|
CHAPTER
IV - EXCERPT
In
February 1870, the Fifteenth Amendment
to the
United States Constitution was ratified under the administration
of Ulysses S.
Grant,
establishing that the “right of citizens of the United States to
vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by
any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of
servitude.” [i]
One month later, Louis Monroe made local history:
“Several
colored citizens during the past week have placed their names on
the Great Register of Mariposa county. L. A. Monroe, an old
resident of this place, being the first to enter his name. Our
County Clerk will place the names of all colored men, entitled to
vote, on the Register when they present themselves for that
purpose at his office.” [ii]
The
famous illustration in Harper’s Weekly later that year depicted
the universality of this historic moment so fittingly that it
could almost have been Monroe himself in the image, though he may
have been better-dressed than the craftsman first in line (with a
hammer in his left pocket and a patched pant-leg), more like the
businessman second in line. The businessman is followed by a Union
Army veteran, analogous to a Mariposa area African American
veteran named Alexander Pelton
. Behind him appears to be a farmer who, curiously,
is looking toward a light-complexioned, possibly feminine face,
perhaps included as a reminder that women, of any color, had been
excluded from the legislation.
The 1870 census reveals that Mary Monroe was
“Keeping house,” listing the value of her real estate at $350
with Mary as the property owner. The listing also shows George
living at home with his parents in or near the town of Mariposa.
But by this time the Monroes were also the proud new owners of
farmland, well outside of town, with Mary in charge. Having
learned of a state law authorizing married women to operate their
own businesses, in two years she would announce:
“…
I, MARY ANN MONROE, wife of L.A. Monroe … shall apply … for an
order of said Court permitting me to carry on the business of
farming and stock raising in my own name and on my own account, in
said Township and County, as sole trader. Dated Mariposa, December
23d, 1871.” [iii]
Though
Louis still listed his profession as “Barber,” he was now
experimenting with a new career. In June 1871 Louis walked into
the office of the Gazette with a small treasure:
“Mountain
Wheat.—L. A. Monroe has left at this office this week a hand
full of wheat heads which he says are about a fair sample of a
field of 30 acres on his ranch a few miles from town. The heads
average six inches in length, are well filled with grains
generally plump, though in some of the heads the grains show the
effect of deficient moisture. Monroe says the straw is from three
to four feet in length. Such a crop this dry season indicates that
the hill lands are most reliable and valuable wheat lands. If that
is the case it is certain such lands are not utilized to one
hundredth part of the extent they ought to be.” [iv]
So,
while Louis was juggling two careers, barbering in town and then,
most likely with Mary, heading out to work on developing the new
ranch, George could remain in their Mariposa home while working at
the Washburn & McCready stables.
Washburn
& McCready
were
also busy showing off their energy and ingenuity, which in one
instance led to a brush with history:
“Yosemite
Items.— … The first carriage in the valley arrived here July
24th [1871], packed in on mules by Washburn &
McCready, livery men of the Mariposa route, for the use of the
public. Tourists who have an objection to horseback riding can
enjoy the sights and wonders of this remarkable valley, combined
with the pleasures of a carriage ride. … Mrs. [Elizabeth] Cady
Stanton
and
Susan B. Anthony
are
at Yo Semite, visiting the different points of interest in
Washburn & McCready’s carriage, being the first to enjoy a
carriage ride in Yo Semite valley.” [v]
1871
finds Washburn & McCready angling to create a transportation
empire. Railroad workers edged southward through central
California, their freshly laid tracks bringing Yosemite tourists
into closer range of Washburn & McCready’s stage lines. In
anticipation, the firm appears to have established a connection
with the railroad to the north in Modesto, and built a stable
farther south where the railroad would soon reach a settlement
called Bear Creek
:
“We
understand that it is the intention of Washburn & McCready to
erect a large livery stable this Winter at Bear Creek, and stock
it with plenty of horses, carriages, stages, &c., for the
accommodation of Yo Semite tourists next season. This firm has
already a large amount of capital invested in this business. The
above firm have recently purchased
Boomershine’s stage line running
from Modesto to Coulterville
.”[vi]
[i] The 15th Amendment to the
United States Constitution; currently online at:
loc.gov/rr/program/bib/ourdocs/15thamendment.html
(accessed 3/21/2023).
