Ingersoll's Century History Santa Monica Bay Cities (Being Book Number Two of Ingersoll's Century Series of California Local History Annals), 1908, 1908a, 1896
[p. 161] Chapter II Laying the Foundations. 1870-1880.
[p. 243] Annual Assessment of City of Santa Monica, 1887-1907, 1908a
1896 $1,799,545.00
[p. 161] . . . At twenty-three, she [Mary Ellen Vawter] married Ward Leavitt [ -1896] of Chatauqua, N.Y. In the spring of 1875, Mr. and Mrs. Leavitt with their daughter, Florence, removed to California. They were stockholders in the Indiana colony, but after [page 162] a brief residence there located in Santa Monica. In 1880 they returned to Pasadena and lived for some years upon their orange ranch. In 1887 they again located in Santa Monica, where Mr. Leavitt died, October 23th, 1896.
" . . .
[p. 163] He [W.S. Vawter] was one of the members of the City Water Company incorporated in 1896 to supply Ocean Park with water and has been connected with many other local business ventures.
" . . .
[p. 163] He [E.J. Vawter] was president of the City Water Company organized in 1896 to supply the district known as Ocean Park with water . . .
" . . .
[p. 250] Chapter VI South Santa Monica and Ocean Park
On June 30th, 1896, the first electric car made its initial trip through South Santa Monica, after a day of strenuous labor on the part of the employees and officials of the Los Angeles and Pacific electric line. Their subsidy of $5,000, given by W.S. and E.J. Vawter, for what was known as the "loop line," expired at midnight of June 30th, and the work had been delayed to the last possible moment. At 9:55 p.m., the first car left the corner of Ocean and Oregon avenues and, after crossing the bridge, ran down Second street to Hill street, thence eastward to Fourth and returned to Ocean avenue. The car and its occupants were given an informal but none the less hearty welcome by the [p. 251] South Siders, who felt that at last they were to be brought into touch with the world (North Beach). The coming of the electric line was, indeed, a great advance for this settlement which had been so long hampered by poor transportation facilities. This year Santa Monica began to talk seriously of the sewage problem and proposed to locate it's outfall at a point south of the city limits. From this time on date the sewer troubles of the beach.
In July, an old-time auction sale with all its accompaniments, took place, H.L. Jones reviving his "Ocean Spray" tract which had been first exploited in 1887 and going one better on the methods of boom days by offering "one lot free for the lucky holder of a thirty round-trip ticket." At this time the Santa Fe was giving transportation at very reasonable rates to prospective purchasers of Ocean Park property. Ben E. Ward, now of lamented memory, was the auctioneer and eighty-eight lots were disposed of by his beguiling words-and the very real attraction of the location.
" . . .
[p. 269] Chapter VII. Public Institutions: Schools
[p. 269] School Trustees of Santa Monica
1895-96: R.P. Elliot, Dr. J.J. Place, Nathan Bundy (Clerk).
1896-97: R.P. Elliot, S.F. Carpenter, Fred H. Taft (Clerk).
" . . .
[p. 282] Newspapers
. . In February, 1896, Mr. Gillis became sole proprietor of the Outlook; in April, D. G. Holt joined Mr. Gillis in the publication of the Outlook. Since that date Mr. Holt has continued as editor and publisher of the paper.
[p. 280, D.G. Holt, 1908b]
On Monday, June 8th, 1896, appeared the first number of the Santa Monica Evening Outlook, a four-page, five-column daily. It continued in this form until November, 1891 [sic, 1901?], when it was enlarged to six columns. June 14th, 1902, the paper was doubled in size, becoming eight pages.
" . . .
. . . [p. 282] In 1896 Messrs. Woodworth and Barrackman began the publication of the Southern Signal, which later became the Signal [1896-1888], a weekly and daily paper.
" . . .
[p. 287] [Santa Monica] City Officials.
1896. Board of trustees, Robert F. Jones, J.J. Carrillo, R.C. Gillis, Moses Hostetter, N.A. Roth, Jones being president; clerk, C.S. Dales; treasurer, E.W. Boehme; marshal, George B. Dexter; attorney, R.R. Tanner; library trustees, Dr. P.S. Lindsey, Fred H. Taft, J.Walter Gray, T.H. Wells, William Stevenson.
" . . .
[p. 288] Chapter VIII Churches and Societies: Methodist Church; Baptists
. . . on August 13th, 1895, ground was broken for this building [the Santa Monica Methodist Church] and on the first Sabbath in 1896, the most beautiful Methodist church building in Southern California was dedicated.
" . . .
[p. 298] Chapter VIII Baptist Church
. . . [p. 298] In 1896 the [Baptist] church at Palms ceased to exist and the interest fell off very materially at Ocean Park. July 26th, Rev. Mr. French, who had located in Ocean Park for his health, began to hold services in the chapel and organized a new Sunday school. He also organized a Baptist church of sixteen members. In September, 1896, Rev. T.F. Tooker took charge of the little church and conducted the services and Sunday school for some time.
" . . .