San
Joaquin County
Biographies
WILLIAM MORAN
A resident of California since 1862,
William Moran is one of the state’s most worthy pioneers, for he has
contributed much to the improvement and building up of this great
commonwealth. He was born at Carrick, on
the River Suir, in County Waterford, Ireland, March
1, 1833, the son of Edmond and Hanora (Barton)
Moran. The father, who was a farmer,
passed away in his native land and after his death Mrs. Moran came to
Massachusetts where she resided for the remainder of her life. They were the parents of eight children, only
two of whom are now living, William Moran of this sketch, and Edmond Moran, who
resides in Charlestown, Massachusetts.
William Moran grew up on the farm in
Ireland and remained there until nineteen years of age, leaving there in 1852
to come to America where he felt that greater opportunities awaited him. He located at Chelsea, Massachusetts, and
went to work on a farm where oxen were still being used to carry on the farming
operations. On July 8, 1860, at Chelsea,
he was married to Miss Hannah Linskey, who was born
October 14, 1840, in County Galway, Ireland, the daughter of John and Mary
(Mitchell) Linskey, farmers in Galway. The mother died there and the father came to
Pennsylvania but passed away soon afterward, leaving four children, of whom
Hannah was the eldest. She came to
Massachusetts in May, 1849, with an aunt and attended school at Chelsea, and it
was here that she met and married Mr. Moran.
In April, 1862, William Moran
started to California by way of Panama, landing at San Francisco on May 5th,
and in December of that year he was joined by his wife and their son, William
B. Mrs. Moran’s journey was indeed an
eventfully one; she was a passenger on the Aerial from New York to Aspinwall
which was captured by the Confederate cruiser Alabama, as this was during the
stirring days of the Civil War. The
passengers were kept for two days on the Island of Jamaica before they were
allowed to proceed on their journey.
Crossing the Isthmus of Panama they took the steamer Constitution to San
Francisco, arriving December 27, 1862.
For the first year Mr. Moran was employed in San Francisco and in the
spring of 1863 he went to Bodega Bay, Sonoma County, and began grain farming,
raising a good crop of oats. In the fall
of 1864 he removed to Santa Clara County and purchased a fifty-acre farm six
miles east of San Jose and there he followed farming until the lands on the
west side in San Joaquin County were opened for settlement, taking up his
residence there in 1867 on a homestead of 160 acres at Mohr’s Landing, near
Bethany. Here he built a house and made
improvements, breaking the virgin soil and raising grain. He sold this ranch in 1875 and engaged in
sheep raising and had just gotten nicely started when
the memorable drought of 1877 left him with many others with nothing to feed
their sheep and he sustained a heavy loss.
He then located at Ellis, now Tracy, a few miles from his old homestead
and in 1878 began farming near Corral Hollow, continuing there for sixteen
years, then bought 320 acres on the boundary line
between San Joaquin and Alameda counties, near Midway, all but a few acres
being in San Joaquin County. He improved
this place, building a residence, made a success of raising grain and hay and
with the aid of his family, who were all capable and industrious; he was able
to gain a competency.
Mr. and Mrs. Moran are the parents
of eleven children: William B., passed
away in Siskiyou County in 1900; Mary, Mrs. Martin J. Lund, of Stockton; Anna
and Katherine reside with their parents; Nancy died in infancy; Louise, Mrs.
Dana Troth, of Tracy; John Edmond passed away in Stockton on April 20, 1922;
Nellie, Mrs. David Lake, of Oakland; Harriett, Mrs. Thomas Mournian,
resides near Antioch; Elizabeth, Mrs. George Hicks, of Oakland; Emmet is a
rancher in Stockton. In 1910, wishing to
retire from active business, Mr. and Mrs. Moran rented their farm and took up
their residence at 2116 Twenty-sixth Avenue, Oakland, where they reside in
comfort with their two daughters, Misses Annie and Katherine Moran, who give
their parents the most devoted care, looking after their well-being in every
way. While living at Tracy Mr. Moran was
a prominent member of the Grange, passing through all the chairs. In 1872 he joined Sumner Lodge, No. 177, I.
O. O. F., at Ellis, now Tracy, is a past grand and now the oldest member of the
lodge. He is also a member of the
Rebekahs in Tracy. In politics he has
long been a strong Republican.
July 8, 1910, Mr. and Mrs. Moran
celebrated their golden wedding at their home on the ranch. The affair was made a great demonstration by
the members of the family, their friends and neighbors. There were beautiful decorations and an
abundance of flowers, and the wedding repast was delightful and much praised by
those present, and many toasts were given for the health and longevity of the
couple. It was a most enjoyable occasion
and Mr. and Mrs. Moran were the recipients of many beautiful gifts. Sumner Lodge of Odd Fellows at the first
session after the golden wedding passed an appropriate resolution for the
honored couple, and presented Mr. Moran with a lodge emblem as a token of the
high regard in which he was held by the members of the lodge. Each year since then the Moran’s have
celebrated their anniversary at their home and at their sixtieth anniversary
the members of the family presented them with a fine phonograph. On July 8, 1922, they celebrated their
sixty-second anniversary. They have been
wonderfully blessed and take much pride in their devoted children.
Transcribed by Gerald Iaquinta.
Source: Tinkham, George
H., History of San Joaquin County, California , Page
396. Los Angeles, Calif.: Historic
Record Co., 1923.
© 2011 Gerald Iaquinta.
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