Charles S. Fairfax
Encyclopedia
Charles Snowdon Fairfax (March 8, 1829 – April 4, 1869) was an American Democratic
politician of California. He was of Scottish
noble descent and was himself entitled to the title as the 10th Lord Fairfax of Cameron. Fairfax was lured west as part of the gold rush
. The town of Fairfax, California
, is named for him.
He was born on Vaucluse Plantation
in Virginia
, the eldest son of Albert Fairfax (April 15, 1802 – May 9, 1835) and Caroline Eliza Snowden (April 21, 1812 – December 28, 1899), who were married on April 7, 1828. His brother was John Contee Fairfax (September 13, 1830 – September 28, 1900), who was a physician. On May 1, 1838, his mother married William R. Saunders.
, who relinquished his English estates to his brother, Robert
, and emigrate
d to America, where he settled on a plantation
of more than a million acres (4,000 km²) in Virginia, which he inherited from his mother, Catherine Colepeper. Thomas Fairfax was the first person who employed George Washington
as a surveyor.
The 7th Baron, Robert Fairfax, died without issue in 1793 and the title descended to an American second cousin, the Rev. Bryan Fairfax
(1736–1802), minister of the Episcopal Church of Alexandria
, who was the son of William Fairfax
(1691–1757) of Belvoir
and Deborah Clarke (1707–1747). The clergyman then became Bryan Fairfax, 8th Lord Fairfax of Cameron
. Bryan Fairfax, whose wife was Elizabeth Cary (1730–1757), was succeeded in 1802 by his eldest son, Thomas Fairfax (1762–1846).
Thomas Fairfax, 9th Lord Fairfax of Cameron
was thrice married and his son by his third wife, Margaret Herbert (1783–1858), Albert, who had died during the lifetime of his father, left two sons, Charles and John. Therefore, Charles S. Fairfax, the grandson of Thomas, the 9th Baron, succeeded to the title of Lord Fairfax in 1846—a title, however, that he never claimed, preferring to live as an American citizen.
aboard ship. Joining the company of 74 other gold seekers, he left Richmond, Virginia
, on the "Glenmore." After disembarking and crossing Panama
, he boarded a second ship, the steamer
California, and arrived in San Francisco on June 23, 1850.
The life of a miner
in the mother lode
of California might have been somewhat of a shock to Fairfax, who grew up amidst the life of a gentleman farmer, but he stuck with the endeavor for a while. He prospected extensively, only to lose whatever money he made as fast as he got hold of it. There were stories of him working for others, pushing a wheelbarrow, or tending a mule pulling a cart of gravel and sloshing about in the mud of the diggings. He might have decided there must be a better way to acquire a fortune.
In 1851, he abandoned the goldfield
s and turned to a new calling—politics—and became a delegate to the Democratic National Convention
. Fairfax was a member of the California State Assembly
, first representing Yuba
and Sierra
Counties from 1853 to '54, then Yuba County alone from 1854 to '55. He served as Speaker of the Assembly in 1854. He subsequently served as Clerk of the Supreme Court of California
, 1856–'61. From 1865 to 1867, he was a Supervisor
of Marin County
.
, at the home of her stepsister
, Henrietta Prentice. They had no children.
After their return to San Francisco, Fairfax and his bride visited his boyhood friend, Dr. Alfred Taliaferro, at his country home in Marin County. When they expressed their great admiration of his estate, he gave them the property as a wedding gift. Thus, in 1855, the couple became residents of what would eventually become the town of Fairfax
.
They made many improvements to their new property. Fairfax imported game birds
to satisfy his zeal for hunting and improve his chances for success. Ada planted trees and flowers around the home and grounds and named the estate Bird's Nest Glen, which is now on the National Register of Historic Places
as California Registered Historical Landmark No. 679.
They entertained lavishly and it became so customary for their friends to say, "Let's go to the Fairfax's," or "Let's go to Fairfax," that the area took on the identity of Fairfax, which continued long after their departure, up to the time of incorporation of the town in 1931.
The Fairfax estate was also the site of a duel
, on the afternoon of May 25, 1861, between State Assemblymen Daniel Showalter
and Charles W. Piercy, who were having a political dispute. Though Fairfax served them lunch and tried to dissuade them, the two men walked to a grassy meadow and, brandishing rifles at 40 paces, Piercy was killed upon the second fire. It marked the last political duel fought in California.
. He stood high in the Masonic
fraternity
, the members of which arranged to send a large delegation at the time of his death.
