Chapters 20-25
Early Days at the Mission San Juan Bautista - Chapters XX-XXV
Page 137
CHAPTER XX
Various phases of life in San Juan during 1861-1862-- The wet winter of
1862-- The disastrous drought of 1864-- My first railroad ride.
AT THIS time San Juan boasted of two blacksmith shops running full blast.
One was conducted by Jasper Twitchell, the other by W. G. Hubbard. Many
new saloons had been opened and some of them were kept open all night.
Gambling flourished and San Juan boomed as one of the most enterprising
towns on the route of the Overland Stage Company.
The stores of that period (1855-1860) carried general assortments--there
were no ready-to-wear women's garments. They bought the materials and made
up the garments at home, by hand, at first, until the advent of the sewing
machine, which was some years later. It was not uncommon to see a woman or
her daughter continuously sewing, on garments, even at night, in the home
circle. Of course, if it was a very fine dress that was to be made, it was
taken to the dressmaker.
The Spanish women excelled in needlework and their drawn-work was
incomparable. If you got a peep at their undergarments, they were
immaculate and starched until they rattled. There were no coats worn by
the ladies, they all wore shawls of different grades. Some were woolen,
while others were of the finest silk. Men's suits could be bought in the
store. Men's work shirts were piled on the counter; if you wanted to buy
one you picked it up and held it in front of you with a cuff in each hand
and arms extended. It the tail was long enough and the sleeves about
right, you bought it regardless of size of the collar. Shirts were,
generally, all the same color; either small check or hickory. Ties were
seldom worn.
Page 138
White shirts for dress purposes had the collar attached which was worn as
a standing collar. Boots were worn by all men. They were on display in
boxes on the floor along the counter and were bought something like the
shirts. You found the style you wanted and tried on pair after pair until
you got a fit. You did not pay any attention to sizes and if the merchant
had anything to attend to, he let you alone until you found a pair that
would satisfy you. It was told on one of the prominent merchants in town,
at that time, that someone bought a pair of boots on credit and the
merchant forgot who it was, so he charged them up to all his credit
customers. If any of them made a kick about it he would scratch the item
off their bill. I often wondered how many times he got paid for those
boots.
Very little tobacco could be bought except plug tobacco. You would
scarcely find an American who used cigarettes. Most of them chewed,
however, and if they smoked a pipe they cut their tobacco off a plug.
There was no order about the stores in early days. They would have what
you wanted somewhere, and it was up to you to find it.
About this same period or a little later, William Palmtag, the Hollister
banker who died recently, was running a brewery wagon, for his uncle,
Chris Palmtag, between Watsonville and San Juan. "Billy" would make one or
two trips every week. His uncle conducted the brewery at the foot of Main
Street, adjacent to the Bridge across the Pajaro river in Watsonville. The
beer in those days was delivered in five and ten-gallon kegs. Such a thing
as bottled beer was unknown.
About the same time Stephen Martinelli, of Watsonville, also made one or
two trips each week to San Juan to sell his famous cider champagne,
bottled pop, and sarsaparilla. In those days "soda-pop" was confined in a
bottle with a string tied over the cork and when the string was cut the
cork shot out of the bottle with a report akin to a pistol shot. However,
soft drinks were used but very little in those days. They were a hardy
lot, those pioneers and they took their's straight. The
Page 139
liquor, as a general thing, was pure; and oh, Lordy! how some of those
early Argonauts could get away with it. Still they seldom got drunk!
The winter of 1861-1862 was the wettest winter that I ever witnessed in
California. It rained incessantly for days. Everything was tied up.
Teamsters plying between Alviso and San Juan had their teams stuck in the
mud. They would bring their horses into town and had to stop there until
weather conditions permitted them to move their loaded wagons.
The severity of this winter may be judged from the fact that one of these
teamsters was drowned in a waterway, a sort of a slough, that crossed the
road near where Frank Dowdy lives on the road between San Juan and
Sargent. The unfortunate driver had unhitched his team from the wagon
driving them to town when he was caught in the torrent of water in this
waterway, and it is thought that one of the horses must have kicked him in
the struggle to get on the other side of the bank. The body was afterwards
found in the willows near the bridge. Four of the New Idria six-horse
teams were mired down in the turn of the road leading into the "Lane,"
coming from Hollister. They hired Abner Moore, who had four yoke of oxen,
and he managed to pull them out of the mire. The condition of the rain-
soaked ground was best evidenced by the fact that in pulling those teams
that mired down, the wheels actually failed to turn and left small gulleys
in the road which were filled with water for the remainder of the winter.
During this wet winter the only way that the New Idria Mines could be
reached was to go up through the San Juan Canyon, passing where the cement
plant is now located, turn left around a small hill, then through Flint's
field toward the eastern end of the lane where you had to turn to the
right and go through the low hills to New Idria. It sometimes took three
days for the teams to drive these four miles through Flint's fields.
Page 140
The San Juan creek was so high that it washed out the old dam that had
been constructed when the Mission was built and carried sand over a part
of my father's place. John Breen's ranch was covered partly with sand, and
partly covered with water until late in the summer. There were thousands
of ducks there, and standing on the corner of my father's ranch in the
evening I could shoot all the ducks I wanted.
Looking after some cattle on the north side of the Pajaro River, I was
rained in for two weeks on the Pescadero at the Butterfield home. I then
crossed at what is now Sargent's Station. John Woods, (a son of A. C.
Woods and brother of Hy Woods, afterwards the prominent Watsonville
building contractor), had a small boat in which he carried me over. With
the aid of a long rope I led my horse behind me and made him swim across.
