San
Joaquin County
Biographies
JOHN NICHOLAS TONE
A wide-awake, progressive rancher,
whose commendable enterprise has steadily brought him handsome returns is John Nicholas Tone, who has a very trim farm of
335 acres, 11-1/2 miles out of Stockton, on what is popularly known as the Jack
Tone Road. He was born on the old,
historic Jack Tone ranch, on April 24, 1866, the son of John Henley and Alice
M. (Walsh) Tone, a worthy couple also represented in the biographical memoirs
in this volume. Our subject first
attended school in the Moore school district, and by his fifteenth year had
finished with the fifth reader. He then
stayed at home for a year, and then took a course of five months at the
Sacramento Institute, following that up, for a short time, with studies at the
Santa Clara College, and topping off his preparation for life’s struggle with a
course in the Stockton Business College in 1883 – 1884.
John Nicholas Tone has always
remained on the old John Tone ranch, and now owns the handsome tract of 335
acres of what was long his father’s famous acreage. As far back as 1873, the large two-story
brick residence was substantially constructed, and ever since then has been the
hospitable Tone home. Besides being a
member of the San Joaquin County Pioneer Organization (since the sons of the
pioneers were admitted to the order), he was one of the organizers of the Tokay
Colony district school, and is now clerk of the school board. He is a Republican in matters of national
political import, but non-partisan in all movements making for local
advancement and improvement.
As Stockton on February 3, 1904, Mr.
Tone was married to Miss Grace C. Talbot, who was born near Linden, the
daughter of Patrick and Margaret Talbot.
Her father came to California a genuine Argonaut, in the glorious year
of ’49, sailing with thousands of others around the Horn, and Margaret came to
California in 1852, by way of the Isthmus route. Mr. Talbot first mined in the romantic
Mariposa district, and then, finding the appeal of the soil-tiller greater than
that of the digger of possible gold, he settled on a farm at Linden. Ten children were in time born to them: Margaret, now deceased; May C., John A.,
Elizabeth, Clara Augusta, Fannie, deceased; Thomas, deceased; Grace C.,
William, deceased; one child died in infancy.
Mrs. Tone attended the Linden schools, and has many happy recollections
of her school days. Six children have
been granted her and her husband.
Margaret and Alice are attending the Dominican College at San Rafael;
and the others are John H., Mary Genevieve, Richard N., and Theodore T.
Tone. The family are
devout Catholics, and Mr. Tone is a member of the Knights of Columbus. He also belongs to the Elks at Stockton, and
no one is more welcome in that circle.
Transcribed by Gerald Iaquinta.
Source: Tinkham, George
H., History of San Joaquin County, California , Page
571. Los Angeles, Calif.: Historic
Record Co., 1923.
© 2011 Gerald Iaquinta.
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