USA > California > Sonoma County > History of Sonoma 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 time > Part 105
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The parental family included seven children, and of them we make the following mention : Daniel Reed ,Harbine is a blacksmith in Sterling, Butte county, Cal .; J. L., a fruit-grower at Occidental, married Alice Clarke, of Forest- ville, the daughter of W. S. Clarke, and they have two daughters, Florence and Jessie; N. W., a rancher at Klamath Falls, Ore., married Nettie Pitkin, of Forestville, and they also have two daughters, Edna and Ella; Hardy R. is the next in order of birth; Anna is the wife of A. L. Raffetty, of Ukiah, Mendocino county, and they have three children, Keene, Vera and Una; Hetty lives with her brother on the home ranch: Ella married H. W. Scott, and at her death in 1879 left one daughter, Edna, who was reared by her grandmother, Mrs. Hardy. Four of the children in the parental family, J. L., Anna, Daniel and Ella, were born in Keokuk, Iowa, while the others, N. W., H. R. and Hetty, were born in Sonoma county.
Hardy R. Harbine was married in 1894 to Miss Eugenia Remistedt, a native of California, and five children have blessed this marriage. Named in
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the order of their birth the children are as follows: Ollie E., Eugenia Myrtle. Elwin H., Ruth and Hazel. Politically Mr. Harbine is a Republican, and fra- ternally belongs to the Odd Fellows lodge at Forestville and also to the en- campment.
JOHN HANSEN.
Various business undertakings in as many different locations preceded Mr. Hansen's coming to Sebastopol in 1903, all of which have contributed directly or indirectly to the business in which he is now engaged, dealing in real-estate under the firm name of Hansen & Caya. While they do a general real-estate business, transacting 'any business that might be included under that heading, still it is in the sale of ranch property that their greatest successes have been made, their sales of this nature alone during the season of 1909 being con- servatively estimated at forty-seven.
Mr. Hansen's earliest recollections are of a home in Dodge county, Neb., where, near Fremont, he was born November 11, 1863, into the home of his parents, Lars and Laura Hansen. The father had settled in that state when it was a wilderness, and upon land which he had taken up undertook the diffi- cult task of clearing the land of underbrush and otherwise preparing it for cultivation. As soon as his young strength would permit of it his son John was called upon to take a share in the duties of the farm, and though the tasks may have been irksome at times, still in the main he performed his duties willingly and in their performance was gaining a knowledge of agriculture which has stood him in good stead throughout his life. It was with the knowledge gained under the direction of his father on the Nebraska farm that he started out in the world for himself in early young manhood, his first efforts being in western Nebraska, where he engaged in the cattle business for three years. Encouraged by his success in his first independent undertaking, he ventured further west, going across the mountains into Wyoming, where, in Cheyenne, he conducted a restaurant with equal success for three years. His next change of location brought him to California in 1893, and the same year he located in Stockton, where he conducted a furniture business for five years. At the expiration of this time he came to Sonoma county, in 1898, going first to Santa Rosa, where for five years he filled a position as state manager of the Chicago Art Company. The year 1903 witnessed Mr. Hansen's arrival in Sebastopol, where he estab- lished the first furniture store in town, maintaining it with increasing success for four years or until 1907, when he disposed of his business and formed a partnership with P. T. Caya for the purpose of carrying on a general real- estate business in the town and vicinity. The firm of Hansen & Caya have every reason to congratulate themselves on their success during the compara- tively short period that they have been in business, for they have received a large share of the real-estate business transacted in this part of Sonoma county. The sale of ranches alone for the year 1909 numbered forty-seven, a record not equalled by any other firm or individual in the town.
While a resident of Nebraska. November 25, 1883, Mr. Hansen was united in marriage with Miss Christine Nelson, a native of Denmark. Two children have been born of this marriage, Sadie M., the wife of L. P. Mapes, and Nellie
-
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May, who is still at home with her parents. In his early manhood Mr. Hansen decided that the Democratic party upheld the principles which he believed were best for the good of the nation, and ever since casting his first vote he has sup- ported the candidates of this party. Although he has been active in party ranks, his activity has not been in the nature of self-seeking, but rather for the larger good of the party, as he has no taste for nor desire to hold public office. Fraternally he is well known, being an active and enthusiastic member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Modern Woodmen of Amer- ica, in the latter of which he was district deputy for two years.
