Robert McHenry (born Robert Henry Brewster; July 23, 1827 – June 24, 1890) was an American rancher, politician, and banker noted for his residence, the McHenry Mansion.

Early life

Born in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

, Lamoille County,

Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

, McHenry was a direct descendant of William Brewster, a ''

Mayflower ''Mayflower'' was an English sailing ship that transported a group of English families, known today as the Pilgrims, from England to the New World in 1620. After 10 weeks at sea, ''Mayflower'', with 102 passengers and a crew of about 30, reac ...

'' passenger who later became a leader and preacher in

Plymouth Colony Plymouth Colony (sometimes spelled Plimouth) was the first permanent English colony in New England from 1620 and the third permanent English colony in America, after Newfoundland and the Jamestown Colony. It was settled by the passengers on t ...

. McHenry's father was Leonard Brewster, and his younger brother was Leonard Oramil Brewster. His family moved from Vermont to

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

in 1833, where he enlisted in the Army but later deserted during the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

. In 1859, he married Matilda Margaret Hewitt (1838-1896) of

Farmington, California Farmington is a census-designated place (CDP) in San Joaquin County, California, San Joaquin County, California. The population was 220 at the 2020 census, up from 207 at the 2010 census. History Farmington was so named to distinguish its agricu ...

, the daughter of

Irishman The Irish ( or ''Na hÉireannaigh'') are an ethnic group and nation native to the island of Ireland, who share a common ancestry, history and culture. There have been humans in Ireland for about 33,000 years, and it has been continually inhab ...

Samuel Hewitt. Their first and only son, Oramil McHenry, was born in 1861 on the family's Bald Eagle Ranch.

Later life and death

When

Modesto Modesto ( ; ) is the county seat and largest city of Stanislaus County, California, United States. With a population of 218,069 according to 2022 U.S. Census Bureau estimates, it is the 19th-most populous city in California. Modesto is locate ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, was established, McHenry bought property at 15th and I streets there for the purpose of building his new residence, which would be closer to his work as cashier of the Modesto Bank. The house, called the " McHenry Mansion," was described by local newspapers as one of the finest residences ever built in Modesto at the time. Robert and Matilda McHenry became prime benefactors of Modesto as they contributed to the construction of the First Presbyterian Church of Modesto and the McHenry Library. Robert McHenry died of a

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

in 1890 in Modesto and is buried in Acacia Memorial Park in Modesto. Robert McHenry's son, Oramil, moved into the McHenry Mansion after the death of his mother Matilda. Oramil lived there with his wife Louise and their three children, Robert, Albert and Ora Louise. Oramil and Louise McHenry divorced in 1901. In 1902 Oramil married Myrtie Conneau and they had one child, Merle, in 1903. Merle and his wife, Marcella Bricca, had two sons: Martin (1932-2013) and Malcolm. Martin C. McHenry was survived by his wife, Patricia; children Michael, Christopher, Timothy, Jeffrey, Paul, Kevin, William, Monica, Martin C. Jr., and the late Mary Ann; fifteen grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McHenry, Robert 1827 births 1890 deaths People from Cambridge, Vermont Ranchers from California California local politicians American bankers 19th-century American politicians