History of Santa Clara County California with biographical sketches, Part 36

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

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In 1876 Lick had trouble with his trustees. One of the duties Lick wished first performed was the erection of his family monument in Fredericksburg, Pa. During the arrangement for this work the causes for the retirement of the second board of trustees arose. One of the members of the board was John H. Lick. Al- though James Lick had never been married, John H. was his son. He was born in Penn- sylvania in 1818, about the time James Lick made a hurried departure to New York, thence to South America. Some years after Lick came to California he sent for his son, then grown to manhood, and kept him for several years at work in the mahogany mill. Here John H. remained until August, 1871, when he returned to his Pennsylvania home. When James Lick made his first deed of trust he di- rected the payment to his son of $3,000. With this pittance John H. was naturally dissatisfied, and therefore in the second deed he was given the sum of $150,000 and made one of the trus- tees. To him, as trustee, was delegated the power to contract for the Fredericksburg mon- ument, but for some reason he failed or refused to sign the contract. When this fact was made known to James Lick he became very much incensed against his son, and in the weakness of old age he included the whole board in his ill-humor and suddenly demanded the resigna- tion of the whole body. The trustees were acquiescent and a new board was appointed.

Captain Floyd, having been in Europe during this last trouble, was not included in the old man's wrath, and therefore was made a mem- ber of the new board.

James Lick died October 1, 1876, before the new board had fully organized. He was eighty years of age. His body lay in state in Pioneer Hall, San Francisco, and was followed by an immense concourse to Lone Mountain Ceme- tery, there to rest until a more fitting burial place might be ready for its reception. Some months before his death, in a conversation with the late B. D. Murphy of San Jose, Lick ex- pressed the desire to be buried on Mt. Hamil- ton, either within or at one side of the pro- posed observatory, after the manner of Sir Christopher Wren, the architect of St. Paul's Cathedral, who was buried in the crypt in 1723.

Immediately after the death of his father, John H. Lick returned from the East and se- cured letters of administration upon the estate. This was understood to be the beginning of an attempt to annul the trust deed. After testing several points in the courts, the trus- tees finally effected a compromise by which they were to pay John H. Lick $535,000 in full of all claims against the estate. The Society of Pioneers and the Academy of Science had been made residuary legatees by the deed and their trustees insisted that this payment to John H. Lick should be made pro rata from each of the bequests. After nearly a year of lit- igation the courts decided that the special be- quests could not be disturbed and that the com- promise money must come from the shares of the residuary legatees.

As soon as possible after the completion of the road to the summit, work on the buildings was commenced. Early in 1887 the work had progressed sufficiently to permit the request of James Lick in regard to a burial place to be complied with, and on the ninth of January the body was brought to San Jose, whence, followed by a procession of officials and citi- zens, it was conveyed to the mountain. A tomb had been prepared in the foundation of the pier which was to support the great tele- scope, and in this, with imposing ceremonies, the coffin was deposited. The following docu- ment, signed by the trustees and representa- tives of the State University, Academy of Sci- ence, and Pioneers, and the Mayor of San Jose, was sealed up with the casket :

"This is the body of James Lick, who was born in Fredericksburg, Pennsylvania, August 25, 1796, and who died in San Francisco, Cali- fornia, October 1, 1876.

"It has been identified by us, and in our presence has been sealed up and deposited in this foundation pier of the great equatorial telescope, this ninth of January. 1887.

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"In the year 1875 he executed a deed of trust of his entire estate, by which he provided for the comfort and culture of the citizens of Cali- fornia ; for the advancement of handcraft and redecraft among the youth of San Francisco and of the state ; for the development of scien- tific research and the diffusion of knowledge among men, and for founding in the State of California an astronomical observatory, to sur- pass all others existing in the world at this epoch.

"This observatory has been erected by the trustees of his estate and has been named The Lick Astronomical Department of the Univer- sity of California in memory of the founder. The refracting telescope is the largest which has ever been constructed, and the astronomers who have tested it declare that its perform- ance surpasses that of all other telescopes.

"The two disks of glass for the objective were cast by M. Feil, of France, and were brought to a true figure by Alvan Clark & Sons, of Massachusetts. Their diameter is thirty-six inches and their focal length is fifty- six feet, two inches. Upon the completion of this structure the Regents of the University of California became the trustees of this Astro- nomical Observatory.'

The members of the third board of trustees were Richard S. Floyd, president : William Sherman, vice-president ; E. B. Mastick, treas- urer : Charles M. Plum, George Schoenwald.