JOHN MARSHALL GUTERMUTE.
A series of removals, cach of which brought him a little nearer to the Pacific coast, eventually made Mr. Gutermute a resident of Sonoma county, where since about the year 1886 he has been identified with general affairs and various commercial enterprises. Pennsylvania is his native commonwealth and he was born in Beaver county on the 22d of February, 1864. being a son of the late John Casper Gutermute, a Pennsylvanian by birth and a German by ancestry. The father, who was born in 1838, removed to Parkersburg, W. Va., during the early life of the son and there he spent the remaining years of his existence, passing away at the age of sixty-two years. His wife, who like him- self was a native of Pennsylvania, was born in 1845 and married a second time, coming to California with members of the family and settling in Sonoma county in 1886. Prior thereto a brief sojourn had been made in Missouri, so that the sons and daughters had the advantages to be derived by experiences in various sections of the country. The family comprised seven members, namely: David, John Marshall, Henry, Mary, Anna, Adaline and Clara. Of these the first- named son married Eva Tregal and has four children. Frank, Earl, Helen and Grace. The youngest son, Henry, married Linda Derby and has four children. Adaline, Mrs. John Foster, is the mother of four children, Walter, Charles, Ella and Dollie. Clara is the wife of Stephen Foster and the mother of four children, John, David, Hill and Henry.
Educated in country schools and trained to habits of thrift and useful activity, Mr. Gutermute has proved an intelligent and resourceful citizen, devoted to the welfare of the community and helpful in progressive enterprises. June 26, 1895, he was united in marriage with Miss Etta S. Miller. Three children blessed their union, Carlisle Smith, Stella Genevieve and John Marshall, Jr. Throughout the vicinity of Petaluma Mrs. Gutermute is well known and highly honored. Not only is her financial standing high, but she is deeply interested in educational advancement and in the moral upbuilding of the locality. Gentle yet firm, modest yet the possessor of intelligent opinions, she is a member of that increasing class of modern women who are not only economical house- keepers but also capable citizens.
Carlisle S. Miller, father of Mrs. Gutermute, was born in Pennsylvania February 16, 1828, being of New York state parentage. In those days educa- tional opportunities were meager, hence his time was spent on the farm rather than in the schoolroom and in addition he acquired a knowledge of the black-
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smith's trade. During the year 1847 he crossed the plains to Oregon, with a party of sharpshooters, for service on the frontier against the Indians. After numerous escapes from massacre by the Indians the party finally reached Oregon. When gold was discovered in California Mr. Miller turned his steps toward this state, settling in Sonoma county in 1850 and becoming one of the very earliest settlers of this region, where for years he was an honored citizen and successful rancher. The last thirty-seven years of his life were passed on his ranch one mile east of Petaluma, where his death occurred. By his marriage to Sarah E. Fearly, a native of Ireland, he has seven children, Charles, John, George C .. Hugh W., Rosanna, Lizzie J. and Etta Sarah, Mrs. Guter- mute. The first-named son married Mattie Benson and had two daughters, one of whom is deceased. John has been married three times, but has no children. George, who married Clara Woods, also has no children. Hugh W. married Mary Watson and is the father of two children, Carlisle S. and Ellen W. Rosanna, Mrs. David J. Shiek, has a daughter, Ethel. Lizzie J., Mrs. George Waters, became the mother of four daughters. Lillie, Avis, Myrtle, and Lizzie L., the latter now deceased. In politics Mr. Gutermute has voted with the Republican party ever since he attained his majority, while fraternally he is identified with the local lodges of Woodmen and Knights of Pythias. Besides owning $30,000 worth of property in Petaluma and outside estates, Mrs. Guter- mute has the title to a quarter section in Sonoma county, where a large acre- age of meadow furnishes valuable crops of hay for the stock kept on the ranch and a well-kept orchard affords to the family fruits of several varieties during the season. Movements for the general welfare receive the stanch support of the family and their position is among the public-spirited and progressive citizens of the county.
MARCELIN GAYE.
The cultivation of grapes, which from time immemorial has engaged the attention of a large proportion of the population of the world, and which at one time was one of the chief resources of California, is still extensively carried on in Sonoma county, and those who follow this branch of agriculture find it a remunerative as well as pleasant occupation. Among the most successful grape growers in the vicinity of Sebastopol is Marcelin Gaye, who owns a ranch whose location is particularly advantageous for the proper cultivation of this luscious fruit. He has given a great deal of attention to the scientific side of grape cul- ture, and that his efforts along this line have been of the practical and useful kind is strikingly apparent from his universally large yield, which averages one hundred and twenty-five tons a year.
