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 60
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In civil cases her aim has ever been to effect a settlement between the parties without the expense, strain and enmities usually accompanying a suit at law. In the settlement of differences between the parties she has ever been success- ful. ever bearing in mind the advice given her by a man well known and eminent in the United States and elsewhere, while she was engaged in the study of law. He said: "Settle whenever you can. 1 consider that person the best lawyer who has the greatest number of cases, but who takes the fewest into court." Not a little of Mrs. Martin's success in both professions has been due to her pleasing personality, as well as broad humanitarian spirit which enables her to enter into the problems of those with whom she is brought in contact.
REUBEN HILEMAN SHAFFER.
A man of unlimited enterprise, practical and progressive, Reuben H. Shaf- fer, of Santa Rosa, has led an active life, with numerous and varied interests. Not unlike a large majority of the best citizens of this community he came hither after a long and valuable experience in states to the east, and although comparatively a newcomer to this locality, the large business interests which he has gathered about him in a few short years is indicative of the push and per- severance which are among his most marked characteristics.
Pennsylvania had been the home of the Shaffer family for a number of generations, and in Blair county, that state, Reuben H. was born January 15. 1850, his parents also being natives and life-time residents of that eastern state. Until he was fifteen years of age Reuben H. Shaffer seemed comparatively con- tent with the surroundings of his birthplace, but a change of ideas at this time was destined to change the whole of his after life. Filled with the spirit of the west, he set out from Pittsburg, Pa., in 1865, going first to Chicago, and later to Davenport, lowa, finally reaching the Mississippi river, where for two years he was employed as raftman on boats plying the river. Following this he worked as a farm hand for a short time, after which he went to Missouri. and for two years found employment in and around Kansas City, Mo. Every change of location found him a little further toward the west, his next move taking him across the state of Missouri, and just over the line, in southeastern Kansas, he took up a government claim of one hundred and sixty acres. After holding this property for six years he disposed of it and returned to Kansas City, where, having formed domestic ties in the meantime, he made his home for seven years, during which time he was variously employed. While there he also served his community as street commissioner two terms, and during this time the first street in the city was paved. His next westward move took him to Nebraska, where he took up a homestead claim one hundred miles west of Omaha, and for the following twenty-six years he continued to cultivate and improve the land. It was at the end of this time that he disposed of his in- terests in Nebraska and came to California, in 1903, and the following year he embarked in the business which engages his attention today, handling fuel and feed, and in connection with this he also conducts a grocery business. - Much of the practical work connected with the maintenance of this undertaking is assumed by his son and namesake, who is associated in partnership with hin.
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This makes it possible for Mr. Shaffer to give more time and attention to the care of his ranch, one of the fine properties in the vicinity of Santa Rosa, and formerly the property of ex-Senator Barham. The ranch comprises fifteen acres of rich land, admirably located just outside the corporate limits of Santa Rosa, and here may be seen one of the representative ranches for which So- noma county is noted. Eleven acres are in prunes and pears, and as the ranch is equipped with a drier, it is possible to dry and pack the fruit for shipment under the immediate direction of Mr. Shaffer, and all the fruit that bears his trademark is known to be of the highest grade possible to obtain. During the season of 1909 he dried, packed and shipped twelve tons of prunes, which brought $700, and $50 for pears, and the season of 1910 produced $1,200 worth of fruit. He has refused an offer of $1,000 an acre for his property, thus prov- ing that he is satisfied with his choice of a home, and indeed it may safely be said that there is no one in the community who is more enthusiastic about its possibilities than is he. In retrospect he compares his present condition with the experiences which he passed through as a pioneer settler in Nebraska, where he lived in a dug-out until a better shelter could be provided.
