Santa
Clara County
Biographies
WILLIAM
A. Z. EDWARDS
WILLIAM A. Z. EDWARDS. A substantial and prosperous member of the
agricultural and horticultural community of san Jose, and one of its most
venerable and respected citizens, William A. Z. Edwards is a worthy
representative of the pioneer settlers of Santa Clara county. Since coming here he has witnessed many and
vast changes throughout the locality, and has contributed his full share toward
its development and growing prosperity.
A native of England, he was born August 31, 1823, in Erdington, Shropshire, of Welsh
ancestors. His father, Edward Edwards,
and his grandfather, Matthew Edwards, were both life-long residents of England.
Edward Edwards was a farmer by
occupation and a man of much intelligence and ability. He married Ann Brown, who bore him seven
children, of whom we mention the following:
George died on the fortieth anniversary of his birth, in England; John
spent his entire life in England, dying, in 1901, at the age of eighty-three
years; Catherine died at the age of
nineteen years, in her English home; William A. Z. is the subject of this
sketch; Edward died in Derby, England; Thomas, a farmer, resides in Australia;
and James, for many years proprietor of the Plumas house, in Quincy, Cal., came
to the Pacific coast in 1855, and died in 1894.
William A. Z. Edwards was christened William Edwards,
receiving no middle name. After coming
to California, while mining on the Feather river, the
mail was brought to him by carriers on snowshoes from Marysville, each letter
brought or sent costing four bits.
Receiving a number of letters intended for some other William Edwards,
he inserted the two initials A and Z into his name, and had no further trouble
in that respect.
Brought up on the home farm, and
educated in the common schools, William A. Z. Edwards learned the
business of a grocer in England, serving an apprenticeship of five years in
Dudley. In 1844 he came with a friend, a
sailor, to America, agreeing to return with him to England in seven years. In 1851, wishing to visit the Crystal Palace,
he sailed for England on the Pacific, of the Collins’ Steamship line, and while
going down New York bay he passed the yacht America on her way to England to
race for the cup, which she won, and which has ever since remained on this side
of the Atlantic. After visiting in
England four months, Mr. Edwards returned to this country, and settled in
Oneida county, N.Y., where he was employed as a clerk
until the summer of 1853.
January 20 of that year he sailed from New York City, on the
steamer Ohio, commanded by Captain Hartstein, to Aspinwall, from there going by rail to Barbacoas,
thence being poled up the river by natives to Cruces, from there proceeding on
foot to Panama, following the old mule trail, being five days in crossing the
isthmus. After waiting for the steamer
Golden Gate, commanded by Captain Patterson, Mr. Edwards and his party
boarded her, being carried through the surf by the natives. During the trip to California the Golden Gate
lost eighteen passengers by fever, who were buried at
sea, while the opposition boat lost thirty-eight of her passengers. On the way he passed the Independence, which,
thirty-six hours later, was wrecked and burned on Santa Margarite
island.
Arriving in San Francisco February 19,
1853, Mr. Edwards started for the gold fields, and was engaged in mining
on Nelson Creek, Plumas county, until 1857, when, by
agreement, he met his old sweetheart in San Francisco, and was there married
July 17. Coming immediately to
Santa Clara valley Mr. Edwards located near San Jose. Renting land at first he carried on farming
with good success, and in 1863 purchased forty acres of land that are included
in his present ranch, and in the following year he erected his dwelling house,
in which he has since resided. In
addition to general farming he embarked in fruit-raising, setting out his first
orchard in 1865. He subsequently bought
twenty acres of the Stockton ranch, and still later purchased one block of the
University of the Pacific grounds, in College Park,
and still owns one-half of his original purchase, the land being located on Polhemus street. In
the yard in front of his home he has two magnificent palms which were set out
in 1866. Mr. Edwards helped to
organize Company C, Alviso Rifles,
October 18, 1864, entering the service as a private, and in time became
captain, a title by which he is familiarly known. He served from the organization of the
company until its disbandment, December 25, 1886, when the company, in
recognition of his valuable services, presented him with a handsome gold medal.
July 17, 1857, in San Francisco, as
mentioned above, Mr. Edwards married for his first wife Eliza Small, who
was born in England, near Folkstone, and died on the
farm in San Jose. He married for his
second wife, in Baltimore, Md., Isabelle Noble Ogier,
a sister of the late James H. Ogier. She died in early womanhood, leaving one
child, Belle Ogier Edwards. March 17, 1880, in San Jose,
Mr. Edward married Jennie Ziegler, a native of Perrysville, Ohio. Her parents, Henry and Mary (Kegreis) Ziegler, were both born in Pennsylvania, and both
died in Perrysville, Ohio, where he was a business man of prominence. Mr. and Mrs. Ziegler had a large family
of children, of whom seven daughters and one son grew to years of
maturity. The son, John K. Ziegler,
served in the Civil war as captain of Company I, Sixty-fourth Ohio
Volunteer Infantry, and was killed at the battle of Chickamauga in 1863, and
Ziegler Post, G. A. R., in Perrysville, Ohio, was named in his honor. Mr. and Mrs. Edward are the parents of
three children, namely: Carolyn Ziegler,
a student in Stanford University; Abbie Kate, who was graduated from King Conservatory
of Music in 1903; and William Watkins, also a student in Stanford University. Mrs. Edwards is a woman of culture and
refinement, and came to California in 1879 as a teacher.
Politically Mr. Edwards was a Democrat
until James Buchanan, as president of the United States, said he had not the
authority to suppress the rebellion, but since that time has been a stanch
Republican. In the management of public
affairs he has been active and influential.
From 1883 until 1891 he was a member of the board of supervisors, and
during that time the Hall of Records was built and paid for without assessments
or bonds. The sprinkling of county roads
was established, and the road from Alum rock down the
caZon was built by
prison labor. He is now a member of the
school board of Orchard district, a position that he has held many years, and
he is also artesian well inspector for Santa Clara county,
having been the first person appointed to that office. Fraternally he is an Ancient Odd Fellow. Socially he belongs to the Santa Clara County
Pioneer Association. Mrs. Edwards
is a member of the First Presbyterian Church.
Transcribed by Donna Toole.
Source: History
of the State of California & Biographical Record of Coast Counties,
California by Prof. J. M. Guinn, A. M., Pages 390-391. The Chapman
Publishing Co., Chicago, 1904.
© 2015 Donna Toole.