In crossing the San Benito, however, I got into the quicksand and came
nearly being drowned. The San Benito river in those days was not nearly as
wide as it is today, but that flood and subsequent rainy seasons cut into
the banks and carried away hundreds of acres of land.
The year 1862-1863 were very good years but in 1863-1864 there was but
little rain, and the country in that section of Monterey County, as well
as the lower end of Santa Clara County was covered with cattle, grazing
throughout the range. However, in the spring of 1864, with little
rainfall, there was no new grass and the cattle having closely cropped the
ground of the previous season's verdure, they commenced to starve and die.
My father and brother, Enoch, had about 135 head of cattle that ran at
large. My brother who did not care to go to school--in fact, he could not
be hired to go--commenced to trade in cattle at the age of 15 years. He
bought and sold and took the first steps towards getting into the cattle
business.
The 135 head of cattle that they owned were sold by my father and brother
to Henry Miller. They were delivered to Miller's men in the bed of the San
Benito river, near the place
Page 141
where the bridge crosses the San Benito river. Miller paid $2.50 a head
for this bunch of cattle. It was either take his terms or lose the stock.
Day after day droves of cattle would pass our house being driven to the
"mantanza" (slaughter house) near Monterey, where the cattle were killed
for their hides and horns. The carcasses of the beeves were cooked in
large kettles or cauldrons and fed to hogs. Many of the poor beasts on
their journey towards the slaughter house would fall in their tracks, to
never get up, and were abandoned by their drivers. Carcasses could be seen
everywhere and the air was filled with the stench of the putrifying
carcasses.
On the Pacheco ranch, which took in all that portion of what is now known
as the Santa Ana Valley and the San Felipe section, there was a slough
that lead into Soap Lake. This slough would be lined with the decaying
carcasses of cattle who, too weak to pull themselves out of the mud, died
there. They died, by the hundreds, whilst striving to reach some tule, or
some wisp of grass, that they saw growing on the banks of the slough.
Two firms located in Watsonville would make trips to the Pacheco section
buying the hides. One firm, Wise & Company, would make their round of the
ranches the first part of the week, and the other firm, Friedlander &
Company, would make their trip the latter part of the week. They would
carry on their trips a miscellaneous assortment of merchandise which they
would exchange for hides. Returning from these trading trips the big
wagons of these firms would be seen loaded down with hides which towered
high above the sides of the vehicle.
The driest year I ever saw in California was that of 1864.
It was in January, 1864, that the railroad reached San Jose and a big
celebration in honor of the event was held. Many of the San Juan people
attended this affair. In March of that year my father went to San
Francisco, following his
Page 142
annual custom of going to that city once a year to lay in provisions and
household necessities for the following year. Also to purchase the outfit
for setting up a repair shop wherein to repair guns, pistols and other
articles.
I wanted to see the railroad and he took me along with him on this trip.
My father, like myself, had never rode on a railroad. It was a great
wonder to both of us, and I looked over the locomotive and cars very
carefully. The locomotive appeared to me as a gigantic monster, which
impression was deepened by the towering smoke-stack, the top of which was
covered with wire as a spark arrester. In those days wood was the fuel and
sparks were likely to set fire to the crops along the railroad's right-of-
way.
It was a great sight to me. The trip was a revelation. I could scarcely
contain myself but continually was putting my head out of the window
watching that engine going along in front, and I was, constantly, pulling
in my head with cinders in my eyes. One can imagine how I strutted around,
when I got home, and told my wondering friends of my great trip.
I told my mother I wasn't feeling well and after she took a look at my
tongue and the whites of my eyes, she ordered me to bed and with tea made
from some of her medicinal herbs I soon developed a beautiful case of
measles. The date I will always remember, March 29th. It was my birthday
when I received that beautiful present.
Notwithstanding that 1864 was a "dry year" my father had a large crop of
hay, owing to the fact that the biggest portion of the land that he owned
was what is known as "wet land." He sold all his stock with the exception
of fifteen cows and six horses. That season he sold to "Nigger Bill," the
club-footed darkey teamster known throughout that section from San Jose to
New Idria, twenty tons of loose clover and oat hay at twenty dollars a
ton. Bill paid four hundred dollars for the hay just as it stood in the
stack. "Nigger Bill" teamed between Alviso and the New Idria mines with a
six-horse team.
Page 143
CHAPTER XXI
The religious wave that struck San Juan in 1864-- Abraham Lincoln's
assassination--The story of Evans James ("Johnny Bull").
IT WAS in 1864 that San Juan was struck with a "religious fever."
The Baptists had a church erected on Monterey Street, close to the
cemetery, opposite the old school house. As this church boasted a bell,
with rope attached, the pupils used to ring the bell to summon the
scholars to school.
Sometimes some of the boys would pull the bell cord so hard that it would
turn the bell over, and it could not be rung at all. Then it became
necessary for someone to climb into the belfry and release the bell, this
being a rather hard task. I do not care to mention the names of the boys
that were charged with the offense of turning the bell over, but as I
frequently heard the names of Lupe Anzar, Fielding Hodges and Fernando
Zanetta mentioned when any sort of mischief was done around the school, I
am inclined to think they were the culprits; in fact, they would have to
present me with a copperriveted affidavit of denial, to alter my belief in
this matter.
