Washington Michael Jacobs
Encyclopedia
Washington Michael Jacobs (August 29, 1828 — May 23, 1899) was born in Balford, South Carolina
to Ann Baldwin Jacobs and Cornelius Jacobs in the United States of America. Both of his parents were natives of South Carolina and his mother was a native of Charleston
.
In 1849 he moved to San Francisco, California
traveling aboard ship by way of Cape Horn
. He spent about six years, from 1850 to 1856, in California and western Arizona. At Ajo, Arizona
he worked as an assayer
in the mines near Yuma
and Arizona City. He then lived in Victoria, British Columbia
, Canada and later made his way to South America, living in Chile
, Bolivia
, and Peru
, where he was engaged in mining
also.
In 1874 he married Miss Rosa Mulet, the accomplished French-Chilean daughter of a merchant in Valparaíso, Chile. They moved to Lima, Peru where he began interests in mines and politics and, published a semi-weekly newspaper, El Tumbes, and the Imprenta Americana. For a time he served as the American Vice-consul
at Lima, Peru. Four of their eight children were born in Peru: Elizardo Antonio Jacobs (September 2, 1875- November 28, 1950), Leyendo (1876-), Laura (1877-), and Ricardo Benjamin Jacobs (better known as Benjamin R. Jacobs
) (March 15, 1879-February 3, 1963).
At the outbreak of war between Bolivia
and the joint forces of Chile
, and Peru
in 1879, the War of the Pacific
, the Jacobs family returned to Oakland, California and shortly afterward, moved to Tucson, Arizona
. After arriving in the "Old Pueblo" in March 1880, he established an assay office
(the "Washington M. Jacobs Assay Office and Chemical Laboratory") and continued in the assay business until he died on May 23, 1899 while visiting Los Angeles, California
. Rosa Jacobs was a respected music teacher in Tucson and, later, Oakland and San Francisco.
During the time the Jacobs lived in Tucson he owned and operated several mines in the Mexican state of Sonora
as well as in Arizona
. Some were silver
mines.
In 1883, Jacobs was one of the parties involved in the famous San Ricardo mine case, which finally was decided by the Arizona Territory Supreme Court
in 1886 and reported in Volume II of Arizona Supreme Court
case records. The case was over the role of assayers when acting as brokers between mine vendors and mine purchasers.
In 1884 in partnership with Tom Childs
, Sr., Jacobs re-located the Ajo Mines and established a permanent camp where they began working and mining copper
, and processing the ore from the mine. A small ore
milling
plant was established about 1897 that was operated by Jacobs and his sons. The Ajo mines were sold by Childs and Jacobs to A. J. Shotwell, a promoter, in the fall of 1898. At the time of his death, the vast ore body had yet to be worked. Not until 1912 did a well-financed operation open the large depost via an open pit copper mine. The holdings were later sold to the Phelps Dodge Corporation, now Freeport McMoRan.
Washington Michael Jacobs was duly elected as Justice of the Peace
of the Tucson Precinct of Pima County in 1887 and started his term of office on January 1, 1888 for a period of two years. He served as precinct judge during elections in the 1890s, a respected citizen of Tucson.
In their youths, his sons worked in the assay shop and chemical laboratory. One, Dr. Benjamin R. Jacobs
, became a prominent early biochemist in Washington, D. C. and New York City. Wash Jacob's oldest son, Elizardo, continued in his father's footsepts as Tucson assayer and mining engineer. Elizardo graduated from the mining scool at the University of Arizona, where he also worked in the school's assay lab for $45 per month while in school. In 1901 he opened the E A Jacobs assay office at Congress and Main, Tucson. He married Bella Amanda Carrillo from a prominent Tucson family. They had ten children. His sons Bejamin, E. A, Jr. and Arthur continued the business on Main and, after the urban renewal/removal of the barrio, at South 10th Avenue. Washington Michael Jacob's descendants kept the assay business going in Tucson until July 2011, when great grandson Michael Jacobs retired (Arizona Daily Star [Tucson] July 17, 2011 on-line). At 131 years, the Jacobs family assay office tradition was the oldest in the country when it closed.