That Mr. Gaye takes so kindly to grape culture and is so successful in fol- lowing it is not surprising when it is known that he comes of a race renowned for their understanding and appreciation of the grape. In a home nestled among the vine-clad mountain slopes of southern France Mr. Gaye was born August 22, 1849, the son of parents who never left their picturesque surroundings for a home in newer and untried lands. Marcelin Gaye remained in the locality of his birth throughout boyhood, youth and young manhood, in the meantime preparing himself for the business world by learning the baker's trade first, and
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later by learning the wine-maker's trade. It was with a working knowledge of both that he came to the United States in 1875, when he was twenty-six years old, coming direct from the eastern metropolis, at which he landed on these shores, to California. The same year, 1875, found him in San Francisco, where he readily found employment at the baker's trade, which he followed in that city for twenty-two years. It was at the end of this long and successful experience as an expert baker that he gave up the business and came to Sonoma county and put to practice his knowledge of the grape industry. Coming to Sebastopol in 1894 he purchased fifty acres of vineyard land on a hill one mile north of town, and here he has been engaged ever since in raising grapes and manufactur- ing them into wine. The Valley View winerv, as his ranch is known, is truly named, being located on a hill, than which no better location could be found in the county. It is a fact well known to vineyardists that the grape sugars bet- ter when grown high and dry on hillsides than on low or level land, and this feature is undoubtedly one of the reasons of Mr. Gaye's remarkable success During the season of 1909 he manufactured fifteen thousand gallons of wine, both red and white, a statement which will give the reader some idea of the enormous business maintained by the Valley View winery. The Valley View brand of wine is well known and in great demand throughout all parts of the country, being sold from the ranch in wholesale quantities only, in casks and barrels.
In San Francisco. in 1870. Mr. Gaye was united in marriage with Miss May Dustin, also a native of France, and four children have been born to them, Albert, Adel, Liza and Lawrence.
MICHAEL EDWARD CUMMINGS.
One of the best-known residents of Sonoma county is Michael E. Cum- mings, who with his partner, S. B. Lewis, is maintaining one of the most thor- oughly up-to-date meat-markets in Sonoma. Every department of the business is under the immediate supervision of the proprietors, from the slaughtering of the cattle to the sale of the meat in the retail store, and their customers are thus assured of the best that is possible to be obtained in their line.
A native son of the state, Michael E. Cummings was born in Haywards, Alameda county, November 17, 1874, the son of Michael and Catherine ( Nealon ) Cummings, both natives of Ireland, and both of whom are now deceased, the father dying in 1903 and the mother in 1904, the death of both occurring in Santa Rosa. Four children besides our subject were born to this couple, three sons and a daughter, the latter a resident of Santa Rosa; one son died in Santa Rosa, one son still lives in that city, while the other son is a resident of Willits. Mr. Cummings has no personal knowledge of his birthplace, for when he was one year old his parents removed from Haywards to Santa Rosa and there and in Sonoma he received his education, first attending the Ursuline Academy and public schools, and later taking a business course in Morrison's Business College, Santa Rosa. Following this, when he was about twenty years of age, he began his business career as office-boy in the office of T. J. Ludwig, a contractor in Santa Rosa, remaining with this employer until 1891. For the following five years he was associated with the firm of Noonan &
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Towey, butchers, of the same place, after which he went to San Francisco and continued his interest in this same business with Hammond & Bros., continuing with them for four years as foreman. In 1900 he returned to Santa Rosa and for four years was associated with his old employers, after which, in 1904, he came to Sonoma and with S. B. Lewis engaged in the business of which they are now the proprietors. No better equipped or more up-to-date plant of this character can be found in this part of the county than that of which they are the owners. To supply their large trade they slaughter from ten to fifteen beeves a week, in addition to smaller stock, all of which is placed in the excel- lent cold-storage quarters with which the plant is equipped.
