Martha Hames' Scrapbook
Letters from Martha Hames' Scrapbook, provided to me by Renea Covill: [hphphp189.jpg]
33 & 34:
Martha Hames
John Hames, one of the oldest American settlers of California, came to the state via Cape Horn from New York, as a carpenter of the ship Phoenix. He remained aboard the ship one year, leaving her in Peru, South America. Worked at his trade in Peru, Chile and Equador. During the year 1842-43, coming to California, he located at Monterey in May, 1843. Visited Los Angeles and San Francisco, at both of the places he worked at his trade.
His next venture was then mill timber to the Barbadoes for Captain Smith. Mr. Hames built the first saw mill in Niles Canyon for Vallejo in 1844-45.
He located the town of Soquel in Santa Cruz County at which place he built mills and made the town his home until 1883, during which time he raised sheep in Salinas Valley.
Mr. Hames has seen much of pioneer life in California. He knew Marshall, to whom credit is given of haveing (sic) discovered gold at Sutter's mill in 1848. Mr. Hames was working in the mill race when the first gold nugget was picked up. The Mormon boys were working at the mill for Sutter with Marshall as foreman. One of the brothers found the gold, handed it to Marshall, who in turn gave it to Sutter, who sent it to San Francisco, where it was pronounced gold.
Mr. Hames relates the fact of haveing (sic) himself raised the first stars and stripes in San Jose. It was a small banner about six feet long. He put it on a little willow pole that surmounted an old adobe building. Tom Fallon has been credited in historical volumes as having performed the act.
Mr. Hames is a native of Orange County, New York, having been born there March 22, 1811. His father Benjamin was a surveyor millwright by trade and a native of the same state who came west in the early days of Michigan settlement, located at Battle Creek, Calhoun County, Michigan, where he built the first mill, until his death (sic) 1850.
The maiden name of his mother was Rebecca Harding, who was born near Rochester, New York.
The subject of this sketch was married to Drucilla Shadden in 1846 by the Hon. Thomas Larkin at Monterey. Mrs. Hames was a native of Arkansas. Came across the plains in 1842, reached Sutter's Fort July 8, 1843. Mrs. Hames had twelve children. Her first child, Ben Hames, was born in Sutter's Fort as they were have (sic) having trouble with the Mexicans and Indians. He was born April 9, 1847.
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Martha Hames
40 & 41
John Hames served in Capt. Charles M. Weber's Company California Volunteers during the war with Mexico, from Dec. 21, 1846 - 1847. He served July 15, 1846, to February 10, 1847. He was pensioned on account of this service by certificate #19165 until Feb 4, 1894.
Benjamin Hames enlisted November 12, 1864, in Company A, 8th California Infantry, and was honorably discharged on October 24,1865. He was pensioned on account of this service by certificate #1154861 until his death September 28, 1927.
John Hames bought the Soquel Grant from two heirs, next year he bought from another heir. He built a lumber mill for Vallejo in Niles Canyon. He built a lumber mill on the Soquel Creek, a flour mill at Soquel. Gave his brother three thousand dollars to go to San Francisco to buy machinery for the Soquel mill. He left the country, spent the money. Then he sold part of the grant to Daubenbiss and took him in as a partner in the mill. He built a mill at Corralitas (sic), put a brother there, let the family run a bill at Santa Cruz at Highns (sic) Store, lost the mill and a ranch on the beach.
The first school house was built below Father's house. The second school house nearer town. The river came up, then they built one on the hill. The first teacher we had was named Mr. Cole.
My mother always gave the mine men something to eat. They gave her gold. She had fifteen hundred dollars' worth at the time my Father was building the mill. She gave them to help pay for the machinery. My mother was good to the poor. When she was first married there were no Americans in Soquel so she had to learn to speak Spanish. Castro lived at Aptos. One daughter married Lodge. She had four daughters and one son. They learnt my Mother to speak Spanish.
Martha Hames 85
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John Hames, wandering N. Yorker, brought girl bride to Soquel in 1845 after wedding in Monterey.
Had worked as carpenter in Chile, Peru and Ecuador before coming to Spanish-speaking California; eleven children were born here of whom three were buried in nearly forgotten cemetery on hillside overlooking town.
A roving New Yorker, who had worked at his trade of carpenter in Chile, Peru and Ecuador, landed at Monterey in May, 1843, to become Soquel's first American born resident.
John Hames was not Soquel's first English speaking resident, for that distinction went to Michael Lodge, a young native of Dublin, who marrying a native Californian widow, had established his home here in 1833.
The Americans who came to California in the days when it was under Mexican rule were wanderers. Hames was no exception. But he met a girl, here or Monterey or San Jose or Sutter's Fort, who induced him to settle down, and Soquel was the place of his choice.
Hames was born in Osage county (sic), New York, in 1811. When he was 30 or 31 years old, he shipped with his brother, Benjamin, on the sailing vessel Phoenix out of New York. The Phoenix was on a round-the-Horn voyage to China, but in Chile the brothers went ashore.
John worked at his trade in at least three south American counties (sic) and then shipped north to California, leaving Benjamin in Chile to wed a Chilean woman, Carmen Laing.
Soon after his arrival in California John Hames met a Bavarian, three years his junior, who had crossed the plains to Oregon in 1842 and come down to California in 1843. In 1845 they were together in Soquel building a sawmill to turn the redwoods into plank and boards.
The girl who caused John Hames to settle down was herself a daughter of a roving family. Thomas J. Shadden had come from Arkansas to Oregon in 1842 with his wife and several children. His daughter, Drucilla (sic), was 10 years old when they came across the plains and was 13 when she and John Hames were married by U.S. Consul Thomas O. Larkin, in Monterey.