History of Santa Clara County California with biographical sketches, Part 28

Author: Sawyer, Eugene T
Publication date: 1922
Publisher: Los Angeles : Historic Record Co.
Number of Pages: 1934

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HISTORY OF SANTA CLARA COUNTY

"It might be well for you to know that San Jose is a city of churches, every denomination of importance being represented. The cost of the buildings, which in their ornateness add much to the beauty of the city, range from $5,000 to $200,000. In the line of charitable institutions there is the sanitarium built by the donation of the late Judge M. P. O'Con- nor and conducted by the Sisters of Charity ; the Pratt Home for old ladies, the Sheltering Arms, and the Orphans' Home, conducted by the Ladies' Benevolent Society. Besides there are many other organizations, like the Good Cheer Club and the Elks which care for the sick and distressed."

"How about public buildings?" asked the Easterner. "Do they match the other things you have been talking about?"

"They do and they present much that is architecturally beautiful and substantial. The Court House, Hall of Records, Hall of Justice, City Hall and Postoffice cost one million and a half dollars in the aggregate, and each struc- ture is massive and imposing. The Carnegie Library, built by a donation from Andrew Carnegie, is a handsome structure, located in one corner of Normal Square, and answers the public needs. The business houses of San Jose are large, well built and attractive struc- tures. There are two skyscrapers-the First National Bank building, nine stories, and the Garden City Bank and Trust Company build- ing, seven stories. The residences, as a rule, are in the bungalow style, costing from $2,000 to $75,000. Some of the suburban residences are veritable palaces and they stand as mon- uments of art and beauty in the midst of lux- uriant gardens and thrifty orchards. Speak- ing of gardens, San Jose has well been called the Garden City of California. Flowers grow so easily and abundantly that every residence has its flower garden and every month in the year some varieties are in bloom. There is no snow and the frosts are so light that only the most delicate plants are affected. There is no time in the winter when the ground may not be worked, so that under what are semi-tropical conditions the growth of flowers has every- thing in its favor. The facility with which the flowers are grown add much to the beauty of the public parks, of which there are four, ranging in size from three to thirty acres.

"Are there any health resorts in the neigh- borhood of San Jose, any drives or-"

"Enough to beat the band," was the expres- sive response. "The city owns a natural park known as Ahun Rock, which is one of the most picturesque and inviting spots in the state. It is but seven miles distant, covers an area of about 1,000 acres, is under control of the city government, and is reached by three fine

driveways and an electric railway. There are bath houses, plunges, a restaurant, swimming tank, esplanade, a concrete dam for the water supply, beautiful park-like enclosures for flow- ers, and lovely walks in every direction. The fame of the mineral waters has spread far and wide. There are other mineral springs not far from San Jose, and the fact that they are located far above the sea level and with most attractive natural surroundings make them sought after by both the invalid and the tour- ist. The roads about San Jose are among the best in the state, for the reason that they are not only kept in first class condition the year round but are sprinkled continuously from the end of one wet season to the beginning of an- other. This work is done under an energetic and up-to-date board of supervisors.

"While there are charming drives through the orchard districts, to the quicksilver mines at New Almaden, to Los Gatos and Saratoga in the western foothills, to the Big Basin, the great redwood park in the Santa Cruz Moun- tains; to Alviso and Milpitas near San Fran- cisco Bay, along the far-famed Alameda to the town of Santa Clara and in other directions where the natural prospect is inviting to the eye, the one most favored by tourists is the drive to the Lick Observatory on the summit of Mt. Hamilton."

"I have heard of the Observatory," inter- posed the man from the East, "but I never connected San Jose with it."

"It is San Jose's greatest auxiliary attrac- tion, though the Big Basin is running as a close second. The road that leads to the Ob- servatory is twenty-seven miles from San Jose and was built at the expense of the taxpayers. It is conceded to be the finest mountain road in the world and cost upwards of $75,000. It was upon the condition that Santa Clara County should build the road that James Lick, millionaire philanthropist, agreed to construct the Observatory and equip it with the finest astronomical appliances in the world. The important discoveries that have been made since the astronomers began their work have given the Observatory a world-wide fame. The beautiful scenery of the Coast Range is seen at its best on the road to the summit, and the drive up the mountain is as much an at- traction as a look at the heavens through the great thirty-six inch glass.'

"If tourists should visit San Jose for a trip to the Observatory what accommoda- tions would they find?"

