The Stebbins Family

Alferd ‘Keith’ Stebbins was born to Elwyn Wilfred Stebbins and Margaret L Stebbins of the Stebbins line on March 26, 1904

Property Owner

Healdsburg Tribune, Enterprise and Scimitar, Number 39, 11 June 1959   Delinquent Tax List  Code area 176-13   Stebbins, Alfred K.—SE 1/4 SE 1/4 of Sec. 33, Lot 2  of Sec. 34, T.9, R.10, Bd. [Bounded]. N. — Stebbins, E.—Grant line, S.— Tp [Township]. line, W.—Sanns  ….. $7.10

A Fan of Reading and Libraries

1960 Healdsburg Tribune, Enterprise and Scimitar, Number 37, 26 May 1960

Attention Healdburg Parents! EDITOR:

Attention: parents of Healdsburg: You want your children to be professionally qualified for the jobs they may be able to choose when they leave school. Complete public libraries, have been located only in large cities and ambitious young people have been drawn to them to enhance their career opportunities. Today a decision faces the parents of Healdsburg equally with its library board of trustees. Federal assistance and also membership in an expanded system of book availability can be rejected. In these times when educational requirements are high for that ambitious young man or woman who is anxious to read outside the classroom to expand his or her training, we may not be wise in rejecting. Let us forget, for the moment, our more settled and dilettantish reading habits; even our opinions as to just what reading ought to benefit others. As a long-term proposition, a better stocked and more active library will benefit Healdsburg and gratify its parents immeasurably. Keith Stebbins 15525 Redwood Hwy. Healdsburg

A bit of a Troublemaker in his Youth (18 yrs old)

Careless Campers In Forests Face Courts — FORT BRAGG. Aug. 10 1922—The state board of forestry has issued orders to fire wardens and forest rangers to prosecute all violators of forestry laws, and these instructions are being strictly carried out in this district. Two arrests were made this week. Charles Hecker, of San Francisco, was hauled into court Monday on a complaint charging him with violating the state fire laws by leaving his camp fire unextinguished near a point one mile south of Cummings. Upon Hecker pleading guilty to the charge, a fine of $5O was imposed. Keith Stebbins. an Oakland lad, is facing trial on a charge of leaving a camp fire burning near the grove, also on the Noyo. It is believed that he was responsible for a fire which destroyed a barn owned by Gus West, located at his camp above the ranch. Stebbins was walking to Willits when taken into custody and turned over to the authorities at Uklah.

At 23 Years old, September 5, 1927 Oakland Tribune

Stavin, 66, of 8176 Chabot road, received a broken collar bone when struck by a car operated by Keith Stebbins, son of Elwin Stebbins, mining engineer, at Chabot road and Patton street. Stavin was running for a bus when struck by Stebbins’ machine.

Pets

Healdsburg Tribune, Number 245, 12 August 1937 – LOST—Black and white fox terrier Aug. 8th on Mill creek road. Notify Keith Stebbins, P. O. Box 313, and receive reward

Michael Stebbins (Keith’s grandson) remember Keith’s dog Iodine from the early 70’s.  “Grandpa called the dog, ‘Idiot’ but you could tell he cared for him.”

Businessman

Healdsburg Tribune, Enterprise and Scimitar, Number 26, 13 March 1958

LEGAL NOTICE CERTIFICATE OF COPARTNERS DOING BUSINESS UNDER FICTITIOUS NAME

No, 3450 Know All Men by theie Presents: We, the undersigned, KEITH STEBBINS and GILBERT A MILLER do hereby certify: That we are copartners transacting business in the State of California under the fictitious name and style of KEITH APPLIANCE SERVICE that the principal place of business of said copartnership is situated at 15525 Redwood Highway in the City of Healdsburg, County of Sonoma. State of California, and that the names in full oi all the members of said copartnership, and their respective places of residence, are as follows, to-wlt. Keith Stebbins, 5362 Mill Creek Road. Healdsburg. California: Gilbert A Miller. Mill Creek Rd . P.O Box 214. Healdsburg. California. In Witness Whereof we have hereunto set our  hands this slh day of February, 1958 KEITH STEBBINS   GILBERT A MILLER STATE OF CALIFORNIA ) ) SS. County of Sonoma ) On this 5th day of February in the year one thousand nine hundred and fitly-eight before me, L H. Killingsworth a Notary Public in and for the County of Sonoma, State of California. residing therein, duly commissioned and sworn, personally appealed Keith Stebbins and Gilbert A. Miller known to me to be the persons whose names are subscribed to the foregoing instrument and acknowledged to me that these executed the same. In Witness Whereof I have hereunto set my hand and affixed my official seal

Father

1937 Sotoyome Scimitar, Number 14, 10 June 1937 reported what is likely Betty Gundlach Stebbins with new son Michael Stebbins as follows: Mrs. Keith Stebbins and her infant son, who was born in a Santa Rosa hospital a week ago, have been moved to the family home on Palmer Creek.

1954 Healdsburg Tribune, Enterprise and Scimitar, Number 48, 19 August 1954  BIRTHS: STEBBINS —To Mr. and Mrs. Keith Stebbins. Rt 1, Box V29A, Healdsburg, August 11. 1954. a girl, 8 lbs., 9 ounces

Lost Custody

Healdsburg Tribune, Enterprise and Scimitar, Number 8, 1 November 1962  reports

Interlocutory Decrees,  STEBBINS Lucille F. from Alfred K. Grounds, cruelty. Couple married Feb. 28, 1948. Reno, Nev. Wife gets custody of four children.

Gundlach Richardson Price Line

Mrs. H. M. Richardson, Lady Principal, Bible. 

Twenty years' experience in girls' schools (Baptist Female College, Lexington, 
Mo., and Hardin College); highly recommended by President W. A. Wilson? 
Baylor College, Belton, Texas; H. C. Wallace, Lexington, Mo.; Rev. G. W. 
Hyde, Lexington, Mo., and W. N. Collins, Superintendent of Postal Order De- 
partment, Kansas City office, 1897; traveling in Europe, summer of 1906; Lady 
Principal Hardin College since 1902; special work University of California, 
Berkeley, summer of 1908. 

In the July 04, 1935 issue of Ada Oklahoma Newspaper - Page 5 Mrs. H. M. Richardson and daughters spent Sunday afternoon with 
Mrs. Ben Richardson. Mr. and Mrs. Levi Blevins and daughter spent Sunday with Mr. and Mrs. Charlie Blevins and family.

