Excerpt from History of Diego 1542-1908 an Account of the Rise and Progress of the Pioneer Settlement on the Pacific, Coast of the United States, Vol. 2: The Modern City
On the 15th of April, 1867, something happened which radically changed the course of San Diego history. This was the arrival of a man from San Francisco on the steamer Pacific. He was not possessed of large means, represented no organization, and had no personal following, yet was destined to inaugurate a movement which should change the location of the city and start it on the road to real and enduring greatness. In the next chapter we shall have "Father" Horton's own account of the circumstances which led to his coming and of how he proceeded after his arrival. At this point it is important to get a glimpse of his previous career and to make some characterization of his work in founding the modern city.
Alonzo Erastus Horton was born at Union, Connecticut, October 24, 1813. He was thus in his fifty-fourth year when he began his work in San Diego, an age at which very few men undertake a new task of such importance. He came of old New England stock and the story of his life is really a picture of his times. It begins with the clean, sweet poverty which went with the migration of the old stock into new countries in the early days of the Republic. The family began their westward march while the future founder of San Diego was two years old, moving from Connecticut to Madison County, New York, They next moved to Oswego County and, in 1824. they had reached the shore of Lake Ontario at the town of Seriba, and were living in a log house. Young Horton's father had become blind and the boy began to earn money by basket-making, while still going to school. Later, he contributed to the family support by hewing timber, which was sold in the local market. By the time he reached his majority he had gained experience as a grocery clerk, as a lake sailor before the mast, and as captain and owner of a small vessel engaged in the wheat trade between Oswego and Canada. He retired from the lake with several hundred dollars in his pocket and learned the trade of a cooper.
About the Publisher
Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com
This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works. Это и многое другое вы найдете в книге History of Diego 1542-1908 an Account of the Rise and Progress of the Pioneer Settlement on the Pacific, Coast of the United States, Vol. 2 (William E. Smythe)