Jabez Banbury

Banbury married Sarah Elmira Dunton, the eldest daughter of Revd. Solomon Dunton, in November 1854. A year or so later, the couple moved to Marshall County, where Jabez worked as a carpenter and, later, a family grocers. He continued in this role until the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861.^[1]

After the war, he became a United States revenue collector of Marshall County. He later became auditor, but resigned after three-and-a-half years after his health began to fail. He and his family moved to California in 1873, arriving in Los Angeles in December. He built the second home in Pasadena's Orange Grove colonial grounds, a ranch house located between Colorado Boulevard and California Street,^[3][4] on South Orange Grove Avenue near the current Tournament of Roses' Wrigley Mansion.^[5] The home was completed the following March, and he spent the rest of his life there, initially working in the fruit-ranching business, then moved into lumber.^[1]

He was treasurer of the City of Marshalltown, Iowa, for four years, a member of the California State Assembly for two,^[6][7] the first treasurer of the City of Pasadena, for four years, and treasurer of Los Angeles County for four.^[1]

Banbury was one of the founders of the Rose Parade and founding member of the Pasadena School Board of Trustees.^[8][9]

Banbury had three children: Charles Morton (born 1858) and twin daughters Jennie and Jessie (1862). The girls became the first students to attend Pasadena's first school on Orange Grove.^[9]

He was also a Freemason.^[1]

Banbury died on December 9, 1900, aged 70. He is interred in Mountain View Cemetery in Altadena, California,^[10] where he joined his son. He was followed by his wife, who survived him by six years, and daughters.