San Joaquin County
Biographies
WALTER ROBIE
For forty years Walter Robie has
resided in California and is therefore one of the honored pioneers of his
portion of the state. He has not only
witnessed the entire growth and development of his locality but has also ever
borne his part in the work of progress, and his name should be indelibly
inscribed on the pages of history. The
breadth of a continent lies between his present home and his birthplace, for he
is a native of New Hampshire. He was
born on the 25th of November, 1826, of New England ancestry, and is
a son of John Robie, who was reared and educated in the old Granite state. He made farming his life work, following that
occupation as a means of providing a livelihood for his family. In New Hampshire he married Miss Sophia
Gibbons, also a native of that state, and they have become the parents of six
children, of whom only three are now living.
In religious faith the parents were Congregationalists. The father lived to the advanced age of
eighty-six years and the mother passed away at the age of seventy-nine.
Mr. Robie, of this review, spent his
boyhood days in Canada and attended the common schools. He was a farmer until the discovery of gold
in California caused him to abandon the plow and seek his fortune on the
Pacific coast. He accordingly sailed on
the Republic from New York City and on reaching the Isthmus he and his fellow
passengers went up the river in small boats, and reaching the Pacific coast
they took passage on the vessel called the Tennessee, bound for San Francisco,
where Mr. Robie arrived safely in 1850.
After about a week spent in that city he went up the Sacramento River to
the present capital of California and thence to Georgetown, where he engaged in
placer mining, continuing there until the 1st of January, 1857, at
which time he went to Sacramento, taking with him about three hundred dollars,
which he had secured in his mining ventures.
From Sacramento he proceeded to San Francisco, thence to San Andreas and
to the Mokelumne River, where he engaged in mining with good success: his largest find of gold in one piece was six
dollars, and his largest day’s work netted him eighty dollars. After leaving the Mokelumne River he returned
to San Andreas, where he continued mining through the three succeeding
months. He then purchased an interest in
a store, about three miles from the town, and engaged in selling goods for two
years, on the expiration of which period he took up his abode at North Branch,
a trading post, where he continued for two years. He also had a store at Jenny Lind, which he
retained for five years. His next
venture was in the stock business in Calaveras County, with headquarters at
Jenny Lind, meeting with creditable success in his undertakings. Later he turned his attention to the sheep
industry, raising both cattle and sheep, and in connection with his son still
carries on business along that line. He
has had upon his ranch as high as six thousand sheep and two hundred head of
cattle at one time, his business thus being carried on on
a very extensive scale. He owns three
thousand six hundred and eighty acres of land, on which is a good residence
pleasantly situated near the town of Milton.
In 1862 occurred the marriage of Mr.
Robie and Miss Berry Reed, a native of Massachusetts. They lived happily together for twenty-six
years, when in 1888, the union was broken by the death of the wife, who was to
him a faithful companion and helpmeet on the journey of life. They have two children: Walter J., who is now associated in business
with his father; and Georgiana, the wife of Chandler Huntington, a resident of
Milton. Mr. Robie now resides with his
daughter. He has been a life-long
Republican, unswerving in his advocacy of the principles of the party since its
organization. He is a man of high moral
character and of genuine worth. In all
his business relations he is popular and influential. His marked financial and executive ability
have gained him pre-eminence in agricultural circles, while his pleasant
personality and unquestioned integrity have won for him the respect of all.
Transcribed by
Gerald Iaquinta.
Source:
“A Volume of Memoirs and Genealogy of Representative Citizens of Northern
California”, Pages 424-425. Chicago Standard Genealogical Publishing Co. 1901.
© 2010
Gerald Iaquinta.
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