ORDINATION CEREMONIES. ,
Rev. H. M. Richardson Regularly Ordained as a Congregational Minister.
The Candidate Passes a Host Satisfactory Examination Before the Council.
The pastor of the Congregational church is now a regularly ordained minister. Incoordination council met at 1 p. m. Wednesday. Rev. A. A. Brown read the call for the council, and one motion was elected moderator. Rev. C. H. Burroughs of Belle Fourche was elected scribe. After prayer and singing, the roll of the council was made out as follows:
Congregational Church Belle Fourche Rev. C. H. .Burroughs, pastor,
Mrs. C. H. Burroughs, delegate; Congregational church of Deadwood, Rev. A. S. McConnell, pastor; Congregational, church of Lead City, Rev. George Scott pastor; Rev. A. A. Brown, superintendent of home missions, present by special invitation. Mr. McConnell was appointed to conduct the EXAMINATION OF THE CANDIDATE, Mr. H. M. Richardson.
The candidate read the creed, adopted by the national Congregational council of 1883, as a statement of his doctrinal views.
He was questioned with reference to the nature of the resurrection body, inspiration, future probation and Sabbath observance. In reference to his literary attainments he stated that he was regular graduate of St. Johnsbury academy, St. Johnsbury, Vt, of Beloit college, Beloit Wis., and of Chicago Theological Seminary. He had also received the degree of Master of Arts from Beloit college. In reference to religious experience and call to the ministry, he said that owing to the faithful teaching of his parents, who were foreign missionaries, he had very early had strong religious convictions, and at the age of twelve, without urging from any one, he united with the mission church of Constantinople, Turkey. At the age of fourteen be decided It to be his duty to become a minister of the gospel, and with that end ever in view he had pursued his course of study. At this point the examination closed, and the council withdrew, and on motion the examination was pronounced satisfactory.

Also

1891  CHICAGO THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY.

Systematic Theology. — The Lucretia Ambrose prize is the income of one thousand dollars, and is given to the member of the Middle Class who prepares the best essay on a designated topic in Systematic Theology.

This prize was, in 1891, divided between Mr. H. M. Richardson and Mr. L. G. Kent

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About Ralph Gundlach:

Ralph Harrelson Gundlach was an associate professor of psychology who taught at the University of Washington from 1927 until January 1949, when he was fired following hearings held by the Washington Legislature’s Joint Fact-Finding Committee on Un-American Activities and by the U.W. Faculty Committee on Tenure and Academic Freedom. The dismissal of Gundlach and two other U.W. professors—the first formally acknowledged faculty firings in the United States for Communist-related activities—set a precedent for the rest of the country to follow in the 1950s.

Gundlach was born in Kansas City, Missouri, in 1902. He enrolled at the University of Washington in 1920, received a B.A. in political science in 1924, and an M.A. in psychology in 1925. He then went to the University of Illinois where, in the summer of 1927, he completed all requirements for a Ph.D. except for his dissertation. He left to become a lecturer at the U.W. but returned to Illinois temporarily in December 1927 to finish his Ph.D., which he was awarded in 1928. Gundlach continued to teach at the U.W., was promoted to assistant professor in 1930, and to associate professor in 1937. He developed a reputation as a leader in his field and spent summers teaching at other institutions, including the University of California, Berkeley (1939 and during a leave of absence from the U.W., 1942-44); the University of Southern California (1940); the University of British Columbia (1944); the University of Iowa (1945); and New York University (1946).

Gundlach found himself at the center of controversy throughout his career at the University. In 1944 the U.S. government wanted him to evaluate servicemen, but the Civil Service Commission failed to give him a security clearance because they thought he might be a Communist sympathizer. At the U.W. Gundlach often became the center of negative attention because of his field of study and methods of teaching. Dean Edwin Guthrie, also a psychologist at the University, disagreed sharply with many of Gundlach’s practices and became his nemesis throughout the 1940s. Practices such as distributing questionnaires on race relations and anti-Semitism met with disapproval from Guthrie and other members of the faculty and administration. Another incident involved a 1946 survey that Gundlach sent to reporters in Washington D.C., asking their opinions of Washington’s Congressmen. The results were favorable for Hugh DeLacy, and Gundlach leaked the information. After DeLacy publicized the results and attributed them to a U.W. survey, Gundlach found himself criticized for improper conduct and for hindering the school’s efforts to remain aloof from partisan politics. The scope of Gundlach’s teaching also irked some faculty at the University who thought his psychology courses dwelt too heavily on political and economic theory and infringed on the territory of other departments. This disapproval came despite the recognition Gundlach had received as a leader in his field and his service as President of the Western Psychological Association. These controversies had tangible results for Gundlach, who did not receive promotions when he was eligible or get a salary increase when the University restored faculty salaries to pre-Depression levels.

Redbaiting became a dominant feature of Washington politics during the election of 1946, and it did not take long before it affected the University. Albert F. Canwell was elected as a freshman Legislator in that year and later created the Interim Committee on Un-American Activities (better known as the Canwell Committee). In July 1948, this committee held hearings on the Communist activities of University faculty. The Committee subpoenaed numerous faculty members whom it suspected might be members of the Communist party or Communist sympathizers. Originally Gundlach was one of nine professors who announced they would not respond to the orders, but soon became the first to recant. In his testimony before the Committee, Gundlach refused to answer questions about his political affiliations.

Although the Canwell Committee could not fire Gundlach, his behavior at the hearings led to more problems. The eleven-member Faculty Committee on Tenure and Academic Freedom met between October and December 1948 to consider the cases of Gundlach and five other professors. Although it did not have final authority, this committee was charged with conducting an investigation and making a recommendation to U.W. President Raymond B. Allen and the Board of Regents. Gundlach had a lawyer at the hearings and continued his evasive behavior, arguing that because he had never been a member of the Communist party, the charges did not apply to him. At the hearings, members of the Communist party testified that Gundlach had been present at meetings with them and that they had assumed he was at least a Communist sympathizer. The committee concluded that membership in the Communist party did not warrant dismissal and recommended that two professors who admitted their Communism remain on the faculty; the committee came to a different conclusion regarding Gundlach. The faculty committee found no evidence to show that he was or was not a Communist, but they said they were dissatisfied with his “evasive” and “self-serving” testimony, and that he was surely a party “sympathizer.” The committee decided that the University should fire Gundlach because he had failed to answer President Allen’s questions directly, which showed a neglect of duty toward the University. Also, the committee expressed its displeasure with Gundlach’s “biased” research in social psychology. The committee did not recommend firing any of the other professors, even those who were currently members of the Communist party.

The Board of Regents was to decide the fate of Gundlach and the two party members, but first President Allen made his own recommendations. Allen advised the regents to follow the advice of the tenure committee and fire Gundlach, but he also recommended firing Herbert Phillips and Joseph Butterworth, the two professors who were active Communists. Allen agreed with the tenure committee that two professors who had renounced their Communist views, Garland Ethel and Harold Eby, should be allowed to continue teaching. Allen refused to pass judgment on Melvin Jacobs, who had renounced his former Communist membership but had once denied his previous involvement. In January 1949, the regents followed Allen’s advice and fired Gundlach, Butterworth, and Phillips, and placed Ethel, Eby, and Jacobs on two-year probation. Gundlach’s situation then worsened when he was convicted of contempt of a legislative committee for his uncooperativeness with the Canwell Committee. For this offense the court fined him $250 and sentenced him to thirty days in jail.