[ii] Mariposa
Gazette,
April 22, 1870, pg. 2, col. 3.
[iii]
Mariposa Gazette, January 12, 1872, pg. 3, col. 1, so far the only occurrence of
Mary Monroe’s middle name, Ann.
[iv] Mariposa
Gazette,
June 23, 1871, pg. 3, col. 1. U.S. Census Bureau
(1870) lists all three of the Monroe family on the same
page as J.B. Cook and John Bruce, among others, all inhabiting
the same district that included the town of Mariposa. Voter
registrations show that Louis took up residence at the ranch
by 1873.
[v]
Mariposa
Gazette,
August 4, 1871, pg. 2, col. 4.
This account, along with a photograph from four years
previous, currently stand as the earliest
primary sources regarding carriages in Yosemite Valley. Photographic
evidence shows the presence of a wheeled vehicle in Yosemite
Valley as early as 1867 (see Carleton Watkins, The
Sentinel, 3270 Feet. Hutching's Hotel, Yosemite Valley,
Mariposa Co., 1867, mammoth-plate albumen print, 20 1/2 by
15 3/4 in.). Currently online at: carletonwatkins.org/Gallery/igallery_pages.php?page_id=11&m=d
and
sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2007/photographs-n08349/lot.116.html
(accessed 3/21/2023).
According to
historian
Shirley Sargent
(Sargent, Galen Clark - Yosemite Guardian 1964)
p. 48, Galen Clark packed in and assembled the first carriage
in Yosemite Valley in 1870, and James Hutchings
repeated
the feat in August, 1871. The Hutchings story is confirmed in Mariposa
Gazette,
August 11, 1871, pg. 2, col. 3: “Yesterday J. M.
Hutchings’ new stage, the ‘Pioneer,’ was packed down the
mountains on mules and made its first trip up the valley
….” But regarding the origin of the Clark story, there is
only one early source which, rather than providing
corroboration, instead throws the Clark story into question: Mrs.
H. J. Taylor quotes “Charles Tuttle,” oddly omitting his
last name, his full name being Charles Tuttle Leidig (b. March
8, 1869, d. December 2, 1956; see California
Death Index, 1940-1997, Charles Tuttle Leidig, 02 Dec 1956;
Department of Public Health Services, Sacramento).
According to Taylor’s book:
“[Clark] brought the first wagon
into Yosemite Valley. Charles Tuttle, the first white boy born
in Yosemite, rehearsed the sensation created by this event:
‘I was a boy of eight or nine years when the first wagon was
brought into the Valley. Galen Clark had it packed in on mule
back. I had never been out of the Valley and had never seen a
wagon. Everybody was interested to see it assembled. When all
was in readiness three or four days were given to celebrate
the event and everybody living in the Valley had a free ride;
I will never forget those days!’”
(M. H. Taylor 1936)
This appears to be the problematic origin of the Clark story. If Leidig
was “eight or nine years when the first wagon was brought
into the Valley,” that would put the year as 1877—three years after stage travel had become
common in Yosemite. Conversely, if Clark brought the first
wagon in 1870, Leidig at one year old would not have
remembered the event.
A possible explanation is that in 1871, Washburn and McCready, returning
to their business in Mariposa, left their wagon with Clark.
The quoted section of Taylor’s book is currently online
here: yosemite.ca.us/library/yosemite_indians_and_other_sketches/galen_clark.html
(accessed 3/21/2023).
[vi] Mariposa
Gazette,
October 13, 1871, pg. 3, col. 1.
|
"A
very well written, carefully documented story."
– Dr. John Oliver Wilson, School of Social Welfare,
University
of California at Berkeley
|
