Monthly Archives: July 2015

Jennie Megquier’s letters from Gold Rush San Francisco record a few interesting notes about clothing. In November 1849 she wrote: I have starched twenty shirts this evening. I tell you this to give you an idea of the amount of … Continue reading →

. . . after they’ve seen San Francisco? It didn’t take long for San Francisco to work her magic on Jennie Megquier. She wrote about the folks at home in Maine, “I have seen so much of things a little … Continue reading →

Jennie Megquier ran a boarding house in San Francisco, and the work was never-ending. She writes: I should like to give you an account of my work if I could do it justice. . . In the morning the boy … Continue reading →

The Megquiers shipped a “portable iron house” to San Francisco, figuring it would be a good investment in a city where people were living in shacks and tents, and indeed it was. They used the ground floor for a store, … Continue reading →

Mary Jane, known as Jennie, arrived in San Francisco on June 13, 1849. Her husband, Thomas Megquier, was a medical doctor and planned to practice medicine and open a drug store. Jennie knew she could make money running a boarding … Continue reading →