Gundlach made many attempts to clear his name and punish those who had ended his career at the University. After his firing in 1949, Gundlach brought suit against President Allen and several New York newspapers for articles in which Allen was quoted as saying that the three faculty members (which would include Gundlach) were dismissed for being members of the Communist party. Allen claimed he had been misquoted; the newspapers printed retractions; and Gundlach withdrew the suit. Gundlach sought a lawyer to file a tenure lawsuit against the U.W., but the attorneys Gundlach approached deemed the case to have insufficient legal grounds. Gundlach and a friend at Amherst College, Colston Warne, also lobbied the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) to conduct a speedy investigation of the U.W. dismissals, but nothing came of these efforts until seven years later. At that time the Association decided it was too late for censure.

Despite his unsuccessful efforts to litigate against the University, Gundlach continued to be a recognized leader in his field. Shortly after his firing from the University, he received scholarly endorsements from various professional organizations, including the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues, the Consumers Union, and the American Psychological Association. The Association conducted a peer survey in 1954 which resulted in responses which tended to verify Gundlach’s objectivity and professionalism. He prospered as a private psychotherapist in New York City and worked as a consultant to the New York Medical College. Gundlach continued to publish extensively in psychology journals and, in his own words, continued working for “lost causes,” such as Julius and Ethel Rosenberg’s appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, for which Gundlach and other psychologists submitted a brief.

Gundlach retired to Great Britain in 1973 and died in London on August 15, 1978.

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Berta Jean Richardson (Later Gundlach) was trained in Chicago and New York, and sang professionally in Kansas City, Missouri, before she and her husband Stuart moved to Wallace Idaho.  According to Ralph Gundlach’s sister Jean, their house was always filled with music and the family often singing together around the dinner table.  Stuart Gundlach “had a beautiful baritone voice: and was also trained in vocal technique, although he worked professionally as an attorney.   — John Cage: Music, Philosophy, and Intention, 1933-1950

Rowland Stebbins

These are items collected relating to the history of Rowland Stebbins or Rowland Stebbing who immigrated to America in 1634 and is regarded to be the ancestor of the majority of Stebbins in the United States.

Please add or correct this information with citations in the comments section.

-Michael Stebbins

Confirmed Sources

THE AMERICAN GENEALOGIST

Number 124, Volume 31, No. 4; starting at page 193, dated October 1955 by John Insley Coddington, F.A.S.C., of Washington DC published the following quoted in its entirety:

THE STEBBINS FAMILY OF COUNTY ESSEX, ENGLAND, AND ROWLAND, MARTIN, EDWARD AND EDITHA STEBBING OR STEBBINS OF NEW ENGLAND.

Reference is made to five accounts of the four above-named members of the Stebbing family of Essex, England, who settled in New England in the 1630’s. These accounts are, first, the large and excellent work by Ralph Stebbins Greenlee and Robert Lemuel Greenlee, THE STEBBINS GENEALOGY, 2 Vols., Chicago, 1904; 2) the account of Rowland Stebbing (or Stebbins) in Frank Farnsworth Starr, VARIOUS ANCESTRAL LINES OF JAMES GOODWIN AND LUCY (MORGAN) GOODWIN OF HARTFORD, CT, 2 Vols, Hartford, 1915, Vol 2, pp 21-28; 3) the (very brief) account of Editha (Stebbing) (Day) (Maynard) Holyoke in Charles Edwin Booth, ONE BRANCH OF THE BOOTH FAMILY, New York, 1910, p 181; 4) the much better and more complete biography of the said Editha and of her husbands, Robert Day (1), John Maynard (1) and Elizure Holyoke (2) in Donald Lines Jacobus and Edgard Francis Waterman, HALE, HOUSE AND RELATED FAMILIES, Hartford, 1952, pp 509-511 and 644-645;  and 5) the articles, “The Family of Frances (Tough) (Chester) (Smith) Stebbing, Wife of Edward Stebbing, of Hartford, Connecticut,” in THE AMERICAN GENEALOGIST, ante, Vol 30, pp 193-204.

Most of THE STEBBINS GENEALOGY is concerned with the descendents of Rowland Stebbing or Stebbins, who came to America with his wife Sarah on the ship FRANCIS of Ipswich, county Suffolk, which sailed from Ipswich “the last of April” 1634. Rowland Stebbing settle briefly at Roxbury, MA., then at Springfield, MA., and later removed to Northampton, MA where he died 14 Dec 1671, leaving four children, from whom the majority of those who bear the name of Stebbins in America are descended. But THE STEBBINS GENEALOGY also contains (Vol 2, pp 1117-1119) a section of Martin
Stebbins, who settled at Roxbury, MA by 1639, later moved to Boston, and died there about October 1659; and a section (vol 2 pp 1005-1014) on Edward Stebbing, who came to New England before 29 March 1632, settled at “New Town” (later Cambridge), moved in 1636 to Hartford, served as deacon of the church there, and died there, in 1668. THE STEBBINS GENEALOGY also includes (vol 1, pp 13-50) a section entitled “Stebbins in England,” in which there are many interesting and valuable items, such as an outline of the history of the parish of Stebbing in Hinkford Hundred,
county Essex, from which the family undoubtedly derived its surname; pedigrees of the gentry families that successively held the manor of Stebbing; Stebbing, Stubbing and Stybbing, extracts from the Parish Registers of several parishes in Essex, Suffolk and London; full copies of the wills of four Stebbing residents of Essex and abstracts of the wills of thirteen Stebbing residents of Suffolk, and the like. But the compilers of this fine genealogy were not so fortunate as to discover the parishes in which Rowland, Martin, Edward and Editha Stebbing were baptised.

