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Shorb (James De Barth) Papers Addenda
mssShorb1
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Table of contents
Contributing Institution:
The Huntington Library
Title: James De Barth Shorb papers addenda
Creator:
Shorb, James De Barth.
Identifier/Call Number: mssShorb1
Physical Description:
15.2 Linear Feet
(24 boxes, 4 oversize folders, 1 rolled map)
Date (inclusive): Approximately
1821-1957
Abstract: This collection consists of personal
and business papers primarily related to the family of Southern California land developer
James De Barth Shorb (1842-1896) and their business ventures and estate settlements. There
is also a substantial amount of material about Benjamin Davis Wilson (1811-1878) and his
business dealings in California. Topics covered in the collection include agriculture, land
development in southern California, the history of the San Marino area, mining operations,
water rights and irrigation, politics, society stories, and wills, court documents, and
settlement papers related to the Shorb estate.
Language of Material: English.
Open to qualified researchers by prior application through the Reader Services Department.
For more information, contact Reader Services.
Gift of Edith Shorb Steele, December 1, 1934 and April 27, 1936; gift of Shorb Steele, June
30, 1955 and August 1, 1955; gift of Gift of Ethel Rebecca Shorb, May 7, 1959.
The collection is organized into seven main series: 1. Correspondence and personal papers
(including genealogy and photographs); 2. Business and legal papers; 3. Financial papers; 4.
Land papers; 5. Newspaper clippings, ephemera and objects; 6. Ethel R. Shorb files; 7.
Oversize.
James De Barth Shorb (1842-1896) was born in Frederick County, Maryland, a son of Dr. James
Aloysius Shorb (1798-1867) and Margaret McMeal Shorb. He came to California in 1863 looking
for oil in Ventura County, and married Maria de Jesus "Sue" Wilson (1844-1917), the daughter
of Benjamin Davis Wilson (1811-1878) and his first wife Ramona Yorba, in 1867. Shorb
partnered with Wilson in developing their extensive land holdings in what is now San Marino
and Pasadena. Together Shorb and Wilson founded the San Gabriel Wine Company, and Shorb was
also president of the San Gabriel Valley and Alhambra Railroads and founded the Lake
Vineyard Land and Water Company in 1871. In 1874, Shorb, through the Lake Vineyard Land and
Water Company, acquired large tracts of land in San Marino, Pasadena, and Alhambra. By the
late 1870s, many of Shorb's business enterprises has begun to lose profits, and when Shorb
died in 1896 he left his wife Maria and their children heavily in debt. The Shorbs had nine
children who survived to adulthood: Maria Ynez Shorb White Buck (1868-1933), James De Barth
"Barty" Shorb Jr. (1870-1907), Edith Octavia Shorb Steele (1872-1954), Ramona Yorba Shorb
Murtaugh (1874-1921), Joseph Campbell Shorb (1878-1919), Ethel Rebecca Shorb (1880-1959),
Donald McMeal Shorb (1883-1933), Norbert Newlands Shorb (1887-1951), and Bernardo Yorba
Shorb (1888-1928).
Former call number: mssShorb addenda.
[Identification of item]. James De Barth Shorb Papers Addenda, The Huntington Library, San
Marino, California.
Processed by Katrina Denman in 2013; Gayle M. Richardson added a document to Box 5 (4) and
updated the finding aid in 2023.
Related Materials in the Huntington Library
The Huntington has a variety of other collections containing material on James De Barth
Shorb and the Shorb family: James De Barth Shorb Papers; Banning Company Records, Addenda I;
Patton Family Papers; Benjamin Davis Wilson Collection. There are also a significant number
of court cases related to the Shorbs and Benjamin Davis Wilson in the Los Angeles Area Court
Records.
The collection consists of personal and business papers primarily related to the James De
Barth Shorb family and their business ventures and estate settlements. There is also a
substantial amount of material about Benjamin Davis Wilson and his business dealings in
California. Topics covered in the collection include agriculture, land development in
southern California, the history of the San Marino area, mining operations, water rights and
irrigation, politics, society stories, and wills, court documents, and settlement papers
related to the Shorb estate.
Notable individuals represented in various places throughout the collection include
Phineas Banning, Joseph Lancaster Brent, Ynez Shorb Buck, Louis Henry Dielman, Andrew
Glassell, Henry Hancock, Winfield Scott Hancock, Isaias W. Hellman, Esther S. Hereford,
Thomas B. Hereford, Margaret Irvine, Matthew Keller, Baron Frederich Ferdinand von Levetzow,
Catherine McMeal, Ramona Shorb Murtaugh, Francis Noel Parke, Albert Packard, George S.
