Person:Alpheus Knight (7)

BIOGRAPHY: From Lula Berry White July 4 1995: Grandpa Knight liked the ladies and bars. He was a horse trader.

Alpheus Knight was a mean gambler. Lost a lot of money gambling. He would leave the family alone for along time then show up and leave them a little money and leave again--from the Lulu White granddaughter.

He drove bull teams for the army to California in 1853. He crossed the plains twice.-from Mary Jane Johns distant cousin.

From an old letter to Hazel dated Aug 20, 1972, Granpa told me he saw George Washington before they Burried him. They used to have him in a copper sealed casket that was filled with alcohol. The public could view him, but later the alcohol began to evaporate and George began to deteriorate....Then too, I remember him explaining to me about tomato. He said that "the old timers" did not eat the tomato, that they grew them in their front yard as ornaments and novelties. He said that the "old timers" said "they are poison" they called them "love apples". One time when I was 4 years old he took mama, Aunt Martha, Alta, Rollo, and me to Santa Cruz over the Pacheco Pass in a covered wagon. (people went camping in them in those days) We were camped outside of Watsonville. This place had a table so it had campers before us...One night grandpa took me by the hand and said "Ellen, come with me. I want to show you the pretties. " So we went for a walk and looked down upon Watsonville. I saw beautiful globes of light hanging in the sky!....It was the gas lights....Grandpa saw Haley's Comet when he was a small boy and he looked forward to seeing it in 1910, but the good lord chose to take him in 1908.

!family records also list Paicines as death place. There is a Paicines in San Benito County. Do not know which is correct.

Alpheus Elijah Knight

 Birth: 29 January 1837-- Marion, Indianapolis, IN 
 Death: 6 August 1908 -- Volta 
 Spouse:  Lavina Ellen Smith 
 Parents: William Riley Knight, Eleanor Van Valkenburg

DEATH: Death Certificate transcription, Merced County. Book B-1, page 146 Alpheus Elijah Knight Death date: Aug 6, 1908 Sex: Male Color/Race: White Marital status: Widower Occupation: Veternary Surgeon Birthdate: Jan 29, 1837 Birthplace: Indianapolis, Ind. Name and birthplace of Mother: Eleanor Van Volkenberg, New York City, N.Y. Name and birthplace of Father: William Knight, Connecticut Length of residence at place of death: 34 yrs, in CA: 50 yrs Residence: Volta Place of death: Volta Place of burial: Los Banos Cemetery Undertaker: W.J. Stockton, per C.O. Freeman, Asst. Informant: Henry Knight, Volta Cause of death: Heart failure. W.E. Burch J.P., acting coroner. Aug 7, 1908, Los Banos, CA

LAND: California Land Patents Database MERIDIAN TOWNSHIP RANGE SECTION DOCID DATE NAME MD 0090S 0100E 019 9629 1891/10/02 KNIGHT ALPHEAUS E

CENSUS: 1880 United States Federal Census Name: Alpheaus Knight Home in 1880: Castroville, Monterey, California Age: 43 Estimated birth year: abt 1837 Birthplace: Indiana Relation to head-of-household: Self (Head) Father's birthplace: Virginia Mother's birthplace: Pennsylvania Occupation: Farmer Marital Status: Married Race: White Gender: Male Household Members: Name Age Alpheaus Knight 43 Lovina Knight 38 Henry Knight 15 William Knight 12 Martha Knight 10 Lucy Knight 8 James Knight 6 Christina Knight 3 John Knight 8M Source Citation: Year: 1880; Census Place: Castroville, Monterey, California; Roll: T9_69; Family History Film: 1254069; Page: 182.4000; Enumeration District: 53; Image: 0364.