This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Surnames: Schaff, Classification: Death Message Board URL: http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/rw/JW.2ADE/7779 Message Board Post: Old Pioneer Cy Townsend Passes Away After a prolonged battle with illness, Charles Warren Townsend (known by his baseball name of "Cy") passed on at the Lancaster Community hospital, on Sunday, October 11, 1953, leaving Alma E. Townsend of Mojave, his wife and Hattie Schaff, a sister as survivors. Funeral services were held at Mumaw Funeral Home, Lancaster, at 3 p.m. Wednesday, October 14, 1953, the service being read by Florence Harmon, a Christian Scientist, with interment in Angeles Abby, Compton. The interesting sketch of Mr. Townsend's life follows: After playing professional base ball with the Syracuse Club in the New York State League, and Sacramento, in the California Coast League with which club he also umpIred for a short while, he later played in Bakersfield for the Imperial League. Leaving there he came to Mojave where he homesteaded on the desert in 1914. He ran the French Cafe and Mojave Meat Market for several years then several service stations here for a number of years. About 1924 Mr. Townsend in partnership with I. Blum bought the Mojave Townsite Lots from Mallory and Flannigan. He later had an interest in the Golden Queen Mine as one of the original owners. In 1921 he was elected Justice of the Peace, and served for eight years, declining to run again. At the time he came to Mojave, "J" Street had only wooden plank sidewalks, each walk at a different level; wide wooden canopies over each place of business (also each at a different height); no street lights of any kind; one Chinese restaurant besides the Harvey House and 13 saloons to serve the population of 500 people. In the winter time the streets became so sticky from the wet doby that horses were used to pull the cars out of the mud. For many years water pressure was so low that they could only send a stream about ten feet, and fires were frequent, especially along J Street, usually taking several buildings at a time. Recently he was presented with a beautiful watch by the Sacramento Coast League Club as one of the survivors of the first Sacramento team. He was a life member of the National Baseball Association and had many friends in California and elsewhere. He was born at Cooney Fork, Wisconsin, January 28, 1873. Posted by East Kern Genealogical Society Courtesy of Mojave Desert News California City, Kern, CA Published: 15 Oct 1953