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Clark, Charles W : Charles W. Clark. Three Pieces of Correspondence Relating to a Windmill Patent Secured by Charles W. Clark of Hanford, Kings County, California, 1892-1893

Three original handwritten and typed letters on beige stationery. 1892-1893. There are three letters comprising four leaves total. One leaf is 5 1/2" x 8 1/2." The remaining three leaves are 8 1/2" x 11." Four pages, complete. Each leaf appears to have been folded into thirds, but these fold lines are likely original. Pages, printed text, and handwriting are very clean and intact. A Fine collection of letters. Charles W. Clark (1822-1894) and his wife Amanda Burgan traveled on the Overland Trail in 1854 and arrived in Tuolumne County, California. Charles began to make a living in mining and became Superintendent of the Pittsburg Coal Mine in Contra Costa County in 1866. He worked at the mine until 1873 when he and Amanda moved to Tulare County and purchased 2,000 acres of land on Lake Tulare. At his new residence, Charles made a living in stock and cattle raising and the alfalfa industry. He supported and helped in the construction of the Lakeside Ditch which irrigated lands south and southeast of Hanford, a nearby town about nine miles south of Lake Tulare. Charles had additional success raising sheep and owning land in Fresno County. However, after several years of drought, Clark lost his property but stayed on rented land in Hanford until 1884 when he and Amanda moved to Woodville, Oregon. In Woodville, Charles bought a small ranch, planted an orchard, and tried his hand in the hops industry. He also established a merchandise store and became the community's postmaster. Despite these achievements, he and Amanda still struggled for four years, so they moved back to California where their grown children lived, and settled on a ranch near their old property in Hanford. Charles and Amanda had six children, two of whom did not make it past childhood. Their surviving children were Frank B., Grant U. Clark, William B., and Gracie G. Some of this information is referenced from Pages 590-591 of the History of Tulare and Kings Counties, California. All three letters in this collection are addressed to Charles, who would have been 70 years of age at the time. One letter is handwritten on one-page stationery from L. Peterson, a model maker of experimental machinery. It is dated December 29, 1892. Peterson's letterhead says, "Models for the Patent Office in Wood or Metal a Specialty," and includes his business address in San Francisco. In this letter, Peterson goes over the process of making a model for Charles's windmill and says if he is not clear on any of the models, patterns, or descriptions Charles will send, he will notify him. Signed by Peterson. Another letter is handwritten on one-page stationery with a colorful and beautifully designed letterhead from "Jos. Winterburn Co. / Printers and Electrotypers / No. 217 Clay Street, / Below Sansome, San Francisco" and is dated July 31, 1893. Jos. Winterburn Co. confirms they will print an electro newspaper advertisement Charles had paid for that will show his windmill. Signed by Jos. Winterburn Co. The third letter is typed on two pages of stationery with a letterhead from the Traders' Patent Exchange in Indianapolis. It is dated October 9, 1893 and is signed by one of the members of the Exchange. In the letter, the company says of Clark's windmill, "It is eminently practical and combines all the qualities of a first-class mill and we think there will be no great difficulty in finding it a purchaser if matters are properly manipulated in that direction." Most of the letter goes further into detail about the patenting process and selling the patent. Unfortunately, Clark would pass away the following year in 1894.. Manuscript. Book Condition: Collectible-Fine. Binding: No Binding

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