SIDNEY ALLCUT BUTLER

Los Angeles County

Biographies

SIDNEY ALLCUT BUTLER

BUTLER, SIDNEY ALLCUT, County Supervisor, Los Angeles, California, was born March 10, 1847, at Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the son of T. D. Butler and Mary Jane (Allcut) Butler. He married Kitty Keller at La Crosse, Wisconsin, December 24, 1869, and to them were born two children, Sidney T. and Edward J. Butler. Mr. Butler’s grandfather, the Reverend David Butler, was an Episcopal minister in Troy, New York, during the latter days of George Washington’s period and served in the pulpit during the early years of the nineteenth century. Mr. Butler’s uncle, the Reverend Clement M. Butler, was rector of Trinity Church, Washington, D. C., and served as chaplain of the United States Senate before and during the Civil War.

Mr. Butler attended the common schools of his native city up to the middle of the Civil War, when he left his books, in 1863, and enlisted in a Wisconsin regiment. He was one of the youngest men under arms in the great conflict, taking part in numerous engagements, and in 1865, was mustered out. At that time he returned to his studies and for eight months was enrolled at Flint, Michigan.

In the fall of 1866, he quit school finally, and went to work as Assistant Agent of the American Express Company at La Crosse, Wisconsin. At the end of two years he left that position to go with Cameron and Company, engaged in railroad construction work. In a short time he was made superintendent of construction for the firm at La Crosse, Wisconsin, and served in that capacity for one year, when he resigned and went to Memphis, Tennessee. During the years 1869, ‘70 and ‘71, he was assistant agent of the Memphis and Arkansas River Packet Company, but left in the latter year and returned to La Crosse for another year of construction work. In 1873 he went to Florida as a member of the railroad contracting firm of Rossiter and Company, but returned to La Crosse in a year. He then went into the banking business under J. C. Easton, owner of a chain of banks in the Northwest, and from 1874 to 1876 was in charge of the Easton Bank at Wells, Minnesota. He rejoined the Cameron Company as agent at Chicago and for three years was again busy in railroad construction. He left the Cameron Company and went to work with A. A. Robinson, Chief Engineer for Santa Fe Railroad building. His most notable work, perhaps, was the building of the Santa Fe Railroad’s branch through the Grand Canyon of the Arkansas River, sometimes called The Royal Gorge. He assisted in building the Santa Fe road between Las Vegas and Lamy, N. M., then retired in 1879, and returned to Kansas City, Mo., where he became clerk of the Pacific Express Company; in six months he was general agent; before the end of a year the Pacific and United States Express Companies consolidated and he was made general agent for both companies. In 1886 he resigned and went to Los Angeles, assisting in building a railroad to Flagstaff, Arizona.

In 1889, he was made agent of the Wells Fargo Company at Los Angeles, and held that until 1904, when he was transferred to San Francisco. In 1905, he was made assistant superintendent in the Northwest, and the next year put in charge of the San Francisco office, retiring in 1907. He then returned to Los Angeles and was the “father of the good roads movement” there. He organized the Los Angeles County Roads Association. He was one of the men who caused Port San Pedro, Cal., to be made a part of the city. He went abroad in 1909, and in Europe received so many communications asking him to run for Supervisor, that he did so and was elected on the Republican ticket in 1910. He is an ex-director of the L. A. Chamber of Commerce and was first chairman of the Lincoln-Roosevelt Republican League.

Transcribed 6-21-08 Marilyn R. Pankey.

Source: Press Reference Library, Western Edition Notables of the West, Vol. I, Page 78, International News Service, New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Boston, Atlanta. 1913.

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