San
Joaquin County
Biographies
JERRY O. BEAUCHAMP
A worthy representative of one of
the pioneer American families is J. O. Beauchamp, the well-known rancher and
realtor living about three and a half miles to the west of Escalon, where he owns
nearly forty-six choice acres. He was
born in Pike County, Missouri, on April 18, 1865, the son of James W.
Beauchamp, a native of Pike County, long active as a farmer and stockman in
Missouri, in which state he has spent his days.
He is still living, 92 years of age, while his wife (whose maiden name
was Susan S. Nalley), also born in Pike County, is
eighty-two years old. Her father,
Davenport Nalley, was born in Virginia, and settled
in Pike County in pioneer days, where he became a prosperous farmer and
stockman. Mr. Beauchamp’s paternal
grandfather was born in Kentucky, brought out his family to Pike County, and
there settled upon a farm. He was a
member of the Christian Church, and a local preacher, and his influence for
widespread good was recognized in Pike County.
Mr. Beauchamp’s mother was his father’s second wife. They had six children, five of whom grew up;
Mr. Beauchamp is the eldest, and is the only one residing in California. The maiden name of Mr. James W. Beauchamp’s
first wife was Sally Biggs, and by her he had two children.
J. O. Beauchamp attended the public
schools, including the high school, in his home district, at Paynesville,
Missouri, and then went to a business college at Bowling
Green in the same state, a town identified with the career of his
second-cousin, Champ Clark, now so distinguished in American history. He was the son of John Hampton and Aletha Jane (Beauchamp Clark; but when he began practicing
law in Bowling Green, he abbreviated his name to
Champ, and by that shorter appellation he was later known. Senator Champ Clark, while on a lecture-tour
to the Pacific Coast, visited Mr. Beauchamp at his home in Santa Rosa; the
relationship was confirmed and the two worthies had a delightful time together.
On Christmas Day, 1889, Mr.
Beauchamp was married at Clarksville, Missouri, to Miss Elizabeth Jeans, of
that town, a daughter of Newton Jeans, a farmer who was born and reared in Pike
County, and who came out to California with Mr. Beauchamp and here breathed his
last. His wife’s maiden name was
Margaret Watts; the Jeans, Watts, and Beauchamp families were all Missouri
pioneers. John Watts, an uncle of Mrs.
Beauchamp, came to California in 1849, and became interested in a project for
supplying water to the miners in the mining country in which he lost about
$80,00; later, he went into business at Stockton, and later still settled at Blocksburg, in Humboldt County, where he owned a stock
farm, and where he died. He lived to be
seventy-three years old, and died well-to-do.
These families were all originally from Kentucky.
After their marriage, Mr. Beauchamp
bought his father’s home place in Pike County, Missouri, but on account of his
wife’s ill health, he sold out, and came to California in 1899. Settling at first in Humboldt County, he
spent the next three years at Santa Rosa, Sonoma County, where he ran a
dairy-ranch just outside of Santa Rosa; and later on he moved into the city and
subdivided the “Roseland” tract, realizing a good profit from his venture. He moved to his present place in 1917, and
now deals quite extensively in real estate, mostly farm lands and ranches near
Escalon. He is an exceptional judge of
land values. Two children have been
granted Mr. and Mrs. Beauchamp: Ruth is
now the wife of G. R. Shriver, rancher and insurance agent at Santa Rosa; and
Margaret is at home. The family attend the Christian Church.
Transcribed by Gerald Iaquinta.
Source: Tinkham, George
H., History of San Joaquin County, California , Pages
915-916. Los Angeles, Calif.: Historic
Record Co., 1923.
© 2011 Gerald Iaquinta.
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