Obit: FOLEY, James H
Author: Don Stowell Date: 24 Jun 2004 12:22 PM GMT
Classification: Obituary
Posted by East Kern Genealogical Society
THE BACKROAD GRAVE
BY JON HAMMOND SPECIAL FROM THE TEHACHAPI NEWS
When I have to drive to the Antelope Valley or Los Angeles, I nearly always go the back way. Anyone who has lived in Tehachapi for very long understands that "the back way" means following Willow Springs Road to 90th Street West. This route is far more interesting to me than driving on Highway 58.
When taking the back road, there is much for an observant traveler to see, particularly if you've been over the route a few hundred times. One landmark I always look for is located near the junction of Willow Springs Road and Oak Creek Road.
It's actually easier to see on your way home to Tehachapi. As you drive west on Willow Springs heading for Tehachapi, you pass Oak Creek Energy Systems' wind farm and then begin a short descent. At the bottom of this incline is Oak Creek Road. If you glance ahead to the left as you pass the crossroads and start up the steep grade toward the summit, you can see a small white fence that looks like it could be some kind of a utility installation.
Could be, but isn't. It is a grave.
Francis M. Foley came to California from Texas in the late 1850s. He worked as a teamster, hauling freight with oxen. He settled in Tehachapi around 1860, after having swapped his team and wagon to John Moore Brite for some land.
Francis and his brother George lived at the head of Water Canyon in a large house that was divided down the middle. Each man lived with his family in half of the house.
A few years later, another brother left Texas to join his siblings in Tehachapi. James Henry Foley was 21 years old when he traveled by wagon train to El Monte, in Southern California. There he bought a saddle horse and headed for Tehachapi. He didn't make it.
James Foley rode into Oak Creek Station and could go no further. He had contracted smallpox since leaving Texas and was too ill to continue. Family members were told of his condition. Francis Foley rode to his brother's side and stayed with him at Oak Creek Station until he died.
Because smallpox was greatly feared by others, Francis could not bury his little brother at the Tehachapi Cemetery. Instead, he went out alone and dug a grave on a lonely windswept knoll over looking the Mojave Desert. He put his brother's body in the ground and covered him with sandy soil. Francis later paid a man to build a fence of cedar around the gravesite.
The Foley family left the Tehachapi area in 1878 and moved to Washington.
In the 1920s, Francis Foley's son Barnett came through Tehachapi with his mother, who by that time was a widow. They visited the old homestead in Water Canyon and then looked for James Foley's grave at Oak Creek.
They found the grave all but forgotten, the fence laying on the ground. A new picket fence was built and placed around the site.
In the past, Foley family descendants maintained the gravesite, but little has been done to it in recent years. The white picket fence needs a new coat of paint, so I bought a couple gallons after taking the photos for this column and I'll go repaint it next week. There have been profound changes in Tehachapi since Francis Foley buried his brother, but the Oak Creek area still looks much the same. There are wind turbines, power lines and a paved road, but the view from the gravesite hasn't changed greatly.
It is still a uniquely diverse area, biologically speaking, where valley oaks, blue oaks, Joshua trees, willows, and junipers all grow together in a mixture of desert, riparian and chaparral ecosystems.
I stop occasionally as I travel on Willow Springs Road to admire the view and reflect on the circumstances that have allowed me to enjoy such a rewarding life in Tehachapi while an earlier young man didn't quite make it to start his new life in the Tehachapi Valley.
When I do stop, I leave a few fragrant blossoms on the grave of James H. Foley, age 21.
Father: Barnett Folly Folley Foley
Mother: Julia "Julian" Ann July Ann Merrill
1860 US Census
Name: James Foly
Age: 17
Birth Year: abt 1843
Gender: Male
Birth Place: Missouri
Home in 1860: El Monte , Los Angeles , California
Post Office: El Monte
Dwelling Number: 86
Family Number: 81
Married Within Year: Yes
Household Members:
Name Age
W D Bealle 28
Sarah C Bealle 25
Henry J Bealle 2
Warren W Bealle 2/12
Francis M Foly 24
James Foly 17
1850 US Census
Name: James H Folly
Age: 10
Birth Year: abt 1840
Birthplace: Missouri
Home in 1850: District 72, Pulaski, Missouri, USA
Gender: Male
Family Number: 289
Household Members:
Name Age
Jacob Rigsbery 27
July Ann Rigsbery 38
Joseph P Folly 17
Eliza J Folly 15
Frances M Folly 14
Norcisse E Folly 13
Louisa A Folly 12
James H Folly 10
Thomas J Folly 6
George W Folly 3
Author: Don Stowell Date: 24 Jun 2004 12:22 PM GMT
Classification: Obituary
Posted by East Kern Genealogical Society
THE BACKROAD GRAVE
BY JON HAMMOND SPECIAL FROM THE TEHACHAPI NEWS
When I have to drive to the Antelope Valley or Los Angeles, I nearly always go the back way. Anyone who has lived in Tehachapi for very long understands that "the back way" means following Willow Springs Road to 90th Street West. This route is far more interesting to me than driving on Highway 58.