Charles S. Fairfax died suddenly at age 40 at Barnum's City Hotel in Baltimore
, Maryland, after having traveled east as a chairman
of the California delegation to the Democratic National Convention, which was assembled in New York City. He is interred in Rock Creek Cemetery
, Washington, D.C., as is his widow.
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
politician of California. He was of Scottish
Scottish American
Scottish Americans or Scots Americans are citizens of the United States whose ancestry originates wholly or partly in Scotland. Scottish Americans are closely related to Scots-Irish Americans, descendants of Ulster Scots, and communities emphasize and celebrate a common heritage...
noble descent and was himself entitled to the title as the 10th Lord Fairfax of Cameron. Fairfax was lured west as part of the gold rush
California Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The first to hear confirmed information of the gold rush were the people in Oregon, the Sandwich Islands , and Latin America, who were the first to start flocking to...
. The town of Fairfax, California
Fairfax, California
Fairfax is an incorporated town in Marin County, California, United States. Fairfax is located west-northwest of San Rafael, at an elevation of 115 feet...
, is named for him.
He was born on Vaucluse Plantation
Vaucluse (plantation)
Vaucluse was a plantation in Fairfax County, Virginia, three miles from Alexandria and from Washington, D.C., on a hill near the Virginia Theological Seminary, that was owned first by Dr. James Craik, and later by the Fairfax family, the first being Thomas Fairfax, 9th Lord Fairfax of Cameron.-...
in Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, the eldest son of Albert Fairfax (April 15, 1802 – May 9, 1835) and Caroline Eliza Snowden (April 21, 1812 – December 28, 1899), who were married on April 7, 1828. His brother was John Contee Fairfax (September 13, 1830 – September 28, 1900), who was a physician. On May 1, 1838, his mother married William R. Saunders.
Lineage
He was collaterally related to Thomas, the 6th Lord FairfaxThomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron
Thomas Fairfax, 6th Lord Fairfax of Cameron was the son of Thomas Fairfax, 5th Lord Fairfax of Cameron and of Catherine, daughter of Thomas Culpeper, 2nd Baron Culpeper of Thoresway....
, who relinquished his English estates to his brother, Robert
Robert Fairfax, 7th Lord Fairfax of Cameron
Robert Fairfax , 7th Lord Fairfax of Cameron , died at Leeds Castle, England, which he inherited from his mother Catharine, daughter of Thomas Culpeper, 2nd Baron Culpeper of Thoresway....
, and emigrate
Emigrate
Emigrate is a heavy metal band based in New York, led by Richard Z. Kruspe, the lead guitarist of the German band Rammstein.-History:Kruspe started the band in 2005, when Rammstein decided to take a year off from touring and recording...
d to America, where he settled on a plantation
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
of more than a million acres (4,000 km²) in Virginia, which he inherited from his mother, Catherine Colepeper. Thomas Fairfax was the first person who employed George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
as a surveyor.
The 7th Baron, Robert Fairfax, died without issue in 1793 and the title descended to an American second cousin, the Rev. Bryan Fairfax
Bryan Fairfax, 8th Lord Fairfax of Cameron
Bryan Fairfax , 8th Lord Fairfax of Cameron, boyhood friend of George Washington, became the first American-born member of the house of Lords.-Biography:...
(1736–1802), minister of the Episcopal Church of Alexandria
Alexandria, Virginia
Alexandria is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of 2009, the city had a total population of 139,966. Located along the Western bank of the Potomac River, Alexandria is approximately six miles south of downtown Washington, D.C.Like the rest of northern Virginia, as well as...
, who was the son of William Fairfax
William Fairfax
William Fairfax was a political appointee of the English Crown and a politician: he was Collector of Customs in Barbados, and Chief Justice and governor of the Bahamas; he served as Customs agent in Marblehead, Massachusetts before being reassigned to the Virginia colony. There he was elected to...
(1691–1757) of Belvoir
Belvoir (plantation)
Belvoir was the historic plantation and estate of colonial Virginia's prominent William Fairfax family. It was situated on the west bank of the Potomac River in Fairfax County, Virginia at the present site of Fort Belvoir. The main house — called Belvoir Manor or Belvoir Mansion — burnt in 1783...
and Deborah Clarke (1707–1747). The clergyman then became Bryan Fairfax, 8th Lord Fairfax of Cameron
Bryan Fairfax, 8th Lord Fairfax of Cameron
Bryan Fairfax , 8th Lord Fairfax of Cameron, boyhood friend of George Washington, became the first American-born member of the house of Lords.-Biography:...
