Sonoma County CA Archives Biographies.....Weston, Henry L. 1826 - 
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Author: Alley, Bowen & Co. (1880)

Weston, Henry L. Was born in Bremen, Lincoln county, Maine, October 6, 1826.
When about fourteen years of age, he left the paternal roof and went to Augusta
to live with his eldest brother, William K. Weston, who subsequently came to
California and at the time of his death was serving his second term as County
Judge of Solano county. About one year after his arrival at Augusta the subject
of our memoir entered The Age office, in which he served a six years'
apprenticeship. Very soon after arriving at the age of twenty-one, he entered
upon the profession of journalism, locating at the neighboring city of Gardiner,
where he remained until the Summer of 1851, when he removed to Boston, taking a
situation in the office of the New England Railway Guide. In this same office
Charles F. Brown, who in after years achieved a world-wide reputation as
"Artemus Ward," the showman, was then serving an apprenticeship. Here also was
enjoyed the companionship and intimate acquaintance of Benjamin P. Shillober,
the inimitable "Mrs. Partington," who at that time was ventilating the old
lady's idiocyncrasy and Ike's tricks through the columns of that racy but
short-lived weekly, the Carpet Bag. The climate of Boston proving too severe for
a not over robust constitution, Mr. Weston determined upon a trip to California.
Accordingly, on January 20, 1853, in company with his brother Samuel T., who had
before been there (to California) and was then East on a visit, and his youngest
brother, Seneca K., who was likewise a printer, he took passage on the clipper
ship "Flying Arrow," Charles T. Treadwell, Master. Mr. Weston's experience of "a
life on the ocean wave" must have been anything but agreeable, for in less than
twenty-four hours after leaving Boston harbor, the ship was dismasted and came
near foundering with all on board, for every boat belonging to the ship was
either washed overboard or crushed by the falling spars. To the great relief of
the entire ship's company, the port of St. Thomas, West Indies, was finally
reached on the morning of the twenty-sixth day after the disaster. The arrival
in their harbor of a first-class clipper ship and in distress was an event of no
small degree of interest to the people of the little island, and this interest
was in no wise lessened when the report became circulated that the passengers on
board had a printing-press and at the hour of their arrival were printing and
circulating among the officials and visitors to the ship, the initial number of
the Ocean Spray, a little paper containing a full account of the disaster. To
Mr. Weston, we believe, belongs the honor of being the first person to print and
publish a newspaper at sea. After a stay of a few weeks at St. Thomas, Mr.
Weston and his brother Samuel, together with several others of their
fellow-passengers, took passage via Aspinwall and Panama for San Francisco,
arriving at their destination in March. Their brother Seneca, who had determined
to remain at St. Thomas and await the repairing and refitting of the ship, took
sick of the yellow fever and died two weeks after their departure. The voyage of
the "Flying Arrow" appears to have been peculiarly unfortunate. Before the
completion of repairs upon the ship, a large proportion of her officers,
passengers and crew died of the fever, and nearly everyone had been down sick
with it. So reduced had the crew become when the vessel was ready for sea, that
it was found necessary to proceed to New York for more men before proceeding on
her voyage to California. The vessel finally reached San Francisco in the early
part of 1854. The first two years of Mr. Weston's residence in this State were
spent in clerking and mining. In July, 1855, accepting a proposition from T. L.
Thompson, Esq., he came to Petaluma, accompanying the first press and types
brought to this place. Here he has almost uninterruptedly continued to reside
from that date to this, with the exception of a business trip made to the then
Territory of Nevada, in the Spring and Summer of 1864, and where he started, and
as he then hoped successfully established, the Lyon County Sentinel, at the town
of Dayton. The entire establishment, however, was completely destroyed by fire
in July of the following year, entailing a heavy pecuniary loss to its
enterprising projector. The history of the Petaluma Weekly Argus and that of its
senior proprietor is so intimately allied that his career for a period of years,
covering nearly a quarter of a century, is therein faithfully recorded. We
believe we but express the common sentiment of all the old residents of Petaluma
and Sonoma county when we say that during all this time he has uniformly
manifested that deep interest in the well-being and prosperity of the home of
his choice which is peculiarly characteristic of the liberal and public spirited
journalist. Mr. Weston married Miss Caroline H. McCardy, of Gardiner, Maine,
December 18, 1850, who joined him in California in the Fall of 1857. The result
of the union has been four children: Caro F. (deceased), Kate C., Harry McC. and
Samuel P. Mrs. Weston is a woman of marked ability and great artistic talent.
She has ever been found among the foremost in the community in all matters of a
public or private character in which the gentler sex usually take a part. In the
ornamental branches, such as music, painting, drawing, etc., she deservedly
takes high rank. Exhibits of the works of her hands made at the annual fairs of
the District Agricultural Society in years past always attracted much attention
and commanded a public recognition for their excellence. In embroidery she is
particularly clever, producing a picture which for shading, coloring and good
effect is rarely excelled by oil paintings coming from the hands of artists of
note. The walls of her parlors are ornamented with two at least of the largest
and most artistically wrought pieces of tapestry to be found in the State, if
not indeed in the United States.

Additional Comments:
Petaluma Township

Extracted from:

HISTORY
—OF-
SONOMA COUNTY,
-INCLUDING ITS—
Geology, Topooraphy, Mountains, Valleys and Streams;
—TOGETHER WITH—
A Full and Particular Record of the Spanish Grants; Its Early History and
Settlement, Compiled from the Most Authentic Sources; the Names of Original
Spanish and American Pioneers; a full Political History, Comprising the Tabular
Statements of Elections and Office-holders since the Formation of the County;
Separate Histories of each Township, Showing the Advancement of Grape and Grain
 Growing Interests, and Pisciculture;
ALSO, INCIDENTS OF PIONEER LIFE; THE RAISING OF THE BEAR FLAG; AND BIOGRAPHICAL
SKETCHES OF EARLY AND PROMINENT SETTLERS AND REPRESENTATIVE MEN;
—AND OF ITS—
Cities, Towns, Churches, Schools, Secret Societies, Etc., Etc.
ILLUSTRATED.
SAN FRANCISCO:
ALLEY, BOWEN & CO., PUBLISHERS.
1880.


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