The Methodists built their church on Second and Church Streets. In former
days there was but one Methodist church, but when the Civil War broke out
that church divided into two denominations. The Methodist Church South,
comprising Methodists who lived south of the Mason-Dixon line, and the
Methodist Church comprised those residing north of that famous imaginary
line. Akin to all communities in the United States, the San Juan
Methodists divided and the North Methodists erected a building near the
cemetery, on Church Street, and then commenced a series of revival
meetings, that, for the time, took
Page 144
sole possession of public attention. Besides this religious outbreak there
were camp-meetings in the willow grove over near old Gilroy. There were
many baptisms in the Pajaro river, at its junction with the San Benito
river. These baptisms were largely attended, especially by the younger
element. I seldom missed one of them. The revival meetings were also a
great attraction for us young fellows, for it was at the revival meetings
that we had the privilege of taking the girls home, after services.
As is usual in such cases, as time went on, this wave of religion died
out. The churches were deserted, and moved away--all except the Baptist
church which was afterwards moved to the west side of Third Street,
between Polk and Mokelumne Streets, where it now stands.
On the fourteenth of April, in the year 1865, one of the saddest events in
history occurred. Abraham Lincoln was assassinated.
Such a calamity had never occurred before in the United States. It was no
wonder that grief was shown on every side. He (Abraham Lincoln) had been a
father to the people. In him was vested the rule and safeguard of the
people. At this time, when a wise head and a pure heart was needed, he led
us through the uncertain sands of statecraft.
I had the greatest respect for Abraham Lincoln, born in Kentucky, as was
my father, and although father was a strong Democrat he voted for Lincoln.
My father always claimed that if Lincoln had not been killed he would have
brought order out of chaos and there never would have been such a cry as
the "bloody shirt."
There being a large territory of grazing land in and about the Panoche
Valley and Coalinga, many engaged in the cattle and sheep-raising
business. That section being government land, no rental was charged on it,
and the feed was free. These plainsmen, with their families, lived in San
Juan. Some of
Page 145
these men I will mention as near as I can remember. There was Russell &
Reynolds, N. Crooks, Chas. Mitchell, Chas. Goodrich, Albion Baker, "Billy"
Woods, Geo. W. McConnell and others.
As sheep were valuable at the time, and commanded good prices, the income
of these sheepmen was spent in San Juan--they spent money freely, too, as
also did the cattlemen and stock-buyers who came to town to purchase
cattle. As a consequence money circulated freely, and times in San Juan
were booming.
One of the most prominent sheep buyers at that time was Evans James, known
far and wide throughout the Monterey county as "Johnny Bull." Evans was a
large buyer and drove many herds to San Francisco. James' reputation for
honesty was so well established that it was not necessary for him to carry
money with him wherewith to make purchases. If he accepted the cattle at
the price demanded and did not have the money to pay for the stock, it was
all right. James was merely told to take the cattle with him, and
sometimes he would not be able to return for weeks. No one that ever had
any dealings with him had any misgivings as to being treated square by
him. His modus operandi was simple. Say he bought a flock of sheep at Tres
Pinos, or further south, he would start with his flock for San Francisco
driving them slowly and letting them feed off the grass on the way. His
care was such that by the time the mutton sheep reached San Francisco they
were in prime condition.
It mattered nothing to "Johnny Bull" where night over-took him. He would
post his faithful shepherd dog over his flock, partake of supper, which
consisted of crackers and cheese, and then wrapping himself in a blanket
would lie down on the ground to sleep.
I remember that much amusement was occasioned on the return of Rafael
Hernandez from one of those trips to San Francisco. Rafael was hired by
"Johnny Bull" to assit him in
Page 146
the drive, and when Rafael returned to San Juan he declared with many
"carambas," and ejaculations of disgust that, under no circumstances would
he ever again be caught on one of those trips with "Johnny Bull." During
the trip, he solemnly declared, he had been given nothing to eat but hog
beef and cracks!--meaning bacon and crackers which he could not easily
translate into pure English.
By dint of industry and perseverance, in a few years "Johnny Bull" owned a
fine ranch in the San Juan Valley and also had an excellent stock ranch
near Hernandez, in southern San Benito County.
But adversity overtook the old fellow, and bad investments reduced him to
penury. He lost all he possessed except a wagon and four mules. With this
outfit he used to team, here and there, pursuing the same tactics that he
employed whilst driving the sheep, viz: lie down beneath the stars at
night wherever night's shadows overtook him, and let the mules graze on
the surrounding verdure.
In May, 1866 I received the severest jolt that I ever had in my life. This
was the death of my beloved mother. It changed the whole course of my
life. My father, who had relied greatly on her wise counsel, was like a
ship without a rudder on a trackless ocean. He had consulted my mother in
regard to business matters and followed her advice implicitly, as she had
the most executive ability of the two. Our hitherto happy home was like a
bee hive without the queen bee.
This bereavement cost me dearly. My mother had patiently and laboriously
saved up money enough to send me to college--a boon that I craved. Had she
not died I would have been a much different man.
Elsewhere in these memoirs I have mentioned the disastrous fire that
destroyed a number of blocks on Third Street. This fire occurred in 1867.
Sometime in 1866, Jas. Roache opened a merchandise store on the west
corner of Second and Tuolumne Streets.
Page 147
CHAPTER XXII
The great smallpox epidemic of 1868-- Pitiful scenes--The town was
quarantined by neighboring communities--The pest-house on the banks of the
San Benito River.
IN 1868 came the great epidemic that struck San Juan and all the
surrounding districts sorely--it was the year of the great smallpox
epidemic.
A wayfarer, coming from Los Angeles, put up for the night at the National
Hotel. It was then conducted by Geo. Pullen, grandfather of Frank Pullen,
of Watsonville. The man was sick, and Mr. Pullen called in a doctor who
pronounced the man's affliction, measles.