The renown American genealogist, Frank Farnsworth Starr, while working for the late James J Goodwin of Hartford, found the records of the baptisms of Rowland and Martin Stebbing in the gragmentary Parish Registers of St. Mary’s Church, Bocking, Essex County. The Bocking Registers also contained references to the Fitch and Goodwin families whe settled in Connecticut, showing that a number of residents of Bocking joined the Puritan emigration to New England in the 1630’s. Mr. Starr subsequently edited the Parish Registers of Bocking and they were printed in a very small edition at Mr. Goodwin’s expense. After pointing out that the existing Registers are sadly lacking in continuity (the Baptisms began in July 1561, with gaps from March 1571 to May 1583, from April 1588 to October 1592, from October 1599 to October 1602, and from
1639 to 1655; the Burials began in November 1558, with gaps from August 1580 to September 1583 and from 1627 to 1655), he lists the following
seven Stebbing records:

1561 Gulielmus Stebinge sepultus [buried?] est 28 May
1592 Rowlandus Stebing filius [son] Thomae baptizatus 5 November
1594 Marinus Stebing filius Thomae baptizamus 28 April
1603 Johannes Leavens et Elizabetha Stebbin nupti [married]16 June
1618 Rowlandus Stebbing & Sara Whiting nupti 30 November
1624 Gulielmus Stebbing filius [son] Martini Stebbing sepultus [buried] est 3 September
1625 Elizabetha Stebbing filia [daughter] Rowlandi Stebbing sepultus [buried] est 15 June [Rowland had a second daughter named Elisabeth who went with him to America]

The parish of Bocking is bounded on the south by that of Braintree. In this parish, Mr. Thomas Hooker, the future founder of Hartford, Connecticut, often preached during his ministry in Essex, and among the inhabitants of Braintree were Mr. William Wadsworth, Mr. John Talcott, and the families, who came to New England on the LION in the summer of 1632, and accompanied Mr. Thomas Hooker to Hartford in 1636. The parish Registers of St. Michael’s Church at Braintree prior to 1660 have unfortunately been lost, but, as will be seen below, there were also members of the Stebbing family in Braintree in the 1620’s.

Mr. Frank Farnsworth Starr also compiled for Mr. James J Goodwin the ENGLISH GOODWIN FAMILY PAPERS, 3 vols., Harford, 1921, which consist of a mass of English records collected by Mr. Starr in the course of his search for the ancestry of William and Osias Goodwin, of Bocking, who also came to New England in 1632, and settled at Hartford in 1636. Here we find the following references:

Vol 2, p 1148 : Braintree Vestry Book Abstracts, 6 Sept 1619 : Notice given to William Stebbing of a wench intertained at John Beckwiths dwelling on Cursing greene that is supposed to have a greate belly which the Constables have warning to look after.

Vol 2, p 1166 : Braintree Vestry Book, 18 Apr 1625 : The sidesmen of the parish include Edward Stebbing and William Wadsworth. Vol 2, p 1169 : Braintree Manor Rolls, Easter Monday 1628 : Homage includes Ed(wa)r(d)us Stebbing.

Immediately to the south of Braintree is the parish of Black Notley, and adjoining the latter to the southeast is the parish of White Notely. The late C. A. Hoppin once confided to Dr. Arthur Adams that he was sure that Edward Stebbing, the Hartford settler, was born in one of the two Notleys. Accordingly, I commissioned Miss Helen Thacker of London to examine the parish Registers of both Notleys and abstract all Stebbing records. Miss Thacker found that the Registers of White Notley, which began in 1541, contained no Stebbing entries whatever. But those of SS. Peter and Paul’s Church, Black Notley, which commence in 1570 and were examined through 1640, contained the following records :

BAPTISMS
1593 – Ellin Stebbing the Daughter of Willm Stebbing was baptised the XI day of Nobember 1593.
1594 – Edward Stebbing the sonne of Willm Stebbing was baptised the XXIIII day of February 1594 (1594/5).
1596 – Amy Stebbing the daughter of Willm Stebbing was baptised the 11 day of December 1596.
1598 – Elizabeth Stebbing the daughter of Willm Stebbing was baptised the VII day of May 1598.
1599 – Thomas Stebbing the sonne of Willm Stebbing was baptised the VII day of Marche 1599 (1599/1600).
1603 – Margret Stebinge the daughter of Willm Stebinge was baptised the XVIII day of Marche 1603 (1603/1604).
MARRIAGES
1583 – John Lawson and Elizabeth Stebbing were maried the X day of September 1583.
1584 – Henry Stebbing and Susan Bacon were maried the XIX day of October 1584.
1587 – Henrie Stebbing and Margett Coppin were married the XXIIII day of March 1587 (1587/1588).
BURIALS
1585 – Susan the wife of Henrie Stebbing was buried the XV day of September 1585.
1590 – Dennis the daughter of Thomas Stebbing was buried the XIX day of November 1590.
1600 – Thomas Stebing was buried the first of September 1600.
1603 – Thomas Stebbyng was buried ye XXI of January 1603 (1603/1604).
1606 – Ellen Stebbinge widdow of Thomas Stebbinge was buried the 26th day of January 1606 (1606/1607).

Miss Thacker reported the following lacunnae in the Black Notley Registers: in the Marriages, the bottom portion of a page cut out after
August 1606; marriages began again in November 1606 at top of next page. Owing to this cut there is also a gap ( on the other side of the page)
between August 1608 and March 1608/9. Another cut occurs at top of page after September 1632, and entries begin again in May 1633. This cut
causes a gap on the other side of the page from February 1635/6 to April 1636. In the Burials, a page covering parts of 1602-3 was defaced and
unreadable; there was a part of 1604 that was unreadable and also a part of 1625.

Miss Thacker was further commissioned to search the Feet of Fines in the Public Record Office in London, to try to find a record of disposal
of property in Essex by Rowland, Martin or Edward Stebbing at the time of their emigration to New England. Nothing was found. Moreover, no will
was found belonging to Thomas Stebbing of Bocking (the father of Rowland and Martin) or to William Stebbing of Black Notley and Braintree (the
presumed father of Edward), and there was no record of the Stebbing family in the Lay Subsidies of Hinkford Hundred, Essex, in the reigns of
Elizabeth I, James I or Charles I.

Bearing in mind the limitations of our genealogical data, we may venture to set forth these brief summaries concerning Rowland, Martin,
Edward and Editha Stebbing:

1. ROWLAND STEBBING, baptised at Bocking, co. Essex, 5 Nov 1592, son of Thomas Stebbing of Bocking and older brother Martin Stebbing. He
married at Bocking, 30 Nov. 1618, Sarah Whiting, whose baptism does not appear in the existing Register of Bocking. Their five known children
were presumably born and baptised at Bocking, but none of the baptisms and only one burial of a child of a Rowland Stebbins appear in the
fragmentary Registers of that parish.

Rowland Stebbing and his family sailed from Ipswich, co. Suffolk, on the Francis, “last of April” 1634. The shipping list gives Rowland’s are
as 40, wife Sarah, 43, and children Thomas, 14, Sarah, 11, John, 8, and Elizabeth, 6. On arrival in New England, they settled first in Roxbury.
Rowland Stebbing was one of the early settlers of Springfield, MA., moved there about 1639, and received land in the second division of that town,
24 Dec. 1640. Sarah (Whiting) Stebbing was buried at Springfield 4 Oct. 1649. Rowland had a seat in the meeting-house at Springfield in 1663,
and some time after Feb. 1664/5 he moved again, to live with his son John at Northampton, MA., where he died 14 Dec. 1671, leaving a will dated 1
March 1669/70. The inventory of his goods and chattels, taken 2 Jan. 1671/2, amounted to Pounds 9-5-2; the inventory of his lands, taken 11
Jan. amounted to Pounds 75-3-2; and debts amounted to Pounds 46-2-0 were owing to him (Stebbins Genealogy, vol 1, pp 51-59).”