Ever since taking up his residence in Sonoma Mr. Cummings has been an earnest worker in behalf of his home city and that his efforts have been appre- ciated and put to good account by his fellow-citizens. was demonstrated in April, 1910. by his election as president of the board of city trustees, for a term of four years. His popularity was recognized in the fact that he polled the largest majority of votes of any of the candidates. Politically he is a Demo- crat, and fraternally he is a member of Lodge No. 646, B. P. O. E., of Santa Rosa, and also the Knights of Columbus and the Native Sons of the Golden West, joining the latter in Santa Rosa in 1904. Mr. Cummings is exceedingly fond of fine horse flesh, and possesses a fine specimen in Mike C., sired by Sidney Dillon, a famous pacer that won the records in the July 4, 1910, races at Sonoma, his records on this occasion being 2:141/2 and 2:15. At the San Fran- cisco stadium he won a cup in the 2:15 race. Little less proud than the owner on these days was the driver, Joe Ryan, of Sonoma. Since Mr. Cummings has been mayor of Sonoma the council have inaugurated various improvements, among which may be mentioned the installation of a city rock crusher and the sewer system, besides which a donation for a Carnegie library has been secured.
JOHN BLANK.
A more harmonious or satisfactory association can hardly be conceived than that of John Blank and three of his sons, William, Louis and George, whose combined efforts have evolved one of the most remunerative as well as one of the most picturesque ranches in Sonoma county. John Blank, the owner of this fine property, comes of a long line of German ancestors, and he himself was born in the Fatherland, his birth occurring in Marburg, Hesse- Nassau, November 10, 1848.' Reared in an agricultural community. he under- took farming on his own account when he reached years of maturity, and it was with a practical experience of some years on a farm of fifty aeres in the Father- land that he came to the United States in 1878. Before leaving his native land he had formed clear-cut ideas as to his place of location, and instead of linger- ing in the east, where he landed from the ocean vessel, he came at once to California and direct to Sonoma county. It was his intention to engage in general farming as soon as he had become somewhat familiar with American methods of farming, and for this purpose he worked as a farm hand for a number of years. His first experience was in Penn Grove, where he was engaged in baling hay. and subsequently he was employed on the McDowell ranch at Cotati. It was with this recently acquired knowledge at his command that he undertook ranching on his own account as a renter on the Leavern
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ranch at Penn Grove, the property comprising one hundred and ninety acres. Here he began wheat-raising with a will, and the result of his first year's ef- forts amounted to seven hundred sacks of grain. In addition to that property he also rented forty acres near Penn Grove, retaining this for two years, and after he had accumulated $800 he came to the Bloomfield section and pur- chased eighty acres of land upon which he made a specialty of raising potatoes and grain.
As his means would permit Mr. Blank provided himself with the farming machinery essential to a well-managed ranch, one of these acquisitions being a hay-press. As he was the only person in the locality owning one of these necessary farm implements he was in constant demand among ranchers in the vicinity to bale their hay, one season baling thirteen hundred tons, which he considered a large season's work in addition to the management of his own ranch. This record was more than doubled, however, when, in 1893, he baled over three thousand tons of hay. From Penn Grove he came to the Bloom- field section in 1884 and purchased the ranch of eighty acres previously men- tioned, and upon which he now resides. In addition to this he has since purchased two hundred and twenty acres of adjoining land, and now owns altogether three hundred acres of fine land, in fact, its exceptional location on a hill makes it one of the choicest ranches in the county. Here may be ob- tained an unbroken view of the entire valley, rich in verdure and dotted with the homes of contented ranchers. Of this home ranch twenty-four acres are in vineyard, which yields on an average of one ton to the acre, twelve acres are in orchard, the fruit from which he dries before shipping, also twenty-five acres of young orchard not in bearing, besides which he raises potatoes extensively, his yield for the year 1909 amounting to eight thousand sacks. In addition to the various crops mentioned he also raises large quantities of hay and grain, besides berries of all kinds, three acres being devoted to strawberries alone. In the care of this immense undertaking Mr. Blank has the efficient help and co-operation of three of his sons, William, Louis and George, all of whom are experienced ranchers.
In Germany Mr. Blank was united in marriage with Miss Elizabeth Kamm, and four children, all sons, were born of their marriage. The eldest, George M., married Miss Huber, and resides on the ranch. John married Miss Ann Becker. Louis married Miss Eve Becker. The youngest son, William, in ad- dition to receiving a good grammar school education is a graduate of the Santa Rosa Business College, and is now associated with his father and two brothers in the maintenance of the ranches. Wherever Mr. Blank has chanced to make his home he has entered heartily into the activities of the locality, and during his residence in Penn Grove he gave efficient service as road overseer for a con- siderable period.