San Juan citizens, always sympathetic, heard of this sick stranger and a
number of them visited him, and tendered their services to help. Finally,
James Collins, a man who had had the smallpox, went to call on this
stranger, and when he looked at the man he remarked: "If that man hasn't
got smallpox then I never had it." Collins was badly pock-marked from the
ravages of the disease when it had attacked him in early youth. Those who
had visited the stranger, in a few days, came down with the disease and
the epidemic broke out all over the town.
There happened to be a big dance in town at this time, and a number of
those stricken with the disease attended the dance, notwithstanding that
they had a high fever. Of course, they thought it was some simple ailment
that was troubling them. It was afterwards said that over forty that
attended that dance came down with the disease in a few days.
And then a general hegira began. Some families taking, for the present,
what simple necessities would do them, struck out for the mountains and
camped there.
Page 148
A pest house was erected by the citizens of San Juan on the banks of the
San Benito river, near where Ben Flint's home stands now. The unfortunate
victims of the disease who had no one to care for them were sent to this
lonely spot. The disease proved to be of the most malignant type. Nurses
could not be obtained anywhere, although as high as twenty dollars a night
was offered them.
San Juan was quarantined on all sides. The roads leading to and from it
were barred.
This disease extended to Watsonville where it carried off many victims.
Watsonville, at one time, was as sorely stricken as San Juan. It was at
the heighth of this epidemic that some panic-stricken citizens of Santa
Cruz wrecked the bridge leading into the county seat, across Aptos creek.
This was to prevent anyone from Watsonville coming into Santa Cruz. Their
precaution was useless, however, for a few days afterward they had a dozen
cases. This incident awoke great resentment among the people of
Watsonville towards the people of Santa Cruz, and even to this day old-
timers will bitterly revert to this incident.
San Juan was in sore straits. The stock of provisions was rapidly
decreasing, and as no one was allowed to enter the town, or go out of it,
the people were desperate. It is related that two of the citizens sneaked
out and made their way to Monterey. On the outskirts of that settlement
they changed their clothes and then went into that town to solicit aid and
assistance for the stricken people of San Juan.
One of the men that went on this errand of mercy was George Pullen, a
young lad, afterwards the father of Frank Pullen, of Watsonville. When
these two men were recognized in Monterey everybody ran away from them,
and it was only after a kind-hearted doctor took them in hand, heard their
story, and what they had done, that confidence was restored to the
Page 149
Montereyans to the effect that the visitors were all right. Pullen and his
associate returned with both money and provisions. The Montereyans had
been exceedingly generous.
During this epidemic the dead were buried at night. Men were employed to
dig the graves as fast as they could. I remember hearing that there were
thirteen burials in one night, and after the epidemic was over it was
reported that upwards of one hundred and thirty had died from the disease.
At the pest house James Collins and Joe Beals were in charge of the
patients, and it was alleged that they drank heavily in order to ward off
the disease. It is scarcely fair to blame them for as the work they had to
perform and the sights they saw was enough to drive any man to strong
drink.
It is related, that one day, needing the bunk occupied by a certain
patient who was very low, they decided that inasmuch as the man was due to
die anyway he might as well die outside of the building as inside,
accordingly, they picked the helpless patient up, carried him outside, and
laid him on a slab where he reposed all night. The night was bitterly
cold, but, strange to say, this man got well and the patient to whom they
gave his bed, died.
The dead were hauled to the cemetery in a dump cart, and had to cross the
San Juan creek; there was no bridge across the creek. On crossing this
creek, one night, the corpse slipped out of the cart whilst the vehicle
was going up the steep bank and the attendants did not miss the body until
they got to the cemetery, whereupon they retraced their steps and brought
back the corpse to its last resting place.
During the smallpox epidemic in 1868 I was attending Santa Clara College.
It was in October of that year, just before I came home at the end of the
school year, that the great earthquake occurred. Previously there had been
slight earthquakes throughout California, but no extensive damage was done
until this 'quake in October, 1868.
Page 150
In common with the rest of the scholars I had to follow the usual custom
of attending chapel services, and that morning I attended the services in
the college chapel. A few minutes after I came out of the chapel an
earthquake occurred.
It was a peculiar tembior in this: That the earth seemed to roll in waves.
You could see trees swaying to and fro and the violence of the shock threw
me to the ground. However, connected with the 'quake was a circumstance
which tends to make one believe in fatalism--that is, when your time comes
to cross the divide there is no use of endeavoring to escape the decree.
Overhanging the seat that I always occupied in the chapel was an immense
glass chandelier. This chandelier weighed fully two hundred pounds. It was
composed of myriads of gas jets and was adorned with hundreds upon
hundreds of beautiful glass pendants hanging down, which, when the
chandelier was lit, presented a dazzling effect. This chandelier was shook
from its fastenings and crashed down, smashing to pieces on the very seat
that I always occupied at morning services. I often looked back on this
happening, and wondered what strange providence was watching over me.
The chapel of the college was rent in twain diagonally from one end of the
roof to the other. San Jose suffered greatly in this earthquake; but,
strange to say San Juan escaped with comparatively little damage, in fact,
that great earthquake--for it was the greatest earthquake that had
hitherto been experienced by the Yankees who were rapidly settling up
California, was not nearly as severe to the Mission San Juan as was the
quake of 1880 which leveled to the ground the brick end of the sisters'
orphanage at the old mission, exposing both floors of the building at the
end. Near where the brick wall fell out could be seen the dormitories of
the little orphans with the neat small cots therein.
