Los
Angeles County
Biographies
WILLIAM HENRY ANDERSON
A member of a family noted for legal
ability of a high order, William Henry Anderson, of Los Angeles, upholds its
prestige, enjoying state-wide prominence in his profession. He was born in Memphis, Tennessee, December
31, 1866, a son of James Archibald and Louise Catherine (Trent) Anderson, and
the paternal line is of Scotch and Irish descent. He traces his ancestry in this country to
Daniel Anderson, of Scotland, who immigrated to America in 1748, settling in
Warrenton, North Carolina. Daniel was
the father of John Anderson, whose son, John Anderson, Jr., became the father
of James Archibald Anderson.
The last named was born in
Warrenton, North Carolina, July 11, 1826, and was but two years old when his
parents went to La Grange, Tennessee, where his boyhood was spent. He attended Jubilee College, an old Episcopal
school of Ohio, and read law under his uncle, Walker Anderson, at that time a
prominent attorney of Jacksonville, Florida.
At the age of twenty-one James A. Anderson began practice at La Grange
and soon afterward removed to Memphis, Tennessee, where he joined the
Confederate troops as a private in 1861.
In February, 1862, on the expiration of his first term, he reenlisted
and two months later was detailed to organize a company of cavalry at his old
home in La Grange. When the company was
recruited he was made its captain and with that rank served in succession under
Generals Jackson, Van Dorn, Forrest and Lee until the close of the conflict
between the north and the south. A
courageous, gallant officer, he well earned the sobriquet of “Fighting Jim
Anderson.” When peace was declared he
accepted the situation without rancor and ever afterward gave his heart and
soul to the reunited and permanent union of states.
At the conclusion of the War James
A. Anderson resumed his practice in Memphis and while residing there was called
to public office, serving for one term as circuit judge. Leaving Memphis in 1880, he spent a short
time in Texas and next went to Tucson, Arizona.
In 1885 he came to Los Angeles and formed a partnership with Judge W. F.
Fitzgerald and J. A. Anderson, Jr., his son, under the name of Anderson,
Fitzgerald & Anderson. This
relationship existed until Judge Fitzgerald was appointed a member of the
Supreme Court Commission, after which Judge Anderson continued the firm with
his son, J. A., Jr., while later other sons were admitted to a
partnership. Judge Anderson made his
home in Los Angeles until his death on the 12th of March, 1902, at
the age of seventy-five years.
James A. Anderson was known as a
scholarly and able lawyer and a gentleman of rare personal charm. He was a devout member of the Episcopal
Church and a sincere Christian. Soon after
locating in Los Angeles he aided in organizing Christ Church Parish and became
its senior warden, a post which he held until his death. Upon the organization of the Diocese of Los
Angeles he was active in the framing of its constitution and canons, was long a
member of the standing committee of the diocese, and attended each annual
convention. He was a prominent member of
the Los Angeles County Bar Association, and in politics was a consistent
Democrat.
The first wife of James A. Anderson
was Louise Catherine Trent, whose death occurred in Tennessee in 1868. She was a descendant of William Coddington, who was born in Lincolnshire, England, in 1601
and in his youth came to America, becoming one of the founders of the colony of
Rhode Island in 1638, and its governor in 1647, an office which he filled for
several terms. His daughter married
Judge William H. Trent, who left Inverness, Scotland, about the year 1682 on a
ship bound for the New World. He settled
in Philadelphia, where he engaged in merchandising on a large scale, selling to
both the wholesale and retail trades, and was also a ship owner, having for his
partner William Penn. Although not a
lawyer, Judge Trent was a member of the Pennsylvania provincial council, and in
1706 was chosen to systematize the courts.
Later he was one of the five Supreme Court judges, and shortly before
his death in 1724, was made Chief Justice of New Jersey. He was a member of the assembly in 1710, 1715
and 1719 and speaker of the house in 1717 and 1718. He became an extensive land owner, and
because of his distinguished service to New Jersey the city of Trenton was
named in his honor. His son, William
Trent, Jr., was born, reared and educated in Philadelphia, and became a fur
trader. An honest dealer, he enjoyed the
confidence and esteem of the Indians with whom his business brought him in
contact and through his knowledge of Indian dialects rendered noteworthy
service in establishing acceptable treaties with the red men. He was captain of a Pennsylvania company
during King George’s War, afterward spending some time in England, and returned
to America in 1775. He settled at
Lancaster, Pennsylvania, where he served as judge of the court of common pleas,
but later returned to the Quaker City, remaining there until his death in
1787. He was the father of John Trent,
whose son, William Henry Trent, was a physician and a planter. The daughter, Louise Catherine Trent, became
the wife of James A. Anderson, and died when her son William, the subject of
this sketch, was but two years old.
The early education of William H.
Anderson was acquired under private tutors, and from 1884 to 1886 he attended
the Southwestern University at Georgetown, Texas, where he became a member of
the Phi Delta Theta fraternity. Coming
to Los Angeles in 1886, he entered the office of Anderson, Fitzgerald &
Anderson, with whom he studied law for three years, and in 1890 passed an
examination before the Supreme Court of California. He was also admitted to the bar of Texas and
practiced in Abilene for two years.
Removing to San Francisco, he became chief clerk in the law office of
Estee, Fitzgerald & Miller, with whom he remained for four years. In 1895 he was appointed Assistant Attorney
General of California, serving in that capacity until 1899, when he and Judge
Fitzgerald, the retiring Attorney General, formed the firm of Fitzgerald &
Anderson in San Francisco. The following
year, however, he returned to Los Angeles, becoming associated with his father
and brother, James A. Anderson, Sr., in the law firm of Anderson &
Anderson, which name is still retained.