When taking the back road, there is much for an observant traveler to see, particularly if you've been over the route a few hundred times. One landmark I always look for is located near the junction of Willow Springs Road and Oak Creek Road.
It's actually easier to see on your way home to Tehachapi. As you drive west on Willow Springs heading for Tehachapi, you pass Oak Creek Energy Systems' wind farm and then begin a short descent. At the bottom of this incline is Oak Creek Road. If you glance ahead to the left as you pass the crossroads and start up the steep grade toward the summit, you can see a small white fence that looks like it could be some kind of a utility installation.
Could be, but isn't. It is a grave.
Francis M. Foley came to California from Texas in the late 1850s. He worked as a teamster, hauling freight with oxen. He settled in Tehachapi around 1860, after having swapped his team and wagon to John Moore Brite for some land.
Francis and his brother George lived at the head of Water Canyon in a large house that was divided down the middle. Each man lived with his family in half of the house.
A few years later, another brother left Texas to join his siblings in Tehachapi. James Henry Foley was 21 years old when he traveled by wagon train to El Monte, in Southern California. There he bought a saddle horse and headed for Tehachapi. He didn't make it.
James Foley rode into Oak Creek Station and could go no further. He had contracted smallpox since leaving Texas and was too ill to continue. Family members were told of his condition. Francis Foley rode to his brother's side and stayed with him at Oak Creek Station until he died.
Because smallpox was greatly feared by others, Francis could not bury his little brother at the Tehachapi Cemetery. Instead, he went out alone and dug a grave on a lonely windswept knoll over looking the Mojave Desert. He put his brother's body in the ground and covered him with sandy soil. Francis later paid a man to build a fence of cedar around the gravesite.
The Foley family left the Tehachapi area in 1878 and moved to Washington.
In the 1920s, Francis Foley's son Barnett came through Tehachapi with his mother, who by that time was a widow. They visited the old homestead in Water Canyon and then looked for James Foley's grave at Oak Creek.
They found the grave all but forgotten, the fence laying on the ground. A new picket fence was built and placed around the site.
In the past, Foley family descendants maintained the gravesite, but little has been done to it in recent years. The white picket fence needs a new coat of paint, so I bought a couple gallons after taking the photos for this column and I'll go repaint it next week. There have been profound changes in Tehachapi since Francis Foley buried his brother, but the Oak Creek area still looks much the same. There are wind turbines, power lines and a paved road, but the view from the gravesite hasn't changed greatly.
It is still a uniquely diverse area, biologically speaking, where valley oaks, blue oaks, Joshua trees, willows, and junipers all grow together in a mixture of desert, riparian and chaparral ecosystems.
I stop occasionally as I travel on Willow Springs Road to admire the view and reflect on the circumstances that have allowed me to enjoy such a rewarding life in Tehachapi while an earlier young man didn't quite make it to start his new life in the Tehachapi Valley.
When I do stop, I leave a few fragrant blossoms on the grave of James H. Foley, age 21.
Father: Barnett Folly Folley Foley
Mother: Julia "Julian" Ann July Ann Merrill
1860 US Census
Name: James Foly
Age: 17
Birth Year: abt 1843
Gender: Male
Birth Place: Missouri
Home in 1860: El Monte , Los Angeles , California
Post Office: El Monte
Dwelling Number: 86
Family Number: 81
Married Within Year: Yes
Household Members:
Name Age
W D Bealle 28
Sarah C Bealle 25
Henry J Bealle 2
Warren W Bealle 2/12
Francis M Foly 24
James Foly 17
1850 US Census
Name: James H Folly
Age: 10
Birth Year: abt 1840
Birthplace: Missouri
Home in 1850: District 72, Pulaski, Missouri, USA
Gender: Male
Family Number: 289
Household Members:
Name Age
Jacob Rigsbery 27
July Ann Rigsbery 38
Joseph P Folly 17
Eliza J Folly 15
Frances M Folly 14
Norcisse E Folly 13
Louisa A Folly 12
James H Folly 10
Thomas J Folly 6
George W Folly 3
Obit: FOLEY, James H
Author: Don Stowell Date: 24 Jun 2004 12:22 PM GMT
Classification: Obituary
Posted by East Kern Genealogical Society
THE BACKROAD GRAVE
BY JON HAMMOND SPECIAL FROM THE TEHACHAPI NEWS
When I have to drive to the Antelope Valley or Los Angeles, I nearly always go the back way. Anyone who has lived in Tehachapi for very long understands that "the back way" means following Willow Springs Road to 90th Street West. This route is far more interesting to me than driving on Highway 58.
