Marin-El Dorado-Placer County CA Archives Biographies.....Gordon, Upton McKea 1831 - 
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Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com March 6, 2007, 5:02 am

Author: Alley, Bowen & Co. Publishers (1880)

Upton McKea Gordon. Was born near Shady Grove, Franklin Co., Penn., November 10,
1831, where he resided on his father's farm until he attained the age of fifteen
years, when he went into the store of Snively & McCauley at Shady Grove, and
with them, remained for two years. In 1841 he went to Chambersburg, the county
seat, and there engaged in the general merchandise store of Joseph Kausler of
that city, where he was employed until July, 1850, when Kausler going out of
business, Mr. Gordon removed to Philadelphia, where he engaged in the wholesale
dry-goods house of Eckle, Raiguel & Co., one of the largest houses in the city
with whom he continued until December, 1851, when he returned home, and on March
17, 1852, sailed from New York for California, via the Isthmus of Panama,
arriving in San Francisco on April 30th of that year. On the same day he came to
San Rafael, Marin county, from which place he went to the Lagunitas, where he
joined his cousins, H. S. and S. S. Baechtel, with whom he remained until
recovered from an attack of the Panama fever, when he started for the mines at
Coloma and from there to Georgetown, near which, in Empire Canon, he engaged in
mining, an industry he prosecuted until the middle of August, when he removed to
the North Star House in Placer county, on the divide between the North and
Middle fork of the American river, where he engaged in butchering with Cyrus
Crego, now of San Francisco. After that, in December, he returned to San Rafael,
and in that month, in company with H. S. Baechtel, went to Bolinas, and in the
following February commenced farming operations, which he continued until the
Fall of 1854-in the mean time Mr. Baechtel engaging in the lumber business and
Mr. Gordon attending to the farm work. That Fall Mr. Gordon returned to San
Rafael and bought out Judge Ai Barney in the general merchandise business and
continued it until 1859; in June 1858, however, Mr. Gordon proceeded to
Victoria, B. C, during the Frazer river excitement, to which place he
transported a stock of goods and opened a store, and there remained until the
goods were disposed of in October, and then returned to San Rafael, closed out
the business in that town and built the saloon on the corner of Fourth and C
streets, and opened it in July, 1859, and continued it until December, when he
rented it to a man named Chapin. Mr. Gorden next built the livery stable now
occupied by Jewell Bros, for Reynolds & Collister, of the Stage Company. In 1859
was elected to represent the county in the Legislature, after the adjournment of
which did not engage in any particular business for eighteen months, when in
April 1862, he went to Idaho and there, engaged in mining for seven months and
returned to San Rafael, and in 1864 went into the wholesale liquor business in
San Francisco, which he continued until 1868, when he sold out to A. P. Hotaling
& Co. He then returned home for the first time since 1852, after an absence of
sixteen years, and on his return to San Rafael engaged in the real estate
business until 1869, in the Fall of which year he was elected County Treasurer,
in which office he served for two years, and then established, in connection
with A. P. Hotaling, the banking business which he now conducts. Married, April
30, 1856, Elizabeth M. Merriner, a native of Missouri, who came to San Rafael,
Marin county, in 1846, by whom he has had four children-Olivia Agnes, Susan
Elizabeth, Harry Jeremiah and Alice Jane, the two last of whom are dead.

Additional Comments:
Extracted from:

HISTORY OF MARIN COUNTY, CALIFORNIA;
INCLUDING ITS
Geography, Geology, Topography and Climatography;
TOGETHER WITH
A Full and Particular Record of the Mexican Grants; Its Early History and
Settlement, Compiled from the most Authentic Sources; Names of Original Spanish
and American Pioneers;

A Full Record of its Organization; A Complete Political History, including a
Tabular Statement of Office-holders since the Formation of the County;

Separate Histories of Bolinas, Nicasio, Novato, Point Reyes, San Antonio, San
Rafael, Saucelito, and Tomales Townships;

Incidents of Pioneer Life, and Biographical Sketches of its Early and Prominent
Settlers and Representative Men;
ALSO
An Historical Sketch of the State of California,
In which is embodied the Raising of the Bear Flag

ILLUSTRATED.
SAN FRANCISCO, CAL. 
ALLEY, BOWEN & CO., PUBLISHERS.
1880.


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