. Bryan Fairfax, whose wife was Elizabeth Cary (1730–1757), was succeeded in 1802 by his eldest son, Thomas Fairfax (1762–1846).
Thomas Fairfax, 9th Lord Fairfax of Cameron
Thomas Fairfax, 9th Lord Fairfax of Cameron
Thomas Fairfax, 9th Lord Fairfax of Cameron , son of Bryan Fairfax. Thomas Fairfax, with his father, on December 11, 1799, was among the last guests at Mount Vernon, before Washington died....
was thrice married and his son by his third wife, Margaret Herbert (1783–1858), Albert, who had died during the lifetime of his father, left two sons, Charles and John. Therefore, Charles S. Fairfax, the grandson of Thomas, the 9th Baron, succeeded to the title of Lord Fairfax in 1846—a title, however, that he never claimed, preferring to live as an American citizen.
California
Fairfax, still the potential 10th Lord Fairfax, Baron of Cameron, traveled to the West CoastWest Coast of the United States
West Coast or Pacific Coast are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. The term most often refers to the states of California, Oregon, and Washington. Although not part of the contiguous United States, Alaska and Hawaii do border the Pacific Ocean but can't be included in...
aboard ship. Joining the company of 74 other gold seekers, he left Richmond, Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
, on the "Glenmore." After disembarking and crossing Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
, he boarded a second ship, the steamer
Steamboat
A steamboat or steamship, sometimes called a steamer, is a ship in which the primary method of propulsion is steam power, typically driving propellers or paddlewheels...
California, and arrived in San Francisco on June 23, 1850.
The life of a miner
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
in the mother lode
Mother Lode
Mother lode is a principal vein or zone of veins of gold or silver ore. The term probably came from a literal translation of the Spanish veta madre, a term common in old Mexican mining...
of California might have been somewhat of a shock to Fairfax, who grew up amidst the life of a gentleman farmer, but he stuck with the endeavor for a while. He prospected extensively, only to lose whatever money he made as fast as he got hold of it. There were stories of him working for others, pushing a wheelbarrow, or tending a mule pulling a cart of gravel and sloshing about in the mud of the diggings. He might have decided there must be a better way to acquire a fortune.
In 1851, he abandoned the goldfield
Gold mining
Gold mining is the removal of gold from the ground. There are several techniques and processes by which gold may be extracted from the earth.-History:...
s and turned to a new calling—politics—and became a delegate to the Democratic National Convention
Democratic National Convention
The Democratic National Convention is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 1852 national convention...
. Fairfax was a member of the California State Assembly
California State Assembly
The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature. There are 80 members in the Assembly, representing an approximately equal number of constituents, with each district having a population of at least 420,000...
, first representing Yuba
Yuba County, California
Yuba County is a county located in the U.S. state of California's Central Valley, north of Sacramento, along the Feather River. As of the 2010 census, its population was 72,155. The county seat is Marysville. Yuba County is part of the Greater Sacramento area.-History:Yuba County was one of the...
and Sierra
Sierra County, California
Sierra County is a county located in the Sierra Nevada of the U.S. state of California, northeast of Sacramento on the border with Nevada. As of the 2010 census the population was 3,240, down from 3,555 at the 2000 census. The county seat is Downieville....
Counties from 1853 to '54, then Yuba County alone from 1854 to '55. He served as Speaker of the Assembly in 1854. He subsequently served as Clerk of the Supreme Court of California
Supreme Court of California
The Supreme Court of California is the highest state court in California. It is headquartered in San Francisco and regularly holds sessions in Los Angeles and Sacramento. Its decisions are binding on all other California state courts.-Composition:...
, 1856–'61. From 1865 to 1867, he was a Supervisor
County board of supervisors
The Board of Supervisors is the body that supervises the operation of county government in all counties in Arizona, California, Iowa, Mississippi, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Sussex County, New Jersey as well as a handful of counties in New York...
of Marin County
Marin County, California
Marin County is a county located in the North San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, across the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco. As of 2010, the population was 252,409. The county seat is San Rafael and the largest employer is the county government. Marin County is well...
.
Marriage and estate
Fairfax met his wife, Ada Benham (1833–1888), in 1854 in San Francisco. They were married on January 10, 1855, in Louisville, KentuckyLouisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
, at the home of her stepsister
Stepfamily
A stepfamily, also known as a blended family or reconstituted family, is a family in which one or both members of the couple have children from a previous relationship...