Reference has previously been made to Mr. Shaffer's marriage. This oc- curred in 1872 and united him with Miss Emily M. Davis, a native of Michigan. Eleven children were born to them, but at the present time only nine are liv- ing. One of these, William Shaffer, is engaged in the poultry business in Santa Rosa. His marriage united him with Miss Alice Harris, a native of New Hamp- shire, and two children have been born to them. Another son, Reuben H., Jr .. is his father's partner in the feed and grocery business in Santa Rosa. As indicative of the character of man Mr. Shaffer is, it may be said that wherever he has made his home he has entered into the building of the community with zest. and there is no place in which he has lived that does not bear testimony to this. During the long period of his residence in Nebraska he served as a member of the school board, and at one time was a candidate for the office of sheriff, and after a tie vote he drew cuts with his opponent and lost. Fraternally Mr. Shaffer is identified with the Masonic order, the Modern Woodmen and the American Order of Protection. In the best sense of that well-worn phrase, he is a self-made man, and all who are brought in contact with him, either in a business or social way, admire him for his many fine traits of character.
JOHN THOMAS DIXON.
It speaks well for a state or county when those who have visited other parts of the country, select a certain locality as the one of all others in which to live in contentment and quiet, and at the same time make a comfortable living. This has been Mr. Dixon's experience, and he has good reason to thank kind Fortune for leading his footsteps to this garden spot of the west, as he considers Sonoma county.
The son of Michael and Martha (Hale) Dixon, natives of Tennessee and Missouri respectively, John T. Dixon was born in Dallas county, Mo., March 30, 1855. During his boyhood the home of the family was transferred to Boone county, same state, and in both of these localities he attended school and made
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the best possible use of the advantages which they offered. With the experience and knowledge of twenty years as his chief asset he started out in the world to make his own way, coming at that time to California and settling in Napa county. Altogether he continued in that part of the state for about thirteen years, working as a farm hand on ranches until he felt competent to undertake responsibilities on his own account. It was with the knowledge and experience of several years as a rancher that he came to Sonoma county in 1888, after which he was em- ployed in vineyards for a number of years thus adding a knowledge of this special branch of agriculture to his other acquirements. In 1902 he purchased the ranch of thirty-seven acres near Fulton which has been his home ever since, and here in the meantime he has practically demonstrated his knowledge and understanding of the cultivation of the vine. From year to year his income has marked an increase in the volume of business transacted, and during the year 1909 the sales from his vines amounted to $1,000.
By his marriage in 1877 Mr. Dixon was united to a native daughter of California in Miss Ida Gardener, and three children were born to them. The eldest of these children is May, a resident of San Mateo county, and the wife of George Ross. Charles Wilton is engaged in the stock business in Washoe county, Nev. Jessie N. is a resident of Marin county, Cal. The mother of these children passed away in 1894, and three years later, in 1897, Mr. Dixon was united in marriage with his present wife, formerly Mrs. Lottie Crigler. The only child of this marriage is John Orton, who was born in 1898 and is now attending the public school at Fulton. Mrs. Dixon is a native daughter of Cali- fornia and has passed her entire life in the state. On national questions Mr. Dixon votes the Republican ticket, but in local matters he varies his vote accord- ing to the qualifications of the candidate. He has held a number of offices with- in the gift of his fellow-citizens, having held the office of school trustee for three years and for the past three years has been clerk of the school board. Progres- sive and public-spirited, Mr. Dixon is one whose residence in Sonoma county has been of distinct advantage to state and county, and no project that would advance the welfare of either has failed to receive his support and encouragement.
SAMUEL HUTCHINSON.
For forty years and more Mr. Hutchinson was associated with business and agricultural enterprises in California, nearly a quarter of a century of this time being passed in Santa Rosa, and when death suddenly terminated his useful career there was a general expression of regret concerning the loss of one so loyal to city, county and state, so devoted to their progress, and so interested in beneficial movements, as was this public-spirited citizen. Al- though he always cherished with affection the memory of his childhood home across the seas, he never regretted that destiny had led him to America, and especially was he interested in the growth of California, which he believed to be the garden-spot of the entire country, and on this subject he was a capable judge, for he had been an extensive traveler.