JOHN HENRY ANDREWS.
A native of Ohio. John Henry Andrews was born in New Philadelphia, Tuscarawas county, May 8, 1853, the son of Henry Wadsworth and Julia (Kidder) Andrews, the former born in Portage county September 1, 1826, and the latter in Medina county September 28, 1833. The father, who was a sheet metal worker. in 1858 removed with his family to Akron, Ohio, where he
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died in 1869, his wife having passed away in 1864. Of their four children our subject is the only one living and after completing the common schools was apprenticed at the sheet-metal worker's trade in Wadsworth, Ohio, for three years, and after completing his trade he returned to Akron, entering the employ of Cramer & May, later the successors, May & Fieberger, continuing with them for fifteen years and for twelve years of this time was foreman.
In 1890 Mr. Andrews located in Denver, Colo., where he followed con- tracting in his line until 1894. when he located in Petaluma and became fore- man for L. L. Cory, remaining there four years, and then became foreman for the Petaluma Incubator Company, which position he held until 1904. After resigning that position he engaged in manufacturing and established his present sheet-metal and cornice works, being the most extensive contractor in his line in Petaluma. Among the buildings he has completed in his line are the Upham street school house, Gross building, the three McNear buildings, Swiss-Amer- ican Bank and many others. He has completed many of the buildings in Santa Rosa, Healdsburg, Ukiah, San Rafael, San Jose and San Francisco.
Mr. Andrews was married, in Akron. Ohio, to Miss Lillie Margins, a native of that city. Fraternally he is a member of the Elks and the Woodmen of the World, while in politics he is an ardent Republican.
WILLIAM DAVID BASSETT.
A few miles out from Petaluma on Rural Route No. 4 may be seen the flourishing ranch property of which William D. Bassett is the proud owner. A visitor here, glancing over the one hundred acre ranch, with its substantial im- provements and comfortable residence, feels a thrill of admiration for the man whose ability, unaided by friends, influence or capital, has brought about such results as are here visible. While the ranch is not the largest that one may see in this locality, still it would be hard to find one laid out more advantageously or one whose income per acre exceeded the one of which Mr. Bassett is the owner.
Of foreign birth and parentage, William D. Bassett was born near Cardiff. Glamorganshire, Wales, September 9, 1872, the third in order of birth among the six children born to his parents, Daniel and Mary (Evans) Bassett, the former born in 1840 and the latter in 1841. William D. and his brother Thomas were the only sons in the family, the daughters being, Elizabeth, Margaret, Jane and Katie. The eldest daughter, Elizabeth, became the wife of Thomas Day and is the mother of four children. Margaret is the wife of David Thomas and the mother of four children also. All of the children were reared to lives of usefulness by their faithful, God-fearing parents, and on the home farm one and all contributed in some way toward the common good. William D. gave his services to his father until he had attained his majority, and the year 1893 found him setting sail for the United States, his chief assets, in addition to a sturdy frame and stout heart, being a practical knowledge of farming and mill- ing. The ocean voyage completed in safety, as soon as he debarked at the port of New York he secured transportation to the Pacific coast, and in October of the same year in which he left his boyhood home he landed in Marin county.
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His knowledge of farming as conducted in his own country stood him in good stead, and by applying its principles to conditions which he here found he was able to make a success of his efforts from the first. The ranch upon which he located in that county was well adapted to dairying and poultry rais- ing, and it was therefore along these two lines that he confined his efforts until coming to the vicinity of Petaluma in 1904. Here he has one hundred acres of' choice land, of which four acres are in orchard, set out almost exclusively to apples. A small dairy of twelve Jersey cows is also maintained, besides which pasturage is given to three head of heavy draft horses. The crowning effort is undoubtedly the poultry industry in which the owner takes a just pride, and whereas he now has a flock of three thousand White Leghorn chick- ens, it is his purpose to increase this branch of his ranch enterprise from time to time as he is able, for he is convinced that it is the most profitable line of agriculture in which one can engage in this section of country. Five acres of gum trees add to the beauty of the ranch, which taken as a whole is one of the finest and most productive in the entire country round about. His farm is located about two miles northwest of Two Rock church and only one mile north of the celebrated Two Rocks, from which the valley receives its name.
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