Page 151
CHAPTER XXIII
How the town of Hollister was started--San Benito County created--County
Seat should have been San Juan--The man who said too many towns were named
after saints.
AGITATION in 1868, commenced to ferment, to a certain extent, about
creating a new county out of a portion of Monterey county. It was spoken
of here and there but in the rush and hurly-burly doings of the day but
little was thought of it, and it was given scant attention. However, in
the minds of certain prominent men of that section the idea was a very
live issue and accordingly Col. Hollister started in to lay out the
present city of Hollister.
It will be remembered, as is related in another portion of these memoirs,
that, originally, the Flint-Bixby Company and Col. Hollister formed a
partnership and purchased from Don Pacheco the San Justo grant. Sometime
after that purchase this partnership was dissolved and the San Justo grant
was divided between the Flint-Bixby Company and Col. Hollister, the latter
taking the eastern portion of the grant and the Flint-Bixby Company taking
the western portion of the ranch, and paying Hollister a bonus of $10,000
therefor.
In 1868 Col. Hollister, with a number of other prominent men in that
section, formed what was known as the "San Justo Homestead Association."
This association was duly incorporated. The object in forming the
association was to divide this portion of the San Justo grant into farms
and sell them to farmers, also to establish a town for the convenience of
the purchasers of the land. This idea of locating a town was used as a
means of selling the lands. Nearly everyone in that section, at that time,
were farmers and the idea of acquiring some of these lands found favor.
Page 152
The association announced that this land was to be divided into farms and
grazing lots. There were to be fifty-one lots, the fifty-first lot was to
be dedicated as a town site. These lots, or parcels of land as they were
called, were sold at auction, the highest premium taking the first choice,
which went to pay on the purchase.
The late Thos. Hawkins, the Hollister banker, purchased the first choice
which cost him upwards $6,000. That sum was considered an enormous price,
but as matters developed eventually it showed Hawkins' good judgment and
served to justify the confidence bestowed upon that good man in later
years.
Tom Hawkins, afterwards the most prominent citizen of San Benito county,
had come there in early days and had worked as a laborer on various
projects, principally on hay baling and grain threshing outfits. At the
time that he made this purchase great was the surprise that he, by his
patience and thrift, had accumulated such a sum.*
(* Editor's Note--The memory of the late Thos. S. Hawkins will ever be
held in grateful remembrance by the editor of the Pajaronian. A finer and
better man we have never met. The mention of his purchase of this property
above, reminds us of a talk we had with him one day in his bank. On this
occasion Tom was somewhat reminiscent. He owned the finest home in all San
Benito county, a beautiful block in which his residence was embowered in
plants and flowers. On the occasion which we refer to he told us of his
early struggles when he came to Hollister and how hard he worked with a
threshing outfit. He said, "Myself and my wife occupied a little shack on
the other side of what is now called San Benito street and outside of the
stove, which I managed to buy in San Francisco, all the furniture in the
house was made by myself after working hours. Our bed was nailed to the
side of the wall, and was constructed of rough boards. We slept on a tick
full of straw. I made the table for the kitchen and I made four chairs out
of four barrels that I managed to secure.
"Looking back I consider that the chairs that I manufactured were somewhat
ingenious as I cut a section out of one side and Mrs. Hawkins, who was
very clever, stuffed the back, sides and seat with straw. They were,
indeed, very comfortable. Do you know that some days, looking backwards,
notwithstanding the fact that I have such a beautiful home at the present
time, I verily believe that I never had so much fun and enjoyed life so
thoroughly as when I occupied that shack in company with my wife and
family."
Thos. Hawkins' remarks brought a reminiscence to our mind of a similar
remark being made by Bill Carson, one of the lumber kings of Eureka,
Humboldt county. Bill Carson built a mansion at the head of Second street
that is one of the sights of Eureka; it is two stories in heighth and
contained all modern conveniences even to a commodious billiard room. When
he concluded to erect this home he sent to Switzerland and brought from
that country one of its leading wood carvers. He put the man to work
making the carvings for the house and it took the man several years to
complete the task. When the job was finished Carson offered $5,000 reward
to anyone that would show him two pieces of carving alike on the
structure. Alongside this beautiful mansion, covered with ivy was a log
cabin, the original home of Mr. and Mrs. Carson when they came to Eureka.
This log cabin was carefully preserved and left in exactly the same
condition that it was the day they forsook it and took up their residence
in the big mansion adjoining. Whenever Carson was found missing, a search
would reveal the old man smoking in the cabin and he often declared that
he had better times in the log cabin than he ever enjoyed in the grand
home.--Ed. Pajaronian.)
There was spirited bidding on the lots and all were sold. The town of
Hollister was laid out in November, 1868. At a
Page 153
meeting of the association it was decided to place the town site about a
mile and a half northeast of its present location inasmuch as Hollister
had reserved, for himself, a homestead taking in a portion of the present
town site, however, after considerable discussion, the idea was abandoned
and it was decided to place the town on the site that it now occupies.
At a meeting it was proposed by someone to call the town "San Justo." But,
a man by the name of Hagen, who was present, arose and vigorously
denounced the proposition, saying that he would be blankety-blanked if
they called that town by any "San," that he was tired of running across
"San" attached to every town that he surveyed--San Juan, San Jose, San
Luis Obispo, etc. After talking the matter over it was decided, by the
association, to call the town after Col. Hollister.
Col. Hollister in 1862 had built, what was considered in those days a fine
residence, on Fourth Street opposite where the present court house now
stands. Connected with the residence he had many corrals, sheep pens, and
a long string of water troughs lining the roadway in front of his
premises. He also built a large barn which was afterwards occupied by Jim
Hodges as a livery stable.