Patton (1856-1927), Ruth Wilson Patton, Anthony Shorb (brother of James De Barth Shorb),
Donald McMeal Shorb, Ethel Rebecca Shorb, Dr. J. Campbell Shorb (brother of James De Barth
Shorb), James De Barth Shorb, Joseph Campbell Shorb (son of James De Barth Shorb), Margaret
McMeal Shorb, Maria de Jesus Wilson Shorb, Norbert Newlands Shorb, George Hugh Smith, Edith
Shorb Steele, James M. Tiernan, Annie Wilson, Benjamin Davis Wilson, John B. Wilson,
Margaret S. Hereford Wilson, and Tomas A. Yorba.
Companies and ventures represented in the business and land papers include the San Gabriel
Wine Company, B.D. Wilson & Co., the San Marino Ranch, the Southern Co-Operative
Warehouse and Shipping Association, the Barton Real Estate Company, the Huntington Iron
Works, and The California Arc Lamp Company.
The collection is organized into seven main sections: 1) Correspondence and personal
papers (including genealogy and photographs), boxes 1-4; 2) Business and legal papers, boxes
5-7; 3) Financial papers, boxes 8-12; 4) Land papers, boxes 13-16; 5) Newspaper clippings,
ephemera and objects, boxes 17-19; 6) Ethel R. Shorb files, boxes 20-24, and 7) Oversize (5
items). Legal documents dealing specifically with land titles or agreements are included in
the Land Papers section. Some correspondence relating directly to Edith R. Shorb's newspaper
activities and other Shorb family members' estate dealings are included in those portions of
the collection. Condolence letters on the death of James De Barth Shorb are included in the
Personal Papers series of the collection.
Series I: Correspondence and Personal Papers
The correspondence consists of both personal and business letters. The majority of the
personal correspondence was exchanged between members of the Shorb family and their friends
and relatives, and include letters written while the family was living in Maryland from the
1820s- 1860s. Other items include letters regarding the history and genealogy of the Shorb
family, particularly those written in response to Louis Henry Dielman's inquiries on the
topic. The business correspondence includes references to the wine industry, agriculture,
land sales, railroads, mining, politics, and estate settlements. Authors and addressees of
the letters include Ynez Shorb Buck, the Earl Fruit Company, Winfield Scott Hancock, Mayo
William Hazeltine, Catherine McMeal, John McMeal, Francis Neal Parke, the San Gabriel Wine
Company, Ethel Rebecca Shorb, Dr. J. Campbell Shorb, James De Barth Shorb, Margaret McMeal
Shorb, Mary Shorb, Norbert Newlands Shorb, Edith Shorb Steele, Adelaide Shorb Tiernan, James
M. Tiernan, Charles Augustus Wetmore, and Marcos Yorba. Some notable or interesting pieces
of correspondence include:
- A letter from Dr. J. Campbell Shorb regarding his involvement in the "case of Ogier," in which he asserts that he never gave a medical opinion on or to Ogier before his death (1833).
- A letter probably written by Donald McMeal Shorb to his parents James Aloysius Shorb and Margaret McMeal Shorb in which he asks them "in giving me up [to the Confederate Army] do not mourn too deeply, for if it is the will of the Almighty to call me from this life on the field of battle, regret me but do not grieve over me as though I had yielded to sickness on the couch of luxury" (1864).
- A letter from Mayo William Hazeltine to James De Barth Shorb, lamenting the latter's departure from San Francisco. "[W]hen a thirst for gold drives [another friend] to San Buenaventura the void he leaves is not soon…filled. I am told it never thunders in [the] San Francisco sky, but…since you went away there seems less electricity than ever" (1865).
- A letter from E.B. Washington to James Aloysius Shorb and Margaret McMeal Shorb consoling them on the death of their son (1866).
- A letter from Annie Ogier to Winfield Scott Hancock, in which she writes of the Rio del Llano mining claim and touches on politics, noting "I suppose you are a Greeley man. I don't know what I am but I am against Grant that's certain" (1872).
- A letter to James De Barth Shorb thanking him for "securing the reinstatement of those employees who were discharged from the service of the Los Angeles Terminal Railroad Company" (1892).
- Three letters to Edith Shorb Steele regarding Baron Frederich Ferdinand von Levetzow, including one from a distant relative who notes that Levetzow is "on a walking tour round the world passing San Francisco and Japan on accident of a wager" (1897); one from Levetzow's stepmother M. von Levetzow-Ehlorstorff confirming that "he…is traveling now through America…on account of a wager to cross the world in a certain time" (1897); and a final note from H.F. Studevart informing Edith of Levetzow's death "while out hunting…[he] became overcome with the severe cold and perished. His remains were found the next morning" (1899).
