San
Joaquin County
Biographies
THOMAS F. DONOVAN
A
leader in the successful development of the resources of San Joaquin County is
Thomas F. Donovan, a native son who was born on his father’s farm, on Upper
Sacramento Road, three miles east of Stockton on February 21, 1878, the son of
Thomas Donovan, deceased, who had married Miss Ellen Fitzgerald, like himself a
native of Ireland, and who resided on the old home place until his death
October 1, 1922, aged eighty-five. Mr.
Donovan came out to California in the early sixties by way of the Isthmus of
Panama, and for about eight years worked on the Wilkins ranch. Then he bought the farm of 120 acres, east of
Stockton, which he continued to cultivate until his death, about fifteen years
ago. Several children were born to Mr.
and Mrs. Donovan; and those now living are, besides our subject, Catherine, who
is the wife of Thomas Heffernan, William John, Mame, Nellie, Mrs. A. A.
Fitzgerald, Margaret, Mrs. Charles Walsh and Hannah, Mrs. James Heffernan.
Thomas F. Donovan attended the
August grammar school, and at the early age of fourteen drove an eight-horse
team on his father’s ranch. When twenty
years of age, he entered into a partnership with his brother, William J.
Donovan, and leased 500 acres of the Wagner ranch on the Lower Sacramento Road,
which they farmed to grain for four seasons.
Then our subject sold his interest to his brother, and he bought a
half-interest in the Blake Transfer Company of Stockton, owned by Mr.
Carpenter, and joined the other partner, G. S. Blake, and later Blake sold his
interest to O. A. Fitzgerald, and two years later Mr. Donovan bought out Mr.
Fitzgerald and became sole owner. For
five years he did a large business, running one of the first motor trucks seen
in Stockton.
Later Mr. Donovan again started
farming with his brother, operating some 500 acres in the Terminal Tract
northwest of Stockton. In the meantime,
he sold a half-interest in the Blake Transfer Company to Frank Watrous, and at the end of the year he disposed of the
other half to his partner and retired altogether from the transfer
enterprise. With his brother he then
rented 600 acres of land and farmed the same for a year, and then they farmed
about 2,200 acres to grain, on different ranches between Stockton and
Farmington. For the past few years Mr.
Donovan has been engaged in caterpillar contracting, leveling, plowing and
planting of crops. One season he plowed
2,500 acres on the Chowchilla ranch, and the next year he harvested 4,000 acres
there. At present he is devoting himself
to the development of smaller ranches of 1,000 acres, or thereabouts, in the
vicinity of Stockton.
While in the transfer business he
bought the lot on which now stands the Hotel Taft, which he later sold, and he
erected a large barn on Madison Street for the business. He is one of the veteran local members of the
Fraternal Order of Eagles, and an ex-trustee in the same. In Stockton January, 1910, he married Miss
Ala Martin, born at Fresno. Her father,
W. T. Martin, was the first white child born on the Calaveras River near
Waterloo, his parents being early pioneers and farmers. Mr. Martin, after removing to Fresno, was
superintendent of the Fresno Irrigating Canal, and is now an orchardist near
Selma. Her mother, who was Theo S.
Wildermuth, was born in Calaveras County and Mrs. Donovan is the eldest living
child of their four children.
Transcribed by V. Gerald Iaquinta.
Source: Tinkham, George
H., History of San Joaquin County, California , Pages
1391-1392. Los Angeles, Calif.: Historic
Record Co., 1923.
© 2012 V. Gerald Iaquinta.
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