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Note: l my father and mother took a trip to St. Paul, Minnesota to visit the McFadden Family." Said Charles F. McFadden a bit forlornly. "I was cheated out of being a native son of California." Charles' father, a native of South Dakota, a railroad man, came to Monterey on the first train run in from Castroville. He married Annie La Porte whose father, William, owned a great part of Alvarado Street in Monterey. Annie LaPorte was born near the banks of Espinosa lake in Castroville. She was from old Pioneer stock of French extraction. The Duartes, who came up from Mexico in the early 1800's. The McFadden family migrated to the United States from Manitoba, Canada. When Charles started school it was in the two room annex situated just below the present day Colton Hall, which at that time was Colton School. His first grade school teacher was Clara McQuaid. He then attended the grade school on Pacific Street when this building burned down the pupils were transferred to the Colton School. His teacher was Carrie Swank and the room in which she taught later became the court room of Monte Hellam. Charles' first job in 1898 will always be a memborable one to him. "The day I ever caddied, it was nine holes one morning for Marshall Field and Field's secretary Cayton. For lunch they bought me a lemon pie Lepparf, the baker, and they asked me to caddy again that afternoon "for a foursome." They turned out to be Cayton, Robert Lincoln, son of Abraham Lincoln, and Eleanor Sears of Sears Roebuck and Company. Mr. Lincoln asked Charles one day if he ever went to church. "No" answered the boy,, "I can't go in overalls." Before Mr. Lincoln left Monterey he took Charles down to the Red Front Store owned by Mr. Harris and outfitted the boy from head to toe. As a young man Charles worked for Andrew Molera down the Coast--he rode and broke colts. When a Mr. Shedden asked him to become his mule skinner he took the job. With the mule team he hauled the first load of brush and trees off the Presidio grounds down to the gully off Lighthouse Avenue. Another first to his credit is that he hauled all the lumber used at the Presidio in the construction of the headquarters building, the officer's mess and the hospital. In 1906 he became tired of being a mule skinner and went to work for the Southern Pacific round house at Pacific Grove. "This was the year of the big quake in San Francisco. It caused the smoke stacks of the round house to collapse and I heard the bells toll on the engines," Charles" eyes twinkled as he spoke. When Charles met Lord David T. Hanbury of England in 1909 he was hired to look after the cattle on Island No. 2 off Valleja--a lonesome place and so was Hanbury. Instead of working Charles became a paid guest of Lord Hanbury and when Lord Hanbury went to England he took Charles along. They stayed seven months. Hanbury had holdings in The Truman Hanbury & Buxton Brewing Company. After the death of Hanbury in 1910 Charles went back to railroading-- headquarters Watsonville. "On the way to a Turkey shoot at Moss Landing in November of 1912 I sat next to a fine looking Irish girl on the bus. The funniest thing struck me when I first looked at her. I said to myself "that's my wife", I had never seen her before Well, on December 27, 1912 , we were married. I still have her. What a blessing." These were Charles' exact works. Mrs. Charles McFadden is truly and Irish Girl-- she was Della Nally, born and reared in .County Galway, Ireland. At the time of her meeting with Charles she was a Young Widow, Della Stanley, living with relatives in Watsonville. In 1916 while working for T. A. Work in the lumber Mill, Charles filed a homestead on some government land--and later he was still working for T. A. Work and he kept out his neibors. By the time 1960 roled around McFadden had accumulated over 2300 Acres in the Valley. Through Hard work, perseverance and wisdom, Charles the height of success--retired and happy with his Irish Girl.
Note: I would have been born in Monterey but, just about the time of my arriva
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