San
Joaquin County
Biographies
JOHN WILKES PAYNE
A native of Illinois, John Wilkes
Payne was born at Belleville, St. Clair County, June
7, 1845. His father, Charles H. Payne,
was born in Hartford, Connecticut, and came to Portage County, Ohio, with his
parents when a boy of four years. His
grandfather, Wilkes Payne, was born at East Windsor, Connecticut, June 29,
1792; he married Phebe Jarome, a daughter of William and Phebe Jarome of
Bristol, Connecticut. In 1814 Mr. Payne
moved to Ohio; he died in 1883, and his wife died in 1851.
Charles H. Payne was educated in
Ohio. He learned the carpenter’s trade,
and after he came out to Illinois he followed his trade there. He married Sarah Pulliam, who was born in
North Carolina of an old Quaker family of English descent. They emigrated from North Carolina to Illinois
to get away from slavery territory. In
1852 he brought his wife and one child, John Wilkes, then seven years old,
across the plains with ox team and wagon to California. He mined at Coloma, and then at Kelsey; and
afterwards he went to Elkhorn, Yolo County, on the Sacramento River, where he
farmed for two years. Then he again went
to the mines at Dutch Flat and mined until 1859. Coming then to San Joaquin County, he located
at Elliott, where he engaged in farming.
For a time he again followed prospecting in California and Nevada, but
finally retired to Stockton, where he passed away at the age of eighty-eight
years and two months. The mother died in
El Dorado in 1855. This worthy couple
had two children, of whom John Wilkes is the elder. His sister, Mrs. Lena Rogers, resides in
Sonora.
John Wilkes Payne, as stated, crossed
the plains with his parents to California when seven years of age. He attended the district school and helped
his father on the ranch near Elliott until he volunteered his services to his
country for the Civil War, enlisting November 15, 1863, in Company E, 7th
California Infantry, and serving in Arizona until July, 1866, when he returned
to San Francisco via the Gulf of California and then was mustered out of
service July 22, 1866.
In 1867 Mr. Payne was married at
Elliott to Miss Bettie Misenheimer, born in Sangamon County, Illinois. Her father came to California with his family
across the plains in 1854, and became a farmer at Elliott. After his marriage, Mr. Payne followed
farming until 1869, and then moved to Stockton and there followed the building
business until 1888, when he entered the employ of the Holt Manufacturing
Company as a machinist. As early as 1874
he had worked at building harvesters for Madison Williamson, and later for Dave
Young and for Baker & Hamilton, and so had become adept in that line of
work. From 1888 until 1920 he worked
steadily and faithfully for the Holt Manufacturing Company, and then retired on
a pension. With his second wife he now
resides at their comfortable home on the corner of East Hazelton and Union
streets, enjoying a well-earned competency.
The union of Mr. Payne and his first wife was blessed with nine
children: Jessie, now Mrs. Zugg, of
Pacific Grove; Lucy, Mrs. Newmark, Tulsa, Oklahoma; Cecile, living in Stockton;
John, in Ukiah; Walter, in the employ of the Holt Manufacturing Company; Sadie,
Mrs. Shilling, of Oakland; Fred, a marine engineer with the Pacific Steamship
Company; Harry, living in Los Angeles; and May, in Stockton.
Mr. Payne’s first wife died in 1912,
and he married a second time in November, 1915, when he was united with Mrs.
Lucy (Elam) Miller, born in Livingston County, Missouri, a daughter of William
and Lucy Elam. The latter died when Lucy
was a baby, leaving her the youngest of five motherless children. In 1861 Mr. Elam brought his children to
California, crossing the plains in an ox-team train by the Greenhorn
route. Arriving in California after a
six months’ trip, he located on a farm at Linden, San Joaquin County. Later he removed to Fresno County, where he
died.
Lucy Elam attended the local schools
until her first marriage to F. M. Miller, who was born in Missouri, and came to
California. He was a wagonmaker, but
after their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Miller removed to Dinuba, and became pioneer
farmers there. Mr. Miller passed away in
1911 at Berkeley. Of their marriage were
born ten children: John W., who lives at
Santa Cruz; Mrs. Hattie Kenner, living in Los Angeles; Mrs. Maude Thorp, of
Dinuba; Charles, of Tulare County; Frank, living in San Francisco; Arthur, in
Oakland; Clara, now Mrs. Regnald, of Walnut Creek;
Mrs. Lucy Rogers, of Dinuba; Mrs. Josie Gard, of
Hanford; and Elmer, of Dinuba.
Mr. Payne is a past commander of
Rawlins Post, G. A. R., Department of Nevada and California. Mrs. Payne is an active member of the Woman’s
Relief Corps. Both are strong
Republicans.
Transcribed by Gerald Iaquinta.
Source: Tinkham, George
H., History of San Joaquin County, California , Pages
1236-1239. Los Angeles, Calif.: Historic
Record Co., 1923.
© 2011 Gerald Iaquinta.
Golden Nugget Library's San Joaquin County Biographies
Golden Nugget Library's San Joaquin County Genealogy
Databases