The contract for the great lens was made with Alvan Clark & Sons, of Cambridge, Mass. In 1882 the flint glass was cast by M. Feil & Sons, of Paris, but it was not until 1885 that a perfect crown glass could be obtained. The Clarks succeeded in obtaining a true figure in 1886, and on the 27th of December of that year the great glass reached Mt. Hamilton. The mounting of the instrument and other details of construction occupied eighteen months more time, and in June, 1888, the whole work was completed. The transfer of the observatory from the trustees to the regents of the univer- sity took place on June 1. 1888, being fourteen years from the date of James Lick's first deed. The total expense of construction was $610,000. A balance of $90,000 remained as the nucleus of an endowment fund. Profs. Simon New- comb and Edward S. Holden were the scientific advisers of the three boards. In 1885 Professor Ilolden was appointed president of the Univer- sity of California and director of the Lick Ob- servatory on the understanding that he would fill the former office until the completion of the observatory and thereafter the latter office.

The observatory consists of a main building containing offices, computing rooms, library (of 8,000 books and 5,000 pamphlets), and the domes of the thirty-six-inch equatorial and the

twelve-inch equatorial telescopes; of detached buildings to shelter the Crossley reflector, the meridian circle, and other instruments, and to provide safe deposit rooms and photographic dark rooms : of instrument shops ; of dwelling houses: and of other buildings, reservoirs, pumping stations, etc.

The principal equipment provided by the Lick trustees consisted of: A 36-inch equa- torial refractor, objective by Alvan Clark & Sons, mounting by Warner & Swasey. This instrument has also a photographic correcting lens of thirty-three inches aperture, figured by Alvan G. Clark. By placing the latter lens in front of the 36-inch objective, the telescope be- comes a photographic instrument. A 12-inch equatorial refractor, objective and mounting by Alvan Clark & Sons. A 61/2-inch meridian cir- cle instrument, objective by Alvan Clark & Sons, mounting by Repsold. Many smaller telescopes and other pieces of auxiliary appa- ratus.

Other important instruments were presented to the Lick Observatory in later years, as fol- lows: A 361/4-inch reflecting telescope, pre- sented to the Lick Observatory in 1895 by Ed- ward Crossley, Esq., of Halifax, England. The mirror was constructed by Sir Howard Grubb, and the mounting by Dr. A. A. Common. The cost of a building to receive this instrument and the expense of transporting the instrument and iron dome from England were met by sub- scriptions from prominent citizens of Califor- nia. A 61/2-inch comet-seeker, objective by John A. Brashear, the gift of Miss Catharine Bruce. A 6-inch photographic telescope, with objective by Willard and mounting by John A. Brashear, all the gift of Regent Charles F. Crocker. A 5-inch telescope, with interchange- able photographic and visual objective, by Al- van Clark & Sons, the gift of Miss Floyd. daughter of Captain Floyd. The Mills three- prism spectrograph, the gift of D. O. Mills. Delicate seismographs, the gift of William Randolph Hearst.

In order that the program of determining the radial velocities of the brighter stars might be extended over the entire sky. D. (). Mills provided funds in the year 1900 for a well- equipped expedition to the southern hemi- sphere. The equipment included a 371/4-inch Cassegrain reflecting telescope, with modern dome ; a three-prism spectrograph ; a two-prism spectrograph ; a one-prism spectrograph ; an instrument shop, and other accessories. The D. O. Mills Observatory, administered by the Director of the Lick Observatory, is located on the summit of Cerro San Cristobal, at an altitude of about 2900 feet above sea-level, in the northeasterly suburbs of Santiago, Chile. This important observatory was supported by

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Mills until his death in 1910, and the support has been continued by his son, Ogden Mills.

Many auxiliary instruments, such as spectro- graphs, seismographs, clocks, chronographs, photometers, etc., have been purchased from time to time.

The magnifying power of the great telescope may be changed from about 270 to 3,000 by changing the eye-pieces, in very much the same way that the magnifying power of a microscope may be changed. The power employed de- pends upon the object under observation and upon the state of the atmosphere.

The height of the marble floor of the main building above mean sea-level is 4209 feet. On a closely connected peak half a mile to the east of the observatory, and fifty feet higher, are the reservoirs from which water for household and photographic purposes is distributed. Springs on the north and south slopes of the mountain, about a mile east of the Observatory and about 350 feet and 630 feet, respectively. below it, supply excellent water. Another peak seven-eighths of a mile to the east is the sum- mit of Mount Hamilton; it is 180 feet higher than the Observatory, and supports the reser- voirs supplying power for raising the movable floor in the dome of the great telescope. This system receives its supply from the winter rains falling on the roofs, the water being pumped to the reservoirs on the higher peak. The mov- able floor in the dome was the first of the kind to be constructed. It is 60 feet in diameter, and can be raised or lowered through a dis- tance of 161/2 feet, its purpose being to bring the observer within convenient reach of the eye end of the telescope.

