Wilhelm Benitz
References in State Records
(Last updated: Saturday May 30, 2009)
The California State Park Service and the Sonoma County Historical Society maintain the best websites on Fort Ross. The web sites are rightly oriented to the founders of Fort Ross, the Russians (1812-1841).
Fort Ross web sites:
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Sonoma County Historical Society On its opening page, in the menu on the left click on Ranch Era (indented beneath Russian American Company). There is an excellent description of Wilhelm Benitz' activities and contributions within the historical context of the fort. |
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Aerial photos of the California coastline Great pictures! Check out the coastline, Fort Ross and Timber Cove. |
Fort Ross book-store:
At Fort Ross the information center has several soft-cover books with photos and detailed descriptions of WOB's period of ownership. We recommend the following two:
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The Caretakers of Fort Ross after the Russian-American Company, published by the Fort Ross Interpretive Association, Inc., general editor Lyn Kalani (19005 Coast Highway One, Jenner, CA 95450, USA). |
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Images of America: Fort Ross and the Sonoma Coast, by Lyn Kalani and Sarah Sweedler, published by Arcadia, 2004. |
At least one of the pamphlets at Fort Ross mistakenly says that the Benitz family was expropriated of its land in Argentina by Peron in the early 1950's. It came close, but a timely donation of a few fat steers by William Agar Benitz to the local politico's favorite charity saved the day.
Fort Ross postal address:
Fort Ross State Historic Park
19005 Coast Highway 1
Jenner, California 95450
Telephone: 707-847-3286
Fort Ross Interpretive Association:
Executive director: Lyn Kalani
E-mail address: fria@mcn.org
In 1950 Alice Houston Luiggi gathered information on Clara Allyn (wife of Wilhelm's son William Otto Benitz) for her book "65 Valiants" about the U.S. teachers invited to Argentina by President Sarmiento. At her request, the staff at the California State Library in Sacramento researched their archives for references to WOB. The excerpts are presented here exactly as provided by the library including the 'sic' and corrections in square brackets [ ].
Relating directly to WOB:
History of California, by Hubert Howe Bancroft, San Francisco History Company, 1886. vol.2, p.716 (Pioneer Register & Index)
"Benitz (Wm), 1841-2, German in Sutter's employ. Arrived Oct.'42 acc. to rolls of the Soc.Cal.Pion.; but in applying for naturalization in '44 he claimed to have come in '41. iv.341. After being for a time in charge of Hock farm, in '43 he took charge of the Ross estate for Sutter, succeeding Bidwell. iv.186, 679. In '44 grantee of the Briesgau rancho in Shasta co. iv.670; in '45 he rented the Ross rancho from Sutter, and later bought part of it; bondsman for some of the Grigsby-Ide immig. iv.679,544,581. Benitz is said to have been the man who was swindled to the extent of $6,000 by the Sutter-Muldrow claim. He lived at Ross till '67; then moved to Oakland; and in '74 went to the Argentine Republic, where he had a brother. He died there in '76, at the age of 62, leaving a family."
Great Register of Alameda County, 1872
Name: Benitz, William
Age: 52
Nativity: Germany
Occupation: Farmer
Residence: Oakland City
Naturalization: Cert. by virtue of treaty with Mex.
[Guadalupe Hidalgo, ending Mexican War]
Date of registration: May, 1867
San Francisco Alta California, Sept. 5, 1876, p.1, c.1
"Death of a Pioneer.
"At his residence in Estancia La California, near Canada de Gomez, Province of Sata [sic] Fe, Argentine Republic, on the 27th of last June, died William Benitz, native of Endingen, Baden, Germany, in his sixty second year. Mr. Benitz came to California in 1842, and resided at Fort Ross, Sonoma county, from 1845 to 1867. Selling the Fort Ross Rancho, he moved to Oakland, where he resided with his family up to July 29th, 1874, at which time he left for the Argentine Republic."
History of Sonoma County, California. Chicago, S.J. Clarke Pub. Co., 1926. vol.1, p.497.
William Benitz and Mrs. William Benitz (daughter of Michael Kolmer).
Portraits.
-- Tuomey, Honoria
Relating to Fort Ross:
An Illustrated History of Sonoma County. Chicago, Lewis Pub. Co., 1889. p.137 (Quoting Sonoma County Journal of May 11, 1860)
Russian American Fur Co. settled at Fort Ross, sold the property to John A. Sutter, who sold to William Muldrow, who pressed his claims against the settlers. "Some... seem to have been fearful that his claim was something more than mere shadow, and we have been informed that Mr. Benitz of the Fort Ross Grant was $6000 poorer on account of his credulity."
[WebNote: See full text.]
History of Sonoma County. San Francisco, Alley, Bowen & Co., 1880. p.372.
"...in 1859 Sutter disposed of his Russian claim...to William Muldrew [sic], George R. Moore and Daniel W. Welty, but they only succeeded in getting six thousand dollars out of one settler."
[WebNote: See full text.]
Relating to New Breisgau:
Reports of land cases determined in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. June term, 1853 to June term, 1858, inclusive. By Ogden Hoffman, District Judge. San Francisco, Numa Hubert, 1862. (Appendix, p.86)
"William Bennitz, claimant for Briesgau, 5 square leagues, in Shasta county, granted July 26th, 1844, by Manuel Micheltorena to Wm. Bennitz; claim filed February 24, 1853, rejected by the [U.S. Land] Commission [for the Northern District of California] April 7th, 1856, decree reversed and cause remanded by the U.S. Supreme Court with direction to dismiss the petition, 23 Howard, 255."
-- U.S. District Court. California (Northern District)
[WebNote: See full text on page dedicated to Rancho New Breigau.]
Relating to Alfred A. Benitz:
San Francisco Call, September 5, 1893, p.3, c.7
A. Benitz, son of William, visits U.S.; studies ranching methods; describes his Argentine rancho; interview
