Doctor Isaac Atwood prominently connected with several valuable mines in Shasta County, is a native of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, born September 24, 1812. His father, John Atwood, Jr., was a native of Connecticut. The Atwoods of the United States sprung from three brothers, who came from England in an early day. One located at Boston, one on the Hudson River, opposite Albany, and the third in the Green Mountain State, the first being the Doctor’s branch of the family tree. His father married Miss Nancy Lester, a native of Berkshire County, Massachusetts. She was Elihu Lester’s daughter, who was at the Boston Tea Party of Revolutionary fame. He served his country throughout that struggle as a valiant soldier, lost the sight of one of his eyes in the struggle, settled in Massachusetts at the close of the Revolution and lived there until he died. It was his misfortune to lose his other eye by an accident, and was blind several years before his death.

The Doctor had eight brothers and sisters, and only himself and a sister now survive. The sister is now the wife of D. C. Wood, of Lake Mills, Wisconsin. In 1836 the family removed to Jefferson County, Wisconsin. The whole family settled there and a portion of his life he worked at contracting and building; was one of the workmen on the old capitol building of Wisconsin. For several years he was interested in and ran a saleratus factory at Lake Mills. Early in the history of Wisconsin he was in horticultural business and had one of the first vineyards in the State. For many years, too, he was interested in the nursery business. Later in his life he owned and ran a Turkish bath institution in Minneapolis, and was very successful in the same up to 1886, when he came to California. Here he spent the first nine months at San Jose.

He then went to San Francisco, and was for some time interested in the sale of magnetic goods. While there he became interested in mines and mining stock, and has organized, with other Eastern capitalists, five mining companies in California, -- the Eureka, Tellurium, Annarena, Clear Creek and the Heckla. Their shares were all paid up and not assessable, and they have the money in the treasury to develop them. The work is in rapid progress. These mines have large quantities of very rich ore. At the Tellarium mine they have 290 acres of land, and the ore at two different assays has given over $33,000 of gold to the ton. Dr. Atwood owns a one-fourth interest in these mines. He intends, as a result of these mines, to found a home for aged people at some point in California.

He is both a Mason and an Odd Fellow.

He has been married thrice; first in 1838, to Miss Mary Wheeler. They had three children, born in Wisconsin, namely: George, Herbert and Emily. Mrs. Atwood died in 1852, and some years after he married Julia Whitney, by whom he had five children, three of whom are living, namely: Savel, Clara and Florence. His wife died in 1871, and in 1872 he married Mrs. Haskell, who had five children by her former husband, born in Wisconsin, namely: Charles, Helena, Byron, May E. and Alice. The Doctor affiliates with the Republican party; was a Postmaster in Lake Mills, Wisconsin, before the last war, and is an intelligent and worthy citizen.

Source: Memorial & Biographical History of Northern California,
The Lewis Publishing Co., 1891
Transcribed by Kathy Sedler