, Henrietta Prentice. They had no children.
After their return to San Francisco, Fairfax and his bride visited his boyhood friend, Dr. Alfred Taliaferro, at his country home in Marin County. When they expressed their great admiration of his estate, he gave them the property as a wedding gift. Thus, in 1855, the couple became residents of what would eventually become the town of Fairfax
Fairfax, California
Fairfax is an incorporated town in Marin County, California, United States. Fairfax is located west-northwest of San Rafael, at an elevation of 115 feet...
.
They made many improvements to their new property. Fairfax imported game birds
Game (food)
Game is any animal hunted for food or not normally domesticated. Game animals are also hunted for sport.The type and range of animals hunted for food varies in different parts of the world. This will be influenced by climate, animal diversity, local taste and locally accepted view about what can or...
to satisfy his zeal for hunting and improve his chances for success. Ada planted trees and flowers around the home and grounds and named the estate Bird's Nest Glen, which is now on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
as California Registered Historical Landmark No. 679.
They entertained lavishly and it became so customary for their friends to say, "Let's go to the Fairfax's," or "Let's go to Fairfax," that the area took on the identity of Fairfax, which continued long after their departure, up to the time of incorporation of the town in 1931.
The Fairfax estate was also the site of a duel
Duel
A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two individuals, with matched weapons in accordance with agreed-upon rules.Duels in this form were chiefly practised in Early Modern Europe, with precedents in the medieval code of chivalry, and continued into the modern period especially among...
, on the afternoon of May 25, 1861, between State Assemblymen Daniel Showalter
Daniel Showalter
Daniel Showalter , was California miner, state legislator, duelist, secessionist, soldier for the Confederate States of America in Texas.-Biography:...
and Charles W. Piercy, who were having a political dispute. Though Fairfax served them lunch and tried to dissuade them, the two men walked to a grassy meadow and, brandishing rifles at 40 paces, Piercy was killed upon the second fire. It marked the last political duel fought in California.
Death
Fairfax was thoroughly identified with the state of his adoption, and was well known and respected on the Pacific coastPacific Coast
A country's Pacific coast is the part of its coast bordering the Pacific Ocean.-The Americas:Countries on the western side of the Americas have a Pacific coast as their western border.* Geography of Canada* Geography of Chile* Geography of Colombia...
. He stood high in the Masonic
Freemasonry
Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation that arose from obscure origins in the late 16th to early 17th century. Freemasonry now exists in various forms all over the world, with a membership estimated at around six million, including approximately 150,000 under the jurisdictions of the Grand Lodge...
fraternity
Fraternal and service organizations
A "fraternal organization" or "fraternity" is a brotherhood, though the term usually connotes a distinct or formal organization. Please list college fraternities and sororities at List of social fraternities and sororities.-International:...
, the members of which arranged to send a large delegation at the time of his death.
Charles S. Fairfax died suddenly at age 40 at Barnum's City Hotel in Baltimore
Baltimore
Baltimore is the largest independent city in the United States and the largest city and cultural center of the US state of Maryland. The city is located in central Maryland along the tidal portion of the Patapsco River, an arm of the Chesapeake Bay. Baltimore is sometimes referred to as Baltimore...
, Maryland, after having traveled east as a chairman
Chair (official)
The chairman is the highest officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office is typically elected or appointed by the members of the group. The chairman presides over meetings of the assembled group and conducts its business in an...
of the California delegation to the Democratic National Convention, which was assembled in New York City. He is interred in Rock Creek Cemetery
Rock Creek Cemetery
Rock Creek Cemetery — also Rock Creek Church Yard and Cemetery — is an cemetery with a natural rolling landscape located at Rock Creek Church Road, NW, and Webster Street, NW, off Hawaii Avenue, NE in Washington, D.C.'s Michigan Park neighborhood, near Washington's Petworth neighborhood...
, Washington, D.C., as is his widow.
External links
- Charles S. Fairfax at the Political GraveyardThe Political GraveyardThe Political Graveyard is a website and database that catalogues information on more than 224,000 American political figures and political families, along with other information.-History:...
- MarinDirect.com – Bio. of Charles S. Fairfax with photo
- California Historical Landmark 679: Home of Charles S. Fairfax
- Journal of San Diego History – Showalter and Piercy