Contra
Costa County
Biographies
THOMAS
EMMETT MURPHY
The
County Paper, a weekly publication of Martinez, Contra Costa county,
is one that has attained a wide popularity in local circles within the last few
years. Its history dates from 1874, when it was published as the News in
Pacheco, Contra Costa county, shortly after its
establishment, however, passing under different management, when it was known
as the Argus. Later the plant was purchased by the Prohibition party and
conducted for a time as the Daily Item, but did not meet with the success which
had been anticipated, and it therefore passed into other hands, Hart M. Downer
assuming charge of the publication. While in his hands the paper was known as
the Democrat. Not meeting with success in the venture Mr. Downer sold the paper
to A. Dalton, who conducted it under the name of the Contra Costa News, in
1898. August 1, 1899, Thomas Emmett Murphy became editor and proprietor of the
paper and has since brought it to a place of prominence among the newspapers of
the county, his wide experience in this line of work having given to him the
necessary qualifications for bringing about a success where so many failures
had preceded his efforts. The County Paper now has a circulation of eight
hundred copies and is devoted principally to county news, its political convictions
being strongly Democratic.
A native of California, Mr. Murphy
was born in Vallejo, Solano county, November 26, 1860,
a son of James and Catherine (Hickey) Murphy. He was reared to young manhood in
his native locality and after completing the course in the Vallejo high school
he went to Virginia City, New., where he served an
apprenticeship on the Enterprise. After a year in that location her returned to
California, working in San Francisco as an employe of
Crocker & Co. and Cuberry & Co., until he secured
a position as compositor on the Chronicle, and later on the Bulletin and the
Alta Californian. In 1886 he went to Los Angeles, accepting a position on the
Times, and after one year located in San Diego, where he established a paper
known as the Daily Gazette. This was successfully conducted for a year when he
disposed of his interests there and returning north to San Francisco was once
more employed on the papers in that city, being identified with the Alta
Californian and the Bulletin. In 1889 he went to Portland, Ore., where he
worked on the News, later spending some time in Seattle, Wash., and Victoria,
in the latter city being employed on the Colonist and subsequently establishing
there the weekly known as the Victorian. After disposing of his interests in
Victoria he went to Port Townsend, where he served as manager on the Daily, and
later returned to Portland as proofreader on the Oregonian. For one year he was
identified with the interests of that paper, when he went to Salem, Ore., and
established a paper which he disposed of soon after, returning then to San
Francisco where he accepted a position on the weekly edition of the Examiner as
special writer. He retained this position until the summer of 1899 when he went
to Martinez and has since devoted his energies to the success of the County
Paper.
The marriage of Mr. Murphy united
him with a prominent professional woman of Martinez, Dr. Mary A. Leonard, a
native of Michigan and a graduate of the medical department of Northwestern
University, of Evanston, Ill. She is now successfully engaged in the practice
of her profession in Martinez.
Transcribed By: Cecelia M. Setty.
ญญญญSource: History
of the State of California & Biographical Record of Coast Counties,
California by Prof. J. M. Guinn, A. M., Page 278. The Chapman Publishing
Co., Chicago, 1904.
ฉ 2014 Cecelia M. Setty.
Contra Costa County Biographies