The Observatory is open to daytime visitors every day of the year, but visitors are expect- ed to leave the premises at or before sunset. The Observatory is open every Saturday even- ing to visitors who arrive before 9 p. m., op- portunity being afforded on clear nights to look through the 36-inch refractor and the 12- inch refractor usually.

Visitors who come in the daytime are usual- ly conducted through the building and have the uses of the instruments explained to them. On Saturday evenings the scientific staff is on public duty. The annual number of visit- ors to the Observatory exceeds five thousand. While the Observatory has no financial inter- est in the coming of visitors, yet no pains are spared to make the time spent here interest- ing and profitable to them. There are no ho- tel accommodations at the summit.

The average population of Mount Hamil- ton during the past five years has been fifty. There is a public school on the mountain ; the schoolhouse is the property of the Observa-

tory : the teacher is supplied by Santa Clara County.

The directors of the Lick Observatory have been : Edward Singleton Holden. June 1. 1888. to December 31, 1897 : James Edward Keeler, June 1, 1898 to August 12, 1900: William Wal- lace Campbell, January 1, 1901 to -. Other astronomers on the staff have been: S. W. Burnham, 1888-1892; J. M. Schaeberle, 1888- 1898; J. E. Keeler, 1888-1891 : E. E. Barnard, 1888-1895: W. W. Campbell, 1891 -: Henry Crew. 1891-1892: R. H. Tucker, 1893 -: C. D. Perrine, 1893-1909; R. G. Aitken, 1895 -: W. J. Hussey, 1896-1905; W. H. Wright. 1897 -; H. D. Curtis, 1902- The list of assistant astron- omers includes the names of A. L. Colton, J. H. Moore, Sebastian Albrecht, R. E. Wilson, R. F. Sanford.

Members of the staff have been detailed to take charge of the D. O. Mills Observatory in Chile, as follows: W. H. Wright. 1903-1906 ; H. D. Curtis, 1906-1909: J. H. Moore. 1909- 1913; R. E. Wilson, 1913 -.

The scientific staff has averaged : at Mount Hamilton, five astronomers, one assistant as- tronomer and two assistants; and in Chile, on the D. O. Mills foundation, one astron- omer and two assistants.

The Regents maintain three salaried Uni- versity fellowships in the Lick Observatory. which are open to well-prepared graduate students who have decided to make astron- omy or some of the closely related sciences the basis of professional careers.

The Martin Kellogg Fellowship in the Lick Observatory, endowed by Mrs. Louise W. B. Kellogg, widow of President Martin Kellogg. provides opportunity to one holder each year for advanced study and research under liberal conditions.

The efficiency of the Lick Observatory has been greatly increased by generous gifts of funds for special purposes from Regent Phoebe A. Hearst, Regent Charles F. Crocker, Regent William H. Crocker, D. O. Mills, Ogden Mills, and others; and by grants of funds from the Carnegie Institution of Washington, the Na- tional Academy of Sciences, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

The investigational work of the Observa- tory has been exceedingly fruitful. The great telescope has surpassed the expectations of those who planned it: and its energetic use throughout the whole of every good night in the quarter century of its existence has en- riched astronomical science in unexpected ways.

The leading discoveries that have been made embrace the following : Four satellites of Jupi- ter; twenty-nine comets: about 4400 double star systems; 250 spectroscopic binary stars;

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a companion sun to the first magnitude star, Procyon; spectrographic observations showing that the sun with its system of planets is traveling through space, with reference to the general stellar system, at a speed of about twelve miles an hour ; that the velocity of the stars increase with their effective ages; that the planetary nebulae are traveling through space with average speeds even higher than the average speeds of the stars; the North Pole Star found to be a triple star in 1899: an extensive series of photographs of the minor planet, Eros, and surrounding stars, with the Crossley Reflector, led to a new and accu- rate determination of the distance from the earth to the sun.