The birth of Samuel Hutchinson occurred in County Armagh, Ireland, in September, 1827, and his education was received primarily in the grammar
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schools of his native locality. During youth and early young manhood he was variously employed in the vicinity of his birth, but a growing dissatisfaction with the prospects, or rather lack of prospects, in his own country was the means of his immigration to America. From the metropolis in which he landed on these shores he made his way to the middle west soon afterward, going to Illinois and Wisconsin, in both of which states he remained for a time before coming to the far west. However, having come this near to the eldorado which was attracting so many thousands of men he was induced to complete the journey from ocean to ocean, and the year 1854 witnessed his removal to California with ox-teams. Instead of interesting himself in the mines, in which he had invested and lost a large amount of money, he engaged in the butcher business in the vicinity of the mines. The thought was well conceived and the business was maintained with profit for a time, proving a stepping- stone to the stock and farming business in which he later engaged and which he followed extensively throughout the remainder of his life. Purchasing a section of land in Sutter county, in the vicinity of the mines where he had engaged in the stock business, he stocked the land with cattle and engaged in cattle raising and farming with splendid success for many years, or until coming to Santa Rosa in 1871. This fine ranch in Sutter county, purchased over half a century ago, is still in the possession of the family and the source of a goodly income. Eight miles from Santa Rosa Mr. Hutchinson purchased one of the largest tracts of land in the possession of one individual in this section of the country and entered upon farming and the raising of stock on an extensive scale. Of the thirty-six hundred and fifty acres which he pur- chased, fifty acres were devoted to the raising of hops, and the balance used for farming and stock and cattle raising. He also developed the Annadel quarry on this land. This quarry is one of the best in the state, producing large quantities of basalt blocks. During the lifetime of Mr. Hutchinson the farming and cattle-raising enterprise grew from year to year; and after his demise was ably carried on by his eldest son for many years. Recently, how- ever, the latter has leased the property to tenants. In later years the dairy business has grown to large proportions, and recently the manufacture of American-Swiss cheese has been made a large industry, a model, up-to-date factory having been installed on the ranch. During the winter of 1862 Mr. Hutchinson lost all of his cattle in the flood of the Feather river. In his endeavor to save his cattle he seriously impaired his health, being paralyzed in his right side at that time, and thereafter he had no use of his right limhs.
After coming to California, in 1855, Mr. Hutchinson formed domestic ties by his marraige with Miss Elizabeth Johnson, one of his countrywomen, who was born in County Armagh and who came to America and crossed the plains to California in 1854, the same year in which he came to the west. All of the children born of this marriage are natives of Sutter county, and are named in the order of their birth as follows: Annie, the wife of Dr. O. F. Ottmer, of Eureka, Humboldt county; Thomas J .; Rachel; Mary; Samuel; and Charlotte, who became the wife of Robert Skinner, but is now deceased. Throughout his life Mr. Hutchinson was a member and communicant of the Episcopal Church and after coming to Santa Rosa identified himself with the church of this de- nomination in this city, his wife also being a member of this organization.
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Fraternally he was a Mason, being an active and interested member of the organization. He died in Santa Rosa June 1, 1894, and the funeral was con- ducted under the auspices of the lodge of which he was a member. If Mr. Hutchinson had a hobby it was for recreation in travel, and he indulgedl his taste in this direction quite frequently. On one occasion he went to Australia, twice returned for a visit to his native land, and made many trips to Illinois, his entire family accompanying him on one of the latter journeys.
The eldest son of the family, Thomas J. Hutchinson, was born in Sutter county June 23, 1861. As soon as he became old enough he was an invaluable assistant to his father in the care of the ranch in Sutter county, besides which for two years he maintained a stock-raising enterprise of his own in Arizona. After the death of the father he took charge of the ranch in Sonoma county. following the policy which the latter had mapped out, and in so doing has met with splendid success. He has recently rented the ranch to tenants and re- tired from active business cares. Not unlike many other residents of Santa Rosa. Mr. Hutchinson suffered a loss in the visitation of the earthquake in the spring of 1906. He was a director and stockholder in the old Atheneum theatre on Fourth street that was then destroyed, this being one of the largest buildings in the town. He is proud of his citizenship in one of California's thriving business towns, and also proud to be eligible to the Native Sons of the Golden West, in which he is a welcome member, as he is also of the Masonic order, with which his name is identified.
JOHN J. BONNIKSEN.
The possibilities of the west have attracted hither young men from almost every part of the world. Among other countries, Germany has given up some of its best youths to aid in the making of the western empire, and in the list of young Germans who have found homes in California mention belongs to John J. Bonniksen, a well-known poultry raiser of Sonoma county and the builder-up of a comfortable fortune through his unwearied labors since coming to this lo- cality.
