Enter a name, company, place or keywords to search across this item. Then click "Search" (or hit Enter).
Harold Biggs Biography & Notes (4 pages)
Go to the Archive Home
Go to Thumbnail View of this Item
Go to Single Page View of this Item
Download the Page Image
Copy the Page Text to the Clipboard
Don't highlight the search terms on the Image
Show the Page Image
Show the Image Page Text
Reset View and Center Image
Zoom Out
Zoom In
Rotate Left
Rotate Right
Toggle Full Page View
Flip Image Horizontally
More Information About this Image
Get a Citation for Page or Image - Copy to the Clipboard
Go to the Previous Page (or Left Arrow key)
Page: of 4
William Biggs —
Came to Area
Via New Zealand
By HAROLD BIGGS
. In 1854, just over 100. years’
ago, my . grandfather, © William
‘Biggs, came to Grass Valley and
purchased two acres of land east
‘of present Lincoln Street and north
‘of Colfax Avenue, where he built
‘a home and planted assorted fruit
. . The flat portion of this land pro. duced great crops of rhubarb until
/recent years. Much of this was
. shipped to Sacramento every year
. when I was a small boy, my Chinese friend, Ah Geet, ‘being in
_ charge of the cultivation and ship'ping. — Testy ere
I’still remember the scare I got
iwhen Geet took me to Chinatown
jto their New Years celebration.
"As he carried me along the wooden
. Sidewalk we got too close to strings
tof exploding fire-crackers . SUu\spended from the awning, and a
‘bomb frightened: me.” My tears
“were quickly stopped when. he
took me into a Chinese store and
ij bought me sweet ‘Chinese candy.
Grandfather Ambitious
. . Grandfather William Biggs when
‘a young man was employed as a
\railroad engineer in a coal mine at
'Packlechurch, near Bristol, Engand. His wife and small children
lalso. were natives of that town.
‘But he was ambitious, and when
the. opportunity came to go as a
isettler to New Zealand, he did not
let it go by. . ? m ;
“1 still have in my possession the .
‘original “Memorandum of Agreeiment” under which my grandfath/er went to New Zealand as an em. Ploye’ of the New Zealand Comipany. © This ‘document, printed on
lone largé page; with spaces. filled
Hin by writing, is still perfectly leg-/
‘ible, free from errors, and as ac.
‘curate in language .as though it
‘were dictated by a lawyer today. .
“Dated April 10, 1841," this .
“Memorandum of Agreement” between “Captain Arthur Wakefield,
lon-behalf -of the —New. Zealand}
‘Company, and William Biggs,” .
‘contains the terms. ». The contract
was for two years from. date. of
‘Sailing from England:
“Wages 28 Shillings
ayment. in wages was to be) 28 shillings per week, tobe paid .
aweelkly by the said company in the .
(Colony.” ~ However sit was agreed ,
that one-half of this sum was to be
falloted for’ use of his wife and
ifamily wntilthe period of their
‘embarkation, such allowance to be
ipaid weekly at the Company’s of(fice in Londons sone en
juny
ber
bE F4o5
Gal?
{e-5
IC)