George W. Stockwell was a Los Angeles, California, grocer who was a member of the City Council there from 1894 to 1896, after which he served on the city's Fire Commission.
Contents
Stockwell
George W. Stockwell was a Los Angeles, California, grocer who was a member of the City Council there from 1894 to 1896, after which he served on the city's Fire Commission.
Stockwell was born March 29, 1854, in Eddyville, Iowa, the son of James W. Stockwell and Delilah H. Harper, both of Ohio. He was married to Martha Jane Frederick on October 13, 1880, and after she died in 1900 he married Adele Neel on December 30, 1903. He had a brother, W.W. Stockwell; a son. Ralph F Stockwell, and a daughter, Edna D. Stockwell. He was a retail grocer between 1885 and 1912, when he retired. In 1892-93 he was grand master of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows in California. [1] [2] [3] [4]
He came to Los Angeles in 1885 and was "recognized as a figure in financial circles," being one of the heaviest stockholders in Consolidated Los Angeles Builders. [3]
During the Grand Lodge session of the Odd Fellows organization in 1916, Stockwell volunteered to use his automobile to entertain visiting officials. [5] He was severely injured when the vehicle went into motion while he was trying to start it at Third and Main streets. The Los Angeles Times reported: that "The unfortunate man endeavored to crank the machine, having forgotten to set the emergency brake, when it lurched forward and passed over his body. . . . Attending surgeons say he sustained a fracture of the spine, a broken rib and internal injuries." A policeman "jumped on a streetcar and overtook the runaway machine which held its course south on Main street. He jumped from the [street]car into the automobile and before he could bring it to a stop it had crashed into a heavy truck, wrecking the light machine." [3]
Doctors at Good Samaritan Hospital said that Stockwell was not expected to live, [3] but he survived, though the expense of his treatment rendered him "almost entirely impoverished." The California Odd Fellows organization organized a "monster benefit entertainment" program of music, vaudeville and dancing on his behalf in the Shrine Auditorium in 1916. [5] He remained an invalid until he died at the age of 86 on August 28, 1940, in his home at 4806 South Gramercy Place in today's Vermont Square district. [4] [6]
Stockwell, a Republican, was elected to the Los Angeles City Council in 1894, defeating the incumbent Democrat, Francis M. Nickell, but he was in turn defeated by Nickell in 1896. While on the council he was noted as a firm supporter of establishing a Los Angeles Harbor in San Pedro as opposed to an alternative proposal to build it at Santa Monica [7]
He was appointed to the city Fire Commission by Mayor George Alexander in 1910 and served until 1913. [2]
Owen McAleer was a Los Angeles, California, businessman who was mayor of the city between 1904 and 1906. His brother Jimmy McAleer played in Major League Baseball.
Edward E. Moore was a teacher, newspaper editor and publisher, author and lawyer who served in the Indiana Senate from 1905 to 1913. He was also a Los Angeles, California, City Council member from 1925 to 1927.
The Early Birds of Aviation is an organization devoted to the history of early pilots. The organization was started in 1928 and accepted a membership of 598 pioneering aviators.
Harris Newmark was a Prussian-American businessman, philanthropist, and historian. Born in the West Prussian city of Löbau, Newmark emigrated to the United States in 1853, sailed from Europe to New York City to San Francisco, and finally settled in Los Angeles. The Newmark clan was one of the founding families of the Los Angeles area.
The Los Angeles City Council, 1889–1909, was the legislative body of Los Angeles, California, under the first charter of the city, granted by the Legislature in 1889. The first election under that charter was held on February 21, 1889, and the last on December 4, 1906.
Francis M. Nickell (1843–1913) was a contractor, a builder and a member of the Los Angeles City Council in the 1890s.
William Taylor Barnes Sanford (1814–1863) was an American road builder, a landowner and the second postmaster of Los Angeles, California, after it became a part of the United States. He was a member of the Los Angeles Common Council in 1853–54.
George Henry Carson (1832–1901) was a merchant, road builder, rancher and member of the Los Angeles, California, Common Council in the 1850s.
Levi Newton Breed, known as L.N. Breed, nicknamed Newt, (1831–1894) was an active and early American participant in 19th Century California, where he helped organize Lassen County and was a member of the Los Angeles Common Council, the governing body of that city.
Charles Brode was a merchant and property owner in 19th Century Los Angeles, California. He was a member of that city's governing body, the Los Angeles Common Council, from December 5, 1878, to March 13, 1879, when he resigned.
Frank R. Day (1853–1899) was an entrepreneur in Los Angeles and Monterey, California, in the late 19th century and was a member of the governing bodies of both cities. He was chief of the Los Angeles volunteer fire department.
John Jones (1800-1876) and Doria Deighton-Jones (1824-1908) were husband-and-wife landowners and developers in 19th- and early 20th-century Los Angeles, California. John Jones was president of the Los Angeles Common Council, the governing body of that city, in 1870–1871.
John Lovell was a 19th-century businessman in Los Angeles, California, the owner of a grocery store and other property and a member of the Los Angeles Common Council, the governing body of the city. He suffered injuries to his head, was sent to a mental hospital and was said to have epilepsy.
Austin Conrad Shafer was a schoolteacher, property owner and real estate agent who served on the Los Angeles, California, Common Council, the legislative branch of the city, in the 19th century and was president of that city's school board.
Fred L. Baker (1872–1927) was an industrialist, business owner, shipbuilder, president of the Automobile Club of Southern California and member of the Los Angeles City Council. One of his ships caught fire and sank on its maiden voyage between Los Angeles and Honolulu.
James W. Ashman was a 19th-century businessman who served two years on the Los Angeles, California, Board of Education. He was a member of the Los Angeles City Council from 1894 to 1898, where he championed the establishment of the city's first fire station composed of African-Americans.
Edward L. Hutchinson was an attorney and a member of the Los Angeles, California, City Council from 1896 to 1898. He was the Populist Party candidate for California lieutenant governor in 1898.
Hugh J. Smith was a Los Angeles, California, businessman who was a member of the City Council there in 1894–96.
Frank Walker was a lumberman, a contractor, a builder, a city official and an inventor in the Pacific Coast of the United States and British Columbia at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries.
George Smith Patton was an American attorney, businessman and politician who served as Los Angeles County District Attorney and the first mayor of San Marino, California.
Access to the Los Angeles Times links may require the use of a library card.
| Preceded by Francis M. Nickell | Los Angeles City Council 1st Ward 1894–96 | Succeeded by Francis M. Nickell |