Born in Schleswig, Germany, March 23, 1866, John J. Bonniksen is a son of B. and Anna D. (Matthieson) Bonniksen, both of whom were natives of Denmark, born respectively in 1822 and 1825. The entire married life of the parents was passed in the Fatherland, where the father followed farming as a means of support for his family. A large family of thirteen children, six sons and seven daughters, constituted the family circle, named as follows: Peter. Hans, Amos, John J., Nicholi, Bonnik, Maria, Sicilia, Metta, Anna, Catherine, Ingeborg and Christina. With the exception of Hans, Amos, Nicholi and Inge- borg, who are residents of Humboldt county, and John J .. the subject of this sketch, the children are all residents of the Fatherland.
John J. Bonniksen had attained his twenty-third year, when, in 1889. he set sail for the United States, and having reached our shores in safety, came direct to California. He was attracted to Humboldt county owing to the fact that several of his brothers had preceded him to this country and were located in that part of the state. He therefore went direct to Ferndale, Humboldt county. where he followed the dairy business and also conducted a cigar store. All of
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this was destined to be short-lived, however, and but a stepping stone to the better opening which he found awaiting him in Sonoma county. His identi- fication with this part of the state dates from the year 1906, when he located upon the property which he now leases, which is adjacent to both Two Rock and Petaluma, the latter, however, being his postoffice. Here he has under lease four hundred acres of land devoted to dairying and the chicken industry. Sixty head of cows of high grade supply his dairy, besides which he has seven head of fine horses which he is raising for sale. While Mr. Bonniksen is very suc- cessful as a dairyman it is as a raiser of chickens that he is even more success- ful, and it is in this industry that he has become an authority throughout this section of Sonoma county. Here he has a flock of three thousand White Leg- horn chickens, from which, during the season of 1909, his income was $1.50 each for the year.
Mr. Bonniksen chose as his wife Miss Augusta Jeshonik, who was born in Germany in 1867, and one child, Bernard Bruce, has been born of their marriage. With his wife Mr. Bonniksen is a member of the Lutheran Church of Petaluma.
GEORGE A. HALL.
The initial period of American development witnessed the immigration of the Hall family to this country and their settlement along the rock-bound coast of New England, where several successive generations followed seafaring lives. ' Far from their native shores they sailed in their own crafts and at the end of the fishing seasons they returned with their vessels heavily laden with the re- sults of their toil in the midst of danger and hardship. Their lives of peril de- veloped within them traits of self-reliance. While they were out at sea far more than on land, they cxhibited the most ardent loyalty to the country under whose flag they sailed and in the early wars they proved their patriotic spirit by their service in the army and the navy.
Nowhere along the coast of Maine is the shore more deeply indented by bays or rendered more perilous for vessels by the presence of thousands of tiny islands, than along that portion occupied by the county of Knox and there it was that the Hall family made their home, their ocean-going ships returning from fishing expeditions and making their tortuous way through the narrow straits into the harbor of South Thomaston, the headquarters of the family and the anchoring-place of the ship. From that port Capt. Charles M. Hall sailed on many a long and dangerous expedition, beginning in 1842 when he was a lad of fourteen years and continuing for some time after he had risen, at the age of twenty years, to the command of his own vessel which sailed to the northern seas. While still in the prime of life he left South Thomaston and came via the Isthmus of Panama to the western coast, settling in Petaluma, where he died at the age of thirty-six years.