"As good as can be found anywhere. There are twenty-seven hotels, besides dozens of lodging houses. The finest hotels, metropoli- tan in every respect, with electric lights, heat- ing plants, elevators and the finest of service

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are the Vendome, Hotel Montgomery and Hotel St. James."

"You have spoken about the climate, scenic and other attractions. Have you a system of sewerage, and how does it operate?"

"San Jose has a system, a perfect one, and it operates to the satisfaction of the entire community. The city, you must understand, is located on a plain which slopes gently toward the bay. The problem of drainage, therefore, which has in sections less favor- ably situated involved great expense, was in San Jose easily solved. The fall is about ten feet to the mile, enough to insure a rapid flow of water and there are now over sixty miles of main and branch sewers. The principal drainway is built of brick and is five feet in diameter."

"Where do you get your water supply ?"

"From artesian wells and from the lakes and streams situated high up in the moun- tains. The supply is ample and can be in- creased whenever occasion demands. The pressure to the hydrants from the water brought in pipes from the hills is fifty-five pounds to the square inch."

"How about taxes?"

"Not high. Up to May, 1920, the city rate was $1.19. Of this eighty-five cents was for the support of the city government, fifteen cents for the school department, and nineteen cents for the payment of principal and interest on bonded indebtedness of $659,400. In May, 1920, at the regular city election, it was voted to increase the tax rate to thirty-five cents, the increase to last for three years only, to give the city a chance to recover from the loss of liquor licenses due to the wiping out of the saloons through Prohibition.

"In conclusion," sadi the old resident, "I will say that we are working under a com- mission form of government, with a city man- ager as its principal officer ; that we have a Chamber of Commerce, a live, progressive body of representative men ; a Merchants As- sociation, the Rotary, Lions, Civic Welfare, a Commercial Club, a Progressive Business Men's Association, One Hundred Per Cent Club and the Commercial Club for placing San Jose in large letters on the map; that the streets of San Jose are lighted by electricity ; that car lines operated by electricity traverse the city in every direction and extend to out- lying towns; that fifty-nine railway trains leave the city daily; that the city has two daily newspapers, the Mercury (morning) and the News (evening) furnishing the news of the world by Associated Press and United Press dispatches ; that all trades and profes- sions are represented-there are forty-five dentists, seventy-seven physicians and eighty 11

lawyers, and that there are over 100 auto sales- rooms, garages and service stations ; that over 12,000 automobiles are owned in San Jose and at least half that number by residents of out- side districts; that there are fraternal orders galore besides clubs for men and clubs for women, the latter for social culture, educa- tional and literary advancement, and in the in- terest of morality ; that there are six banks, an efficient police force and fire department, a public library, fine, costly buildings for the Y. M. C. A. and Y. W. C. A., Protestant, and the Y. M. I., Catholic ; a Humane Society, Medical Society, Pioneers Society, six thea- ters (three of them motion picture houses), many concert and lecture halls, a system of rural delivery that reaches every part of the county, thus insuring a daily delivery of mail by carriers; that the total valuation of all property in the city amounts to $26,234,600; that the population within the legal bounda- ries is over 40,000 and that it would be at least 65,000 if the suburban districts, really a part of the city so far as social and business interests are concerned, were admitted as a part of it.

"Are you through?" "Nearly. Have you any questions to ask?" "You seem to have about everything worth having down your way, but I think San Jose will be found lack- ing in one respect."

The man from the East paused and with a look which said, "I've got you, now," waited for the old resident to speak.

"If we haven't got it, it isn't worth having." "I do not agree with you. I like relaxation. 'All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.' I require outdoor exercise with some nice ozone thrown in to give me a healthy color and take the kinks out of my muscles."

"Ah, I see. You want a baseball or a cy- clers' club. We have both in San Jose. We have the automobile as well and as for hunt- ing and fishing, no county in the interior of the state offers better inducements."

"They are all right, but you haven't got what I want and that's a golf club."

The old resident's face fairly beamed : "Haven't got a golf club? Why. man alive, we've got the best golf club in Central Cali- fornia."

"You can't mean it."

"I do. It was organized about twenty years ago, has as fine links as any one could wish, with an ornate club house, replete with every up-to-date convenience and costing about $20,000. The links are located on rising ground at the foot of the eastern hills about four miles from the city. A prettier location could not be found. The club house has an outlook that takes in the whole valley. It goes

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without saying that the club is composed of men and women who represent the best in society and business."

