Mr.
Diefendorff is originally of German ancestry.
His father was a native of the State of New York. He did service in the Revolutionary War, was
over eighty years old at the time of his death and in receipt of a
pension. The grandfather of the subject
of this biography was Captain Hendrick Diefendorff, who fell on the
battle-field of Oreskany, the day that General Herkimer was wounded, when his
saddle was placed under a tree, and, reposing his head on that, he commanded
the regiment. The battle was lost for the
patriots. General Herkimer died of his
wounds at its close, and it was altogether a day of sorrow for the beautiful
Mohawk Valley. The mother of Mr.
Diefendorff was Elizabeth Baum, a niece of Colonel Baum and a native of Virginia.
C.
J. Diefendorff was born on the 19th of April, 1814, in the State of New
York. He remained with his father until
the enlargement of the Erie Canal, when he became bookkeeper and foreman with a
contractor.
In
1840 he taught school in his native district.
Two years later he was married to Miss Sarah E. Thayer, daughter of
General Bezeleel Thayer, of Oswego County, New York. In 1848 he returned to Fort Plains, New York, and opened a store
on the Erie Canal. On January 5, 1853,
Mr. Diefendorff, accompanied by his wife’s brother, Henry S. Thayer, took
passage to San Francisco via Panama.
After leaving the latter place the vessel sprung a leak, and, what was
worse, the yellow fever broke out on board and full fifty of the passengers
were buried at sea. At Acapulco the passengers
went ashore and among the sick were Mr. Diefendorff’s wife and Mr. Thayer, her brother. The latter died of the epidemic and was
buried in the cemetery set apart for foreigners in that place. After many other vicissitudes, Mr. Diefendorff
finally arrived at San Francisco on March 8.
Mr.
Diefendorff engaged in mining on his arrival, beginning at Prairie City, a camp
near Folsom. He also mined on Alder
Creek. In the fall of 1855 he purchased
a ranch on Grand Island, Colusa County.
In 1856 he was Justice of the Peace of Granite Township, Sacramento
County, and while serving on the board of elections in that township, he was
elected Justice of the Peace of Grand Island.
At a meeting of the Justices of Colusa County, he was elected a Justice
of the Sessions and at the close of his term he was appointed County Judge by
Governor Downey. He afterwards served two
terms as Supervisor of Colusa County.
At the beginning of the war, Mr. Diefendorff was appointed Deputy United
States Marshal and Deputy Indian Agent.
At its close he was made Deputy Revenue Collector of Colusa and Tehama
Counties. Under appointment of the
Union League of San Francisco, he was authorized to establish Union Leagues in
Colusa County.
While
acting as Deputy Indian Agent, he was appointed by Chief “Him Boo” to give
instructions to his son Captain Bill.
The old chief called his people around him just before his death and
gave Diefendorff in charge of them. To this
day the older Indians on Grand Island salute Mr. Diefendorff as “Him Boo.”
During
the years 1881-1883 Mr. Diefendorff was engaged in closing his business on
Grand Island, preparatory to removing to San Francisco, where he now makes his
home. Although not of a resident of
Colusa County, Mr. Diefendorff is in
feeling, association of spirit and sympathy a Colusan.
“Colusa
County” – by Justus H. Rogers – Orland, CA – 1891 – pp 378-379
Transcribed
by Kathy Sedler, August 2004.
© 2004 Kathy Sedler