HISTORY OF SANTA CLARA COUNTY 567

JOHN McBAIN
Building Contractor/Rancher



SURNAMES:  Saugee, Carlson,  Johnson, Houghton, McClellan, Darrah,

A building contractor who has made for himself an enviable reputation as a first-class contractor oin building, both for the originality
of his up-to-date work and the thoroughness and dependability of his workmanship, is John McBain of Noble avenue, about two and a half miles east of
Berryessa. He was born in Glasgow, Scotland, on January 29, 1877, the son of angus and Elizabeth (Saugee) McBain--the former a descendant of an
old-line Scotch family, the latter a native of Bohemia, of Czecho-Slovanian ancestry. Mr. McBain was a building contractor, well known in Glasgow
for his extensive operations; and it is rather natural that our subject should also rise to prominence in this field.

After attending the graded school until he was eleven years old, John set out to make his own living. He served an apprenticeship under John Forbes
of Glasgow, and when nineteen commenced to contract on his own responsibility. He did well enough in the crowded Old Wold, but was sure that he
could do better in the New; and so, in 1902, he crossed the ocean to New York, where he remained for three years, busy buiding as a contractor. Then,
in 1905, he came to San Francisco, and there he worked for six months. His next shift took him to San Mateo, but he stayed only a short while and
went on to Sacramento, in which city various companies kept him engaged for a year and a half.

In 1908, Mr. McBain removed to Mountain View, Santa Clara County, where he made his residence, at the same time he started to contract in San Mateo.
He also established himself at Burlingame, where he lived for about three years. In 1918 he purchased a  ranch of thirty acres on Noble Road, east of Berry-
essa, and he has lived on this ranch ever since. He also owns ten acres at Mountain View. Both of these ranches are set out with apricot trees, and both
are irrigated. He also owns a ranch of seventy-six acres on the Calaveras Road in the hills east of Milpitas, where part of the land is given to an apricot
orchard, and part to the raising of hay.

At Sausalito, on January 2, 1906, Mr. McBain was married to Miss Emma Carlson, a native of San Jose and the daughter of John and Johanna (Johnson)
Carlson. Her father came to California from Chicago in 1874, and for years had a well-known hotel at the corner of Second and San Fernando streets,
and in the hotel field he contined until 1883. Her  mother died in her fifty-sixth year. Mrs. McBain attended the old Lincoln, and later the Horace Mann
school, and still later she went to the Hester and the Mountain View schools. She also was a student for two years at the San Jose high school, and after
that she pursued a business college course. A sister of Mrs. McBain, named Anna, is married and has become Mrs. McComb Houghton of Astoria. Five
children have blessed the union of Mr. and Mrs. McBain; Edith J., Frank E., Angus Carlson, John Charles and Dorris Joan, and they are all in the San
Jose schools.

Mr. and Mrs. McBain are stanch Republicans, and Mr. McBain is a member of the B.P.O. E., belonging to the San Mateo lodge. He also
belongs to the Masons of Mountain View, and to the Scottish Rite body at San Francisco. Mr. McBain is the second in a family of eight
children. Mary, the firstborn, has become Mrs.Duncan McClellan of Dennistown, a suburb of Glasgow. Theresa is at Pacific Grove; Christina is Mrs.
Darrah of Mountain View; Frank lives at Portland; Angus is at Mountain View, and Elizabeth lives at the same place; William, who gave his life during
the World War; Frank served from 1917 to 1919 with the Canadian engineers and went through the  worst of the fighting without sustaining a wound.
He was also one of the Army of Occupation. William enlisted in 1914 with the scotch Highland Infantry, and went through some terrible battles, and
was killed at Vimy Ridge.

Transcribed by Marie Clayton, from Eugene T. Sawyers' History of Santa Clara County,California,  published by Historic Record Co. , 1922. page 567



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