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Collection: Books and Periodicals
A Memorial and Biographical History of Northern California (1891) (713 pages)
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Page: of 713
HISTORY OF NORTHERN CALIFURNIA. 437
He was promoted for merit from time to time
during the course of his active service through
all the gradcs to Captain of his company. His
company was in the thick of the fight at Fair
Oaks, Seven-days battles, Fredericksburg, Chancellorville, Antietam Gettysburg, and other
engagements. Captain Grosse was wounded
three times, and was honorably discharged, on
account of his wounds and disability, after having seen three years of active service at the
front.
After his return from the war he went to Oil
City, Pennsylvania; thence, after’six months, to
Canton, Ohio, and then he located in Massillon,
Ohio, where he became a clerk. Shortly afterward he engaged in business on his own account, in company with Messrs. Allman & Welter, under the firm name of Allman, Grosse &
Welter. This firm was the founder of the celebrated “ Beehive Store,” which is still one of the
largest and most successful mercantile houses in
Ohio. Iu August, 1876, he eold out his interest in the establishment and came overland
again to California. After traveling extensively
throughout the State, he finally decided in favor
of Santa Rosa as a point of promise, and took
up his residence in this beautiful city in October of that year. He entered immediately into
business, buying lots, erecting on. them stores
or residences, and then selling them, and after
continuing this for several years he gradually
drifted into the real-estate business, the record
of his years being one of continual enlargement
and increasing success, until to-day it is probable that there is no more extensive dealer in
real estate north of San Francisco than Captain
Grosse. The secret of his success lies in the
fact that he is alwaye wide-awake, possesses excellent judgment, and consults the interests of
his clients as the chief thing to aim at. His
offices are situated on the ground floor of the
Atheneum building, a building that is unsurpassed for commodiousness and architectural
style in any other town in Northern California.
It was erected largely through the efforts of
Captain Grosse, who is a director in it and still
retains a large interest. This is but a sample
of his earnest and practical efforts to build up
Santa Rosa, though space will hardly permit a
detailed enumeration. The offices are 40 x 200
feet in size, are on the ground floor, and are
handsome and appropriately fitted up and furnished. The business includes all departments,
such as the purchase and sales of property. exchanges, loans, ete.; a corps of experienced
employees are connected with the business. It
should be stated further that the Captain is
Land Commissioner for Sonoma County. But
it must not be supposed that this oftice business
fills the whole of the time of so energetic a man
as Captain Grosse.
His beautiful home farm, “ Rincon Heights,”
is a splendid domain of 563 acres, stretching
from a short dietance east of the city limits for
some three miles over Rincon Heights and the
valley beyond. It is already the show place of
Santa Rosa, with the road winding up and
around to the summit, with an always widening
and enlarging view of the city, valley and the
most distant country; and when the improvements now in course of being carried out are
completed, nothing like it will be found in California. It was the good fortune of the writer
to make the drive with Captain Grosse, and
rarely indeed has he enjoyed a drive so much,
each step of the way being attended with new
surprises and new delights. Advantage has
been taken of every portion to increase the great
natural beauty of the spot and to utilize every
foot of space. The soil is all very fertile and
deep, although in some places thickly covered
with surface rock. This has been cleared off
and olives planted all through, there being now
nearly 100 acres of olives. Indeed this will be
the great olive orchard of Northern California,
when the plantings are done, the Captain adding to the acreage every year. About 3,000
trees are now six years old, and are bearing
luxuriantly. A noteworthy thing is what is
called the « Horse-shoe,” a very peculiar circle
of rocks occupying an elevated suinmit and near
by the « Devil’s Bath-Tub,” a strongly hollowed-