Placer
County
Biographies
JAMES T. CURREY
A debt of gratitude than can never
be repaid is due to the pioneers of any country. In the midst of an advanced civilization the
people of today cannot realize what was endured by those who reclaimed this
country from its primitive condition.
They met nature in her wild mood and though her resources were boundless
it required great effort to utilize them and make them yield good return for
labor. Mr. Currey is one of those who
crossed the plains with oxen, making the long journey across the hot stretches
of sand and over mountains in order to secure a home on the Pacific coast. Here he found mining camps situated in the
midst of a land that had hitherto been the domain of the Indians and the haunts
of wild beasts. Few of the comforts of
civilization had been introduced, but the better element among those who came
to search for gold succeeded in laying the foundations of a commonwealth which
now stands second to none of the sister states of this great Union.
Mr. Currey is a native of Kentucky,
his birth having occurred in Jefferson County, on the 28th of
December, 1826. His father, Edward
Currey, was a native of England or Ireland, and during his childhood
accompanied his parents when they crossed the broad Atlantic to the new world,
taking up their abode in Pennsylvania.
When he was four years of age they removed to Jefferson County,
Kentucky, where he was reared to manhood and there he married Miss Elizabeth
Smith, a daughter of Philip Smith. Both
the paternal and maternal grandfathers of our subject were heroes of the
Revolutionary War who valiantly aided in acquiring the independence of the
colonies. The latter was of German
descent and his daughter, Mrs. Currey, was born in the state of Pennsylvania. The father of our subject and his two
brothers were soldiers in the War of 1812.
He lived to be seventy-one years of age, but his wife passed away at the
age of fifty-two. They were members of
the Presbyterian Church and their lives were in harmony with their
professions. The father held the office
of postmaster for many years and was a gentleman of sterling worth, always true
and faithful to the trust reposed in him.
At the battle of New Orleans he had sustained a wound which crippled him
for the remainder of his life.
James Thomas Currey was one of a
family of thirteen children, but as far as he now knows he is the only
survivor. He was the twelfth in order of
birth and was reared to manhood in Kentucky.
At the age of twenty-seven years he started upon the long and tedious
journey to California, his wagon drawn by oxen whose slow gait made the trip an
almost interminable one. However he
finally arrived at his destination and engaged in mining at Rattlesnake Bar on
the American River, being quite successful in his operations. He took out eighteen hundred dollars in a
single day and continued to mine there for three or four years. Later, however, he invested considerable of
his savings in other mining ventures which proved unprofitable. Be it said to his honor, however, that he
neither gambled nor drank in those days when such practices were common among
the miners, and wherever he was he commanded the respect and confidence of all
with whom he was associated. For a time
he was employed on a ranch and later began working on the Old Bear River ditch,
remaining with the company for twenty-nine years, a fact which indicates in an
unmistakable manner his capable service and his fidelity to duty. He has charge of the water in this vicinity,
acts as collector for the company and is one of its most reliable and
trustworthy employees.
Mr. Currey took up his residence in
Loomis in 1866 and built the second residence in the town. He has planted many fruit and ornamental
trees here and is now living in a pleasant home amid comfortable surroundings,
having through the years of his active and honorable career acquired a handsome
competence. He was married in 1869 to
Miss Elizabeth Freeman and unto them was born a son, Harry, who is now a
resident of Sacramento. After the death
of his first wife Mr. Currey was married on the first of July, 1884, to Miss
Amelia Cutsgar, a native of Prussia, who has since
been to him a faithful helpmate and companion on life’s journey. She is a member of the Catholic Church. He is not identified with any religious
organization, but socially is connected with the Red Men, and in politics he is
a Democrat, but at local elections where no issue is involved he votes for the
man rather than the party, regarding merely his fitness for the office. His life has been quietly passed but the
elements of his character are those which constitute honorable manhood and in
the localities where he has resided he has enjoyed the unqualified confidence
and esteem of his fellow men.
Transcribed by
Gerald Iaquinta.
Source:
“A Volume of Memoirs and Genealogy of Representative Citizens of Northern
California”, Pages 785-787. Chicago Standard Genealogical Publishing Co. 1901.
© 2010
Gerald Iaquinta.