Another Source (Not cited or confirmed) states:

This man was 40 and his wife Sarah [Whiting] was 43 when they sailed in the “FRANCIS” of Ipswich the last of April 1634 with Mr.John CUTTING as Captain of the ship, bound for New England. (cited p.28 in Hotten’s List of Emigrants,also called “THE ORIGINAL LISTS OF PERSONS OF QUALITY” )

On the last day of April, 1634, Rowland STEBBINS embarked for America aboard the Francis, under Captain John CUTTING, from Ipswich, England. With him were his wife Sarah, their children:

* Thomas, aged 14;
* Sarah. aged 11;
* John, aged 8,
* Elizabeth, aged 6.
* An earlier daughter called Elizabeth had been buried on June 15, 1625.
* They also had with them Mary WINCHE, aged 15. It is unknown if she was related to STEBBINS.

The group cleared customs only on November 12, 1634. Rowland STEBBINS settled first in Roxbury near Boston. In 1639 he moved to Springfield (settled only 3 years before by William PYNCHON – Some accounts say Rowland with with Willliam), where he obtained a land settlement. About 1668 he was one of the pioneers of Northampton, MA. Sarah, his wife of 31 years, died in Springfield on October 4, 1649, at the age of 58. Rowland died in Northampton on December 14, 1671, aged 78.

Many pp.of Greenleaf [Greenlee] talk of this family and their desc.who lived in N.Central Mass.

Another source (Not cited or confirmed) says:

Rowland STEBBING, bapt. 5 Nov 1592, Bocking, England; d. 14 Dec 1671, Northampton, MA; m. 30 Nov 1618, Bocking, England.;

Wife: Sarah WHITING, b. 1591; d. Oct 1649 Rowland died 14 December 1671 Sarah was born in Boston, Lincolnshire, England 30 Nov 1591. Sarah was the daughter of John Whiting and Sarah Smith. Sarah died 4 Aug 1649 Springfield, Hampden, MA, at 57 years of age.

Another source (Not cited or confirmed) mentions:

Rowland settled in Roxbury and afterwards removed to Springfield. The families of Stebbins and Pynchon were connected at least by friendship before leaving England, and for that reason Roland chose to join the colony in Springfield in preference to going to Ct. He probably went early to Springfield, for his wife died there, 4 Oct 1649. Her name was Sarah. His death is recorded at Northampton, @@ 77. He removed there from Springfied with is son John. Thomas, the Elder son remained in Springfield.

Rowland joined religion in Puritan.

Other sources (Not cited or confirmed) Report:

ROWLAND STEBBINS, the ancester of probably the majority of the United States Stebbbins descendents, there is a strong probability that he was
born in or near the parish of Stebbins, Essex County, England. While in England he is said to have a friend of William Pynchon, who was born at
Springfield, Essex County, England (which is about 10 miles from Stebbing), in 1590, being only four years older than Rowland. William
Pynchon came to New England in 1629, and was the principal founder of Roxbury, MA, where Rowland settle upon his arrival in New England in 1634
or 1635. In 1636 William Pynchon purchased Agawam (afterwards named Springfield) from the Indians. From 1636 to 1646 the settlers of Agawam
were mostly young unmarried men, yet we find Rowland Stebbins there in 1639 with his family. In his will, “my much honored friend Capt. John
Pynchon,” who was a son of William Pynchon, the founder of Springfield, MA.”

SARAH (WHITING) STEBBINS is referred to in the New England Historical and Genealogical Register, Volume 9, page 171 as having been “buried 4 (8)
1649” Springfield, MA records at Boston, MA. Sarah Stebbins is recorded to have died at Springfield, MA.

Other Sources (Not cited or confirmed) suggest:

The first authentic records we have of Rowland Stebbins and his family are in “The Original Lists of Persons of Quality,” the title page is shown in Greenlee, Volume I, page 52. This book is commonly known as Hotten’s List of Emigrants (page 281) and the records are as follows :

************
“IPSWICH. A Note of all the names and ages of all those which did not take the oath of allegiance or supremacy, being under age, shipped in our port in the Francis, of Ipswich. Mr. JOHN CUTTING bound for New England, the last day of April, 1634” are as follows:

…

ROWLAND STEBING
Thomas Stebing aged 14 years.
Sarah Stebing aged 11,
Eliz. Stebing aged 6,
John Stebing aged 8 and
Mary Winche aged 15.

…

(NOTE: the spelling of the above names is as they were listed in the original documents which we copied exactly as we read them to be.)

************
“ROWLAND STEBBINS died in Northampton, MA December 14, 1671, but no stone was erected to designate the exact spot of interment. Dr. Daniel Stebbins, about the year 1806, had the early burial ground at Northampton, MA examined to discover the precise spot where the remains of Rowland Stebbins were buried, but, failing in this attempt, in 1840 he caused a granite cenotaph to be erected to his memory, in the center of his family square in the new burying ground, on the east side of which is the following inscription. ROWLAND STEBBINS – The supposed ancestor of all of the name in America, came from the west of England to Springfield with his sons John and Thomas, about 1668 removed to Northampton and there died 1671. DANIEL STEBBINS of the 6 generation from Thomas, was born Apr 2, 1766.” (Greenlee Volume I, page 56)…

************

LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT of Rowland Stebbins,

Dated the first day of the first month, 1669 “Know all men by these presents, that I Rowland Stebbins of Northampton in Hampshire, in the Colony of Massachusetts: having my perfect memory, through the goodness of GOD, though very weak and sick in body, wayting for my great Change, w’ch I desire the Lord in mercy to fit me for — doe make and ordayne this to be my last will and testament — viz In fe I committ my soule to God, that made it, and to the Lord Jesus Christ that redeemed it, by his most precious blood: and doe hope it shall be united to him forever, and my body to be in comly and decent manner buryed, hoping at the Great Day of the Resurection, the Lord Jesus will change the vile body, and fashion it like to his Glorious body and so shall be forever with the Lord.

