Butte County
Biographies
MRS. MATILDA LOUISE WRIGHT COLLINS
MRS. MATILDA LOUISE WRIGHT COLLINS.—One
of the highly esteemed residents of Butte County, Mrs. Collins has watched the
growth of Northern California with a great deal of interest since 1871, the
year of her coming to Butte County. She was born near Fredericton,
N. B., a daughter of Alex and Agnes (Clarke) Wright. The former was born in County
Down, Ireland,
of Scotch ancestors. He migrated to New
Brunswick where he farmed and worked at
lumbering. He later removed to Bangor,
Maine, where he died at the age of
eighty-nine years. His wife was born in
the same county as her husband. They had
five children, four of whom grew up and are still living. Mrs. Wright died at Bangor
at the age of seventy-two. The family were Presbyterians in their religious belief.
Mrs. Collins is
the oldest of the four daughters and is the only one in California. She was but six years old when the family
settled in Bangor, Maine,
and there she attended the public schools and lived until reaching young
womanhood. She had an uncle and aunt,
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Wright, living on a ranch at Grizzly Bend, Butte County,
Cal, and desiring to pay them a visit, she came West in 1871 and was so well
pleased with the country that she elected to remain.
At Oroville, July
5, 1873, she married Addison Blair Collins.
He was born, January 23, 1834, in Randolph County,
Ohio, a son of Rev. William Collins, a
Methodist preacher. Mr. Collins came to California
via Panama, in 1850 and settled at Stockton,
near which place he farmed. He later ran a stage from Marysville to Reno,
Nev., through the Indian country and had
many thrilling experiences. In 1858, he
came to Butte County and was foreman of the Rancho Chico, and in 1868 was superintendent
of Llano Seco Ranch (the Parrott Grant), continuing
in this position for seventeen years. On
account of failing health he went to the Forest Ranch in Butte
County and died there, in 1887,
January 31, at the age of fifty-three years. He was a fine man, who made and
retained his friends. He was a member of
the Odd Fellows, Ancient Order of United Workmen, and a Knights Templar
Mason. He was buried with Masonic honors.
After the death
of Mr. Collins, his widow remained on the ranch for two years, then moved into Chico
where she owned some property. She
erected her present residence at 462 Bidwell Avenue,
in which she lives in comfort and contentment.
She has educated her six children in the Chico
schools. They are: Agnes Blair is Mrs. Thomas,
a graduate of the State Normal, residing in Chico; Margaret Ann is also a Normal
graduate and is teaching in the Chico schools; Lizzie Wright, who also
graduated from the Normal and taught school for some time, is the wife of
Rudolph Neubarth of Lordsburg, and they have a
daughter Nadene; George G., of Chico; Nellie Clarke,
who is Mrs. Harry C. Bicknell and lives in Chico; and William Alexander. The last named was a graduate from the Chico
high school and worked for the Pacific Gas and Electric Company and was a
student at Stanford. He died during his
second year there, in September, 1914, aged twenty-nine.
Mrs. Collins has
given her children the very best educations within her means, and she
experiences great satisfaction in their accomplishments. Since becoming a resident of California
she has made a trip back to Maine to visit the scenes of
her girlhood, but is contented to call California
her home. She is a Republican in her
political preferences.
Transcribed 5-2-08
Marilyn R. Pankey.
Source: "History of
Butte County, Cal.," by George C. Mansfield, Pages 921-922, Historic Record Co, Los Angeles, CA, 1918.
©
2008 Marilyn
R. Pankey.
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