{"title":"Kevin Knauss","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"amos-p-catlin-book-kevin-knauss-9780997818888","title":"Amos P. Catlin","description":"Amos P. Catlin, a young New York attorney, sailed to California in 1849 to mine for gold and practice law. He settled at Mormon Island and established the Natoma Mining Company. In 1851, Amos organized the Natoma Water Company to build a dam on the South Fork of the American River, above Salmon Falls, and then run a water ditch down to the Folsom region. Amos also managed the construction of the North Fork Ditch on the North Fork of the American River. Remnants of both of these important Gold Rush era water projects can be seen when Folsom Lake water levels are low.\u003cbr\u003eIn 1852, Amos was elected to the California Senate as a member of the Whig party. He wrote the legislation to relocate California's Capital from Benicia to Sacramento in 1854. The permanent move of California's Capital to Sacramento forever changed the city and kept it on the map as a destination for decades to come.\u003cbr\u003eAmos was an investor, director, and promoter of both the Sacramento Valley and California Central railroads. Parts of the of old California Central Railroad are preserved as important streets such as Greenback Lane. Amos formed a close friendship with Theodore Judah and was involved in Judah's early survey work for a Pacific Railroad.\u003cbr\u003eGold mining, railroads, and water ditch construction was not Amos' true passion. He loved studying and practicing law. In 1863, Amos traveled to Washington, D.C. to defend the original map of the Leidesdorff land grant map before the U.S. Supreme Court. With a favorable decision from the Supreme Court, Amos' law career was set.\u003cbr\u003eThe town of Folsom was Amos' home for many years. When he had the opportunity in 1856, Amos purchased several blocks in Folsom. Eventually, Amos would move to Sacramento where he became a highly esteemed attorney and counselor to Sacramento City and County. His legal opinion that a proposed ordinance to evict Chinese people from Sacramento City limits was unconstitutional sank the proposal.\u003cbr\u003eAmos was elected a Sacramento Superior Court Judge in 1890. Public opinion would turn against Judge Amos after he ruled that Charles K. McClatchy, editor of the The Sacramento Bee, to be in contempt of court regarding stories involving a divorce case. Judge Amos lost his reelection bid in 1896, but continued to practice law until he died in November of 1900.\u003cbr\u003eThe biography of Amos P. Catlin was developed using Catlin family letters from the early 1850s, documents and letters on file at the Bancroft and California State libraries, along with maps, and hundreds of newspaper stories that mention Amos P. Catlin in California.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"US \/ GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50369059062033,"sku":"CIN0997818883G","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":51296761118993,"sku":"NIN9780997818888","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/0997818883.jpg?v=1751013181"},{"product_id":"benjamin-norton-bugbey-book-kevin-knauss-9780997818864","title":"Benjamin Norton Bugbey","description":"Biography of Benjamin Norton Bugbey who came to California in 1849 during the Gold Rush. He was elected sheriff of Sacramento County and then went on to develop the Natoma Vineyard winning awards for wine, brandy, and champagnes. He commissioned two pieces of music to market his sparkling wines: Bugbey's Champagne Galop and Bugbey's Champagne Waltz. His viticulture empire collapsed in the 1870s. In a drunken frenzy he tried to kill a constable who arrive to arrest him. While in self-imposed exile from Sacramento, Bugbey worked at the U.S. Mint in San Francisco. It was there that he learned that the U.S. Supreme Court sided with his arguments against the Natoma Water and Mining Company that he was the rightful owner of the land of the Natoma Vineyard. Unfortunately, the decision came to late as Bugbey was declared bankrupt in 1878. Bugbey bounced back and went on to become a U. S. Commissioner unsuccessfully trying to charge white men from driving Chinese men from farm fields they were working on in Nicholas, Ca. He also had Chinese men and women arrested on slavery charges for importing young women for prostitution in Sacramento. He was successful at helping spirit several young Chinese women out of Sacramento to safety in San Francisco. Bugbey would later run for Sacramento County Sheriff again on a progressive platform of land reform and wealth redistribution. While he lost the election to become sheriff, he was successful at being elected Sacramento County Tax Collector in 1898 at the age of 71. He had to fight Hiram Johnson who argued that Bugbey should not be seated as the tax collector. Along the way, Bugbey was married three times with his first wife dying in a riding accident in 1869. He had no children. He was awarded a patent for his railroad refrigerator freight car and represented numerous other inventions. Bugbey led a colorful life and died in 1914. He is buried in the Historic Sacramento Cemetery.","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"- \/ - \/ -","offer_id":51195937784081,"sku":"","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":51195939750161,"sku":"NIN9780997818864","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/0997818867.jpg?v=1751078877"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.worldofbooks.com\/collections\/author-books-by-kevin-knauss.oembed","provider":"World of Books ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}