Bio- Sawyers
Surnames: CHASE, BRAKEFIELD,
TAYLOR, GUERRAZ, STRONG
An enterprising, prosperous stockman so conversant with California
conditions that he has set the pace for others in the same field of
alluring endeavor, is Frank Hubbard, living about fourteen miles out of
San Jose on the Mt. Hamilton Road, and esteemed and influential as
perhaps the most extensive stockman near Halls Valley. A genuine
Hawkeye, he was born near Council Bluffs, Iowa, on January 8, 1850, and
his parents were Adam Clark and Abigail E. (Chase) Hubbard. His father
was born in Ohio in 1820, and was reared in Wabash County, Ind.; and in
1852 he crossed the plains to California, and for a year remained in
Eldorado County. In September, 1853, he came into Santa Clara County,
and as a farmer he was located half-way between Evergreen and Jackson.
On account of his health, he went up into the hills northeast of Mr.
Hamilton, and there engaged in stockraising; but the drought of 1864
bankrupted him.
Frank Hubbard joined his father in the stockraising business when a
young man, and in 1882 came down to Halls Valley and bought 300 acres
of land; and now he controls about 8,000 acres of range land and aims
to let run about 500 head of cattle. He has set out some twenty acres
to orchard, in which he has about 2,000 young pear and prune trees, and
has also erected a fine dwelling and all the necessary farm buildings
on his home-place. He follows up-to-date methods, so it is natural that
he gets results of the kind that every ambitious ranchman is always
seeking after.
At San Jose, on November 17, 1880, Mr. Hubbard was married to Miss
Retta L. Brakefield, a native of Pettis County, Mo., and the daughter
of F. F. and Elizabeth (Taylor) Brakefield--the former a native of
Ohio, the latter born in Virginia. Two of her sisters came to
California--Elizabeth and Sofronia, now Mrs. J. D. Guerraz, of
Edenvale. Five children and two grandchildren have sprung from this
marriage, a son, Frank L., married Miss Edna Strong, and they have two
children, Lucretia Eliza and Ruth; Lewis Saxe lives in San Jose; Eugene
Clark is associated with his father in the management of the ranch;
John Augustus died on November 1, 1911; William Elmore was killed by
his saddle horse falling on him September 26, 1921.
Transcribed by Joseph Kral, from Eugene T. Sawyers' History of Santa Clara County,California, published by Historic Record Co. , 1922. page 1404
SANTA CLARA COUNTY PIONEER BIOGRAPHIES
SANTA CLARA COUNTY HISTORY AND GENEALOGY