Page 154
The Hollister residence was, years afterwards, made into a hotel--the only
hotel in that section, outside of San Juan--and was called the Montgomery
House owing to the fact that it was conducted by a man by the name of
Montgomery. Mr. Montgomery's son (Edward) years afterwards was treasurer
of San Benito county.
The Montgomery House was very nicely located. It had much shrubbery and
trees about it and was a favorite resort for travelers going and coming.
Sometime around 1884-85 it caught fire from some unknown cause and was
burned to the ground. The land was afterwards purchased by the school
district and a grammar and primary school erected thereon.
The first man to purchase town lots in the new city of Hollister was J. A.
Owens. He purchased two lots for $100 apiece. The prices on the town lots
were $100 for inside lots and $200 for corner lots.
Owens established the first store in Hollister. C. W. Wentworth also
opened a store and was afterwards appointed postmaster.
The town started off and began to grow rapidly. The smallpox had worked
great injury to San Juan. Many of its inhabitants, becoming disheartened
at the trials that they had undergone and the sad scenes that they
witnessed, moved to Hollister, after buying lots in that town.
And now Gilroy, a little settlement, began to forge ahead, and, in 1869
the railroad reached this settlement and as it was the nearest point that
the railroad could be reached, the travelers desiring to take the trains
had to repair to that city. Gilroy went rapidly ahead. Prior to this
Gilroy was anything but commercially important, but the railroad, making
its terminus there, made it the distributing point for all sections south
as far as San Luis Obispo, which town, owing to its water connection, did
not need railroad facilities.
Page 155
San Juan began to fail. Gilroy on the north was taking away her trade
customers and Hollister on the southeast was also cutting in to her trade.
The town began to decline. The loss can well be imagined when I state not
only did she lose the trade connected with the seven stage lines that
passed through her streets, but also the large trade that went through to
the New Idria mines and way points. Gilroy was a very active town. Its
streets were crowded with big teams loaded with hay and grain destined to
be shipped by the railroad to points north. So these conditions continued
until the railroad was built to Hollister, where it made its terminus for
a long time, in fact, at that time there was a fifty-fifty bet that
Hollister was on the main overland line of the railroad, for the company
ran surveys from Hollister through Tres Pinos up the San Benito and cut
across through Topo Valley heading for San Luis Obispo; but, in the
meantime, Watsonville commenced to loom up as a big trade center and
Salinas was building up as a big town, so finally the railroad company
concluded to push its line on to Watsonville and thence over to Salinas
and down through the Salinas Valley. One can hardly imagine what would
have been the result to Hollister had the railroad's original plan not
been abandoned. Some day that line will be put through by the railroad and
strike the present line going down the Salinas Valley somewhere in the
vicinity of King City. It is estimated that this route will cut off many
miles necessitated now by the present detour around by way of Sargent
station, Watsonville Junction and Salinas
This extension of the railroad to Hollister hurt Gilroy badly, and San
Juan was completely "knocked out." Then regret circulated amongst the
people, that they had not acceded to the proposal of the railroad company
to build its line to San Juan after receiving a subsidy of $60,000
including a right of way. At that time San Juan's principal property
owners were sheep and cattle men and they opposed this proposition
vigorously, stating that inasmuch as it was only a few miles to Gilroy
they could drive their herds to that point and thus save
Page 156
the $60,000 asked by the railroad company. It was a fatal mistake from
which both San Juan and Watsonville, (who also refused to give any
subsidy) are still suffering.
San Juan had suffered from the disastrous fire that I have referred to
elsewhere; the awful smallpox epidemic; and now, the railroad taking its
trade away to Hollister, despair settled upon the community which despair
was accentuated when a number of its prominent merchants commenced to move
their stocks to Hollister and start business there.
In 1870 Hollister had a population of about two hundred, and its growth
can be judged from the fact that in 1873 a census of its population showed
two thousand inhabitants.
Page 157
CHAPTER XXIV
County division and how it was brought about--How the boundary line was
gerrymandered--Division lost out at the first election but was carried at
the next election.
IN 1871-72 Monterey county was in the throes of a fight over the removal
of its county seat. It will be remembered that the county seat at that
time was Monterey, and a proposition was broached to move the county seat
to a more central location in that big county.
Castroville at the news that the county seat might be moved commenced to
perk up. Juan B. Castro, after whom the town was named, laid the town out
in lots, and in order to induce people to settle there would offer them a
lot free if they would agree to build on it, the idea being to make it
such a populous center that it could carry off the county seat at the
proposed election.
Salinas, then a small settlement, commenced to take stock, and it also got
into the fight.
Then, to add to the turmoil and general unrest, Hollister started a fight
for county division; that is, its residents wanted that portion of
Monterey set aside and made into a new county. The excitement throughout
Monterey county began to grow. There were plenty of things to excite men.
Here was a proposition not only to divide the county, but also to move the
county seat away from Monterey.
There were able gerrymanderers on both sides and through some hokus-pokus
a line was run from what was then known as the Aromas Valley straight over
Fremont's Peak leaving out the Carneros section, wherein lived quite a
number of inhabitants that always traded in San Juan; and also left out
the Pajaro Valley, which earnestly desired to be included within the
confines of the proposed new county.
Page 158
Hollister had nothing to fear after the line was drawn, she would either
have all or nothing. So the fight started and no stone was left unturned
to accomplish the division of the county.
