__NOTOC__ George W. Stockwell was a Los Angeles, California, grocer who was a member of the City Council there from 1894 to 1896, after which he served on the city's Fire Commission.

Biography

Early life and career

Stockwell was born March 29, 1854, in

Eddyville, Iowa Eddyville is a city in Mahaska, Monroe, and Wapello counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 970 at the time of the 2020 census. History ''Circa'' 1839, a Sauk village was established on this site following the end of the Black ...

, the son of James W. Stockwell and Delilah H. Harper, both of Ohio. He was married to Martha Jane Frederick on October 13, 1880, and after she died in 1900 he married Adele Neel on December 30, 1903. He had a brother, W.W. Stockwell; a son. Ralph F Stockwell, and a daughter, Edna D. Stockwell. He was a retail grocer between 1885 and 1912, when he retired. In 1892-93 he was grand master of the

Independent Order of Odd Fellows The Independent Order of Odd Fellows (IOOF) is a non-political and non-sectarian international fraternal order of Odd Fellowship. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Wildey in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Evolving from the Order of Odd ...

in California.Los Angeles Public Library reference file
/ref>"Former Member of Council Dies," ''Los Angeles Times,'' August 29, 1940, page A-2
/ref> He came to Los Angeles in 1885 and was "recognized as a figure in financial circles," being one of the heaviest stockholders in Consolidated Los Angeles Builders.

Accident, incapacity and death

During the Grand Lodge session of the Odd Fellows organization in 1916, Stockwell volunteered to use his automobile to entertain visiting officials."Odd Fellows to Stage Benefit," ''Los Angeles Times,'' June 7, 1916, page II-9
/ref> He was severely injured when the vehicle went into motion while he was trying to start it at Third and Main streets. The ''Los Angeles Times'' reported: that "The unfortunate man endeavored to crank the machine, having forgotten to set the emergency brake, when it lurched forward and passed over his body. . . . Attending surgeons say he sustained a fracture of the spine, a broken rib and internal injuries." A policeman "jumped on a streetcar and overtook the runaway machine which held its course south on Main street. He jumped from the

treet Treet (Armour Star Treet) is a canned meat product similar to Spam first introduced in 1939 by Armour and Company in the United States. Sold as "spiced luncheon loaf", it is made with chicken and pork and has a more finely ground texture than S ...

ar into the automobile and before he could bring it to a stop it had crashed into a heavy truck, wrecking the light machine.""Crushed Under His Own Motor," ''Los Angeles Times,'' May 15, 1913, page II-1
/ref> Doctors at

Good Samaritan Hospital Good Samaritan Hospital or Good Samaritan Medical Center may refer to: India *Good Samaritan Hospital (Panamattom), Koprakalam, Panamattom, Kerala *Good Samaritan Centre, Mutholath Nagar, Cherpunkal, Kottyam, Kerala United States *Banner - Univer ...

said that Stockwell was not expected to live, but he survived, though the expense of his treatment rendered him "almost entirely impoverished." The California Odd Fellows organization organized a "monster benefit entertainment" program of music,

vaudeville Vaudeville (; ) is a theatrical genre of variety entertainment born in France at the end of the 19th century. A vaudeville was originally a comedy without psychological or moral intentions, based on a comical situation: a dramatic composition ...

and dancing on his behalf in the Shrine Auditorium in 1916. He remained an invalid until he died at the age of 86 on August 28, 1940, in his home at 4806 South Gramercy Place in today's Vermont Square district.

Public service

Stockwell, a Republican, was elected to the

Los Angeles City Council The Los Angeles City Council is the legislative body of the Los Angeles, City of Los Angeles in California. The council is composed of 15 members elected from single-member districts for four-year terms. The President of the Los Angeles City Counc ...

in 1894, defeating the incumbent Democrat, Francis M. Nickell, but he was in turn defeated by Nickell in 1896. While on the council he was noted as a firm supporter of establishing a Los Angeles Harbor in San Pedro as opposed to an alternative proposal to build it at Santa Monica"In Favour of San Pedro," ''Los Angeles Times,'' November 29, 1896, page 27
/ref> He was appointed to the city Fire Commission by Mayor George Alexander in 1910 and served until 1913.

References

Access to the ''Los Angeles Times'' links may require the use of a library card. ---- {{DEFAULTSORT:Stockwell, George W. 1854 births 1940 deaths California Republicans American grocers Los Angeles City Council members People from Eddyville, Iowa