Santa Monica owes a large debt to Nevada Senator John P. Jones. Jones struck it rich in the silver mines of the Comstock Lode. His varied career included stints as the sheriff of Trinity County in the Gold Country of Northern California and a failed campaign to be become the lieutenant governor of California. After his successful silver strike (at the time it was valued at $600 million), he returned to politics and was elected to represent Nevada in the Senate. He held the job for thirty years. After striking it rich and being elected to the senate, Sen. Jones was bitten by the railroad bug. He purchased a stake in the Rancho San Vicente y Santa Monica and in 1875 with his partner Robert S. Baker he laid out the new town of Santa Monica. The town was to be the terminus of his new railroad that would bring silver ore from Death Valley to the coast for shipment from the pier at Santa Monica.
The railroad flopped never reaching beyond downtown Los Angeles, but the town thrived. Situated on the edge of the bluff overlooking the Pacific Ocean, blessed with cool breezes and sunshine, it was one of the first beach resorts on the coast of California. Senator Jones and his partner R.S. Baker donated the area at the top of the bluff as a park, preserving it as open space for the use of the public. Sen. Jones built a beautiful mansion across the street naming it Miramar. His family lived there much of the time and he spent as much time there as his busy career would allow. When he was in residence, he could often be found in the park watching the sunset. He was much admired in his day and was involved with the continuing development of the Santa Monica area. Sen. Jones retired from the senate in 1903 and lived the rest of his life at Miramar dying there in 1912
Sen. Jones had many friends and business partners in Santa Monica, and in 1923 they decided to honor his memory with a bench on the site in Palisades Park where Sen. Jones used to go each afternoon to watch the sunset. Harry Gorham, the senator’s nephew, led the effort enlisting Gen. Moses H. Sherman, E.P. Clark, Robert C. Gillis, Roy Jones, Sam Jones, Frank Bundy, Judge Hutton, and Henry Engelbrecht to donate $1,000 each. Robert Farquahar, the senator’s son-in-law and a prominent architect, designed a curving 20 foot seat with a center column.
Gorham included a picture of Farquahar’s sketch in his thank you to R. C. Gillis for his contribution. It was filed with Gorham’s letter in the correspondence files of the Santa Monica Land & Water Company and remained there until found recently. The men who erected the memorial chose the words “Pioneer of the West, Statesman, Philosopher, and Friend” as their tribute to Jones many contributions to Santa Monica and the nation. The foundations were laid in 1923 and the bench was in place by mid 1924. The seat is still there so that visitors to Palisades Park can enjoy the same view so loved by Senator Jones. More about Senator Jones and Santa Monica in Westside Chronicles.