| Notes |
- From the "History Of Fresno County, California, with Biographical Sketches of the Leading Men and Women of the County who have been identified with its Growth and Development from the Early Days to the Present". by Paul E. Vandor, 1919. Jessee Morrow. A picturesque character was Jessee Morrow, an Ohioan, who was lured by the '49 story of gold, crossed the plains to pass the winter at Salt Lake City, but being driven off by Mormons pushed on with a smaller party which entered California by the Southern pass and disbanded. Morrow and six others, with food and blankets, trudged on westward through Cajon pass, trading rifle for beef, which was "jerked" for food and crossing the Kern, met at Posey Creek, two survivors of a part of sixteen massacred by Indians. All returned to the Kern, there met an emigrant train, of which Dr. Lewis Leach was a member, and pushed northward. At Woodville (Tulare County) they came upon the scene of the massacre and buried fourteen corpses. Camping under guard and killing wild cattle as food supply they moved on to the Kings and the San Joaquin, and a part of the party was engaged for Cassady & Lane to mine for them at Cassady's Bar. Morrow mined at Fine Gold Gulch and on the San Joaquin until 1856, when he removed to Los Angles. He engaged in stock raising, and driving 1,100 head of cattle to the San Joaquin continued here in the stock business until 1874. One year later, he took up sheep raising on the plains continuing this pursuit until 1882, having at times flocks varying in number from 4,000 to 20,000. Mr Morrow was at one time one of the richest men in the country, interested in mining, lending money but losing $160,000 through poor securities, and owning land in the two county seats. In 1874, he was instrumental in erecting the southers Pacific Hotel, which came into his position two years later. It was the caravansary par excellence of Fresno and bore his name for a time. it was the site of the present Fresno post office building, was the Southern Hotel and the Henry House (Simon W. Henry of Millerton), and later known as the Mariposa Hotel. It was moved to the corner of Mariposa and M on the Jeff D. Statham property, in rear of the courthouse, but after partial destruction by a fire a few years ago removed to a third site and present location at the corner of Diana and Silvia streets. The Morrows were absentees from the Kings River ranch as residents of San Jose and in his day he was probably the country's most extensive sheep rancher. Morrow was one of fate's victims for at death in 1897 he was practically a ruined man. Yet there is the authenticated tale that in one live stock transaction alone about $80,000 was piled up in payment on a table in one of the rooms of the old Morrow house. The kitchen portion of this structure was part of a building wheeled from Millerton to Fresno. Two earliest deeds under date of June 9, 1855, were by Morrow and McCray, one for $200 for the Millerton lot on which the Oak Hotel was erected, and the other for $2,500 for the ferry formerly known as Morrow & Carroll's. It was irony of fate perhaps that in June 1874, McCray was sold out by the sheriff on execution
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1827 - Abt 1897 (69 years)