"What are your prospects for the future?" "They are very bright. Money is easily obtainable and in a business way San Jose is prosperous. Its various resources and utili- ties combine to make it so. The Chamber of Commerce is doing wonders in the way of promoting business activity, fostering im- provements and paving the way for all enter- prises looking to the city's advancement along the best lines. Seven miles north of San Jose is the port of Alviso, situated on a slough which empties into San Francisco Bay. Be- fore the European war the city bought a strip of land extending along the Alviso road to Alviso and more land suitable for the estab-

lishing of a real port of entry for vessels. It was the intention, through Government aid. to dredge the slough, make it passable for transportation craft and thus provide San Jose with water as well as railway transporta- tion for her products. The war stopped the project, but Sunnyvale, nine miles from San Jose, has taken it up and a port, near the San Jose line, will soon be in operation. So you see that in 1922 the City of San Jose offers a fine field for the investment of money."

"Soil, climate, production, opportunity. Eh?" "Yes."

The man from the East now looked at his watch. "The Los Angeles train has gone." he said. "Well?" "There's the train for San Jose. I'll take it."

CHAPTER XVI.

Additional Events in the History of San Jose-The Advent of Street Cars and Other Metropolitan Advantages-The Crimes of the Seventies, Eighties and Nineties-A New Form of Government.

An act to incorporate the city of San Jose was passed by the Legislature. March 27. 1850, by which it was directed that the city government should consist of a mayor and seven councilmen, who were designated a "body politic and corporate" under the name of "The Mayor and Common Council." This name was retained until the city adopted the commission form of government in 1916. The first city tax was levied July 11, 1850, and was for one per cent on the assessed value of all property. The first council voted themselves pay at the rate of six dollars per day. This ordinance was repealed in December of the same year, on motion of Dr. Ben Cory. The first order looking to the improvement of the streets was made on December 2, 1850, which provided for sidewalks in the business part of the city. The income of the city for its first year of incorporation was $37.359.30: expendi- tures, $37,106.04. The expenses included a debt of $7.500 handed down from the Ayuntia- mento of 1849. The city was divided into four wards in April, 1853, and a fire warden ap- pointed for each ward. An appropriation of $2,000 for fire apparatus was also made.

In 1855 the office of captain of police was created and the same year the mayor and council held session in the new city hall on Market Street, north of Santa Clara Street. In 1866, by act of the Legislature, the city funded its floating debt by the issuance of bonds,

which were paid for in 1865, thus leaving the city out of debt.

A new charter was adopted in 1857. Under the new system the government of the city was vested in five trustees, a treasurer, a clerk and assessor, and a collector.

In 1853 gambling was licensed, $500 for each table.

The Democratic party in San Jose was or- ganized in 1853. Dr. A. J. Spencer was presi- dent. John M. Murphy and Samnel Morrison, secretaries. In 1854 the first convention was held at the office of the mayor, chairman, Thomas J. West; secretary, P. K. Woodside.

The Whig party was organized in 1853 and on July 1, a convention was held with Cole- man Younger, chairman, and Frederic Hall. secretary.

In 1854 a district school was established, Freeman Gates, principal.

In 1855 the Know-Nothing party came into existence but held no convention. Its candi- (lates were nominated by primary.

'The Republican party was organized in 1856 and a convention was held the same year with J. H. Morgan, chairman; A. C. Erkson and M. Sawyer, vice-chairmen; C. G. Thomas and R. Ilutchinson, secretaries.

In 1857 San Jose was remapped.

In 1858 the Anti-Lecompton (Douglas- Democrat) party convened at the city hall.

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W. M. Lent, chairman, and Freeman Gates, secretary.

An ordinance authorizing the city to lay gas pipes was passed January 11, 1858. In July, 1860, James Hagan seeured a franchise from the city for this purpose. The first lights were given on January 21, 1861. There were then only eighty-four consumers and seven street lights.

In 1861 Jasper D. Gunn, city marshal, ab- sconded, having embezzled $2,700 of the city's money. Gunn was acquitted of the criminal charge but his bondsmen were sued by the city and judgment obtained against them.

Donald Mackenzie, in May, 1864, was granted permission to lay water pipes in the streets of the city. This was the beginning of the San Jose Water Company.

