmasters' Club, and Phi Delta Kappa, as well as the San Jose branch of American Registered Pharmacists.

Schilling

553

HISTORY OF SANTA CLARA COUNTY

HERBERT EMILE SCHILLING. - A distin- guished public official of Santa Clara County who has tor some years past enjoyed the comforts of a retired private life, is Herbert Emile Schilling, the eldest son of Margaret and the late Frank Schilling, a native of San Francisco, where he was born on August 4, 1861. When one year of age, he was brought to San Jose; and he has been a continuous resident of this city ever since. Frank Schilling died here in 1916, aged eighty-two years, while his widow is still living at the old home, aged ninety-two years. Herbert Emile was oldest of their five children. He attended the local public schools, and in 1875 was graduated from what is now known as the Horace Mann School, then one of the best-known high schools in the state. He then joined his father in the firearms and sport- ing goods business, and in time became his partner; and together they established the well-known firm of F. Schilling & Son at 27 Post Street, and for forty years he retained his connection there until his retire- ment in 1913. He succeeded so well as a business man that he now owns real estate in various places in the Santa Clara Valley, and he also has a ranch in Calaveras County. As early as 1890 he had become a public man, as he was always a public-spirited citi- zen, and when thirty-one years of age he was elected mayor of San Jose by popular vote. He was a mem- ber of the common council of San Jose for the years 1890-92, and from 1892 to 1894 he was head of the city government. .

A notable event of the period of his incumbency as mayor which may be worthy of special mention was the passage by the legislature of the State of Cali- fornia of a joint resolution removing the capital of the state from its present site at Sacramento to its former and original location at San Jose, upon con- dition that the citizens of the latter city and vicinity should donate ten acres of land for the new capitol site and $2,000,000 to cover the expenses of the re- moval The proposition was immediately acted upon and had progressed to the point where a tract of land now included in the Naglee Park addition was tenta- tively offered by the Naglee estate, when proceedings were halted by a writ of mandate secured by Sacra- mento County and submitted to the State Supreme Court. That body ruled against the legality of the Legislature's act, and so ended the last effort to have the capital of the state returned to the location where it rightfully belongs, and from which it was improper- ly removed. In this great contest, Mayor Schilling did his full duty; and as a lifelong member of the Democratic party, he has always contended that if a political organization works for the best interests of the people, it assures both the ultimate acceptance of its principles and its own contined existence.

In Monterey County, on June 18, 1894, Mr. Schil- ling was married to M. Alice Foster, the daughter of James P. and Arvilla Foster, of Independence, Mo. Mr. Foster joined the Union Army at the outbreak of the Civil War, and died in the performance of his duty in September, 1863. The mother brought her children to California in 1874, and Mrs. Schilling fin- ished her schooling in Watsonville. Mr. Schilling is a lover of outdoor life, especially as one may enjoy it in California; and he spends a part of each year in the High Sierras, hunting and fishing.

EDMUND NUTTING RICHMOND .- A pioneer in the fruit industry of Santa Clara County who is also a native son, is E. N. Richmond of San Jose, where he was born on July 14, 1878. His father was George Richmond, born in England, but who be- came a resident of Canada and in 1864 came to Cali- fornia and engaged in the stock business in the northern part of the state and became a well known rancher in the Sacramento Valley. Upon locating in Santa Clara County he interested himself in the fruit canning industry with the San Jose Cannery, con- tinuing this line of work as the manager of the dried fruit department of the Santa Clara County branch of the J. K. Armsby Company until his retirement in 1903. He had married Rosalie McPhail, born in San Francisco, the daughter of Andrew McPhail, a prom- inent business man of that city and one of the pioneers of California. Mrs. Richmond is still liv- ing in San Jose, Mr. Richmond having passed away on December 5, 1918.

Edmund Nutting Richmond attended the public schools of San Jose, but before completing his high school course he left his books in 1896, and entered the employ of J. K. Armsby where he became thor- oughly conversant with every branch of the fruit industry, even from preparing the land for planting, 10 preparing the crop for the markets, both canned and dried. This experience was most valuable to Mr. Richmond, so much so, that in 1916 he was able to embark in business for himself under the name of E. N. Richmond, continuing with marked success until 1919, when the business was incorpo- rated under the name of Richmond-Chase Company, with Mr. Richmond as president, and E. E. Chase, vice-president. This concern own and operate four large packing and canning plants in this county and a very modern cannery at Stockton, where their San Joaquin Valley business is handled. During the busy seasons the Richmond-Chase Company employ from 1.500 to 2,000 people in the various depart- ments. It is generally conceded that their new con- crete packing plant and cannery in San Jose are models of their kind in the entire state. This com- pany also own a number of orchards in the county, although the larger part of their fruit is purchased from the producers. Their output is well and favor- ably known throughout the United States for its standard of quality and commands a stable price in the markets of the world.

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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 89

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