Butte County
Biographies
HENRY W.
WHITE
HENRY W. WHITE.--Chronicling the history of so progressive a county as that of Butte, it is a pleasure to outline the lives of her highly esteemed native sons, among whom must be mentioned in the first roll call, Henry W. White. He enjoys, to begin with, the enviable reputation of being one of the best-informed men in the state, and he is particularly honored by his fellow citizens, who look upon him as largely a self-made man, one who by close observation of daily life, and by hard sturdy, has more than made up for opportunities that never came his way in youth. He was born at Oregon City, on August 10, 1869, and came from a family which for generations had been doing something, and doing it as well as it could be done, for the betterment of the world. His grandfather was John White, a New Yorker, who moved west to Cass County, Mich., where he became a foundryman; and there he married Llewellyn Baker, a native of Pennsylvania, whose ancestors came to Philadelphia with William Penn. John White had a son, Henry C., who learned blacksmithing from his father, he having been born while the latter was living in Cass County. When eighteen years of age he was carried away by the excitement resulting from the discovery of gold in California, and in 1851 started for California with a small party fitted out with Canadian ponies. They reached Iowa in the fall of 1851, where they wintered, and in the spring of 1852 they joined a larger train, with which they crossed the plains, arriving in safety, in Plumas County, in the fall of 1852. For a short time Henry C. mined on Poor Man’s Creek at what is now Nelson Point, and in the fall of 1852 he came to Bidwell’s Bar, in Butte County. In 1853, he formed with others the Sailor Company, which built a wing dam, on the Middle Fork of the Feather River, that proved reasonably successful. Not satisfied with that experience in a country supposed to yield the largest returns Mr. White bought some pack animals and started a pack train between Marysville and the mines in Butte and Plumas Counties. In 1856, he located in Oregon City, where he was employed in the Oregon City mine, and he also engaged in placer-mining on Oregon Gulch, Red Ravine and Dickson Ravine, mining there for years. In course of time he took up stock-raising; and the small dairy herd with which he commenced grew into a large “bunch” of cattle. When beginning to enjoy prosperity, Mr. White bought the old Nash place at Oregon City, since widely and pleasantly known as the White Ranch, and there he resided until his death in 1911, at the age of nearly eighty years. He was decidedly successful in the management of his private affairs, but he always had time for service, as a public-spirited citizen, to the community. He helped organize the Oregon City school district and he served as its trustee and saw to it that the ship did not founder upon the rocks when set sailing on its course. As a Mason he was prominent, having been a member of Table Mountain Lodge, No. 124, F. & A. M., at Cherokee, and he was Master of the Lodge for many years and even attended the Grand Lodge.
Mrs. Henry C. White was Frances Elizabeth McLean before her marriage, and she was born in the romantically beautiful Prince Edward’s Island, Nova Scotia, and so came of good “down East” traditions. She had two sisters and a brother in California, and this led her o come to San Francisco in 1859. She journeyed by way of Panama, and landed from the steamer Golden West. From the Bay City she traveled to Oregon City, where she met and married Mr. White. After her husband’s demise she made her home at the old White Ranch, presiding over Henry W.’s home until her death, which occurred on July 16, 1915, when eighty-one years of age. She was the mother of four children, three of whom reached maturity.
Henry W., the subject of our interesting sketch, and the son of Henry C. White, was the third oldest in the family, and is the only one now living. He was reared and educated at Oregon City, and from boyhood worked with his father at various places. He grew up to know about stock-raising in particular, and when twenty-one years of age began to strike out in that field for himself. He also contracted to supply wood and timber to the mines, and prospered so well in that enterprise that he continued at it for several years. The raising of cattle, however, received his best attention, for in that field practically all his efforts were crowned with success. He added to his father’s original ranch, of which he had become owner, and now he has one of the best stock ranches at Oregon City. He also owns a ranch on Table Mountain, where he raises both grain and stock. He uses the same historic brand—the figures 52—established by his father in 1852
Under the popular A. E. Morton, Mr. White served as deputy county assessor for twelve years, and in 1914 he became a candidate for supervisor in the fifth supervisorial district, and was elected at the primaries by a majority over three opponents. He took office in January, 1915, and two years later was chairman of the board. In that time he has represented his district unusually well, and among other things accomplished through him, he has succeeded in getting much needed road improvements, and is now having permanent concrete bridges erected where it is necessary to replace others that have been condemned or destroyed. He has thus made a good honest, reliable public officer, and it is not surprising that he was reelected at the August primary in 1918, having had no opposition in his candidacy for reelection. Nor will it surprise many that for years he has been a devoted and consistent Democrat, although his good citizenship always leads him to the broadest of views and the most cordial cooperation when it comes to local issues, such as properly belong outside the pale of party politics, or to national movements appealing to liberal patriotism.
Transcribed
by Joyce Rugeroni.
Source: "History of
Butte County, Cal.," by George C. Mansfield, Pages 1020-1023, Historic Record Co, Los Angeles, CA, 1918.
© 2008 Joyce Rugeroni.
Golden Nugget Library's
Butte County Biographies