San Benito County History

This section is excerpted from A Memorial and Biographical History of the Coast Counties of Central California by Henry D. Barrows and Luther A. Ingersoll, and published by The Lewis Publishing Company in 1893.

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County Division.

The rapid settlement of the extensive and fertile San Benito valley and the valleys tributary thereto, which were separated from the rest of Monterey county by the Gabilan range of mountains, developed interests which centered in the new communities, and out of which grew, very naturally, a desire by the people to manage for themselves their own local affairs. The first attempt to divide Monterey county, by having San Benito set oft by itself as a separate political division, was made in the legislature of 1869 --'70; but the opposition interposed by the resident portion of the present old county caused the movement to fail at this time. Nevertheless, it continued to gain strength from many and legitimate causes. The contest became a very heated one for the time being, swallowing up all other issues. The people living east of the Gabilan insisted that they were entitled to a division, and they were almost unanimously determined to have it. The election of a representative in the legislature turned on this one issue. The question was division or no division, Republicans and Democrats forgetting their party affiliations. But though the "new-county" people were still in the minority, they did not give up the fight. They returned again to the charge in the next election, and won by a small majority. The contest was carried to the Assembly and then to the Senate, in each of which houses the divisionists won, and then to the governor, who after some hesitation signed the bill, and thus, finally, in March 1874, the act creating the new county became a law. By this act the governor was authorized and directed to appoint five commissioners who were charged with the organization of the new county. The names of the commissioners appointed were: T. S. Hawkins, Jesse Whitton, Mark Pomeroy, John Breen and H. M. Hayes. This commission met at the town of Hollister, February 18, 1874, and organized by electing John Breen as president, and H. M. Hayes as secretary. The new county was subdivided into four townships, viz.: Hollister, San Juan, San Benito and Paicines. and three supervisorial districts, numbered one, two and three. District number one, comprised Hollister township; number two, San Juan township; and number three, San Benito and Paicines townships. The new officers were to be appointed by the governor or filled by special election. James F. Breen, who had resigned the judgeship of Monterey county was appointed by the governor to the same position in San Benito county, while the commissioners, under provisions of the organic act, ordered a special election on the 26th day of March, 1874, whereat the required county officers were to be chosen, and the county seat was to be permanently located by popular vote.

At this election the following officers were elected, viz.: Sheriff and ex officio tax collector, Benjamin F. Ross; clerk and recorder, H. M. Hayes; district attorney, N. N. Briggs; treasurer, T. McMahon; assessor, Hayden Dowdy; surveyor, F. P. McCray; school superintendent, H. Z. Morris; coroner and public administrator, J. M. Black; supervisors: district No. 1, Mark Pomeroy; district No. 2, Thomas Flint; district No. 3, D. J. Watson. Under the provisions of an amended act of the Legislature, approved March 10, 1876, the boards of supervisors of the old and new counties jointly selected a commission of five members, -- two by Monterey, two by San Benito, and the fifth by the judge of the twentieth judicial district court, -- which met at Salinas city, inventoried and appraised the property and assets of each county, ascertained the amount of indebtedness of Monterey county, on the 12th day of February, 1874, the date on which the act creating San Benito county became a law. The commissioners deducted the total value of assets of both counties from the total indebtedness, which exceeded the assets, and ascertained the pro. portion of the debt due from San Benito county to be $5,808.56, for which amount bonds bearing interest at the rate of seven per cent per annum, and payable in five years, were issued, and made payable to the order of Monterey county. The principle is sound in the division of a partnership or of a county, that each partner shall assume his or its proportion of the existing indebtedness.

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This section is excerpted from A Memorial and Biographical History of the Coast Counties of Central California by Henry D. Barrows and Luther A. Ingersoll, and published by The Lewis Publishing Company in 1893.