Yolo
County
Biographies
WILLIAM HARRISON MARDEN
Not
alone in war have men marshaled forces, braved dangers, and won the right to
the rank of general. The men who, because of force of character and clear
judgment, were selected to lead the Argonauts of other days from east to west
through Indian infested plains, as surely won their spurs as do the soldiers on
the battlefield, inured to strife by long preparation, and inspired with the
sound of martial music and clashing armament. The leaders of the
fortune-seekers of the middle of the last century displayed a degree of
fortitude singular in its disinterestedness, for no glory awaited them save
that of their own firesides and no reward save that which they were able to
wrest from the riches of the earth. Their trials and courage stand
clearly defined against the background of events at that time, and they have
come to be regarded as a class separate from any other kind of heroes which the
world has produced. It is with this innate appreciation of their time and
opportunity that the present generation speak their
names with pride and unbounded respect, and it is in this connection that
William Harrison Marden has come to be known as general, ever since he guided
to safety the ox-train pioneers intrusted to his
care. A splendid type of pioneer is this retired farmer, and his
beautiful home on a productive farm, developed through his energy from a
wilderness, is a fitting place in which to round out a life of great usefulness
to his fellow-men.
A
native of Coos county, N. H., Mr. Marden was born
March 4, 1824, and when seven years old moved to New York state with his
parents, William and Polly (Stokes) Marden, both natives of New Hampshire.
Chenango county at that time was wild and
unsettled, and the Mardens were among the first to
till its soil and establish a permanent home. In 1855 the family was
plunged into grief because of the death of the mother, and some years later the
father moved to Kansas with his youngest son, continuing to live in Greenwood county for the rest of his life. He was of English
descent, and the parent of eight children, of whom three are living, William
Harrison being the fourth child. Caroline is now Mrs. Dalrymple,
of New York state, and Elisha lives on a farm in
Kansas.
When
William Harrison Marden was twenty-four years old he left home and west to
Wisconsin, reaching Waukesha county March 24, 1848. While working on
farms he learned a great deal of the far west and chanced to make friends among
other youth whose prospects were as vague as his own. In 1850 he joined a
party of sixteen, equipped with ox-teams and wagons, and proceeded via the
regular route to California, he having been elected captain to guide the party
in safety. He was twenty-six years old at the time, strong and vigorous,
and because of his hope and high spirits obstacles seemed to melt and leave
only the splendid prospects at the end of the journey. His adventures
were in no way out of the ordinary, and he arrived at Placerville September 8,
1850, having crossed the Missouri river at St. Joe, Mo., May 8, 1850.
Although many died around them on the plains, cholera and other physical
disorders did not decrease their ranks, and practically all of those who
started out arrived at their intended destination. Most of the party went
to Georgetown, Eldorado county, and there Mr. Marden
mined during the first winter and the following summer, and in the fall of 1851
moved to Yolo county, locating on his present farm. He engaged in
extensive stock-raising and general farming, adding to his property as his
business increased, until he has five hundred and twenty-eight acres, four
miles southeast of Davisville. In addition to carrying on stock-raising,
he went to Davisville. In addition to carrying on stock-raising, he went
to Davisville in 1869 and established a butchering business, the first in the
town, and later still branched out into a hardware and hotel enterprise.
For eleven years he was thus substantially identified with the growing
town, and materially fostered its business and general welfare. In 1880,
however, he returned to the farm, and has for several years led a practically
retired life.
In
Yolo county Mr. Marden was united in marriage with M. Leigh, who was born in
New York state, and came from Illinois in 1854 to join
her father in Sacramento county, Cal. Mrs. Marden lived to the
sixty-eight years old, reared a family of four children, and died April 16,1899. W. E., her oldest son, is engaged in
fruit-raising and dairying near Fowler, Fresno county, Cal.; Mrs. Minnie M.
Collins, whose husband is deceased, also lives with her father; and Grant
resides in Fresno county. No more harmonious family is known in this
neighborhood, and it is no exaggeration to say that comparatively few men
inspire in their children so sincere and loving a regard as does Gen. William
Harrison Marden. To him the more serene and less active side of life has
a multitude of compensations, and of these the greatest is the honor in which
he is held by his fellow-men. His humanity and sympathy and generosity
are on the heroic order, and a nameless something, sometimes called personal
magnetism, holds to him for as long a time as he shall live, the love and
good-will of a host of friends and well-wishers. Mr. Marden has never
entered the ranks of office seekers, although for forty years he has stood
stanchly by the Republican party, casting his first
presidential vote for the immortal Lincoln. Fraternally he belongs to the
blue lodge of Masons at Davisville and to the Knights Templar at Woodland.
Transcribed
by Joyce Rugeroni.
Source:
"History of the
State of California and Biographical Record of the Sacramento Valley, Cal.," J.
M. Guinn, Pages 581-582. The Chapman Publishing Company, Chicago,
1906.
© 2017 Joyce Rugeroni.
Golden
Nugget Library's Yolo County Biographies