Also I do make my beloved Son John Stebbins to be my full and Sole Executor which I hope will be faithful in all things committed to his trust — Also will and desire is that all my Just debts and funeral expenses be satisfyed & paid, and as concerning my outward and worldly Estate, that the Lord in his mercy hath given unto me I dispose of in this manner:

Viz. I give and bequeath unto my beloved Son Thomas Stebbins he several childred twenty Shillings apiece, to be paid within three years after my decease those that be of age, the Sons to be twenty-one years — and daughters Eighteen years. I give and bequeath to my son John’s Children that is to say to John Stebbins his first born an Iron pott, my bed and bed clothes and all that belongs to it. My best Jackett & wascotte, my
old coate and worst paire of gray stockings. I give and bequeath to Benoni Stebbins my best Breeches and new cotton wescotte & twenty shillings — I give and bequeath to my son John’s son Samuel my old Kersey Sute and twenty shillings. I give and bequeath to my son John’s other six Children to be paid unto them when they come to age twenty Shillings apeece. I give and bequeath to my son in Law Merricks three daughters, twenty Shillings apiece, to Sarah, Mary and Hannah to be paid within three years after my decease. I give and bequeath to my beloved Daughter Elizabeth Clarke three pounds to be paid within three years and to her three Children twenty Shillings apeece to be paid within three years after my decease, and to Mary the Bell Metal Skillet. I give and bequath to Mary Maunde ten shillings to be paid within a yeere after my desease. I give and bequeath to my son John Stebbins my Great Brass pott and be best coate, and to my son Johns Wife my best stockings, and as for the rest of my Estate that remaynes my will is, that it should be equally divided between my two beloved sons Thomas Stebbins and John Stebbins.

Also my desire is that my much honored friend Cap’t John Pynchon and my beloved brother Robert Bartlett, would be in the overseers of this my last will and testament. That this is my last will and Testament I declare by setting my hand and Seale the first day of the first month Anno Domini 1669-70. My will is that my son John Stebbins doe keepe this my last will and testament. signum ROWLAND STEBBINS

Signed and Sealed in ye presence of William James, Thomas Hanchett, sen’r.

Elwyn Wilfred Stebbins 15 Sep 1870 —20 May 1950.  Elwyn married [Emma] Marion Long who was born 31 Dec 1881

Graduate:

Elwyn Stebbins was a graduate of MIT 1893 with a degree in Mining Engineering. He continued in this field until he retired.

1901 San Francisco Call, Volume 91, Number 18, 18 December 1901 Reports Undergraduates as candidates for degrees for University of California. B.S. College of Mining: Elwyn Wilfred Stebbins

in 1902 …engaged in mining engineering in the Sierra Nevadas in the southeastern part of Butte county

Practicing Engineer, Geologist, Partner

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology  Technology Review, Volume V. January, 1903 reports: Elwyn W. Stebbins has become a mining engineer, and is located at Telluride, Col.   He writes as follows :

“After leaving the M. I. T., I obtained employment with the Southern Pacific Railroad Company, and worked in their engineering force in California, Arizona, and New Mexico for about five years, the latter part of the time as assistant to the resident engineer of the Western Division at Oakland. Typhoid fever, with a long and tedious convalescence, next intervened. Upon complete recovery, being desirous of entering the mining field, I took a year and a half at the University of California, and graduated from their mining college in 1901. Since then I have been employed by the Liberty Bell Gold Mining Company, and at present am surveyor and engineer at the Liberty Bell Mine.” –Elwyn Stebbins

1908 University of California Chronicle, Volume 10 (1908) mentions:  “Elwyn Stebbins has removed his offices of consulting engineer to 819 Mills Building San Francisco”

MINERAL RESOURCES OF TRINITY COUNTY reports in Vol. 37 January, 1941 : Lewiston Gold Dredging Company is a new company formed to take over the Gold Bar dredge at Lewiston. It should not be confused  with Lewiston Dredging Co., which formerly operated a dredge farther up the Trinity River at Minersville. The new company is a partnership of 13 persons, of whom three are general partners, Elwyn W. Stebbins, F. J. Estep, and C. H. Thurman, manager, 960 Russ Building, San Francisco. W. J. Harvey is superintendent at Lewiston. The location is Sec. 18, 19, T.  33 N., R. 8 W. The present operations started in June, 1937, and it was planned to work from Lewiston down the river for two miles. The work is on an upper terrace. A new revolving screen and other new parts were installed on the dredge, and the hull was extended by means of steel pontoons. The Gold Bar dredge was described in State Mineralogist’s Report XXIX. The original hull was 79 ft. by 44 ft. by 7 ft.

The dredge carried a chain of 45 buckets of 8 cu. ft. capacity each, which would reach a depth of 31 ft. below water line. It was held in position by headlines of  l-1/2 inch steel cable. No spuds were used. Electric motors were as follows : 150-hp. digging motor, 30-hp. on 8-inch pump, 50-hp. on 10-inch pressure pump and 40-hp. on seven-drum winch.

Author: Gold Dredging at Oroville. HOWARD D. SMITH and ELWYN W. STEBBINS. Engineering and Mining Journal – Dec. 8, 1904. Describes the character of the ground, which is peculiarly favourable to dredge operations, and the types of dredges and methods used. Also gives a summary of the operating expenses. 4400 w.

In the publication Gold Dredging in California. By Chas. G. Yale’ (September 15, 1904) a response from Elwyn Stebbins is quoted as follows:

The Editor:
Sir—In your issue of September 15 we note an editorial giving costs of gold dredging at Oroville. Having recently had occasion to investigate this matter, we take the liberty of questioning
the accuracy of the figures given. The cost per yard, 4.88c, is below the general experience of this district. Seven cents per yard would be much nearer the actual operating expense of the 5-ft. dredges now in use. The last company to invade this field, guided by the previous results obtained, has allowed 8c. per yard to cover operating expense and depreciation, the latter item being estimated at about lc. per yard. The statement of 23,995 kw. hours per month is less than half of any figures that have heretofore come to light. Labor at $496 per month is also much below the best results so far obtained.
There are several instances where dredges have been operated for a month or more at a cost of less than 4c. per yard, but estimates of costs, yardage, etc., from periods of one month are
entirely misleading. Repair expenses range from one-quarter to one-half the total cost of operations, and for many months they may be comparatively small. This, of course, will give a large yardage and low monthly expense. Consequently the cost per yard will be much below the normal. On the other hand, a month when much repairing and renewal of dredge parts took
place will give a low yardage and a high monthly operating expense, giving costs per yard much above the average. One dredge at Oroville ran continuously for eight months, making a splendid record, and then shut down 39 days for repairs. The fact, therefore, is obvious that costs per yard are reliable only when periods of a year or more are considered. The present tendency is to increase the size of the buckets and the strength of the wearing parts. This increases the yardage, with practically the same labor charge, and a less than proportional increase in the expense for power and repairs. It
is expected that the improved dredges capable of handling 80,000 cu. yd. and upward per month will reduce the costs to 5c, and lower, per yard, but this cannot be done with dredges having a capacity of only 46,000 yards per month.
Yours respectfully,
Stebbins & Smith.
San Francisco, September 22, 1904.