The following total solar eclipses have been successfully observed by expeditions whose ex- penses were defrayed by the friends whose names are recorded : 1889, January, in north- ern California, by the University of Califor- nia. 1889. December, in French Guiana, by · Regent Charles F. Crocker. 1893, in Chile, by Regent Phoebe A. Hearst. 1898, in India, by Regent Charles F. Crocker. 1900, in Georgia, by William H. Crocker. 1901, in Sumatra, by William H. Crocker. 1905, in Spain and Egypt, by William H. Crocker. 1908, in Flint Island, South Pacific Ocean, by Regent William H. Crocker.

In the early days of Santa Clara County Mt. Hamilton was called La Sierra de Santa Ysabel. The name Ysabel applies now to the creek that rises to the east of Mt. Hamil- ton and that passes along its northern and western base and then makes its way north- ward to the Bay of San Francisco. At the confluence with Smith Creek, Ysabel Creek changes its name to Arroyo Honda and still further north Arroyo Honda becomes Calaver- as Creek. The valley through which Ysabel Creek flows, lying east of Mt. Hamilton, is called Ysabel Valley. The mountain was known as Santa Ysabel down to 1861 or 1862 when Rev. Leander Hamilton, an able and elo- quent Presbyterian preacher, climbed the mountain as a member of a camping party. The striking beauty of the scenery inspired his ready pen and he wrote a number of articles describing the mountain and its surroundings which after publication were extensively quot- ed. The camping party, of which he had been a member, out of compliment to him renamed the mountain Mt. Hamilton and it soon be- came the popular name. Later, the United States Government surveyors put down the official name as Mt. Hamilton and at once the name Ysabel became but a memory.

CHAPTER XIX.

The Story of Alum Rock, San Jose's Beautiful Reservation of One Thousand Acres-Judge Richards' Description of Its Beauties and Attractions- The Claim of J. O. Stratton.

The following beautiful description of one of San Jose's greatest assets is from the pen of that artist in words, Judge John E. Rich- ards. It was written several years ago for the board of park commissioners, a civic body that went out of existence when the new charter of 1916 went into effect.

" The major portion of what is now Alum Rock Park was originally a part of the public lands to which San Jose became entitled by virtue of its pueblo origin under the old Spanish regime. By an ordinance of King Phil- ip HI of Spain, each pueblo, upon its estab- lishment, was entitled to four leagues of land. This law was in effect when the pueblo of San Jose de Guadalupe was founded in 1777. 1ts terms were not, however, taken advantage of until the pueblo had passed from the old dominion into American control. It then laid claim to its pueblo rights and these were ac-

corded to it under an Act of Congress pro- viding for the settlement of land claims in California, passed in 1851. The allotment and survey of these pueblo lands under the act extended the eastern line thereof to the sum- mit of the first range of mountains which form the eastern boundary of the Santa Clara Valley, and thus included the tract of land which now comprises Alum Rock Park.

"That the canyon which embraces the Park contained valuable mineral and medicinal springs and that nature had there been lav- ish in her display of picturesque landscapes, in enchanting vistas of a mountain landscape and in the variety, beauty and luxuriance of tree and plant life, was early known to pio- neer settlers in the Santa Clara Valley. The desire and attempt of private persons to ac- quire this favored spot awakened a deter; mined effort in the direction of its appropria-

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tion for public.uses, which led to its official survey in 1866, and to the definite reserva- tion of about 400 acres therein as a public park, by an Act of the California Legisla- ture passed in 1872. By another Legislative act of the same year a board of commis- sioners was created for the control of the park, and for the construction of a highway into it from the City of San Jose. The beau- tiful highway which now bears the name of Alum Rock Avenue was laid out and con- structed by this first board of park commis- sioners, which was composed of Gen. Henry M. Naglee, Edward Mclaughlin and Dr. A. J. Spencer; and to these and other of our public-spirited citizens who thus early persist- ed in making the park available for the use and enjoyment of the people, a lasting debt of public gratitude is due.

"The original survey of the park gives its area as about 400 acres. To this was added in 1872 a donation of several acres, including 'Buena Vista,' a point of grand outlook, lying just south of the park proper, by Gen. Giles A. Smith, Cyrus Jones and Lewis A. Hicks, three liberal-minded citizens, who then owned a large tract of adjoining lands. About fifty- five acres more have been added by subse- quent purchases in order to control the streams and springs which constitute its water sup- ply. The present area of the park is about 460 acres and the distance from San Jose to its center is seven miles. Two excellent highways and also an electric railway, with cars leaving the park and San Jose every half hour, connect the city with the park. The rails are now on the ground for the construc- tion of a thoroughly up-to-date broad gauge. rapid service railroad into the park by way of Berryessa.

