Los
Angeles County
Biographies
JOHN WEBER
A pioneer railroad man of
California, John Weber was born January 23, 1852, at Jeffersonville,
Indiana. His parents were natives of
Germany, the father, John Weber, having been born at Frankfort on Main,
November 11, 1821, and the mother in Saxony, September 14, 1826, both coming to
the United States when children, the father settling in Louisville, Kentucky,
with his parents in the early thirties.
There he learned the trade of cabinetmaker and followed it for many
years. He married Henrietta Carl and
they afterwards located in Jeffersonville, Indiana, where both he and his wife
died.
John Weber, of this review, was the
second child in a family of eight and received his education in public and
private schools of his native city, his father being interested in one of the
private schools there. After finishing
school the first work done by our subject was with a railroad company. It proved to be the sort of work that he
liked and therefore he followed it for many years. In 1875 he came to California and spent one
year in San Francisco. The following
year he came to Los Angeles and continued with his chosen work until he retired
from active participation with railroading in 1886 to devote his time to his
own interests. He had invested heavily
in real estate in Los Angeles and in a ranch at La Verne, Los Angeles County,
where he engaged in growing oranges. He was
a member of the board of the La Verne Orange and Lemon Growers Association, and
of the La Verne Land and Water Company, and aided very materially in the
development of that section of Los Angeles County. At one time Mr. Weber served as a member of
the police commission of Los Angeles and always took an interested part in the
development of the southland.
In Los Angeles on October 10, 1883,
John Weber was united in marriage with Miss Augusta Shaw, a native of Los
Angeles, California, and the daughter of Dr. Joseph and Harriett (Fitzsimmons)
Shaw, the latter born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Dr. Shaw was born in Boston, Massachusetts,
and after graduating from Yale University came to California in 1849 by way of
the Isthmus of Panama. Later he was engaged
in growing oranges, continuing for many years as a pioneer in that industry. At one time he went to Nicaragua, Central
America, and brought back orange seeds which he planted and from that beginning
he started a nursery which he maintained for many years. In due time, the citrus industry became the
mainstay of southern California. Many of
the early orchards were planted with trees from the nursery of Dr. Shaw, who
was also a successful grower of other fruits.
Dr. Shaw was married on February 1, 1860, to Miss Harriet Fitzsimmons,
the ceremony taking place in Philadelphia.
They had one daughter, Augusta, now the widow of John Weber. Dr. Shaw died March 7, 1881, and his widow
survived him until January 6, 1892. Dr.
Shaw had bought property at what is now East Adams and San Pedro streets, and
there planted an orange grove. Of the
marriage of John Weber and his wife two sons were born: Elmer Commodore, born July 21, 1884, who has
for years been associated with the McKesson Western Wholesale Drug Company in
Los Angeles, and resides with his mother at 1942 South Hobart Boulevard; and
Clarence Edward, born January 28, 1886, who is managing the ranch at La
Verne. He married Miss Aurelia Castruccio and they have three children: Olga Maria, Carlo Anthony and Darius Joseph.
John Weber was a Republican and a
member of the Los Angeles County Pioneer Society and of the Presbyterian Church. He was a Mason, holding membership in South
Gate Lodge No. 320, F. & A. M.; Los Angeles Council, No. 11, R. & S.
M.; Signet Chapter, No. 57, R. A. M.; Los Angeles Commandery, No. 9, K. T.; and
Al Malaikah Temple, A. A. I. O. N. M. S.
Mrs. Weber is a charter member of California Parlor, No. 247, Native
Daughters of the Golden West, is prominent in her social circles and has a host
of friends among the old time families in southern California. Mr. Weber died at their residence on January
25, 1933.
Transcribed by
V. Gerald Iaquinta.
Source: California of the South
Vol. III, by John Steven McGroarty, Pages
25-27, Clarke Publ., Chicago, Los Angeles, Indianapolis. 1933.
© 2012 V. Gerald Iaquinta.
GOLDEN
NUGGET'S LOS ANGELES BIOGRAPIES