The election of an essemblyman to the legislature hinged on this county
division, and this caused politics to loom up in the fight. Both Democrats
and Republicans forgot all partisanship and would hob-nob and connive with
each other.
At the first election the divisionists lost; but, undismayed those who
wanted division girded up their loins, buckled on their armor, and went
into the fight for division again.
To show the intense feeling which existed at that time, at one of the
elections held, that grand old man of Monterey county, the late Hon. J. R.
Hebron, who was an anti-divisionist, was nominated for assemblyman. Hebron
was one of the leading men in Monterey county, a man of irreproachable
character; his standing as a man and as a citizen was unquestionable. In
running for the office of assemblyman he received, out of several hundred
votes cast, only eight votes on the San Juan-Hollister side.
Those interested in dividing Monterey county, notwithstanding that they
had lost the first election, did not relax their efforts throughout the
two ensuing years, and at the next election by superior political tactics,
generalship, and, it was also rumored, by the free use of money and
promises, succeeded in electing their man to represent the county in the
assembly. He squeezed through by a small majority.
This brought the project, or, we might say, contest, of dividing the
county, up to the legislature, but the fight did not end there. The
introduction of the bill to divide Monterey county into the legislature,
precipitated a hot fight. The bill was introduced first in the assembly,
and then introduced into the senate, and the warring factions tossed the
bill back and forth several times. However, the divisionists, by a hard
Page 159
fight, succeeded in getting the measure through and Monterey county lost
the fairest portion of its territory. After it passed the assembly the
senate approved the measure by a bare majority.
Then the divisionists commenced to rejoice, but their rejoicing proved to
be somewhat premature, as Governor Newton Booth held the bill up. The
members of the "Third House" made the life of the governor miserable by
their insistent demand that he veto the bill. However, the mass of figures
and facts presented in favor of the divisionists could not be gain-sayed
and finally Governor Booth signed the bill on the twelfth of February,
1874, and San Benito county was created.
No credit could be attached to anyone in particular, for the sentiment in
favor of division was so wide-spread and universal in this section that
all the settlers in the region affected, voted as one man.
Under the "act" creating the new county Governor Booth appointed five
commissioners who were charged with the organization of this new county.
The commissioners were Thos. S. Hawkins, Jess Whitton, Mark Pomeroy, John
Breen and H. M. Hayes.
A few days after their appointment by the governor, this commission met
and organized by electing John Breen as president and H. M. Hayes as
secretary.
The commission proceeded to business and divided the county into four
townships, namely; Hollister, San Juan, Paicines and San Benito. The
supervisorial districts were: Hollister number one; San Juan number two;
Paicines and San Benito number three.
The county officers were appointed by the governor to hold office until
the special election on March 26, 1874. The county seat was to be located
by popular vote. The officers elected were: Benj. F. Ross, sheriff and ex-
official tax collector; H. M. Hayes, county clerk and recorder: N. C.
Briggs, district attorney: Thos. McMahon, treasurer: Haydon Dowdy,
assessor;
Page 160
Frank P. McCray, surveyor; H. C. Morris, superintendent of schools and J.
M. Black, coroner and public administrator. Jas. F. Breen, county judge of
Monterey county, resigned that position and was appointed by the governor
as county judge of San Benito county.
The supervisors elected were: District number one, Mark Pomeroy; district
number two, Thos. Flint; and district number three, D. J. Watson.
There was quite a difference between Monterey and the newly created county
of San Benito over the matter of the debt of Monterey county. Monterey
county had quite a debt hanging over it, and, of course, a certain
proportion of that debt San Benito county had to pay. An "act" to settle
the differences between the two counties was passed by the legislature,
but after its passage it was found that it would not solve the difficulty,
so the "act" was amended, and under its provisions the Board of
Supervisors, of each county, met jointly, and selected a commission of
five members to arbitrate the matter. Two of the committeemen were named
by San Benito county, two named by Monterey county and the third was named
by the judge of the twentieth judicial district.
The committee met in session at Salinas, and after examining the books of
that county found that Monterey county was in debt, and that of this debt
there was chargeable to San Benito county a little over $5,800. To meet
this indebtedness five year bonds were issued at seven percent interest,
payable to Monterey county or order. Accordingly, San Benito county
started out with a debt on its taxpayers.
It will be remembered that in 1872 the subject of dividing Monterey county
and creating a new county out of its western portion was being agitated
and was defeated at the election in 1872. This was owing to the fact that
there were so many issues before the people; for, be it remembered a big
agitation was going on in Monterey county over the removal of the county
seat from Monterey.
Page 161
Now, logically, the county seat should be in the center of the county, or
as near as possible to the center of a county. There were three
contestants in the fight for the county seat of Monterey county, namely:
Monterey, Castroville, and Salinas. Amidst all the pulling and hauling in
this county seat matter, in Monterey county, there was not so much
attention paid to the county division issue. Consequently, in the 1872
election, the county division issue was defeated, and Salinas was selected
as the future county seat of Monterey county.
As mentioned before, in these memoirs, the proponents for county division
were not idle during the ensuing two years and in the discussion of the
proposed division of Monterey county it was learned that the Pajaro
Valley, disgusted with not having decent roads leading to and from that
place, was willing to come in to the new county. If the Pajaro Valley was
taken in and made a part thereof, San Juan would be selected as the county
seat, being the nearest to the center of the proposed new county.
The idea of making San Juan the county seat did not meet with the approval
of the Hollister folks. The chief objection in their minds, in regard to
the division matter, was to secure the county seat for Hollister.
