San
Joaquin County
Biographies
CHARLES A. MURDOCH
A native son of California and the
son of a pioneer of the gold days, Charles A. Murdoch is the successful
assistant foreman of construction for the Harris Manufacturing Company. He was born in Clements, San Joaquin County,
on February 7, 1882, a son of William C. and Martha (Dimmock) Murdoch, both
parents natives of Nova Scotia, Canada.
His father came to California on one of the first trains to cross the
continent after the completion of the railroad, and arrived in Stockton when it
was a struggling city. His father worked
on grain ranches throughout the valley, and with W. C. Miller followed
sheepraising, driving sheep from Fresno to Carson City, Nevada; later he
homesteaded a piece of land near Clements, and then purchased the old Gillies place consisting of 160 acres; later he bought the
Bragg place of 160 acres adjoining and has farmed the whole acreage to grain;
now in his seventy-seventh year he lives retired on the old home place at Clements,
twenty-two miles east of Stockton, and still raises cattle, his specialty being
shorthorn Durham’s. He was a trustee of
the Washington school in the early days and takes a lively interest in the
affairs of the county in general. His
family consists of five living children:
Mrs. Alberta Pearson; Mrs. L. M. Sain; Mrs.
Louise Brandt; Charles A., our subject; and Winfield C., all born in San
Joaquin County and still living here.
The mother passed away July 5, 1920, at the family home in Clements,
aged sixty-eight years.
Charles A. acquired his education in
the Washington school and was graduated from grammar school in 1897. After leaving school he learned the
carpenters’ trade and worked on the construction of the dredges used in gold
mining for the Yuba Construction Company, helping to build the dredges at Jenny
Lind and Folsom City. He also operated
gold dredgers on the Mokelumne River for this same company; he then engaged in
contracting and built many of the houses and blocks in Clements during the time
he was contracting. During August of
1918, he entered the employ of the Harris Manufacturing Company of Stockton and
now occupies the position of assistant foreman of construction.
Mr. Murdoch’s marriage in 1903 united
him with Miss Bertha Holman, a native daughter of California, born in Clements,
San Joaquin County; her grandfather Holman was a California pioneer. Mr. and Mrs. Murdoch are the parents of two
children: Annabelle F. and Marcella E. Mr. Murdoch is a member of the Junior Order
of United American Mechanics. He is
vitally interested in the welfare of his native county and state and gives to
his party support to every excellent measure likely to help upbuild the
community in which he lives and prospers.
Transcribed by Gerald Iaquinta.
Source: Tinkham, George
H., History of San Joaquin County, California , Page
1172. Los Angeles, Calif.: Historic
Record Co., 1923.
© 2011 Gerald Iaquinta.
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