"Alum Rock Park derives its name from the striking monolith which stands about the cen- ter of the park at a point where Alum Rock Avenue reaches the creek in its descent into the canyon. Rugged and scarred by its vol- canic origin and chemical constituents, it rises a sheer 200 feet above the stream. Double sulphates of aluminum and sodium enter largely into its composition and furnish the residuum of alum dust found along its sides and in its crevices and from the presence of which it derives its name. Around the base and sides of the rock issue several mineral springs strongly impregnated with salt and other chemical properties. One of these pours its clear, cold waters into a stone basin just east of the rock. It is labeled 'Salt Condi- ment' and is said by physicians to possess excellent tonic and curative properties for those dyspeptically inclined. The original In- dian name of the creek and canon was 'Shes- tuc.' Later the Spanish settlers named the

stream 'Aguaje,' which means a 'watering place for cattle.' \ portion of the creek, out in the valley and between San Jose and Mil- pitas became known in Mission days as 'Pene- tencia Creek' from the fact that the pious pad- res of Santa Clara Mission and the Mission of San Jose were wont to make penitential pilgrimages at stated seasons, to a grove of oaks which bordered the stream at that point and the name 'Penetencia' came thuis to be er- roneously applied by the early American oc- cupants to the entire stream. The lands oc- cupied by the park were also formerly known as 'The City Reservation,' but the appella- tion, 'Alum Rock,' has supplanted these early names and become the fixed and official desig- nation of the park, creek and canon.

"Nature has arranged the topography of the park in three divisions, each possessing its own scenic attractions and each adapted to a particular use. The first of these embraces that portion of its area lying below Alum Rock and extending to the mouth of the can- yon. This, by virtue of its level spaces and the picturesque meandering of its rivulet forms the ample and natural camping grounds of the park. Here gather annually an increas- ing number of lovers of outdoor life to pitch their tents beneath the shady oaks and syca- mores along the winding stream; to enjoy the perfect climate of the park and to drink and bathe in its healthful and refreshing waters. The three chief natural features of this por- tion of the park are Eagle Rock, the Meteor and Inspiration Point. Eagle Rock is that bold and lofty escarpment which rises abruptly many hundred feet above the level floor of the park and forms a portion of its northern boundary. For many years successive fami- lies of eagles made their home among its crags and could be seen daily sweeping their majestic circles above Eagle Rock. From this lofty outlook thirty cities, towns and villages encircling the Bay of San Francisco and dot- ting the Santa Clara Valley may, upon any clear day, be discerned. Another natural curiosity of this park is the meteor. This immense black boulder of manganese stands half buried in the hillside a short way above the entrance to the park. Tradition will have it that this is a real aerolite which fell to earth within remembered time, but science in- sists that tradition is wrong in this regard and the oldest inhabitant declares that the meteor has been there from his earliest recol- lection. Which ever is right there can be no doubt that the meteor is a most interesting natural curiosity, which every visitor to the park should see.

"Overlooking this portion of the park also rises the wooded height which. aptly bears the name of 'Inspiration Point.' From the

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kiosk upon its summit the whole central por- tion of the park is visible and the view of its varied beauty and of the bay and the val- ley beyond, is indeed grand and inspiring. A byway which winds in and out among the oaks of the southern hillside leads to this ele- vation and the lover of nature who follows it to the summit will be fully repaid.

"The next and most important section of the park is that lying above Alum Rock and up to and including the baths and de- veloped springs. The chief improvements of the park in the way of buildings, lawns, lake, driveways, deer paddocks, restaurant, gardens, bath houses and other facilities for the con- servation and use of the mineral waters, are within this area, the cultivated portion of which contains about twenty-five acres. Here are the aviaries, where all sorts of birds, from the stately peacock to the pretty California canary, furnish endless enjoyment to children. Here also are the deer paddocks, where several spe- cies of these shy and graceful creatures may be seen. Across the way a big, ample and comfortable den in the mountain side is the home of a great, good-natured brown bear, while from the nooks of an enclosed sycamore some large gray squirrels and a family of chip- munks peer and chatter at whoever will offer them nuts to crack or hide for their winter store. A vine-embowered restaurant, with its wide and shaded porches invites to refresh- ment; and yonder the children's playground with all its accessories, and the dancing pa- vilion, resound through all the summer, with merry laughter and the rhythm of dancing feet. There are no 'keep off the grass' signs upon the lawns of Alum Rock Park and the one request which the commissioners make of the public is that they will pluck no flowers.

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History of Santa Clara County California with biographical sketches, Part 36

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