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  

412 HISTORY OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA. he epent the next four years in different South Sea islands and in Central and South America, spending six months at Otaheite, and about eight months on the Guayaquil River in Colombia, South America, about a year in Valparaiso and about eight months in Callao. Being a good carpenter, he readily found paying employment at each of thoee places, and his extensive travels and business has thus enabled him to become acquainted with the great part of the world. Having, however, an abiding determination to return to California, he in 1845 made a trip from Valparaiso to Bodega, and there had his first employment in California, in erecting a will at the Russian fort. He next spent two years with Captain John A. Sutter, as a carpenter at the fort. On leaving he received as payment 200 heifers and 150 wild mares, and with them he moved up to Butte Creek, in Butte County, where he remuined about six years. The market for his cattle stock was in Oregon, as thet country was undergoing settlement, previous to the boom in California, and he made a fair profit. He also had about a hundred Indians at work raising wheat. While occupying that extensive ranch, he heard of the gold discovery at Sutter’s Mill and concluded that gold must also be in his neighborhood on the Feather River. In company with a friend who was familiar with the mining in progress onthe American River, he took anumber of Indians out into the neighborhood: and commenced washing fur gold, with remarkable suecess. After taking out abont $10,000 worth, he touk his Indians back to the ranch to harvest his wheat, supposing the gold would remain untouched until he returned; but when he returned to the diggings he found them _ tilled with miners. In 1854 he sold vut his ranch and came into Solano County, and most of the time since then he has been engaged in the rearing of live stock. In 1852 he went East and boughta lot of cattle in Missouri, and brought them that season as far as Salt Luke, paying $12 a head, great and small; and he bought also wagons at $30 each, which were then in great demand for freighting and which he sold afterward for $500 each. His cattle he sold in the mines as high as $150 each. He made several snch trips, with varying results, but mostly with good success. Since that time he has been engaged in stock raising, farming, and later in fruit-raising. He has now a place about two and one-half miles from Vacaville which is especially adapted to early fruit and vegetables. Mr. Dntton is a member of the Pioneer Association of Suisun, and he is a voter of the Republican party. He married Miss Martha Pierson, a native of Missouri, and they have seven children living: Ella, now the wife of William Stevenson, son of Colonel Stevenson, and now railroading in Mexico; Charles, now superintendent of the Earl Fruit Shipping Company; Wallace, now ranching near Ukiah, this State; Cora, a graduate of Vacaville College; Esther Nina; Gracie, attending the public schools at Vacaville. WOR AJOR S. N. STRANAHAN.—In the mM following article will be found one of “Se the liveliest and most interesting as well as romantic life-histories that it would be possible to pen, containing incident, variety and change sutticient to satisfy the most adventuresome. Major Stranahan was born in Her‘kimer County, New York, April 19, 1825, of one of the oldest and best New York families. Ilis father, Cady Stranahan, was born in Poughkeepsie, New York, but died when but fortyfour years old, cut short in his prime. His father was Isbenezer Stranahan, who was himself descended from Aaron Stranahan, who settled on the Mohawk in 1700, and was Washington's wagon master during the Revolutionary war. The Major’s mother was a Brainerd of Mayflower stock. Ile went into the fruit business when but a boy, building up a business worth to him over $3,000; he was twenty-one years old.