Los Angeles County
Biographies
JUDGE
WILLIAM M. NORTHRUP
(Deceased)
The
nearly six decades of leadership, encouragement, and sage advice which the late
Judge William M. Northrup bestowed on his beloved
Alhambra earned him the respect and devotion of the townspeople, who concurred
in the opinion that Judge Northrup was, indeed, “Mr.
Alhambra,” a title he cherished until his death on March 4, 1958.
William
M. Northrup’s ninety-two years of life began on
August 28, 1866, in Rochester, New York, where he resided but one year, moving
with his parents, George W. and Mary (Moulton) Northrup,
to Chicago in 1867. His father became
the first president of the Baptist Union Theological Seminary of Chicago,
holding that office until the seminary became the Divinity School of the
University of Chicago. Young William Northrup studied with a private tutor, W. R. Harper, who
later became president of the University of Chicago. After his excellent early preparation, Judge Northrup returned to the city of his birth to attend the
University of Rochester, graduating in 1886.
He then returned to Chicago, studied law with a prominent legal firm,
was admitted to practice in 1888 and followed his profession in Chicago for
eight years before coming to San Gabriel Township in 1896.
The
small acreage Judge Northrup purchased in the Wilmar district remained his home until 1905, at which time
he moved permanently to 303 South First Street in Alhambra.
As
early as 1900, four years after he came to California, Judge Northrup was already performing a public service, as
Justice of the Peace of San Gabriel Township, a position he held until January
1, 1935. In the early days he secured
the establishment of rural mail service by establishing the fact that there
were the necessary one hundred residents in the area. In 1902 it was mainly through Judge Northrup’s efforts that the Pacific Electric Railway
extended its service to Alhambra and San Gabriel. The following year saw three important events
– the city of Alhambra was incorporated, William Northrup
was admitted to the California State Bar, and he became Alhambra’s first city
attorney, serving in that capacity until 1910.
From that time on, Judge Northrup practiced
law in Alhambra, and during the next half century, spent four years as Judge of
the Los Angeles Municipal Court and eight years as Police Judge of the City of
San Marino.
Interested
primarily in the welfare and growth of “his” city, Judge Northrup
supported and fostered innumerable worthy undertakings, among them serving on
the Board of Freeholders which prepared the charter for the City of Alhambra in
1914, later backing the organization of the Alhambra Realty Board, advocating a
daily newspaper, and supporting the Junior Chamber of Commerce. In the critical year of 1933 he became a member
of the Alhambra Board of Social Welfare, serving at its chairman for several
years and directing visits to other cities to study relief systems and means of
lessening unemployment. During World War
II he was honorary chairman of the USO in Alhambra. He served on the Board of Directors of the
Young Men’s Christian Association for more than twenty-five years.
Married
to the former Miss Myrtle Conger, a daughter of Silas and Emma Conger of
Chicago, on April 28, 1892, Judge Northrup became the
father of a daughter, Myrna, who married Lester A. Moffet
of Alhambra and still resides in that city.
The Moffet’s have one son, William Northrup Moffet. Mrs. Northrup was
active in civic affairs from an early date, being a member of the first
Alhambra Library Board of Trustees in 1906, a member and past president of the
Alhambra Woman’s Club, and a member, for one term, of the board of education.
In
addition to his honorary title of “Mr. Alhambra,” Judge Northrup
was honored in the naming of one of Alhambra’s schools the William A. Northrup School.
Among
Judge Northrup’s fraternal affiliations were
membership in Alhambra Masonic Lodge, Number 322 and Past Master; San Gabriel
Valley Chapter Number 100, Royal Arch Masons; and
Alhambra Council Number 25; Past Eminent Commander of Alhambra Commandery Number 48.
After Alhambra B.P.O.E. Lodge was formed, Judge Northrup
transferred to that lodge from the Pasadena lodge; he was a long-time member of
Alhambra Odd Fellows, Woodmen of the World, and charter member and past
president of the Alhambra Club.
Transcribed
by V. Gerald Iaquinta.
Source: Historical Volume &
Reference Works Including Alhambra, Monterey Park, Rosemead, San Gabriel &
Temple City, by Robert P. Studer, Pages 385-386,
Historical Publ., Los Angeles, California.
1962.
© 2012 V.
Gerald Iaquinta.
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