Francis Mellus (February 3, 1824 – September 14, 1864), brother of Henry Mellus, was a

Los Angeles County Supervisor The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors (LACBOS) is the five-member governing body of Los Angeles County, California, United States. History On April 1, 1850 the citizens of Los Angeles elected a three-man Court of Sessions as their first ...

and a successful California business man. Francis Mellus, born in

Salem, Massachusetts Salem ( ) is a historic coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, located on the North Shore of Greater Boston. Continuous settlement by Europeans began in 1626 with English colonists. Salem would become one of the most significant seaports tr ...

, was a younger brother of Henry Mellus.

California

In 1839 he came to

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

in Mexican Alta California, and was employed as clerk by his brother Henry. As noted in his journal, he worked for a Mr. Thompson for at least 3 years. Reference Journal of Francis Mellus from June 11, 1838, to March 26, 1847. Francis Mellus bought hides for this company along the coast of California, taking the goods by sailing ship to

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United State ...

, where they were dried, and when a sufficient quantity was collected to fill a trading ship, usually took a couple of years' time, Mellus sent the goods to the East Coast.

Los Angeles

After 11 years of that work he came to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

, where he entered the general merchandise business with David W. Alexander, under the firm name of Alexander & Mellus. Francis married Adelaida Johnson (the daughter of James (Santiago) Johnson and a sister of Henry Mellus’s wife Anita). James J. Mellus was the son of Francis Mellus. Francis Mellus was elected to the

Los Angeles Common Council The Los Angeles Common Council was the predecessor of the Los Angeles, California, City Council. It was formed in 1850 under state law, when the city had only 1,610 residents, and it existed until 1889, when the city had about 50,400 residents and ...

, the governing body of the city, on May 1, 1854. He was chosen to be council president. Mellus resigned from the council on December 8, 1854. Mellus was a member of the California State Assembly, representing 1st Assembly District, from 1855–56. In 1858 he was elected to the

Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors (LACBOS) is the five-member governing body of Los Angeles County, California, United States. History On April 1, 1850 the citizens of Los Angeles elected a three-man Court of Sessions as their firs ...

. After the ending his partnership with Alexander in 1863, Francis Mellus was representative for the Wells Fargo Express Company until his death in 1864. Francis Mellus' widow, Adelaida Mellus, married his partner Alexander in 1864.''Sixty years in Southern California, 1853–1913, containing the reminiscences of Harris Newmark'',1916, The Knickerbocker press, New York

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mellus, Francis American merchants 1824 births 1863 deaths Los Angeles Common Council (1850–1889) members 19th-century American politicians Mellus, Francis Members of the California State Assembly Politicians from Salem, Massachusetts 19th-century American businesspeople