[This criticism is made fairly and with some reason. We can quote average costs and yield for a well-known dredging company at Oroville, which has been in operation for 5 years. The average cost for each year has ranged between 4.92c. and 7.47c, averaging 6c for the whole period; the yield has averaged 13c per yard. — Editor.]

Outdoorsman

A 1894 letter exchange between Alfred Stebbins and John Muir suggested the Elwyn Stebbins ventured into Yosemite just after his graduation “..in company with his sister & young ladies & Gentlemen of the University of California…”

Traveler:

One report of geologists suggests the Elwyn traveled to Oaxaca Mexico briefly, returning to San Francisco.

1902 Elwyn Engaged to Marian Long

San Francisco Chronicle  June 4, 1902 Page 7 mentions:

An engagement of unusual interest to college society is that of Mies Emma Marian Long of Sacramento – Elwyn Wilfred Stebbins of Woodside.  The two young people have been graduated within the last year from the University of California where they were both prominent in student affairs Miss Long besides making a brilliant record in the classroom as a student devoting herself especially to English and Greek has earned marked distinction in dramatic work. She has taken an interest in student histrionic efforts ever since her freshman year when she took a part in The Assignation presented by the college dramatic club, The Mask and Gown. In her Junior year Miss Long played a leading part in the theatricals given by her class on Junior day acting in the clever curtain raiser entitled A Triumph of Science.  Later she was given an important role in the charter day play Lord Ogleby which won for the student actors unusual praise from the critics. Besides her college dramatic work Miss Long has been seen in numerous private theatricals during her stay In Berkeley and Oakland. Miss Long has in addition to her histrionic ability musical talents which are being cultivated. Before her marriage she expects to devote at least a year to teaching.

Mr Stebbins is at present engaged in mining engineering in the Sierra Nevadas in the southeastern part of Butte county. He is a graduate of the Massachusetts School of Technology and has been a student in the mining department of the University of California for several years having completed his course here last December. He is a member of the Chi Phi fraternity having affiliated with that society when in the East.

About Emma ‘Marian’ Stebbins

Marion was a graduate of University of California Berkely with a M.A. [in drama and an M.A?] in English. She became chairman of the Drama Department [some say Speech and Dramatic Arts] at Mills College in Oakland where she remained until her retirement, although with some years out for study in New York, travel, acting assignments, and administrative positions at Mills College. A 1920 edition of, “The Argonaut” lists Mrs. Elwyn Stebbins of the English Department as the Director of two productions, “The Turtle Dove” and “Prunella”

Emma is also listed as an officer of the The College Women’s Sufferage Club in the book, “Western Women, Volume 1? July 11, 1907.  It may be no coincidence since her sister-in-law Londa Stebbins was also [a director] campaigning at the same time in the same general region.

Also, The Educational Theatre Journal V 9-10 in 1957 states (by Hubert Hefner) The death of Marian Long (Mrs. Elwyn) Stebbins on 29 September 1956 took from us yet another of the national leaders in academic theatre and in the American Educational Theater Association. Morn in Sacramento on 31..[continued in the next column possibly not attributed to Mrs. Stebbins] ….meticulous and exacting artist in her own work, endowed with remarkable energy and vitality, she could never countenance or condone laziness and low standards in others. Her contributions to the enrichment of the lives of many Mills College women will continue as a heritage…”

February 4 (Year?)  letter from Edith Stebbins Jennings Modesto California to Betty G Stebbins in Santa Cruz California  about her mother, Marion Long Stebbins

Dear Betty, I don’t know much about my mother’s [Marian Long’s] past in terms of documents and letters.

Her mother, Margaret Younger was born in Scotland and emigrated here with her parents–we don’t know when. Margaret Younger married Thomas Mitchell Long here they had five children.

I think Marion (named Emma), was the eldest, born in Missoula Montana. I don’t know just when they moved to Sacramento, but mother went to high school there.

Margaret Long was deserted by Thomas Mitchell Long and raised her five children pretty much alone, although he sent money now and then. He apparently was very able and erratic, and had a compulsion to tell employers how to run their business. (All this is hearsay). Margaret Long taught Elementary School. She had it pretty rough. Her father, according to Jess’s account, was a darling. Aunt Jess was Marian Long Stebbins sister. He (Marion’s Father) was also a very good candy-maker and supported his family here by that Talent. Mother [Marian]  learned from him and use to make wonderful candies. I remember some of the craft, but never did it on my own.

Nor do I know much about my grandmother, Edith Large Stebbins, except that she was well-educated, fairly well-off, that her mother was quite a woman and helped slaves escape through the underground. Edith was quite poor, after Alfred died, and babysat, whatever, but later became quite wealthy through some land purchases Alfred had made in [Spokane] Washington. So Alfred ‘s land speculation gave us all what extra monies have come to us.

I found my grandmother Edith [Large Stebbins] a wonderful person, gentle, courteous, humorous, loving, intelligent, intellectual, secure in herself, most tolerant. — Edith Stebbins Jennings

——————–end of letter———————-

Father: 

1904 Alfred ‘Keith’ Stebbins March 26, 1904 — died July 6 1974
1905 Margaret Stebbins (Peggy) October 26, 1905 — died July, 1970  Peggy was co-owner of a nursery on Page Mill Road near Palo Alto
1908 Edith Stebbins Jennings November 28, 1908  died in or near Modesto in 1992.

1926 May 30, 1926 Oakland Tribune — …Miss Edith Stebbins, daughter of the Elwyn Stebbins of Berkeley, and Miss Mary Pond, daughter of Dr. Chancy Pond, and Miss Mary Catherine Hall, daughter of Mrs. James E. Hall,, will enter the University of California. Miss Horton’s school for girls,

Edith Stebbins, a graduate of Mills College was an actress and a community theater director. In 1946, she married John Jennings and had one daughter: Penelope Ann Jennings born September 4, 1952.

Property Owner:

Permit for Building Granted 1916 (212) S 20 LOT 3, and N 35 lot 20, Map Dell C. Woodward
subdivision, Pagoda Hill, Oakland. All work for one story and basement frame dwelling 
except heating, shades, electric  fixtures, heater. 

Owner Elwyn W. Stebbins. Oakland. 
Architect Albert Farr, 68 Post San Francisco. 
Contractor Joseph Coward, 6081 Claremont Ave., Oakland. 
Filed Feb. 8, '16. Dated Feb. 3, '16. 
Rafters in place $600 
Plastering completed 600 
Completed and accepted 787 
Usual 35 days 663 
TOTAL COST, $2650 
Bond, $1325. Sureties, Fidelity and Deposit Co. Forfeit, $5. Limit, 75 days. 
Plans & Specifications Filed.

