Henry Newhall
| Henry Mayo Newhall | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born |
May 13, 1825 Saugus, Massachusetts |
| Died | March 13, 1882 San Francisco, California |
| Occupation | Businessman |
Henry Mayo Newhall (May 13, 1825 – March 13, 1882) was an American businessman whose extensive land holdings became the Southern California communities of Newhall, Saugus and Valencia, and the city of Santa Clarita.
Born in Saugus, Massachusetts, Henry Newhall came to California, like many others, in search of gold during the California Gold Rush. He had been working as an auctioneer when news of the gold rush reached the East Coast. He left by ship, arriving on the West Coast in 1850. However, he had been forced to stop in the Isthmus of Panama for six months to recover from an illness he contracted. Upon his arrival in San Francisco, many of the good mining sites had already been claimed, so he opened an auction house instead. H.M. Newhall & Company became extremely successful.
Newhall's next business interest was railroads. He invested in rail companies that would connect San Francisco to other cities and became president of the San Francisco and San Jose Rail Road. In 1870, when he and his partners sold the company to Southern Pacific Railroad, he joined its board of directors.
After railroads, Newhall turned his eye to auctioneering, real estate and ranching. He purchased 143,000 acres (579 km2) of Mexican land grants, including Rancho Todos Santos y San Antonio, and Rancho Suey in Santa Barbara County, and Rancho El Piojo and Rancho San Miguelito de Trinidad in Monterey County.
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