ALDEN E. MOODY
Crossed the Plains in 1853
Bio-Pen Pictures
SURNAMES: THAYER, HUITON,
Alden E. Moody, District Secretary and Manager of the Home Mutual Insurance Company of California for the district comprising the counties of Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, San Benito, and Monterey, with headquarters at No. 20 West Santa Clara Street, San Jose, was born in Watertown, Jefferson County, New York, in 1833. He attended school in his native place up to the age of eighteen years, at the same time working on his father’s farm. He then worked one year at the carpenter’s trade, after which he went into a general merchandise store, where he remained a year. In 1853 he crossed the plains to California with a band of seventy-five horses, paying the man who owned the horses $200 for the privilege of helping him drive them across the plains. Upon his arrival in California he came directly to San Jose, where he located. He at first worked at the carpenter’s trade, and later with an associate, established the planing-mills now situated on the corner of Fourth and San Francisco Streets, which were the first planing-mills in San Jose. These he afterward sold and became the representative of the Pacific Union Express Company, which place he occupied until the company’s franchise and business were purchased by Wells, Fargo & Co., when he engaged in the insurance business, in which he has continued for the past twenty years, and for eighteen years has held the position he now occupies in the Home Mutual Company.
He was married in
1857, and to this marriage were born three children: Charles E., of the firm of
Bailey, Crossman & Moody; Gettie, wife of H. P. Thayer, Superintendent of the
Guadaloupe quicksilver mines; and Everett, attending the public schools of San
Jose. Mr. Moody was married again in 1885, to Miss Ada Huiton, of San
Francisco, daughter of William M. Huiton, the founder of the San Francisco
Evening Post. The first vote he ever cast was in San Jose, for John C.
Fremont for President. During that campaign Mr. Moody, with the late Levi
Goodrich, the late James F. Kennedy (then Sheriff), and D. B. Moody, now of the
Central Milling Company, formed a singing quartette and stumped the county for
Fremont, singing at the political meetings in every part of this county. To
this work they devoted about three months, and rolled up a majority for Fremont
in this county, which was the only county in the State doing as well. Since
that time he has been a consistent Republican. He has been very successful in
the insurance business. Taking charge of the business of the Home Mutual
Insurance Company of California, when insurance interests were flat in San Jose,
he has built up a most successful business and added largely to the assets of
the company, while giving abundant satisfaction to those who are fortunate
enough to hold policies of his company whenever overwhelmed by the fire fiend.
Mr. Moody is classed among the foremost of business men at San Jose.
Pen Pictures From The
Garden of the World or Santa Clara County, California, Illustrated.
- Edited by H. S. Foote.- Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company, 1888.
Pg. 390
Transcribed by Kathy Sedler
Proofread by Betty Vickroy