Sixty Years of California Song | Page 3

Park Cabin, Lake Tahoe, Dedicated July 4, 1893. Col. Richard
Parnell, Sole Survivor of the Battle of Balaklava faces page 148
Mrs. Blake-Alverson in 1852, 1864, 1874, 1880, 1905 faces page 156
A Group of Friends, Distinguished Singers in the Seventies and
Eighties: Mrs. Margaret C. Pierce, Mrs. Sarah Watkins-Little, Mrs.
Blake-Alverson, Mrs. Helen Wetherbee, Mrs. Marriner-Campbell faces
page 160
Lee Tung Foo, Pupil in the Nineties faces pages 164 and 166
Mrs. Blake-Alverson and Her Two Sons, Wm. Ellery Blake, George
Lincoln Blake faces page 172
Associated Musicians and Singers, 1854-1900: Frederick Zech, Henry
Wetherbee, Adolph Klose, S. Arrillaga, William P. Melvin, John W.
Metcalf, Wm. M'F. Greer faces page 176
Trophies and Tributes Presented Mrs. Blake-Alverson faces page 180
"Sam" Booth, Popular Political Poet and Campaign Singer in San
Francisco in the Seventies page 184
Mechanics' Institute Fair, 1879. Mrs. Blake-Alverson in Costume faces
page 188
Civil War Mailing Envelopes, 1861. Co. K, Seventh California
Volunteers, Capt O.P. Sloat, from San Bernardino, 1898 faces page
192

Stephen W. Leach, Musical Director, Buffo Singer, Actor in San
Francisco in the Seventies and Eighties faces page 228
Joran Quartette, 1883: Lulu, Pauline and Elsie Joran and Mrs.
Blake-Alverson faces page 246

PORTRAITS OF PUPILS
FACES PAGE
Akerly, Mrs. 240 Allison, George 244 Ames, Lucille E. 268 Avan,
Clara 224
Bassford, Mrs. Mayme 236 Beam, Edith 196 Beam, Mary R. 204
Beretta, Chelice 208 Bishop, Biddle 196 Bisquer, Marceline 272 Blake,
Mrs. William E. 212 Bonske, Hazel 272 Bouton, Cloy 208 Bradley,
Dolores 256 Brainard, Birdie 196 Brainard, Carrie 196 Brainard, Mrs.
Hattie 196 Bruce, Florence 240 Bruce-Schmidt, Mrs. Winona 244
Bruce-Wold, Mrs. Ruth 240 Bullington, Marie 272
Caldwell, Mrs. O.B. 240 Case, Mrs. J.R. 220 Caswell, Mabel 208
Champion, Rose 236 Christofferson, Jennie 236 Cianciarolo, Lucia 268
Collins, Dr. Addison 208 Collins, Mrs. Minnie M. 208 Cooke, Grace
260 Crandall, Harry 236 Crew, Josie 212 Crossett, Louisa 212 Culver,
Susan 220 Cushing, Lillian 224
Davies, Alice 256 Deetkin, Marjorie 268 Derby, Hattie 224 Dickey,
Lorena 244 Dobbins-Ames, Mrs. Grace E. 220 Dowdle, Everett S. 212
Dowling, Gertrude 252 Dowling, Leo 260 Drake, Mabel L. 244
Faull, Rose 196 Faull, Sophia 196 Ferguson, Dolores D. 244 Flick,
George 240 Foo, Lee Tung 164 and 166
Garcia, Louisa 240 Gerrior, Maud 256 Glass, Mrs. Louis 204 Graves,
Bessie 196 Graves, Gussie 204 Greer, Yvonne 272 Griswold, Geneva
256

Harrold, Elizabeth 204 Harrold, Mary 204 Hermansen, Christine 260
Hitchcock, Ruth A. 260 Hunt, Elsie Mae 236
Jackson, Geo. 256 Jones, Ethel 212 Jones, Ilma 260 Jory, Lilian 208
Keith, William H. 80 Kiel, Stella 252 Kimball, Lorena 244 Koch, Ada
220 Kroh, Blanche 256 Kroh-Rodan, Mrs. Mary 252 Krueckle, Anna
252
Lahre, Freda 240 Lanktree, Elizabeth 236 Lanktree-Kenney, Mrs. Sue
240 La Rue, Grace 212 Lessig, Mrs. Chas. 212 Louderback, Mrs.
Caroline 252 Louderback, Jean 244
McMahan, Bernard 244 McMaul, Juliet 244 Monnet-Swalley, Mrs.
Emma D. 224 Mulgrew, Margaret 272 Munch, Mrs. Emma A. 268
Nagle-Pittman, Mrs. Ethel B. 240 Newell, Bessie G. 220 Noonan, Elsie
236
Oakes, Margaret 212 Osborn, Anita 260
Peterson, Geo. G. 220 Peterson, Minnie 224 Peterson, Pauline 224
Pollard, Daisy 208 Pollard, Etta 208
Ramsey, Peter 256 Rayburn, Mrs. Cora 236 Riley, Mrs. Edna 268 Riley,
Ruth 268
Sanford, Alice M. 268 Sanford, Edw. H. 256 Shaw, Lauretta 220
Shultz, Sarah 272 Sroufe, Georgia 196 Sroufe, Susan 196
Sroufe-Tiffany, Mrs. Dollie 196 Starkey, Irma 268 Stewart-Jolly, Mrs.
May 204 Stewart, Sue 208
Teague, Mrs. Walter E. 272 Thomas, Edward 224 Tregar, Mme. Annie
204
Valentine, Inza 252 Valentine, Stella 252 Van Winkle, Ada 196
Victory, Arthur 236
Whitney, Mae 204 Wood, Dr. J.B. 224 Woodworth, Leslie E. 256

Worden, Nettie 204
Zimmerman, Charlotte 224
CHAPTER ONE
ANTECEDENTS AND CHILDHOOD
As far back as I can remember my life was associated with music.
Father and mother were both highly gifted. In our family were three
boys and seven girls, and each possessed a voice of unusual excellence.
The looked-for pleasure every day was the morning and evening
worship at which the family gathered in the sitting room to hear the
word of God explained by my father, Rev. Henry Kroh, D.D. The dear
old German hymns, Lobe den Herren, O Meine Seele, Christie, du
Lamm Gottes and others, were as familiar to me as the English hymns
of today, such as Nearer my God to Thee and All Hail the Power of
Jesus' Name. We were not blessed with children's songs, as are the
children of today, but sang the same hymns as the older members of the
congregation.
Father was descended from a royal Holland family. One of his
ancestors was the favorite sister of Admiral Theobold Metzger, Baron
of Brada, Major-General of all the Netherlands, who died of paralysis
in the sixty-sixth year of his life, February 23, 1691,