>Hello All, > >I have a letter from my ggrandfather, Robert Buchanan Curtis b. March 4, >1873, and need some clarification. He wrote this letter himself to his >employer, John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance. The notes in quotes I added for >clarity. > >"At age 13(just orphaned) I was sent to California(1886) where I lived on a >ranch - attended school in the winter time and did a man's work until I was >about 17. When I finished Public School, I took a business College Course at >Stockton, Calif., and graduated and then attended a Normal Institue - there >until I was 21 when I returned to New York and entered the Dry Goods business >with my brother." > >My questions are: Is anyone aware of a ranch that would also be a orphanage? >What college would be in Stockton in the 1880's and what is a Normal >Institute? It is a mystery as to why he was sent to California when he had >family in NY. > >Thank you, >Linda > >______________________________ Hi On question "Is anyone aware of a ranch that would also be a orphanage?", a possibility is he was sent to live with a relative rather than an orphanage. You did not indicate where he was sent from, but it's somewhat unlikely that someone would pay to have a 13 year old shipped any great distance (i.e., from outside of California) without some familial obligation. On question about schools: Info on below based on STOCKTON ALBUM, THROUGH THE YEARS; V Covert Martin,1959, Simard Printing, Stockton CA; Lib Congress Catalog Card# 59-15935 Presuming ggrandfather was in high school (typical for age 13-17) he would have graduated in about 1890. The only public high school in Stockton at that time was the "Washington School" (Stockton High School was not built until 1904). However, if he was on a ranch, there could have been other high schools open in outlying communities. I have no data on them for that time frame. The business college normal institute sounds like a possible combination of following from page 161 of the above reference: "One of the more successful private schools in Stockton was known as the Stockton Business College. It was organized by Fisher R. Clarke in 1875, in Hickman Hall, at Hunter Street and Weber Avenue and, then, because of the pressure of enrollment, found new quarters at the McKee Building on the southwest corner of Hunter and Main Streets. Later the school was moved to the southwest corner of Hunter Street at Miner Avenue. Although Clarke planned only a business curriculum, demands for additional courses forced the school to expand into a normal school. W. C. Ramsey took over the school and erected a brick building at California and Channel Streets, now known as the Exchange Building. The building to the east was used as a dormitory for out-of-town students. The average attendance was five hundred, and many of our business leaders were educated in the Stockton Business College. Later this college was purchased by John R. Humphreys and became Humphrey's Business College." Based on the above, I suspect Normal Institute in this case means a training school that offered courses with no specific orientation; could also mean a "teachers college". If Humphrey's Business College is still in operation, you might check with them for more detailed insights about Stockton Business College. Hope this is of some help. Vern D