In 1865 a bridge was built over Coyote Creek at Santa Clara Street. The same year the Mansion House, built in 1850, was burned.

In April, 1867, Abijah MeCall, county treas- tirer, absconded, being a defaulter in the large sum of $23,762.41. He was arrested and con- victed.

William Blanch, an Englishman, was mur- dlered on May 16, 1860, while at labor in a field he was cultivating about a mile from San Jose. The murderer was an Indian named Salvador Garcia, who had been accused by the deceased of stealing a rope. Garcia was hanged.

In March, 1868, the Legislature granted to S. A. Bishop and others a franchise to con- struct a horse railroad along the Alameda. (n August 31 work on the road was started and on November 1, the cars made their initial trip, running from First Street, San Jose, to Main Street in Santa Clara. In 1869 the line was extended eastward along Santa Clara Street to the Coyote Creek bridge On July 6, 1870, the board of supervisors granted the company permission to use steam, pony or pneumatic propelling power, and on Novem- ber 6, 1877, authority was granted to permit cars to run over the bridge to MeLaughlin Avenue.

On Wednesday, October 1, 1868, at eight o'clock in the morning a severe earthquake shook California. San Jose suffered consid- erably. The heavy brick cornice of Murphy's building, corner of Market and El Dorado Streets, fell to the ground. The Presbyterian Church on Second Street sustained great damage. All the brick turrets fell and large portions of the steeple were precipitated through the roof to the floor. The large water tank over the roof of Moody's flour mill tell through the roof, carrying destruction in its course. Their wooden storehouse, 100 feet in length, filled with grain, was totally wrecked.

Two large chimneys of the San Jose Institute were thrown down, one of them crashing through into the rooms below. A portion of the rear wall of Welch's livery stable fell. Otter's unfinished block at the corner of First and St. John Streets was severely damaged. There was not a brick building in the city that was not more or less injured.

The next winter San Jose was visited by a severe flood. The Los Gatos and Guadalupe Creeks overflowed their banks, flooding the lands adjacent thereto. The high grade of the horse railroad track dammed the water baek south of Santa Clara Street, inundating the houses and yards. The water broke over the track flooding the low grounds between the College of Notre Dame and the Guadalupe. About a hundred feet of the railroad track was swept away. The main portion of the city from Third to Seventh Streets was under water to the depth of several inches.

In 1870 the population of San Jose was 9,118. In 1871 Washington Square was granted to the state as a site for a Normal School. On April 3, 1871, Mayor Adolph Pfister sent a communication to the council stating that he had donated his salary for the year ($600) for the purpose of aiding in the establishment of a public library.

In December, 1871, another flood, caused by overflow from the Guadalupe and Los Ga- tos Creeks. On the east side of River Street seven small cottages floated down stream for a distance of a third of a mile. During the flood all communication with the outside world was suspended. Since that date the two creeks have been widened and improved so that now there is no danger of overflows.

On January 22, 1864, the Santa Clara Val- ley & Lumber Company was incorporated with a capital stock of $300,000. The directors were William P. Dougherty, W. H. Hall, Samuel MeFarland, E. W. Haskell, W. W. Pratt, John Metcalf and G. W. Mclellan.

On January 5, in the District Court, Judge David Belden presiding, Tiburcio Vasquez, the notorious bandit and murderer, was placed on trial for the murder of Leander Davidson, hotel keeper at Tres Pinos, San Benito County. This was the most celebrated trial ever held in San Jose. Attorney General John Lord Love, assisted by N. C. Briggs and Hon. W. E. Lovett, of Hollister and Dis- trict Attorney Thomas Bodley of Santa Clara County, appeared for the prosecution. The night before, Judge C. B. Darwin, of San Francisco, to whom had been intrusted the principal management of the defense, with- drew from the case. Before the beginning of the trial, Judge W. H. Collins and Judge J. A. Moultrie were retained to assist P. B. Tully,

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of Gilroy, as attorneys for the prisoner. Every- thing being in readiness Vasquez was placed on trial. When the court adjourned in the afternoon, the following residents of Santa Clara County had been selected to serve as jurors: G. W. Reynolds, foreman, Tyler Brundage, Frank Hamilton, M. Dornberger, Noah Parr, M. Tobin, G. C. Fitzgerald, J. M. Moorehead, S. T. Woodson, M. Lubliner, C. S. Towle, Hugh O'Rourke. On Saturday, Jan- uary 9, a verdict of guilty of murder in the first degree, was rendered and on March 19, the execution took place in the jail yard.