When taking the back road, there is much for an observant traveler to see, particularly if you've been over the route a few hundred times. One landmark I always look for is located near the junction of Willow Springs Road and Oak Creek Road.
It's actually easier to see on your way home to Tehachapi. As you drive west on Willow Springs heading for Tehachapi, you pass Oak Creek Energy Systems' wind farm and then begin a short descent. At the bottom of this incline is Oak Creek Road. If you glance ahead to the left as you pass the crossroads and start up the steep grade toward the summit, you can see a small white fence that looks like it could be some kind of a utility installation.
Could be, but isn't. It is a grave.
Francis M. Foley came to California from Texas in the late 1850s. He worked as a teamster, hauling freight with oxen. He settled in Tehachapi around 1860, after having swapped his team and wagon to John Moore Brite for some land.
Francis and his brother George lived at the head of Water Canyon in a large house that was divided down the middle. Each man lived with his family in half of the house.
A few years later, another brother left Texas to join his siblings in Tehachapi. James Henry Foley was 21 years old when he traveled by wagon train to El Monte, in Southern California. There he bought a saddle horse and headed for Tehachapi. He didn't make it.
James Foley rode into Oak Creek Station and could go no further. He had contracted smallpox since leaving Texas and was too ill to continue. Family members were told of his condition. Francis Foley rode to his brother's side and stayed with him at Oak Creek Station until he died.
Because smallpox was greatly feared by others, Francis could not bury his little brother at the Tehachapi Cemetery. Instead, he went out alone and dug a grave on a lonely windswept knoll over looking the Mojave Desert. He put his brother's body in the ground and covered him with sandy soil. Francis later paid a man to build a fence of cedar around the gravesite.
The Foley family left the Tehachapi area in 1878 and moved to Washington.
In the 1920s, Francis Foley's son Barnett came through Tehachapi with his mother, who by that time was a widow. They visited the old homestead in Water Canyon and then looked for James Foley's grave at Oak Creek.
They found the grave all but forgotten, the fence laying on the ground. A new picket fence was built and placed around the site.
In the past, Foley family descendants maintained the gravesite, but little has been done to it in recent years. The white picket fence needs a new coat of paint, so I bought a couple gallons after taking the photos for this column and I'll go repaint it next week. There have been profound changes in Tehachapi since Francis Foley buried his brother, but the Oak Creek area still looks much the same. There are wind turbines, power lines and a paved road, but the view from the gravesite hasn't changed greatly.
It is still a uniquely diverse area, biologically speaking, where valley oaks, blue oaks, Joshua trees, willows, and junipers all grow together in a mixture of desert, riparian and chaparral ecosystems.
I stop occasionally as I travel on Willow Springs Road to admire the view and reflect on the circumstances that have allowed me to enjoy such a rewarding life in Tehachapi while an earlier young man didn't quite make it to start his new life in the Tehachapi Valley.
When I do stop, I leave a few fragrant blossoms on the grave of James H. Foley, age 21.
Father: Barnett Folly Folley Foley
Mother: Julia "Julian" Ann July Ann Merrill
1860 US Census
Name: James Foly
Age: 17
Birth Year: abt 1843
Gender: Male
Birth Place: Missouri
Home in 1860: El Monte , Los Angeles , California
Post Office: El Monte
Dwelling Number: 86
Family Number: 81
Married Within Year: Yes
Household Members:
Name Age
W D Bealle 28
Sarah C Bealle 25
Henry J Bealle 2
Warren W Bealle 2/12
Francis M Foly 24
James Foly 17
1850 US Census
Name: James H Folly
Age: 10
Birth Year: abt 1840
Birthplace: Missouri
Home in 1850: District 72, Pulaski, Missouri, USA
Gender: Male
Family Number: 289
Household Members:
Name Age
Jacob Rigsbery 27
July Ann Rigsbery 38
Joseph P Folly 17
Eliza J Folly 15
Frances M Folly 14
Norcisse E Folly 13
Louisa A Folly 12
James H Folly 10
Thomas J Folly 6
George W Folly 3
Author: Don Stowell Date: 24 Jun 2004 12:22 PM GMT
Classification: Obituary
Posted by East Kern Genealogical Society
THE BACKROAD GRAVE
BY JON HAMMOND SPECIAL FROM THE TEHACHAPI NEWS
When I have to drive to the Antelope Valley or Los Angeles, I nearly always go the back way. Anyone who has lived in Tehachapi for very long understands that "the back way" means following Willow Springs Road to 90th Street West. This route is far more interesting to me than driving on Highway 58.
