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AMOS A. STAGG.
Familiarity with conditions existing in former places of residence had prepared Mr. Stagg for an appreciative admiration
of the opportunities afforded by Sonoma county when in 1885 he came to California and identified himself with the
citizenship of this section. From the first he was pleased with the climate and the resources of the locality,
where soon he came to be known as a thorough going and progressive man. It was his privilege to witness much of
the material development of the region and to the aid of this patriotic work he contributed time, energy and means.
During the year 1899 the family purchased near Guerneville a tract of ten acres, costing $750 and now known as
Riverside resort. The land is well adapted to the fruit industry, but experience has proved that the resort business
is even more profitable, hence buildings for that purpose have been erected at an expense of about $9,000 and accommodations
have been provided for about sixty tourists. It is the intention to increase the equipment and enlarge the present
facilities, so that one hundred or more boarders can be entertained at the same time. In order that the guests
may be provided with the purest of butter and freshest of eggs a dairy of six cows is kept on the farm and a poultry
yard of one hundred hens is given the most assiduous care, besides which all of the fruit raised on the place is
used to enlarge the equipment of the cuisine. Resultant from the painstaking care and culinary skill is a large
concourse of summer visitors, whose frequent returns form a silent testimonial to the attractions of the resort.
Riverside resort adjoins Guerneville and overlooks the Russian river, where there is good trout fishing, and row
boats are kept for the guests. The place is thickly grown with redwood and laurel and presents a restful and beautiful
sight. The management of the resort devolves on Mrs. Stagg, who gives it all her time, and credit for its success
and popularity is due to her. The place has become well and favorably known and has a very liberal patronage, which
does her much credit and incidentally she has aided materially in advancing the popularity of Guerneville and vicinity
as a summer resort. each season bringing larger and larger crowds.
Born in Franklin county, Ohio, August 23, 1829, Amos A. Stagg was a son of Josiah and Maria (Baldwin) Stagg and,
aside from a sister, Mary Jane, was the only member of the family. During boyhood he was a pupil in country schools
in Ohio, but the broad fund of inforniation that he acquired was the result of travel and observation rather than
the study of text books. After leaving school he began to learn the trade of a carpenter and while he did not follow
the occupation as a means of livelihood he found it of the greatest assistance in the farm building operations
of later years. In that era the drift of emigration was toward the Mississippi valley and during the year 1855
he found himself a pioneer of Iowa, where he took up a tract of raw land and began the arduous task of improving
a farm. For twenty years he remained a resident of that state and meanwhile he married and reared a family. The
rigorous climate, however, proved a hardship even to his sturdy constitution and in 1875 he removed to Virginia
in the hope of finding a more genial climate. While the climatic conditions were all that could be desired, other
conditions were very unsatisfactory and he soon returned to Iowa, whence in 1885 he came to California. No further
need had he to search for a desirable location. The climate suited him, the people he found to be progressive and
the opportunities equal to those offered by any section, hence he had no reason to regret the decision that brought
him hither.
The marriage of Mr. Stagg took Mace in Iowa November 30, 1859, and united him with Miss Hester Ann Spence, who
was horn in Kentucky June 5, 1840, being a daughter of William and Cynthia (Bryant) Spence. Besides herself the
family comprised four, George, Thomas, Nancy and Mary. The first named had a family of ten children, viz.: William,
Oris, Perry, Wesley, John, Trellis, Nom, May, Maria and Mary. Thomas married Louisa Albury and became the father
of four children, Arthur, Rollin, Edgar and Maude (twins). Nancy, Mrs. Abraham Hill, had four children, William,
Thomas, Walter and Blanche. Mary, Mrs. Daniel Brandt, of North Dakota, had a family of seven children, Walter,
Clifton, Roscoe, Anna, Daisy, Maggie and Kittie. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Stagg were as follows: Laura, born
April 7, 1861; Edith, August 13, 1864; Herbert Alonzo, May 4, 1868; and Perla, November 28, 1873. The only son
is married to Minnie Schaefer, but has no children. Laura, Mrs. Frank Spence, is the mother of four children, Harold,
Bertha, Belle and Bessie. Edith is the wife of David Swygert and has one son, Ivan. Perla is married and has three
children, Gilbert, Vernon and Gladys. From the time of attaining his majority Mr. Stagg has voted the Democratic
ticket and upheld the principles of the party, but he takes no public part in politics, preferring to devote his
attention exclusively to the management of his own interests, in which he has been so deservedly successful.
From:
History of Sonoma County, California
With a Biographical Review
History by Tom Gregory
Historic Record Company
Los Angeles, California 1911
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