Vasquez' career was one long series of law- less acts. He was born in Monterey in 1835, was a wild, harum-scarum youngster, but he did not give the officers any trouble until just before he reached his sixteenth year. Before an occurrence which launched him into a career of crime, his associates were Mexi- can law-breakers, cattle thieves, mainly, whose operations became extensive soon after the occupation of California by the Ameri- cans. One night, in company with Anastacio Garcia, a Mexican desperado, he attended a fandango. A quarrel over a woman, the fatal shooting of the constable while trying to maintain order, the lynching of one of Vas- quez' associates and the formation of a vigi- lance committee sent Vasquez into hiding from which he emerged to ally himself with a band of horse thieves.

In 1857 he came to grief, but five years' sequestration in the state prison failed to pro- duce any change in his morals. One month after his discharge he was operating as a highway robber on the San Joaquin plains. Chased by officers into Contra Costa County, he sought and obtained refuge at the ranch of a Mexican who was the father of a pretty and impressionable daughter. She easily fell a victim to the seductive wiles of the handsome, dashing young knight of the road. One morn- ing Anita and Vasquez were missing. With stern face the father of the girl mounted his fleetest mustang and started in pursuit. He overtook the lovers in the Livermore Valley. They were resting under a tree by the road- side. Vasquez saw Anita's father and sprang to his feet, but made no hostile demonstra- tion. His code of honor forbade an attack on the man he had wronged. A quick under- standing of the situation sent Anita to her lover's side. "If you kill him you must also kill me," she screamed. The father frowned. Vasquez, with hands folded, stood waiting. After some consideration the ranch owner said if Anita would return home her lover might go free. The girl consented and Vas- quez shrugged his shoulders as father and daughter rode away.

Transferring his field of operations to So- noma County, Vasquez prospered for awhile, but one day in attempting to drive off a band of stolen cattle, he was arrested and for the offense spent four years in San Quentin prison. Immediately upon his discharge in June, 1870, he laid plans for robbery on a much larger scale than he had before attempted. Selecting as his base the Cantua Canyon, a wild and al- most inaccessible retreat in the Mt. Diablo Range, formerly the camp and shelter of Joa- quin Murietta, he gathered about him a band of choice spirits and for four years carried on a warfare against organized society, the like of which California had never before experi- enced. Stages, stores, teams and individuals were held up in the counties of Central and Southern California, and though posse after posse took the field against him he succeeded in eluding capture. In the hills he was safe. White settlers were scarce and the Mexican population aided and befriended him, princi- pally through fear. Besides, his sweethearts, as he called them, were scattered throughout the hills of the Coast Range, from San Jose to Los Angeles. They kept him posted re- garding the movement of the officers and more than once he escaped capture through their vigilance and activity.

In the fall of 1871, after a daring stage rob- bery in San Benito County, Vasquez got word that one of his sweethearts would be at a dance in Hollister that night. He resolved to be in attendance. The dancing was at its height when he appeared. Becoming flushed with wine his caution deserted him and he re- mained until near the break of day. He was not molested and emboldened by a sense of security he went into the barroom and en- gaged in a game of cards with one of the women. Here he was seen and recognized by a law and order Mexican. The constable was notified, a posse was organized and a plan laid to pot Vasquez at the moment of his ap- pearance at either of the doors. A woman gave Vasquez warning of his danger, and dis- guised with her mantilla and skirt, the bandit went out of the dance hall, crossed in front of the approaching posse, found his horse, mounted it and was beyond the danger limit before the deception was discovered.

A few days later he stopped the stage from the New Idria mines. A woman's head showed at the door as Vasquez covered the driver with a rifle. She was the wife of one of the mine bosses, a man who had once be- friended the outlaw. "Don't do it, Tiburcio," she entreated. Vasquez looked at the grim faces of his followers, hesitated a moment, then lowered his rifle. "Drive on," was his curt command. The stage lumbered away and

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History of Santa Clara County California with biographical sketches, Part 28

Author: Sawyer, Eugene T Publication date: 1922 Publisher: Los Angeles : Historic Record Co. Number of Pages: 1934

Author: Sawyer, Eugene T
Publication date: 1922
Publisher: Los Angeles : Historic Record Co.
Number of Pages: 1934