Accordingly, Monterey county was tipped off as to the desires of the
Pajaro valley people to come into the new county and the Montereyans
thereupon declared that, under no circumstances, would they sacrifice that
section of the county inasmuch as it promised to be the richest section
around Monterey bay. So, when the division lines were drawn the Hollister
folks cunningly contrived to place the division lines between Monterey and
the new county, where they are at present. The line extended through the
center of Aromas and thereby eliminated all possible chances of San Juan
becoming the county seat, because it was located too near the lower end of
the new county. Then Hollister felt that by running the line along the
Pajaro river and then in a direct line to the top of Fremont peak, thus
giving Monterey the Carneros section which, at that time, contained a
large population, it
Page 162
would help to placate Monterey's animosity against the division scheme,
and would insure the county seat being located at or near Hollister. But,
another rival for the county seat appeared in Paicines. It was held, and
logically too, that Paicines was nearer the center of the new county than
was Hollister. However, when the vote came up, Hollister carried away the
prize by virtue of its large population, and San Juan and Paicines were
left out in the cold. Out of this county seat matter there grew an intense
animosity against Hollister--a bitter feeling that exists to the present
day, especially amongst the older generation. The San Juan people felt,
for years, that they had been unjustly treated in the county seat matter
by the people of Hollister. They claimed, and with great justice too, that
their town site was far superior to that of Hollister; that it had a finer
climate; was closer to the main line of travel both by railroad and
highway; was known all over the country as one of the oldest towns in
California, and that its many claims should have been recognized by adding
Pajaro Valley to the new county and then placing the county seat at San
Juan.
Page 163
CHAPTER XXV
The early newspapers of San Benito County--Rapid growth of Hollister--It
becomes a great mart for fine horses and grain.
THE WEEKLY Hollister Enterprise was established by the late John
McGonigle. Its first issue was in October, 1873, and its last in January
1881, when it merged into a paper called "The Pacific Coast."
After many vicissitudes the Pacific Coast was merged into the Hollister
Free Lance and after that the Farmer's Alliance started a paper known as
the West Coast Alliance which ultimately was taken over by several
Democrats and renamed the Hollister Bee.
Under McGonigle's control the Enterprise was the best local paper ever
published in the county. It was always foremost for the advancement of
Hollister and vicinity. Eventually McGonigle went to Ventura and started
the Ventura Democrat which he conducted for years. He, under Cleveland's
administration, was appointed collector of the port at that place.
After his death the paper was bought and renamed the Ventura Post and a
year or so ago was merged into the Ventura Star.
John McGonigle was one of the ablest editors on the Pacific coast. He was
an Irish-Missourian and was Democratic to the backbone.
The next weekly newspaper started in the new county of San Benito was the
Advance, published by a veteran newspaper man by the name of Shaw. Shaw,
who was a relative of the famous writer, George Bernard Shaw, had a large
family of boys and one daughter. The Shaw boys in after years played a
conspicuous part in the development of San Benito county.
Page 164
There were five papers published in San Juan; the first paper that I
remember was the "Central Californian," which was published by Bryerly &
Clevenger, in 1869. The next paper to be launched on the journalistic sea
was the "San Juan Echo," published by A. D. Jones in 1870. In 1880 a
school paper was published, but when the school closed the paper was
discontinued. "The San Juan Enterprise" was published in 1893 by Gates &
Baptist and the last paper was "The Missing Link" published by J. W.
Thomas in 1899.
The present ably conducted paper, "The San Juan Mission News" has had a
longer life than any paper ever started at San Juan. It is a splendid
weekly, and reflects credit upon its town.
Thos. Beck, of Watsonville, was at the time of the division of the county,
senator-elect from Monterey and Santa Cruz counties and had quite a say in
the creation of the new county.
After the creation of San Benito county, Hollister began to grow, and in
time became a very flourishing town. Being of virgin soil, the farmers in
that county produced immense crops of hay, wheat and barley. The hay was
always of top-notch quality, and today, is considered second to none in
the state.
Large warehouses were built in Hollister and filled with wheat, barley and
hay.
Hollister also became noted for the good horses and fine stock raised in
that section. The farmers were breeding large draft horses and fine
carriage horses. Some of the finest six-horse teams in the state could be
seen day after day drawing immense loads of hay, grain and barley to the
warehouses. Many other teams could be seen standing in line waiting their
turn to be unloaded. It was a great place where horse buyers from San
Francisco and other parts of the state repaired to acquire both horses and
stock.
One of the most prominent horse traders as well as horse breeders in that
section was Len Ladd, whose extensive ranch
Page 165
was about a mile, or a mile and a half, outside of town. If a call was
made for a matched team of horses for draying purposes, for a hearse or a
carriage, in fact, any driving purpose, Len Ladd was the man who could
supply them at a moment's notice.
A flour mill was built by J. M. "Baldy" Brown in 1870. "Baldy," in 1879,
sold out this business to Dick Shakelford and a man by the name of Hinds.
The flour mill's product under "Baldy" Brown did not amount to much.
Shakelford and Hinds reconstructed the mill and turned out flour that
became statewide in its reputation for good quality.
Shakelford afterwards went to Templeton and became one of the founders of
that town.
Joaquin Bolado, who came into the county in 1867, had bought some 10,000
acres of land in the Santa Ana and Tres Pinos district sub-divided it into
small tracts and sold it to farmers. This land produced good crops of hay
and grain. Fairview also had been purchased by farmers, and the threshing
machine whistle could be heard blowing at Hollister from various points of
the compass.
Page 166 [blank]
Early Days at the Mission San Juan Bautista - End of Chapters XX-XXV