Stern in Older Years

His grandchildren only have brief memories, but remember him as stern,  drank scotch and smoked fine cigars while playing bridge (one said often drunk), tolerated no interruptions.  One shared that Elwyn  had some operation related to the colon where he had to have a bag attached, and that his wife, who loved to entertain, had only minimal practical communication with him in later years. One mentioned he “…Ruined the Merced River, but this is what mining engineers were supposed to do in those days.”

Died

Elwyn died May 20 1950 at 79 years

Londa Loleta Stebbins was born to Alfred Stebbins and Edith Large Stebbins of the Stebbins Ancestry on 30 May 1872.

She lived through at least 1951.  Records show she attended High School in Oakland, resided at 29 St. James Ave. in Boston in 1889 (probably while attending MIT), resided at 6517 Harwood Avenue in 1935, at 1204 Jackson Street in San Francisco 1937 and at 1030 Parkinson in  Palo Alto California in 1951 and owned property in La Honda, California.

Documents show Londa graduated from MIT in 1893, the same year as her brother Elwyn. This would be especially challenging at the time:

It wasn’t until 1882 that MIT formally began admitting female students. Still, the number of women remained small—approximately 1% or less of the student body—until World War II.   -Spectrum, “The Women of MIT” Mar 18, 2014

Londa campaigned for women’s suffrage in the early 1900’s, volunteered for humanitarian aid in the 40s and in 1951 wrote to Albert E. Kahn and  contributed to the  National Committee to Defend Dr. Du Bois.  The committee published Albert E. Kahn’s “Agent of Peace”, a five-cent pamphlet printed by the Hour Publishers in defense of William Edward Burghardt “W. E. B.” Du Bois.    Her occupation was listed as 1935, Children’s Agency, San Francisco.

It is suggested that Londa traveled to Europe with her father Alfred Stebbins,  based on a poem that Alfred wrote.

From the Peninsula Funeral Society newsletter “In Touch” in 2013.

Last fall’s In Touch listed the first 30 members of the Peninsula Funeral Society, forerunner of Funeral Consumers Alliance. Member number 1, who started it all in 1952, was Londa Stebbins Fletcher of Palo Alto.

We learned that Londa Stebbins was born 1872 in Alameda, CA. She married Harris Fletcher in 1903 and divorced him in 1909 for “failure to provide.“ She studied at Stanford, Berkeley, and MIT and had a remarkable career, working as a social worker, probation office and writer, living in various Bay Area and Los Angeles locations. Londa used her life to advance social causes, becoming an experienced leader in rallying people to join causes; she affiliated with American Red Cross to do relief work after WWI in France and Syria. She returned home in time to become a suffragette, working to raise interest and funds all over the nation for women’s right to vote. After that success in 1921, Londa turned her interest to European relief work again, where, during the Spanish Civil War she helped a pregnant Seville war widow escape to Tangiers. The widow gratefully named her girl child Londa, after the courageous woman who helped rescue them.

In 1952, Londa Fletcher became concerned about her inability to find any funeral home to give her the plain and simple funeral she wanted for her mother (she was a long-time Quaker), so Londa and her friends went around to churches to start a “memorial society” here, the first of its kind in California. The California Avenue Co-op Grocery store gave them advertising and office space. And that is how our organization began.

We also received a picture of Londa from Enid Pearson, former Palo Alto City Council member. She wrote, “Londa was a dear friend of mine and she took part in our lawsuit to force the city to adopt its General Plan. I am forwarding a picture of her, myself and Eldrid Tubbs on a ladder. It is 1962 and we had won our lawsuit. We are in my garden at 1200 Bryant, about to have a fund-raising party to pay our attorney (Pete McCloskey).

Londa also helped me and two others with a very important initiative to dedicate all parks, open space and conservation land. This initiative was passed by the voters, 7-1 in 1965. I was really saddened when Londa died in 1965 and did not get to celebrate our victory.” Unfortunately, Londa did not ever have any children, and close relatives had already passed on when she died at age 93.

From “Always Loving: A Life in Five Worlds Unknown” Chronicling the life and adventures of Mildred Hunter Thiermann, By Stephen Thiermann, (c)  2012 ISBN: 978-1-105-61857-4

Then on a crisp and sunny October afternoon, we arrived in triumph in Menlo Park, just south of Palo Alto at our temporary quarters, arranged by Josephine, at the home of Londa Fletcher. Londa, though not herself a Quaker, was an enthusiastic supporter of Quaker work. A single lady of uncertain age in her late 50s or early 60s, Londa proved an imposing presence. WIrey, tanned and fit she seemed In perpetual motion, possessed of a keen mind, a sharp tongue and a warm heart. On a visit to her at age 80, I found her with a basket over her arm climbing a favorite apple tree to bring in the harvest. At this early stage, it was the warm heart that we would be relying on. There was going to be, if not for the first time a toddler in the house, a lively, inquisitive four-year-old everywhere under foot.

From July 9, 1918 Santa Cruz Evening News from Santa Cruz, California · Page 2

UNIVERSITY WOMEN READY TO SAIL FOR FRANCE

Thirteen women, members of the Stanford unit, who were selected to go to France to work among the women and children of the reoccupied portion of that country, have left Palo Alto and are now en route to New York and expect to sail at a nearly date for France, where they will proceed with the civilian relief work that has been planned. The requisite $30,000 has been subscribed or pledged, a sum sufficient to permit of the great work being prosecuted with vigor for a period of one year. Two women, Mrs. Londa S. Fletcher and Miss Dorothea Smith, have gone ahead.

July 10, 1918 Oxnard Courier from Oxnard, California · Page 3

The Stanford University unit of women, organized for work among the women and children of reoccupied France, arrived in New York today and will sail at an early date. There are 15 women in the unit, two of whom arrived in advance of the main party. They were Mrs. Londa S. Fletcher and Miss Dorethea Smith. Those in today’s contingent: Miss Sue Byer, Miss Elizabeth Woolbridge, Miss Velona Picher, Miss Anne Scott, Miss Laura Emory, Miss Margaret Lothrop, Miss Beatrice Flynn, Miss Margaret Horine, Miss Ruth Deeley, Miss Edith Merrielies, Dr. Plactda Gerdner, Miss Vera Gerdner, and Mrs. Elizabeth Andrews. (Names may be garbled due to OCR translation)

Stanford Alumni

Alumni Directory and Ten-year Book, Volume 3 By Stanford University

Stebbins, Londa Loleta 1894-98
m Apr 9, 1903, Harris F. Fletcher (divorced 1909.), War service, A.R. C. France and Syria.  Social service.  Residence, 56 Eucalyptus Road, Berkeley, Calif.