Biography of Stephen Mallory White
as revealed by
Letters from Stephen Mallory White to Charles Bruce Younger Sr.

A. Source: Letters of Coleman Younger & C. B. Younger Sr.
Book 2B, Letter #137 From Stephen Mallory White, sent from Watsonville, CA., to Charles Bruce Younger Sr., April 22, 1874

Watsonville April 22d 1874

Mr Younger

I drop you this line to inform you that I am still above board and will probably be in Santa Cruz next Monday. You noticed, no doubt, that things went all right in Sacramento, as regards my application.¹

Heydenfeldt² has just written to my father offering $4000 for the St. John; he says that Gregory³ has written “hopefully” regarding the probable result of the litigation, but that he [Heydenfeldt] desires to get rid of the matter & hence makes the offer. My father⁴ replied that he was not prepared to recede from his former proposal.

Yours etc
/s/ Stephen M. White

Transcriber’s Notes for Letter A:
1. The relationship of Charles Bruce Younger Sr., and Stephen Mallory White, starts before April 1874. White “read law” in Younger’s law office, and as will be seen in the quote below (and Note 4 to Letter 140), his training included, among other fields of law, Titus Hale’s two-year study of the land-ownership of Rancho San Andreas.

Important Suit.

An action has been commenced in the District Court of Santa Cruz county, C. B. Younger as attorney for Edward Briody against Titus Hale, and about one hundred and fifty others, to obtain partition among the owners of the Rancho San Andreas. This ranch is situated near Watsonville, and contains nearly ten thousand acres. The partition of this ranch will add much to the prosperity of this county. [Source: Santa Cruz Sentinel 1872 Aug 3 3:2]

And, when White had absorbed the essentials, Younger and others of the local Bar recommended him to be admitted to practice before the California courts. In this letter, he reports to his mentor that “things went all right in Sacramento, as regards my application.” His examination before the Supreme Court was successful; the Sentinel informed its readers that:

Stephen M. White of Santa Cruz, upon the recommendation of C. B. Younger, Albert Hagan and A. W. Blair has been admitted to the bar of the Supreme Court. [Source: Santa Cruz Sentinel 1874 Apr 18 3:1]

2. Solomon Heydenfeldt had been a Justice of the Cal. Supreme Court (1851-1857). After resigning this post in 1857, he resumed private practice.

3. “Gregory” was, probably, Durell Stokes Gregory, Attorney at Law, of Monterey, who practiced in Santa Cruz Co. courts as early as 1858. He was a CA Senator representing Montery & Santa Cruz counties, 1858-1859; Superior Court Judge of San Luis Obispo County, 1883-1889. He died at San Luis Obispo, July, 1889.

4. “My father” was William Francis White, a Watsonville land owner, and, in the 1879 campaign, was the statewide candidate for California Governor on the Workingmen’s Party ticket, his opponents being George Clement Perkins and Hugh J. Glenn. Perkins won.

B. Source: Letters of Coleman Younger & C. B. Younger Sr.
Book 2B, Letter #140.1 – 140.3 From Stephen Mallory White, sent from Los Angeles, CA., to Charles Bruce Younger Sr., December 11, 1874

On letterhead of “Law Office of Stephen M. White, Downey’s Block, Los Angeles, Cal.”

December 11th 1874

I am at last located as indicated by the heading of this note. Business is quite active here and there are many improvements going on. Lawyers are numerous and there is considerable litigation. The Dist. Court is in Session most of the time.

I am pretty well satisfied that this is a good location, although it will doubtless take some time to make a start.

At present there are four Rail Roads running into Los Angeles, viz: San Fernando, Spadra, Anaheim & Wilmington. A company has just been incorporated for the purpose of running another railroad to the ocean to terminate 8 or 10 miles north of Wilmington where a wharf will be built. This last road will pass through the Centinela¹ ranch, which is to be sold a la Lompoc.

I see that the great Ed. of the Enterprise

[verso of leaf] W. W. Broughton,² who writes his name backwards, is to run a paper in Lompoc. I suppose he thinks that if there is no money in the speculation, nothing will be lost (by him) anyhow.

Bancroft³ would not make such an arrangement as would enable me to get those duplicate Cal reports from you, without losing by it, so I bought a full set for $277. The cost of a portion of a set is altogether out of proportion with the value of the full set.

I found it quite difficult to obtain an office here but at length succeeded.

Remember me to Mr. Hale⁴ & give my respects to Mrs. Younger and Mrs. Hale.

Yours very truly
/s/ Stephen M. White.

Transcriber’s Notes for Letter B:

1. Centinela ranch, aka Rancho Aguaje de la Centinela.

2. W. W. Broughton was William Wallace Broughton.
He came to Santa Cruz about 1860. He was admitted to practice law in Santa Cruz in 1861.

