Biographies
WARREN E. DOAN
The
discovery of gold was the immediate cause of the identification of the Doan
family with California, the year 1853 having witnessed the arrival in the west
of Riley R. Doan, a native of Lyman, Ohio, and a mechanic by trade. While still
very young he had gained considerable experience as a millwright and after he
settled at Shingle Springs, Cal., he followed that occupation, but after
removing to other parts of the state he followed various other means of
livelihood, as opportunity was offered. From 1864 until 1868 he engaged in
mining at and near Austin, Nev. Upon his return to California in 1868 he became
interested in mining at Colfax, Placer county, but two
years later he transferred his headquarters to Eldorado
county and secured employment in the Baltic mill. During the period of his
connection with that mill he invented and patented a steam wagon and upon his
removal to Sacramento in 1874 he began to manufacture these wagons, in which
line of business he remained actively engaged until 1885. From that year until
1898 he engaged in mining with J. H. Roberts at Harrison Gulch, Shasta county, this state, but his ventures brought him little
material success and in the year last-named he decided to relinquish his mining
interests for the more sure but less fascinating occupation of ranching.
Removing to Elmira, Solano county he bought a tract of
land, developed a farm and gave his attention to the management of the property
until his death, which occurred in August of 1903, fifty years after his
arrival in the state. During that long period it had been his privilege to
witness a remarkable change in the aspect of the country. No longer was a
cosmopolitan throng of miners the principal sight to be seen upon the streets
of the little frontier towns. Instead, there was a cultured class of citizens
whose prosperity gave evidence of the advantages afforded by residence in the
western cities. The country had many thrifty villages and well-improved farms,
in striking contrast to its appearance at the time of his arrival in the
pioneer era of western history.
Among
the children of Riley R. and Sarah C. Doan there was a son, Warren E., born at
Portland, Ore., March 8, 1862, and educated in the public schools of
Sacramento. Leaving school in 1878 he began to earn his own likelihood, but
meanwhile he had become interested in the study of stenography, in which by
constant practice he acquired expert skill. His first experience in court
reporting occurred in 1881, when he was appointed to report on a case in the
superior court of Eldorado county.
The success of the transcript brought him the praise of attorneys and in a
measure determined his life work. Returning to Sacramento he secured a position
as deputy official reporter of the superior court under Mr. Davis. In the
spring of 1883 he resigned from court service to accept a position as
amanuensis with the Huntington-Hopkins Hardware Company and in that responsible
post he gave general satisfaction. However, in 1885 he accepted an opportunity
to engage with Mr. Davis in general court reporting, after which he carried on
a stenographic office until 1889. From that year until January of 1897 he
served by appointment as official court reporter of Placer county. When he
resigned and returned to Sacramento, it was for the purpose of accepting an
appointment as official reporter of the superior court of Sacramento county, in which trustworthy post he has given universal
satisfaction, having indeed won a reputation as one of the most expert
reporters in the entire state. The most intricate and complicated cases he has
been able to report satisfactorily, and he has exhibited in his typewritten
reports an absolute accuracy, quick com-prehension
and keen intelligence that, combined with his unusual speed as a stenographer,
gives him an enviable reputation among the jurists and attorneys of the district.
Fraternally he is a member of the Elks, Knights of Pythias
and Independent Order of Odd Fellows. In Yolo county,
this state, October 17, 1883, occurred his marriage to Miss Kittie
E. Young. They are the parents of an only child, Norman E., and a young man of
ability, who since having completed his education at the Leland Stanford
University has filled the position of county law librarian at Sacramento, and
he is now a student at law.
Transcribed by Sally Kaleta.
Source: Willis,
William L., History of Sacramento County,
California, Pages 998-999. Historic Record Company,
© 2006 Sally Kaleta.