When taking the back road, there is much for an observant traveler to see, particularly if you've been over the route a few hundred times. One landmark I always look for is located near the junction of Willow Springs Road and Oak Creek Road.
It's actually easier to see on your way home to Tehachapi. As you drive west on Willow Springs heading for Tehachapi, you pass Oak Creek Energy Systems' wind farm and then begin a short descent. At the bottom of this incline is Oak Creek Road. If you glance ahead to the left as you pass the crossroads and start up the steep grade toward the summit, you can see a small white fence that looks like it could be some kind of a utility installation.
Could be, but isn't. It is a grave.
Francis M. Foley came to California from Texas in the late 1850s. He worked as a teamster, hauling freight with oxen. He settled in Tehachapi around 1860, after having swapped his team and wagon to John Moore Brite for some land.
Francis and his brother George lived at the head of Water Canyon in a large house that was divided down the middle. Each man lived with his family in half of the house.
A few years later, another brother left Texas to join his siblings in Tehachapi. James Henry Foley was 21 years old when he traveled by wagon train to El Monte, in Southern California. There he bought a saddle horse and headed for Tehachapi. He didn't make it.
James Foley rode into Oak Creek Station and could go no further. He had contracted smallpox since leaving Texas and was too ill to continue. Family members were told of his condition. Francis Foley rode to his brother's side and stayed with him at Oak Creek Station until he died.
Because smallpox was greatly feared by others, Francis could not bury his little brother at the Tehachapi Cemetery. Instead, he went out alone and dug a grave on a lonely windswept knoll over looking the Mojave Desert. He put his brother's body in the ground and covered him with sandy soil. Francis later paid a man to build a fence of cedar around the gravesite.
The Foley family left the Tehachapi area in 1878 and moved to Washington.
In the 1920s, Francis Foley's son Barnett came through Tehachapi with his mother, who by that time was a widow. They visited the old homestead in Water Canyon and then looked for James Foley's grave at Oak Creek.
They found the grave all but forgotten, the fence laying on the ground. A new picket fence was built and placed around the site.
In the past, Foley family descendants maintained the gravesite, but little has been done to it in recent years. The white picket fence needs a new coat of paint, so I bought a couple gallons after taking the photos for this column and I'll go repaint it next week. There have been profound changes in Tehachapi since Francis Foley buried his brother, but the Oak Creek area still looks much the same. There are wind turbines, power lines and a paved road, but the view from the gravesite hasn't changed greatly.
It is still a uniquely diverse area, biologically speaking, where valley oaks, blue oaks, Joshua trees, willows, and junipers all grow together in a mixture of desert, riparian and chaparral ecosystems.
I stop occasionally as I travel on Willow Springs Road to admire the view and reflect on the circumstances that have allowed me to enjoy such a rewarding life in Tehachapi while an earlier young man didn't quite make it to start his new life in the Tehachapi Valley.
When I do stop, I leave a few fragrant blossoms on the grave of James H. Foley, age 21.
Father: Barnett Folly Folley Foley
Mother: Julia "Julian" Ann July Ann Merrill
1860 US Census
Name: James Foly
Age: 17
Birth Year: abt 1843
Gender: Male
Birth Place: Missouri
Home in 1860: El Monte , Los Angeles , California
Post Office: El Monte
Dwelling Number: 86
Family Number: 81
Married Within Year: Yes
Household Members:
Name Age
W D Bealle 28
Sarah C Bealle 25
Henry J Bealle 2
Warren W Bealle 2/12
Francis M Foly 24
James Foly 17
1850 US Census
Name: James H Folly
Age: 10
Birth Year: abt 1840
Birthplace: Missouri
Home in 1850: District 72, Pulaski, Missouri, USA
Gender: Male
Family Number: 289
Household Members:
Name Age
Jacob Rigsbery 27
July Ann Rigsbery 38
Joseph P Folly 17
Eliza J Folly 15
Frances M Folly 14
Norcisse E Folly 13
Louisa A Folly 12
James H Folly 10
Thomas J Folly 6
George W Folly 3
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