He was a printer on the Santa Cruz Sentinel. He was married, at age 25, on July 19, 1862, to Amanda Elizabeth Anthony, 15, daughter of George Anthony. He published the Weekly Enterprise for a time in 1867. [i.e., 1873-1875]

He took the printing plant in seventies and founded Lompoc Record [1875].

He was elected a Supervisor of Santa Barbara County. In 1880 in San Francisco, he was co-publisher with R. T. Buell of weekly “Pacific Greenbacker.” In 1881, he was the publisher of Goldville [?], Ariz., Bulletin. He died Feb. 12, 1910, at Lompoc; age 76.

[Source: modified from Leon Rowland’s biographical files. Special Collections, University Library, University of California at Santa Cruz.]

Another Paper.

It appears Santa Cruz is really to have another paper. On Thursday evening last, Dan. Madeira’s team brought it from Salinas city, where it has been stored since the demise of the New Republic Journal. We are advised that the paper is owned by local capitalists; and Mr. Broughton has rented the material. It will be called the Santa Cruz Enterprise; be 24x36—the former size of the SENTINEL—and published at $4 per year; and advocate the claims of Newton Booth for U. S. Senator. The office is in Ely’s building, up-stairs; formerly the Santa Cruz Times office. [Source: Santa Cruz Sentinel 1873 Nov 8 3:3]

W. W. BROUGHTON

came to California in the summer of 1859, and has resided in the State ever since. He is a New Yorker by birth, born July 29, 1836, at Tonawanda, Erie County, New York. He read law in the office of W. W. Thayer, since Governor of Oregon, and now an able Judge on the Supreme Bench of that State. Was admitted to practice in California in 1863, and since that time has favored the profession with a strong tendency to newspaper life. Several papers have been founded, edited and published by him in various parts of the Pacific coast. In 1874 he owned and edited the Santa Cruz Enterprise, which has since been merged into the Local Item. In 1865 the New Age, the first Odd Fellows weekly paper in the United States, was founded by him in San Francisco and is now in its twenty-fifth year. In 1875 he established the Lompoc Record, at the founding of the Lompoc Colony, in Santa Barbara County, California, which he is now editing. In 1880 he founded the Arizona Bulletin, in that Territory, but discontinued the publication. Mr. Broughton was the original projector of the Lompoc Colony, and performed herculean work in its organization and in locating colonists. The success of the colony is mainly attributed to his enterprise in publishing the local paper and diffusing throughout the land the facts concerning the most desirable region of the Pacific coast for homes.

In 1862 Mr. Broughton was marrieed [sic] to the only daughter of Mr. George T. Anthony, a highly respected citizen of Santa Cruz. A family of seven sons and five daughters is the result of this happy union. In politics, Mr. Broughton of late years has been a Democrat, and in 1886 was the nominee for the State Senate of that party for the district embracing San Luis Obispo, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties. At present Mr. Broughton is at Lompoc, practicing his profession and publishing his paper, the Lompoc Record, a paper recognized to be one of the ablest in the county.

[Source: Storke, Yda Addis A memorial and biographical history of the counties of Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo and Ventura, California. Illustrated.... Chicago: Lewis Publishing Company, 1891. p. 371]

3. “Bancroft” refers to the publisher of Reports of cases determined in the Supreme Court of the state of California : [Mar.1850] to May 17, 1934. San Francisco : Bancroft- Whitney, 1852- .

4. “Hale” refers to Titus Hale and his wife, Mrs. Martha Jackson Aldrich (widow of Luke C. Aldrich), whom he married in San Francisco, July 10th, 1862. Titus Hale was later President of the Society of California Pioneers, for two terms, 1911-1913.

“I once owned some interest in the San Andreas Ranch between Watsonville and Santa Cruz. This Ranch was first owned by Jose Castro who died in 1834, (the year I was born). He left a wife and fourteen children, his estate was never settled and the children had conveyed interests in the lands by all manner of deeds and in all quantities; some selling more than twice their interest. All the lands were in the possession of a few of the owners and (some squatters) and the other owners received no benefits or rents.

“I commenced and carried on a partition suit, by which title to the property was settled. It was a mammoth undertaking; there were one hundred and twelve owners beside other claimants. I spent two years in transcribing and examining deeds in this work. I was assisted by Stephen M. White who at that time was a Law student in Hagan and Younger’s Office [Albert Hagan & Charles Bruce Younger Sr.].

“I gave Stephen the first fee he ever received, he was a noble fellow. I examined over 1200 deeds and decided what each owner’s interest in the Ranch was. We compromised and went into court with a decree allowing each owner the amount of land I was willing he should have, and the judge signed the decree. The Attorneys in this case were - Charles B. Younger [Sr.]; Albert Hagan; William H. Patterson; Judge Currey; O. P. Evans; Cornwall McCabe; Julius Lee; J. A. Barham; and a host of others.

