The Valley of Heart's Delight
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RICHARD ATKINSON
New Almaden Mine Engineer
Uvas Canyon Family -Founders of the Uvas School 1875
Santa Clara County
SURNAMES: Gallagher, Daly
An esteemed and worthy pioneer of Santa Clara County was Richard
Atkinson, a native of England, born in Chester County on May 10,
1837. He came to America while still a young man and was engaged
in farming on the Tarpy Rancho on the coast below Monterey, and in the
early '60s removed to the New Almaden MInes, where he was employed as
engineer for many years, and his untimely death was caused by injury
received there. He passed away at the Atkinson home on Croy Road, Uvas Canyon, October 1, 1875.
In 1862 Mr. Atkinson had married Miss Sarah Gallagher, a native of
County Sligo, Ireland, born August 19, 1839, who passed away November
16, 1918, at the family home, After Mr. Atkinson's death the
burden of proving up on the land fell on the mother, but she was equal
to the task, and on April 9, 1881, the family came into clear and full
possession of the 160 acres on the Croy Road. Mrs. Atkinson
also had the responsibility of rearing and education of three
children: Sarah died in childhood; Mary is now owner of the
ranch; Josephine is the wife of Philip Daly, and they are the parents
of five children and reside at Mendota; Richard J. is
deceased. The children were educated in the Uvas district
school, of which Mrs. Atkinson was the founder, having given a portion
of her ranch for the establishment of the school in 1875, and she
rurnished part of the lumber, while J. W. Week and Peter Bosset built
the building.
Transcribed by Carolyn Feroben, from Eugene T. Sawyers' History of Santa Clara County,California, published by Historic Record Co. , 1922. page 940
TRANSCRIBERS NOTE_ snipit from
an article posted to the net on Wed, Sep. 25, 2002 regarding a fire in
the Uvas Canyon- San Jose Mercury News:
150 descendants
of Richard Atkinson, who was one of the first white settlers in the
Uvas Canyon in 1865, still own 160 acres along Uvas Creek. They include
the Fahrner, Boggs, Daly and Wermuth families, who use the property,
with a baseball diamond and volleyball court, as a summer camp.
History of Uvas and the Pioneer Settlers
SANTA CLARA COUNTY BIOGRAPHIES
SANTA CLARA COUNTY HISTORY- The Valley of Heart's Delight