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
to Ann Baldwin Jacobs and Cornelius Jacobs in the United States of America. Both of his parents were natives of South Carolina and his mother was a native of Charleston
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
.
In 1849 he moved to San Francisco, California
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...
traveling aboard ship by way of Cape Horn
Cape Horn
Cape Horn is the southernmost headland of the Tierra del Fuego archipelago of southern Chile, and is located on the small Hornos Island...
. He spent about six years, from 1850 to 1856, in California and western Arizona. At Ajo, Arizona
Ajo, Arizona
Ajo is a census-designated place in Pima County, Arizona, United States. The population was 3,705 at the 2000 census. Ajo is located on State Route 85 just from the Mexican border. It is the closest community to Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument....
he worked as an assayer
Assayer
An assayer is a person who tests ores and minerals and analyzes them to determine their composition and value. They may use spectrographic analysis, chemical solutions, and chemical or laboratory equipment, such as furnaces, beakers, graduates, pipettes, and crucibles.An assayer separates metals...
in the mines near Yuma
Yuma, Arizona
Yuma is a city in and the county seat of Yuma County, Arizona, United States. It is located in the southwestern corner of the state, and the population of the city was 77,515 at the 2000 census, with a 2008 Census Bureau estimated population of 90,041....
and Arizona City. He then lived in Victoria, British Columbia
Victoria, British Columbia
Victoria is the capital city of British Columbia, Canada and is located on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific coast. The city has a population of about 78,000 within the metropolitan area of Greater Victoria, which has a population of 360,063, the 15th most populous Canadian...
, Canada and later made his way to South America, living in Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
, and Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
, where he was engaged in mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
also.
In 1874 he married Miss Rosa Mulet, the accomplished French-Chilean daughter of a merchant in Valparaíso, Chile. They moved to Lima, Peru where he began interests in mines and politics and, published a semi-weekly newspaper, El Tumbes, and the Imprenta Americana. For a time he served as the American Vice-consul
Consul (representative)
The political title Consul is used for the official representatives of the government of one state in the territory of another, normally acting to assist and protect the citizens of the consul's own country, and to facilitate trade and friendship between the peoples of the two countries...
at Lima, Peru. Four of their eight children were born in Peru: Elizardo Antonio Jacobs (September 2, 1875- November 28, 1950), Leyendo (1876-), Laura (1877-), and Ricardo Benjamin Jacobs (better known as Benjamin R. Jacobs
Benjamin R. Jacobs
Benjamin Ricardo Jacobs, Ph.D. was born at the American Consulate in Lima, Peru to Rosa Mulet Jacobs of Valparaíso, Chile, a French-Chilean, and Washington Michael Jacobs of South Carolina in the United States. Originally christened April 5, 1879 as Ricardo Benjamin Jacobs he later changed his name...
) (March 15, 1879-February 3, 1963).
At the outbreak of war between Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
and the joint forces of Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, and Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
in 1879, the War of the Pacific
War of the Pacific
The War of the Pacific took place in western South America from 1879 through 1883. Chile fought against Bolivia and Peru. Despite cooperation among the three nations in the war against Spain, disputes soon arose over the mineral-rich Peruvian provinces of Tarapaca, Tacna, and Arica, and the...
, the Jacobs family returned to Oakland, California and shortly afterward, moved to Tucson, Arizona
Tucson, Arizona
Tucson is a city in and the county seat of Pima County, Arizona, United States. The city is located 118 miles southeast of Phoenix and 60 miles north of the U.S.-Mexico border. The 2010 United States Census puts the city's population at 520,116 with a metropolitan area population at 1,020,200...
. After arriving in the "Old Pueblo" in March 1880, he established an assay office
Assay office
Assay offices are institutions set up to assay precious metals, in order to protect consumers. Upon successful completion of an assay, Assay offices are institutions set up to assay (test the purity of) precious metals, in order to protect consumers. Upon successful completion of an assay, Assay...