“My portion of the Ranch was 3000 acres. That suit was entitled Briody [Edward Briody] VS [versus] Hale and entailed the hardest work I ever did, but it paid well.”

[Source: Society of California Pioneers. Autobiography. Records, Vol. 1, pg. 171-177]

C. Source: Letters of Coleman Younger & C. B. Younger Sr.
Book 2B, Letter #136 From Stephen Mallory White, sent from Los Angeles, CA., to Charles Bruce Younger Sr., September 10, 1875

On letterhead of “Law Office of Stephen M. White, 7&9 Downey’s Block, Los Angeles, Cal.”

Dear Mr. Younger:

You probably have heard that I was a candidate for Dist. Atty of this Co. and that my opponent¹ carried off the honors. I send you a reprint of the election returns from which you will see that, comparatively, I made a very good run, being defeated by 318 in a total vote of over 5100, when the average majority against the Independent ticket was more than 700. In as nominated for the position during my absence and heard of it first in San Francisco, when I returned and took a look around I came to the conclusion that it would be well to make the race. That I was a stranger in a great measure and that if nothing else I could make many acquaintances. So I went in and ran ahead of some of the most popular men on our ticket.

[verso] State and Congressional politics I did not meddle with, but voted for the Democratic nominees. The only County officer we elected was Temple.² That was merely a bank question between Downey & Temple & the latter caught our D’s man at last. With the exception of Temple & Burdick,³ I made the best run of any one on the ticket. You will observe that Irwin⁴ got more than 700 majority in this Co. I was not surprised at my father’s defeat⁵. Under the circumstances nothing else could have been expected. The use of money among the noble aztecs of Los Angeles is carried on to such an extent as to be almost farcical. It seemed strange to me to see and hear men trying to get a bid on a room full of dusky voters. Some demanded a pretty high price - for the article - One fellow stated he had 6 voters for 50 - another told me he had or rather knew of 33 but as I made no bid - no proposition forthcame. Taking it all in all, I am well satisfied at having fought the battle. I made many friends, canvassed the whole county - making the speeches & consequently came in contact with a large number of strangers -

Give my respects to Mrs. Younger & also to Mrs. Hale, as well as to Messers. Hale, Logan, Adams & all inquiring friends.

Yours very sincerely,
/s/ Stephen M. White

Transcriber’s Notes for Letter C:

1. Rodney Hudson was elected L.A. Co. District Attorney, for the term 1876-1877,
on the Democratic ticket.

2. F. P. F. (Francisco Pliny Fiske “Templito”) Temple was elected L.A. Co. Treasurer on the Independent-Republican ticket.

3. Horace Burdick was elected L.A. Co. Tax Collector on the Ind.-Republican ticket.

4. “Irwin” is a reference to Governor William Irwin, elected Sept. 1, 1875.

5. “my father’s defeat”— the contest of his father, William Francis White against
Thomas Flint Sr. (Republican), for the California Senate, representing Santa Cruz, San Benito, and Monterey counties. Flint served for two terms, 1875-78.

[Sources: Daily Alta California, San Francisco, 1875 Sep 4 1:4, 1:8;
and Santa Cruz Sentinel 1875 Sep 11 3:3-4]

D. Source: Letters of Coleman Younger & C. B. Younger Sr.
Book 2B, Letter #135 From Stephen Mallory White, sent from Los Angeles, CA., to Charles Bruce Younger Sr., September 28, 1875

On letterhead of “Law Office of Stephen M. White, ^7&9^ Downey’s Block, Los Angeles, Cal.”

Dear Mr. Younger:

If you have any extra copies of the Complaints filed in the Railroad’s condemnation cases please send me one, as there are several cases of the kind going on here, & with which I am connected. The complaints might be useful to me and so if there are any surplus ones on hand & convenient I would be obliged for one.

Remember [me] to Mrs Younger & also to inquiring friends & tender my congratulations to the Dist. Atty elect.¹

Yours most sincerely
Stephen M. White

Transcriber’s Notes for Letter D:

1. James Harvey Logan, endorsed by Democrats & the Independent ticket, was elected District Attorney on September 1st, 1875; county-wide he received 1131 votes, as compared to 893 votes for Ferdinand Jay McCann*, a majority of 238 votes.

[Source: Santa Cruz Sentinel 1875 Sep 11 3:3-4 “Official Election Returns of Santa Cruz County.”]