While engaged in general practice that firm specializes in probate work
and litigation involving water rights, and enjoys a large and remunerative
clientele. Anderson & Anderson were
retained as counsel for the estate of Edwin T. Earl, the Los Angeles Olive
Growers Association, the Covina Irrigation Company, the San Dimas Water
Company, and other large corporations.
William H. Anderson was City Attorney of Ocean Park, California, from
1904 to 1907, rendering effective service in that connection. A lawyer of high standing, he was appointed
chairman of the Committee on Constitutional Rights of the Los Angeles Bar
Association, and he also belongs to the California State Bar and the American
Bar Association, and is now Senior Vice President of the Los Angeles Bar
Association.
In San Francisco, on the 5th
of March, 1895, Mr. Anderson was married to Miss Jessie Isabel Calhoun, of San
Jose, California. Her father, Nobel
Ezekiel Ewing Calhoun, was a successful attorney and one of the earlier
district judges of California. The
mother, Laura Annis (Davis) Calhoun, became widely
known as the author of a notable scientific work on eugenics. Mrs. Anderson is a great grandniece of the
distinguished statesman and orator, John C. Calhoun. Her sister, Eleanor Calhoun, also a native of
California, achieved many honors as an actress in this country, London and Paris. She is now Princess Lazarovich-Hrebelianovich. From her home in New York she returned to
California for the express purpose of acting the part of the leading lady in
John S. McGroarty’s historic pageant, the Mission
Play, when first presented in San Gabriel.
Mrs. Anderson was born in the mountains of Kern County, California, and
after attending the schools of San Jose went abroad, pursuing her studies in
Paris and London. In the social life of
those cities she was accorded a place of prominence and was presented at the
British Court by Lady Archibald Campbell, mother of the present Earl of
Argyle. Mr. and Mrs. Anderson have three
daughters: Laura, the widow of Lee
Schlesinger, of San Francisco; Eleanor C., now Mrs. Edward Kuerton
Sheahan; and Virginia C., the widow of Linville
Hayden Hayes. The first two were born in
San Francisco, and the youngest is a native of Los Angeles. The two older daughters are graduates of the
Santa Monica High School and Stanford University, while Virginia attended the
Marlboro School for Girls in Los Angeles, University of Southern California,
and Stanford University.
In politics Mr. Anderson is a
Democrat of progressive views, and in religious belief is an Episcopalian, with
membership in St. Paul’s Pro-Cathedral.
He belongs to the Society of American Wars, the Municipal League, the
Benevolent and Protect Order of Elks, the Casa Del Mar Club, the Southern
California Athletic and Country Club, the Men’s City Club and the Jonathan
Club, all of Los Angeles; and is President of the Municipal Light and Power
Defense League of Los Angeles. A man of
diversified talents, as was his father, Mr. Anderson turns to literary work for
recreation, and that he is no ordinary versifier is shown in the following
poetic gem entitled “Beyond”:
“The evening sunshine, be it ne’er
so bright,
By its East-slanted shadows hints of
night.
The great sun sinking on its western
way
With all its glory speaks the dying
day.
Nature immutably from sun to sun
Stamps all that
passes as forever done.
And every moment’s time for you or
me
Is one step nearer to Eternity—
Eternity! To mortals less than
naught—
A food for speculation and for thought!”
Mr.
Anderson is also the author of these stanzas:
“Some so-called scientist, I now
forget
His very name, so soon by all
forgot,
Prates God to be, and have not
proved it yet.
Proved? What means proved, a demonstrable thing
Of harsh, crude facts, to meet the
dull concept
Of slothful minds, inert, inapt,
inept,
And only stirred by what logicians
bring?
Then proof, if this be proof of
things divine,
Means less to me than nothing when I
clasp
Within my faith’s
strong, firm, convincing grasp
The knowledge of
the God of me and mine.”
A member of a talented family, Mrs.
Anderson has written and produced for various charities a number of plays. She was the author of the Pageant of Welcome
and wrote the words of the Processional for the biennial meeting of the General
Federation of Women’s Clubs, held in Los Angeles. She served as recording secretary of the
State Federation of Women’s Clubs, as chairman of the political science and
drama section of the Los Angeles District Federation, and chairman of the
dramatic section of the Wa Wan Club. As founder and president she has been an
outstanding figure in the activities of several women’s clubs. At the time of the World War she organized
Santa Monica Chapter of the Red Cross and its Venice (California) branch,
becoming its first vice chairman. She
was regent of the Cabrillo Chapter of the Daughters of the American Legion,
Parliamentarian of the California Division of the United Daughters of the
Confederacy, and a member of the League of American Penwomen. At the Good Roads Convention, held at Santa
Monica, California, she was chairman of the committee appointed to receive the
visiting Governors and their wives, and was chosen speaker for the dedication
of the first California terminal marker of the Jefferson Davis National Highway
at San Diego. In addition to her other
club and civic activities Mrs. Anderson has widely interested herself as a good
Democrat in political affairs, among other things serving for several years as
President of the Women’s Democratic League of Southern California. Mrs. Anderson is regarded as one of the
foremost women of her state, and her career, like that of her husband, has been
one of broad usefulness and service.
Transcribed by
V. Gerald Iaquinta.
Source: California of the South
Vol. III, by John Steven McGroarty, Pages 481-487, Clarke Publ.,
Chicago, Los Angeles, Indianapolis. 1933.
© 2012 V. Gerald Iaquinta.
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NUGGET'S LOS ANGELES BIOGRAPIES