The Early Years
1840’s to 1888
Captain Weber, The Settlement of Stockton, & The Bucket Brigade
Being an alien Captain Weber could not secure a grant of land from the Mexican government; California was at that time the property of Mexico, so he formed a partnership with William Gulnae, a man born in New York who had married a Mexican woman and sworn allegiance to the southern republic, and he petitioned for and secured a grant to the eleven square leagues of land on the east side of the San Joaquin River.”
On July 25, 1843, the property known as Campo De Los Franceses (Camp of the Frenchmen) was granted by a Mexican Governor to WM. Gulnae and his business partner Captain C. M. Weber . The grant designated 48,747 acres located east of the San Joaquin River to be given to the two men to manage. In April 1845, the partnership dissolved and Captain Weber became the sole owner. Due to a combination of the San Joaquin’s fertile land, the network of delta waterways to the San Francisco Bay, and a goods shop owned and managed by Weber, the settlement of Stockton became a growing tent city. (Peterson Research, D.O.T.)
The Origins of the Webers Bucket Brigade. (History of the Stockton Fire Department 1850-1908)
“The first voluntary fire company, the Weber Bucket Brigade, had been formed in 1849, but it’s only equipment was wooden buckets that were passed hand to hand and a few barrels of water placed at intervals along the street.” (Stockton Album Through The Years by V. Covert Martin, Ch.5)
The Fire Of 1849 & The Call To Action
“The first great fire was that of December 23, 1849; […][it] destroyed the entire business section of town which was bounded by Weber Avenue, El Dorado, Main, and Center streets with a total of $200,000.” (Stockton Album Through The Years by V. Covert Martin, Ch.5)
Publication reflecting June 15, 1850 as the first arranged mass meeting organizing a City Council, Act Of Incorporation of Stockton as a city, and a Fire police. James E. Nuttman is one of five that sit on a committee to organize the Fire police. (H. Spencer Research, Haggin Museum)
On June 26, 1850 James E. Nutmann was chosen to act as Chief Engineer, A. C. Bradford as Assistant Chief, and Emil Junge as Secretary. Captain C. M. Weber procured a small hand engine from San Francisco, placed in a barn near his home, and gave his permission for the newly formed fire company to use the engine until it was purchased by the council at an agreed price of $3,799.
Praise for a Performance at a fire in 1852.