The personal papers relate primarily to the Shorb family and include Donald McMeal Shorb's
signed oath to the United States following the Civil War (1865), Ethel R. Shorb's passport
(1929), condolence letters on the death of James De Barth Shorb (1896), and other items
relating to Anthony Shorb, Norbert Newlands Shorb, and Edith Shorb Steele. Also included are
an essay by Baron Frederich Ferdinand von Levetzow, a handwritten Ramona Echoes newsletter
(1896), and a copy of Gladys A. Wood's
San Marino Play: Adapted from
History
(1932), among other items.
Also included in this section of the collection are genealogical notes on the Shorbs and
Wilsons; photographs, including those of Baron von Levetzow, James De Barth Shorb, and Maria
de Jesus Wilson Shorb; a scrapbook of clippings and letters (1886-1893); and the manuscript
of
Memoirs of the Mines of Almaden and Almadenejos by Fernando
Bernaldez and Ramon Rua Figueroa (1861).
Series II: Business and Legal Papers
The business papers include contracts, articles of incorporation, insurance policies, and
estate records, primarily relating to the Shorb family (including Anthony Shorb) and their
business ventures, as well as to Wilson and Banning businesses. Corporations included in the
contract and articles of incorporation section include the Southern Co-Operative Warehouse
and Shipping Association, B.D. Wilson & Co., the Barton Real Estate Company, the
Huntington Iron Works, and The California Arc Lamp Company, as well as various produce
companies who made distribution agreements with the Shorbs. The insurance policies primarily
consist of those taken out by James De Barth Shorb for properties in San Marino and Ramona
(1892-1897). The estate records are mainly those of the Shorb childrens' settlements and
agreements regarding the estate of Maria de Jesus Wilson Shorb. Other estate matters include
those of A.W. Sublette, Stephen S.White, Benjamin Davis Wilson, and Tomas Yorba.
The legal papers include wills, power of attorney documents, and some assorted court
records. The wills include those of Edward S. Hereford (1894), Ethel R. Shorb (1930 and
1959), James De Barth Shorb (1875 and 1878), Maria de Jesus Wilson Shorb (11 items,
1887-1917), Edith Shorb Steele (1949), John J. Williams (1881), Annie Wilson (1930),
Benjamin Davis Wilson (1869), and John B. Wilson (1869). The power of attorney documents
include those given and received by William T.B. Sanford, James De Barth Shorb, Maria de
Jesus Wilson Shorb, Norbert Newlands Shorb, James M. Tiernan, and Benjamin Davis Wilson,
including a document giving Wilson's power of attorney to James De Barth Shorb (1875). The
court records include case files on The Farmers and Merchants Bank of Los Angeles vs. Maria
de Jesus Wilson Shorb (c.1899), a judgment in the mental competency hearing of Donald McMeal
Shorb (1918), a pauper's affidavit of Norbert Newlands Shorb (1917), and a report regarding
the guardianship of Thomas Yorba (1897).
Series III: Financial Papers
The financial papers consist of statements of account, bank statements, tax records,
promissory notes, stock records, receipts, cancelled checks, and account ledgers. The
statements of account and bank statements include those for the San Gabriel Wine Company
(c.1887), the San Marino Ranch (statements and plan for liquidity, c.1883-1900), James De
Barth Shorb (1879-1915), Maria de Jesus Wilson Shorb (1881-1913), Sierra Vista Ranch (1897),
James M. Tiernan (c.1886-1895), and Benjamin Davis Wilson (1862-1875). The tax records and
receipts include those related to James De Barth Shorb (c.1880-1894), Maria de Jesus Wilson
Shorb (1868- 1897), Ramona Shorb Murtaugh (1895), William M. Shorb (1889), James A. Tiernan
(c.1885- 1893), and Benjamin Davis Wilson (1850-1855). The promissory notes include those of
James De Barth Shorb (1872-1895), Maria de Jesus Wilson Shorb (1885-1898), Benjamin Davis
Wilson (1852-1877), and Wilson & Packard (1850-1851). The stock records relate to the
California Arc Lamp Company, the California Fruit Company, the Los Angeles and Soledad
Turnpike Company, and the San Gabriel Wine Company, as well as including stock notices from
Anthony Shorb. The assorted receipts and cancelled checks include those of James De Barth
Shorb, Maria de Jesus Wilson Shorb, James M. Tiernan, Benjamin Davis Wilson, and Wilson
& Shorb (c.1870). The account books and ledgers were kept for and by the San Marino
Ranch (1874-1897), James Aloysius Shorb (1836-1842), and James De Barth Shorb (1896-1897).
Also included is James M. Tiernan's notarial record (1887-1896).
