Collection: Books and Periodicals

About This Item:

Title: A Memorial and Biographical History of Northern California (1891) Collection Type: Books and Periodicals Publisher: Lewis Publishing Company Published: 1891 Copyright: In the public domain or published before 1925 Source(s): Google Books # of Pages: 713 Download PDF: User Login Required Download OCR Text: User Login Required

Date Scanned: 2024-07-22 00:25:09 Item Sourced From: PDF First Created: 2025-03-17 03:11:29 Last Updated: 2025-03-17 06:30:36

Original Held At: Searls Historical Library Location: 161 Nevada City Hwy, Nevada City, CA 95959

Page: of 713  

464 HISTORY OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA. were bearing, and at seven years of age bore eighty-five tons of dried fruit; 3,000 prune trees when five years old bore twenty-three tons when dried; at six years old. bore forty-three tons when dried. Mr. Dickson has all the facilities for drying his fruit, which he does in a scientific manner. In 1885 he refused $500 per acre for sixty acres, all of which was planted in choice fruit trees; the land cost him $63 per acre in 1878. Mr. Dickson has a large and handsome residence, good barns and other outbuildings suitable for storage purposes, etc A portion of this fine farm it well adapted to hay. ’ This ranch is now worth $100,000. He was married at Galt, Canada, December 17, 1873, to Miss Janet Bigger, of Galt, Canada West, and they have two children living, viz.: William J.and Janet E. Their daughter, Margaret, died November 18, 1885. Our subject is the eldest of four children, and his ancestry is long-lived and prolific. In politics he takes an active part and advocates Republican principles. SE ILLIAM LOONEY, one of the large a land-owners of Butte County, will be = considered as the next subject of thie biographical record. In common with many other substantial citizens of this country, he claims Ireland as his birth-place, born January 15, 1833. His parents, James and Julia Looney, were also natives of the beautiful « Emerald Isle,” and are both deceased. Believing that greater opportunities for young meu existed in the United States than in his native land, Mr. Looney set sail for America in 1848, landing in Boston, ,Massachusetts. Ee soon secured work by the month, and continued togaina livelihood in this way until 1852, when he came to California, making the trip by water; he re mained in San Francisco for one year, and then entered the employ of the Government, in which he remained until 1858. It was in this year that he took up his residence in Butte County, homesteading 160 acres of good land. Since then he has made an additivnal purchase of 640 acres, and devotes his time to the raising of grain and live-stock. He has been more than ordinarily successful, and may well be congratulated upon the property he has accumulated since coming to this country. Mr. Looney was united in marriage, in 1855, to Honora Doherty, a native of Ireland; eight children have been born to them: John, Josephine, Edward, Mary, William, James (deceased), Maggie (deceased), and Kate. The mother died in 1881, greatly mourned by the hushand and children, to whom she had been so faithful a wife and mother. atte ROOF has been identified with the farmin ing interests of Butte County since the ® year 1854, at which time he purchased the farm on which he now lives. He was born in Ohio in 1827, and is a son of Michael and Margaret Roof, natives of Germany, who emigrated to the United States at an early day. Our subject received his education in the common schools of his native State, and in the year 1851 bade adieu to the scenes of his youth and went to Virginia, where he remained one year. At the end of that period he decided that California presented more advantages to a young man who was entirely dependent upon his own efforts than any other place in this country; accordingly he set out for the “Golden” State, crossing the plains in 1852; he met with fewer of the mishaps of this exhausting journey than many of his fellow-travellers did, and landed at Oregon House with high hopes and an abundance of courage. We at once began mining on the Yuba River, and continued his gold search for six mouths. He then abandoned this enterprise and went to San Juaquin County and took up farming; he resided there until 1854, when, as before stated, he came to Butte County. Ilis farm consists of 126 acres of highly cultivated land, and is devoted to the