Thomas Benton Bishop was a well known and successful San Francisco

San Francisco, California

San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...

 attorney.

Biography

Bishop practiced law as Garber, Thornton & Bishop; Garber, Boalt

John Henry Boalt

John Henry Boalt was an attorney who resided in Oakland, California in the late 19th century. His widow, Elizabeth Josselyn Boalt, donated funds to the University of California in 1906 to construct the original Boalt Hall on the Berkeley campus...

 & Bishop; Garber & Bishop; Bishop& Wheeler; Bishop, Wheeler & Hoefler; and as Bishop, Hoefler, Cook & Harwood.

In 1890, Bishop acquired one third of Rancho Dos Pueblos

Rancho Dos Pueblos

Rancho Dos Pueblos was a Mexican land grant in present day Santa Barbara County, California given in 1842 by Governor Juan Alvarado to Nicolas A. Den. The land extended along the Pacific coast to the northwest of the pueblo and Presidio of Santa Barbara, from Goleta Slough west to Dos Pueblos...

 in Santa Barbara County

Santa Barbara County, California

Santa Barbara County is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California, on the Pacific coast. As of 2010 the county had a population of 423,895. The county seat is Santa Barbara and the largest city is Santa Maria.-History:...

 as payment for a lawsuit by the heirs of Nicolas A. Den against Colonel W.W. Hollister (1818 - 1886)

William Welles Hollister

William Welles Hollister was a Californian rancher and entrepreneur.-Ancestors and early life :William Welles Hollister, was born on Jan...

. Bishop took title of the ranch and renamed it Corona del Mar. The balance of the ranch went to the Den heirs. Bishop did not spend much time at the ranch as he lived in his palatial home in Pacific Heights in San Francisco.

In 1892, Bishop acquired Rancho Sisquoc

Rancho Sisquoc

Rancho Sisquoc was a Mexican land grant in present day northeastern Santa Barbara County, California given in 1845 by Governor Pío Pico to María Antonia Dominguez de Caballero...

 in Santa Barbara County. In 1894, Bishop argued the U.S. Supreme Court case California Powder Works vs Isaac E. Davis over title to Rancho Cañada del Rincon en el Rio San Lorenzo

Rancho Cañada del Rincon en el Rio San Lorenzo

Rancho Cañada del Rincon en el Rio San Lorenzo was a Mexican land grant in present day Santa Cruz County, California given in 1843 by Governor Manuel Micheltorena, and confirmed in 1846 by Governor Pío Pico, to Pedro Sainsevain. The name means "valley on a corner on the San Lorenzo River"...

 in Santa Cruz County

Santa Cruz County, California

Santa Cruz County is a county located on the Pacific coast of the U.S. state of California, on the California Central Coast. The county forms the northern coast of the Monterey Bay. . As of the 2010 U.S. Census, its population was 262,382. The county seat is Santa Cruz...

.

In 1895, Bishop acquired 3000 acres (12 km²) of Norris land

Rancho San Ramon (Amador)

Rancho San Ramon was a Mexican land grant in present day Contra Costa County, California given in 1834 by Governor Jose Figueroa to Jose Maria Amador....

 (after a divorce case in which Bishop's law firm represented Margaret Norris) in San Ramon

San Ramon, California

-2010 census:The 2010 United States Census reported that San Ramon had a population of 72,148. The population density was 3,991.1 people per square mile...

. The San Ramon Bishop Ranch raised cattle and sheep and was planted to hay, grain, diversified fruit crops and walnuts. Bishop's Shropshire purebred sheep earned numerous awards. The Ranch was partially irrigated from an underground aquifer and at one point possessed the world's largest single orchard of Bartlett pears.

Josephine Hall Bishop (1841 - 1917), wife of Thomas Benton Bishop, collected and maintained her own private museum on Washington Street in San Francisco.