Series IV: Land Papers
The land papers consist primarily of deeds, conveyances, certificates of title, mortgages,
and maps. The deeds, conveyances and certificates of title are mainly connected to the
property dealings of the Shorbs and Wilsons. The properties described are almost exclusively
in the southern California area, including Lake Vineyard, Pasadena, Los Angeles, Wilmington,
Alhambra, San Gabriel, Stockton, and Rancho Santa Anita. There are also a small number of
deeds for land in San Francisco. The mortgages and assorted land papers are also primarily
related to the Shorbs and Wilsons and their land holdings in southern California, and
include items on the Rancho El Rincon (1899), the General Stoneman House (1873), properties
of the James Irvine trust, lots on Meridian Avenue in Oneonta Park sold by Ethel R. Shorb
(1917- 1930), land near the Banning house (1874), San Marino Ranch lands, citrus crop
mortgages made with the Porter Brothers Company, documents regarding a railroad right-of-way
suit in Alhambra, complaints regarding Rancho San Antonio, a memorandum of agreement to
Donald McMeal Shorb regarding purchase of the Yorba Grant in Lower California (1914), and
documents on the transfer of property from the Tomas Yorba estate to George Smith Patton
(1896). The maps are of land in Alhambra (Calif.), Alhambra (Ariz.), San Antonio and Ice
House Canyons (1892), San Pasqual, Emmitsburg (Md.), Wilmington (Calif.), and the estate of
Bernardo Yorba in Riverside County.
Series V: Newspaper clippings, ephemera, and objects
The clippings include local newspaper stories on the Pattons, Shorbs, Wilsons, and Yorbas,
as well as general California history. There are also a few complete copies of California
newspapers from the 1890s. The ephemera consists of calling cards, including those of the
Shorb, Wilson, and Patton families; memorial programs and notices relating to the Shorb
family; a variety of printed advertisements, notices, and programs; printed invitations,
mainly relating to Shorb family functions and weddings, including those of Patton family
members, from 1855-1940; and other miscellaneous ephemera, including greeting cards,
tickets, and envelopes. The box of objects includes cased daguerreotypes, hair and teeth
belonging to members of the Shorb and Wilson families, a crest of Dr. James Anthony Shorb,
and other items such as a pen box, leather pouch, and gold chain.
Series VI: Ethel R. Shorb Files
This series consists of the work files of Ethel Rebecca Shorb, who was the Society Editor
for
The Argonaut Magazine in San Francisco during the
1950s
. The magazine files include press releases and
announcements on the activities of local organizations and clubs, including the California
Federation of Women's Clubs, the Children's Theatre Association of San Francisco, Daughters
of the American Revolution, the Junior League of San Francisco, the National League for
Women's Service, the Pan American League, and the Women's Athletic Club of San Francisco.
The society stories include releases and clippings on concerts, holiday events, home tours,
memorials, parties, debutante events, engagements, and weddings, in addition to 51 Del Monte
Press Bureau Releases. Other manuscripts include Ethel Shorb's calendars and notebooks, 12
pieces of correspondence addressed to Ethel Shorb, a brief autobiography, and miscellaneous
ephemera. Also included are clippings of Ethel Shorb's published articles, her assorted
notes, and newspaper clippings.
Series VII: Oversize
The oversize items consist of newspapers and maps. They include a copy of The Capital
newspaper (1896), copies of the Pacific Wine and Spirit Review (1896), a map of Douglass
(Ariz.) and the Sonora Development Companies (1890), a plat and written description of the
"Prospero" land tract near Mission San Gabriel (1875), and a rolled map of Portsmouth, New
Hampshire (1850).
The Huntington Library does not require that researchers request permission to quote from
or publish images of this material, nor does it charge fees for such activities. The
responsibility for identifying the copyright holder, if there is one, and obtaining
necessary permissions rests with the researcher.
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Administration of estates -- California
Agriculture -- California
Domestic relations -- California
Domestic relations -- Maryland.
Finances, Personal -- California
Industrial management -- California
Land tenure -- California
Land use -- California
Mines and mineral resources -- California
Reporters and reporting -- California
Viticulture -- California
Water rights -- California
Wine industry -- California
Alhambra (Calif.) -- History
California -- Description and travel
California -- History -- 1850-1950.
Los Angeles (Calif.) -- History
Maryland -- History -- 1775-1865.
Pasadena (Calif.) -- History
Ramona (Calif.) -- History
Business papers -- California
Ephemera -- California
Estate papers -- California
Legal documents -- California
Letters (correspondence) -- California
Letters (correspondence) Maryland.
Personal papers -- California
Banning, Phineas, 1830-1885
Brent, Joseph Lancaster, 1826-1905
Dielman, Louis Henry, 1864-1959
Hancock, Henry, 1822-1883
Hancock, Winfield Scott, 1824-1886
Hellman, Isaias W. (Isaias William),
1842-1920
Keller, Matthew, 1810-1881
Patton, George S. (George Smith), 1856-1927
Smith, George H. (George Hugh)
Wilson, Benjamin Davis, 1811-1878