Andrew Craig and James Harvey Logan played a few rounds of “musical chairs” during the period of 1872 to 1892. Logan served as D.A. in 1872 and 1873, followed by Andrew Craig, who served two terms followed by his election as County Judge. During the same election (1875) when Craig was elected Judge, Logan replaced Craig as District Attorney (to whom White sends his greetings, above). Under the new California Constitution that replaced County Judges, Logan was elected Superior Court Judge and served several terms (1880-1884 and 1893-1897). He is perhaps better known for his cross-breeding of blackberries to create the “Loganberry.”

*Ferdinand Jay McCann was elected Judge of the Superior Court of Santa Cruz County on November 10, 1884, and died in office on August 8th, 1893.

E. Source: Letters of Coleman Younger & C. B. Younger Sr.
Book 2B, Letter #139 From Stephen Mallory White, sent from Los Angeles, CA., to Charles Bruce Younger Sr., September 28, 1879

On letterhead of “Bicknell & White, Attorneys at Law, Rooms 13, 14 & 15, Temple Block,

Los Angeles, Cal. Stephen M. White. John D. Bicknell.”
C. B. Younger Esqr: Sept 28th 1879

Dear Sir:

My father¹ wrote me several days ago to the effect that you would like the position of Reporter of the Supreme Court. I have spoken to Major Ross² about it & told him of your qualifications, which are certainly number one for that place. He says that there are two applicants from this Co., Geo. H. Smith³ & Geo. C. Gibbs -- the former our ex-Senator, the latter an atty. of this bar who was once Reporter of the Supreme Court of Michigan. I don’t think either of them have any show.

Judge Niles⁴ is also a candidate & there are several other aspirants for the place from San Francisco. Of course Ross could make no promises but I think my remarks to him may do some good.

Remember me kindly to Mrs. Younger,

Very truly
/s/ Stephen M. White

Transcriber’s Notes for Letter E:

Note: C. B. Younger Sr. did not get the position. George H. Smith did.

1. “My father” was William Francis White, a Watsonville land owner, and, in the 1879 campaign, was the statewide candidate for California Governor on the Workingmen’s Party ticket, his opponents being George C. Perkins and Hugh J. Glenn. Perkins was elected Governor.

2. “Major Ross” was California Supreme Court Justice Erskine M. Ross (1880-1886); United States District Judge for the southern district of California (1887-1895); Circuit Judge, United States Circuit Court of Appeals (1895-1925).

3. George Hugh Smith was the Reporter for the California Supreme Court, and volumes 54 thru 62 of California Reports (1881-1884) were issued under his supervision.

4. “Judge Niles” was Addison C. Niles, California Supreme Court Justice (1871- 1880).

F. Source: Letters of Coleman Younger & C. B. Younger Sr.
Book 2B, Letter #138 From Stephen Mallory White, sent from Los Angeles, CA., to Charles Bruce Younger Sr., August 18, 1880

On letterhead of “Bicknell & White, Attorneys at Law, Rooms 13, 14 & 15, Temple Block, Los Angeles, Cal. Stephen M. White. John D. Bicknell.”

Aug 18th 1880
C B Younger Esqr

Dear Sir:

This will introduce Messrs. Gardner¹ & Macheil² of this place who are taking a trip about your portion of the State. Mr. Gardner is a member of our bar & desires some local information & I have suggested that he call on you for the same,

With regards
Yrs Sincerely
/s/ Stephen M. White

Transcriber’s Notes for Letter F:

1. The following is speculation, but the only individual who closely resembles “Mr. Gardner” is the following; he was not, evidentally, “a member of our bar” in 1880, when Stephen M. White wrote the letter of introduction.
W. M. GARDNER.

Wilber M. Gardner was born March 22, 1861, near Elgin, Illinois. He was educated in the public schools. At the age of fourteen he left home, to shift for himself, and enlisted as clerk in a general merchandise store. On account of serious rheumatic troubles, he determined to come to California, arriving in San Francisco, April 18, 1882. The first year was spent in traveling over the State. In March, 1883, he located at Santa Cruz, where he has since lived, excepting two years when he worked for the San Pedro Lumber Company, at San Pedro, California. During his illness with rheumatism he studied shorthand and typewriting, and followed that profession for a number of years, a portion of the time as shorthand instructor in Chestnutwood’s [sic] Business College.

At the election of 1890, Mr. Gardner was successful as a candidate for Justice of the Peace in Santa Cruz, which office he continued to hold for eight years, during which period he improved his time by studying law, taking both the California course and a course from the Western Correspondence School of Law of Chicago. He was admitted to practice by the Supreme Court of this State on December 30, 1898, and on January 1, 1899, formed a partnership with Ed Martin, since which time the firm of Martin & Gardner has been practicing law at 4 Cooper street, Santa Cruz.

Source: Oscar Shuck: History of the Bench and Bar of California. 1901. p. 1025

2. An attempt to discover the identity of “Macheil” has not been successful.