Surviving Captain Hall were his wife and four children, of whom the only son, George A., resides in Sonoma county. The wife and mother bore the maiden name of Louisa Boyd and was born at Rockland, Me., in 1834, coming to the west while still a young woman and afterward residing in this state. Her eldest
R. Guglielmithe
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daughter, Elizabeth S., is the wife of Charles J. Lipsky, of Seattle, Wash., and the mother of eight children, namely: Alfred, Arthur, Carl, Bailey, George, Nettie, Marie and Estella. The eldest son, Alfred Lipsky, married Anna Martin and they have five children, Charles, Alfred, Melvin, Ettie and Permelia. The second son, Arthur Lipsky, is married and the father of one child. The daughter, Marie Lipsky, now Mrs. Robertson, has one child, Elizabeth. The youngest of the daughters, Estella Lipsky, became the wife of Ralph Bender, and two children bless their union. Mary L. Hall, sister of George A., is the wife of Charles C. Walker and the mother of three children, Carl, Earl and Josephine, Mrs. Harrison, the last-named being the mother of two children. The youngest daughter in the Hall family, Nettie S., is now Mrs. A. G. Walker, of Minneapolis, Minn., and in her family there are two children, Hall and Evaline.
The early memories of George A. Hall cluster around the state of Califor- nia, for he was only an infant when the family left his birthplace in Maine and came to the far west, settling near Petaluma, where he attended the grammar- school. Later he was sent to the Pacific Business College at San Francisco and upon leaving school he secured employment in a drug-store, continuing in that business for five years. Leaving commercial affairs for agricultural activities he came to the ranch in Sonoma county where he now lives. Later he spent seven years in Mendocino county and one year in Santa Clara county, then re- turning to the ranch in Sonoma county near Penn Grove. Here he has five hun- dred acres under lease and devotes his attention to the dairy and poultry indus- tries. On the place there now are sixty head of fine milch cows and twelve hundred fine blooded white leghorn hens, also fifteen head of young cattle. By careful management the proprietor has been enabled to earn a neat annual income from the cows and the chickens. The care of the ranch and the stock leaves him little leisure for outside matters, but he occasionally indulges his fondness for hunting and he also finds time to participate in the activities of Petaluma Lodge No. 30, I. O. O. F., and Petaluma Lodge No. 127, Fraternal Brotherhood. Polit- ically he votes with the Republicans and in religion he favors the doctrines of the Methodist Episcopal Church. In 1889 occurred his marriage to Decia Morton, who was born in Sacramento, Cal., in 1867. Their union has been blessed with four children, Fletcher, George, Gladys and Mabel.
GIOVANNI GUGLIELMETTI.
The life which this narrative depicts began in the canton of Ticino, Switz- erland, in February, 1838, and came to a close on his ranch near Petaluma January 12, 1909. Between these dates was enacted a life of useful and suc- cessful achievements, and in his death the community in which he made his home for so many years mourned the loss of one of her most stalwart citizens. The earlier part of his life was passed in his native country, during which time he profited by the educational advantages which the time and place offered. When a youth of sixteen he went to Australia, attracted by the gold mines. He followed mining for ten years and then engaged in the dairy business for five years, when he returned to his old home in Ticino, Switzerland. In Aus- tralia he had conversed with parties who had been in California, who told of
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the great possibilities here, and he determined to visit this country and so his stay in Switzerland soon terminated.
The year 1869 was memorable to Mr. Guglielmetti as marking his advent in the United States, the vessel on which he made the voyage casting anchor in New York harbor. From there he came across the continent to San Fran- cisco, and thence caine direct to Marin county, subsequently coming to Sonoma county and becoming the owner of the vast acreage known as the I. R. Jewell ranch. This comprises seventeen hundred acres of as fertile land as can be found in Sonoma or Marin counties (the ranch lying in both counties), and here during the remainder of his life he demonstrated his thorough under- standing of the various branches of agriculture, being an expert dairyman and orchardist, as well as vineyardist and wine manufacturer. All of the various industries which he inaugurated are being continued by his sons, who have inherited his love of agricultural pursuits and are emulating his worthy ex- ample. The dairy, which is known as the Pioneer dairy, consists of two hun- dred cows and is one of the largest in this section of country. There are four different places on the ranch which are improved with buildings, and each is used for dairy, vineyard and orchard purposes. The winery which is main- tained in connection with the vineyard has a capacity of twenty thousand gal- lons of wine per year, a brand which is well known and finds a ready sale in the markets of the state. An apple orchard of fifteen acres is also a source of income of no inconsiderable size. The most recent industry inaugurated upon the ranch is the raising of chickens, eight thousand being an average brood, besides which five hundred turkeys of the Bronze breed are being raised for market.
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