Sacramento County
Biographies
HON. PETER J. SHIELDS
The lineage of the Shields family
indicates a long line of Celtic ancestors and it was not until 1843 that
Patrick Shields transplanted this branch from the Emerald Isle to the shores of
America. At the time of emigration he was a man of middle age, frugal,
purposeful and industrious, but handicapped by lack of means. Accompanied
by his wife, Mary, and their sons, he crossed the ocean to the new world and
proceeded to the then undeveloped regions of the Mississippi valley, where he
took up a tract of government land and entered upon general farming. With
the aid of his boys he transformed a raw tract into a productive farm and
ultimately acquired the title to two hundred and ten acres of fertile land,
which he had stocked with a large herd of cattle as well as other stock.
His death occurred in November of 1856, when he was sixty-five years of
age. Surviving him were three sons, of whom Frederick and Dennis sought
homes in the undeveloped lands of Minnesota, while John, who was born in
Ireland April 26, 1835, became a pioneer of California, leaving his Illinois
home May 4, 1856, and landing in San Francisco on the 14th of June after an
uneventful trip by way of Panama. For three months after his arrival he
operated a threshing-machine for the owner, after which for eight or ten months
he worked at $3 per day in the mines at Farmers' Diggings and elsewhere along
the American river.
The first association of John Shields with
western agriculture occurred in 1857, when he bought the squatter's right to
three hundred and twenty-four acres, covered with brush and timber, and
containing a black and sandy loam soil which proved very productive. The
ranch was in Brighton township, Sacramento county,
thirteen miles from the city of Sacramento, and bounded on the north by the
American river. The original Hangtown Crossing
was near this ranch, but later that name was discarded for the present title of
Mills. All of the improvements on the place were made by Mr. Shields, who
about 1879 increased his holdings by the purchase of one hundred acres near the
original farm. Twenty acres were planted in a vineyard, and the crops
were so large that it is said about twenty-four tons of grapes were harvested
from three acres in one season. One hundred acres were planted to an
orchard of peaches, pears, plums and French prunes. Eventually the owner
relinquished his arduous ranching activities and removed to Yolo county, where he now makes his home. November 18,
1859, he married Mrs. Elizabeth (Bow) Lynch, who was born in Ireland, crossed
the ocean to Massachusetts in early life and in 1855 became a resident of
California. They had a family of five daughters and two sons,
namely: Mary, who married Charles Deterding;
Lizzie A., wife of M. C. Pike; Alice; Hannah, who made a specialty
of instrumental and vocal music and rose to a high rank in the
profession; Emily, Peter J., and Robert E. Four of the family are still living. The mother, who possessed
unusual ability, made a specialty of the fruit industry and attained a
reputation as one of the most thorough and prominent orchardists
in the entire state. As an authority on horticulture her advice was
sought by people from all parts of the west. When she died in 1895 the
State Fruit-Growers' Association passed suitable resolutions of regret and
condolence and alluded to her as "the fruit queen of California," a
title which her wise and long-continued labors fully justified.
At the old homestead on the American river
Peter J. Shields was born April 4, 1862. The neighboring schools afforded
him fair advantages. Later he was graduated from the Christian Brothers college in Sacramento. At the age of eighteen years he
took up the study of law in the office of A. P. Catlin.
Three years later he was admitted to practice at the bar of the state.
With professional ambitions and youthful hopes he took up the practice of law,
only to find himself forced to abandon practice at the age of twenty-four and
to give attention to the restoration of his health, which had been seriously
injured by over-study. As the best means of physical recuperation he
sought outdoor employment and turned his attention to a careful study of
livestock, with such success that he since has been selected to act as judge in
many of the most important stock shows in the entire country. It is said
that his judgment of an animal is seldom at fault. At a glance he detects
their favorable points as well as the apparently invisible weaknesses which
prove a blemish to their record.
During the period of open-air activities
as a means of health restoration, the young man had not wholly relinquished all
identification with city affairs, but still held the office of trustee of the
California state library, to which at the age of twenty-three years he had been
appointed by Governor Bartlett and in which his service was so intelligent that
he was again appointed in 1897. When he returned to Sacramento in 1895 he
became a deputy to the state librarian, filling the position for nine
months. During the next two years he served as secretary of the
California code commission, while later for a similar period he held the
private secretaryship to the governor, during the
same period likewise serving as secretary of the State Agricultural
Society. Resuming the practice of law in 1900 as an associate of
Hon. Hiram W. Johnson, the present governor of California, he continued in
private practice until a few months later, when he was elected judge of the
superior court of Sacramento county by the largest majority ever given a judge
in that county. While a Democrat in politics, he received a majority of
eighteen hundred, the largest ever given up to that time. The first
election was for an unexpired term, after which he was re-elected by a very
heavy vote and then in 1908 he was chosen judge by the largest vote given any
candidate on either side.
In the office of jurist Judge Shields has
proved impartial and tactful, the possessor of a profound knowledge of
jurisprudence and the exemplifier in his own forceful character of the ethics
of the judicial office. Only an admirable personality could attain to his
popularity and prestige. Democracy, civic duty and good government are
among the causes that have enlisted his intelligence. Sincerity of
purpose has directed his conduct in every relation of life and has governed his
excellent administration of the affairs of his court. Every movement
for the upbuilding of the Sacramento valley has
enlisted his sympathy and he has been particularly helpful in promoting the
reclamation work. Educational activities have benefited by his wise
participation and probably the most important act of his life was his
furtherance of the university farm and school of agriculture, located at Davis.
From the first he favored the plan for such an institution and realized that it
could be made most valuable to the material development of the state. Not
only did he aid the cause by forcible speeches on the subject, but in addition
he drew the bill creating such a school, and through his efforts it was passed
by the legislature. In its present usefulness and future value to state
advancement it is now and will continue to be for years to come a monument to
the sagacious efforts of himself and other
high-minded, patriotic citizens broad in vision and prompt in action.
Transcribed by Sally Kaleta.
Source: Willis,
William L., History of Sacramento County,
California, Pages 755-757. Historic
Record Company,
© 2006 Sally Kaleta.