Sacramento County
Biographies
JAMES LOUIS KERCHEVAL
JAMES LOUIS
KERCHEVAL.—Fortunate is the community that numbers among its citizens such
a sturdy, far-sighted and highly esteemed public official as was James Louis Kercheval, born August 13, 1858, on Grand Island, the son
of Reuben and Margaret Kercheval. Mr. Kercheval obtained his early education in the Onisbo grammar school, and the California
Military Academy
at Oakland, and began to shift for
himself when he was eighteen years of age. In 1876 he became a clerk on the
Sacramento River boat "Old Pioneer." He
worked on the Sacramento River for eight years and for
the California Transportation Company for seven years, and also for the
Stockton Line. He served on the "J. D. Peters," running to Stockton. In
1889, on his inheritance of fifty-seven acres from his father, he came to
Walnut Grove, where he there-after made his residence. His father, Reuben Kercheval, who was at one time a member of the legislature,
spent years of his life endeavoring to reclaim the property. Untiringly,
he built up levee after levee, which as often would be washed away. On the
erection of the dredger levee, however, the land was finally brought to its
present stage of development. Although the land was at first all laid out as an orchard, James Louis Kercheval
recently began taking out some of the orchard and planting the land to
asparagus. When he received the property, there were no buildings on it,
and he erected a fine house and barn and the other needed farm buildings.
Mr.
Kercheval performed many official duties besides
managing his farm. He served as deputy county assessor for fifteen years,
first under Thomas H. Burkee and later under A. J.
Kay; and in this capacity he made a commendable record. From 1908 on, he was
the secretary of Reclamation District No. 3, of Grand
Island, which district embraces approximately 16,500
acres of land. For seventeen years he acted as trustee of the Walnut Grove
school district. He was a member of the Elks, in Sacramento; a past grand
of the Odd Fellows, in San Francisco; and a member of the Encampment and Canton
in Sacramento, and of the Rebekahs, in Isleton.
Since
the date of the interview from which this biography was written, Mr. Kercheval was called to the Great Beyond, on March 25,
1923. He is survived by his widow and a daughter by his former marriage,
Josephine, now Mrs. George H. Thomas, Jr., of San Mateo. Mrs.
Kercheval was in maidenhood Hazel Nurse. She was
born in Capay, Yolo
County; and in that county her
marriage took place on January 23, 1920. She is a daughter of Mack C.
Nurse, a native of Ohio, who
crossed the plains in an ox-team train with his parents in pioneer
days. Here he afterwards married Miss Jennie Clark, who was born in Yolo
County, a daughter of Columbus
Clark, one of that county’s earliest pioneers. Mr. And
Mrs. Nurse are now deceased. They had a family of seven children; Arthur,
of Capay; Maude; Mrs. Hogeboom,
of San Francisco; Wade, of Capay; Mabel, Mrs. Lovgren, of Sacramento; Hazel, Mrs. Kercheval;
Ethel, Mrs. Wait of Sacramento; and Archie, who lives in Tracy. By a
former marriage, Mrs. Kercheval had three children:
Mae, Harvey (deceased June 23, 1923, and June Denning. Since her late
husband’s death, Mrs. Kercheval is assuming the
management of his affairs and carrying out, as far as she is able, his plans
and ambitions for the ranch.
Transcribed 4-2-07
Marilyn R. Pankey.
Source: Reed, G.
Walter, History of Sacramento County,
California With Biographical Sketches, Pages 590-595. Historic Record Company, Los Angeles, CA. 1923.
© 2007 Marilyn R. Pankey.