(the "Washington M. Jacobs Assay Office and Chemical Laboratory") and continued in the assay business until he died on May 23, 1899 while visiting Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
. Rosa Jacobs was a respected music teacher in Tucson and, later, Oakland and San Francisco.
During the time the Jacobs lived in Tucson he owned and operated several mines in the Mexican state of Sonora
Sonora
Sonora officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 72 municipalities; the capital city is Hermosillo....
as well as in Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
. Some were silver
Silver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
mines.
In 1883, Jacobs was one of the parties involved in the famous San Ricardo mine case, which finally was decided by the Arizona Territory Supreme Court
Supreme court
A supreme court is the highest court within the hierarchy of many legal jurisdictions. Other descriptions for such courts include court of last resort, instance court, judgment court, high court, or apex court...
in 1886 and reported in Volume II of Arizona Supreme Court
Arizona Supreme Court
The Arizona Supreme Court is the state supreme court of the U.S. state of Arizona. It consists of a Chief Justice, a Vice Chief Justice, and three associate justices. Each justice is appointed by the governor of Arizona from a list recommended by a bipartisan commission. Justices stand for...
case records. The case was over the role of assayers when acting as brokers between mine vendors and mine purchasers.
In 1884 in partnership with Tom Childs
Tom Childs
Tom Childs, , whom the Papago knew as "Muta" , was born in Yuma, Arizona, United States, on June 10, 1870.-Father:...
, Sr., Jacobs re-located the Ajo Mines and established a permanent camp where they began working and mining copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
, and processing the ore from the mine. A small ore
Ore
An ore is a type of rock that contains minerals with important elements including metals. The ores are extracted through mining; these are then refined to extract the valuable element....
milling
Mill (grinding)
A grinding mill is a unit operation designed to break a solid material into smaller pieces. There are many different types of grinding mills and many types of materials processed in them. Historically mills were powered by hand , working animal , wind or water...
plant was established about 1897 that was operated by Jacobs and his sons. The Ajo mines were sold by Childs and Jacobs to A. J. Shotwell, a promoter, in the fall of 1898. At the time of his death, the vast ore body had yet to be worked. Not until 1912 did a well-financed operation open the large depost via an open pit copper mine. The holdings were later sold to the Phelps Dodge Corporation, now Freeport McMoRan.
Washington Michael Jacobs was duly elected as Justice of the Peace
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...
of the Tucson Precinct of Pima County in 1887 and started his term of office on January 1, 1888 for a period of two years. He served as precinct judge during elections in the 1890s, a respected citizen of Tucson.
In their youths, his sons worked in the assay shop and chemical laboratory. One, Dr. Benjamin R. Jacobs
Benjamin R. Jacobs
Benjamin Ricardo Jacobs, Ph.D. was born at the American Consulate in Lima, Peru to Rosa Mulet Jacobs of Valparaíso, Chile, a French-Chilean, and Washington Michael Jacobs of South Carolina in the United States. Originally christened April 5, 1879 as Ricardo Benjamin Jacobs he later changed his name...
, became a prominent early biochemist in Washington, D. C. and New York City. Wash Jacob's oldest son, Elizardo, continued in his father's footsepts as Tucson assayer and mining engineer. Elizardo graduated from the mining scool at the University of Arizona, where he also worked in the school's assay lab for $45 per month while in school. In 1901 he opened the E A Jacobs assay office at Congress and Main, Tucson. He married Bella Amanda Carrillo from a prominent Tucson family. They had ten children. His sons Bejamin, E. A, Jr. and Arthur continued the business on Main and, after the urban renewal/removal of the barrio, at South 10th Avenue. Washington Michael Jacob's descendants kept the assay business going in Tucson until July 2011, when great grandson Michael Jacobs retired (Arizona Daily Star [Tucson] July 17, 2011 on-line). At 131 years, the Jacobs family assay office tradition was the oldest in the country when it closed.