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Show * w^ f% BiiSii| i my* JOHN JUDGE, 99 O n May 6, 1845, in County Sligo, Ireland, was born a boy called John after his father. Originally McBrehoney, this Gaelic family name had been changed to Judge, its anglicized equivalent, during the reign of Elizabeth I. Although the soil of the Irish coast was thin and unproductive for anything except potatoes, generations of the Judge family had managed a living in that locality. But with the advent of the potato famine in 1846 the only escape from starvation was to emigrate. John and Annie Judge with their one- year- old son left the isle of their ancestors and came to America, landing at Port Henry on Lake Champlarn in New York. They settled at Moriah where they farmed almost a hundred acres of land. When the boy was old enough he went to work in the iron mines not far from his father's farm, and at the outbreak of the Civil War he joined the Second New York Cavalry. He fought in a number of battles, until he was shot, captured, and thrown into prison. During his imprisonment he managed an escape, but after two days bloodhounds located him and he was returned to prison where he remained for the duration of the war. For the rest of his life he carried the scars of his bitter experience. After his return to New York he became acquainted with the petite and beautiful Mary Harney, the daughter of James and Elizabeth Harney who were also natives of Ireland. They had emigrated from Ireland to Alexandria, Canada, where Mary was born in 1841. She and John were united in marriage in 1867 and settled down to having a farnily which would consist of Elizabeth, Agnes, Frances, Katharine, and John Francis. Johnjudge 100 Nine years later John Judge set out for Salt Lake City where he had friends and found work, first as a guard at the territorial penitentiary, then in the Ontario Mines of Park City. He was next attracted to the Wood River area of Idaho, but after trying that for a while, he returned to Utah in time to obtain work in the newly opened Daly Mine. There he became superintendent, and a lasting friendship grew between him and John Daly, the mine owner. Judge was a persevering worker as he toiled along with the men in the dripping waters and close air of the drifts. When indications of ore bodies which had been counted on failed, he never allowed himself to become discouraged, his optimism a reassurance to the other miners. Although he was of slight build and stood but five feet eight inches tall, he had a commanding presence. Sometimes brusque and his voice sometimes harsh, Judge nevertheless had the miners' respect. In time, he became one of the lessees of the Mayflower Mine and also a part owner in the Silver King with his friends Thomas Kearns and David Keith. In failing health when the Silver King Mining Company was organized, he declined to take his place on its board of directors. Just at the time the Silver King was paying its first real dividends, Judge was dying of miner's consumption. His lungs had become hardened from the powder smoke and dust; and on September 9, 1892, at the early age of forty-eight, he died, knowing that his family would realize the security that would come from his years of toil and his investments. During Judge's life in Park City his family lived in Salt Lake City. He stayed at the mine boardinghouse during the week and came to the valley only on Sundays. After the death of her husband, Mary Judge invested her dividends in real estate in Salt Lake City and mining property in White Pine County, Nevada, n i D i , naSsSai; W^ V * V %* il " A II *? "/ • ; • . . . • W m John Judge, in foreground, working the drifts of the Daly Mine. 1 0 1 where John Daly had good connections. These investments greatly benefitted her fortunes. At the time of her death in 1909 her real property was estimated to be worth three million dollars. A dozen business buildings in downtown Salt Lake City, as well as a large number of houses, lots, and other property were among her holdings. She had proved herself a capable businesswoman. Mary Harney Judge as she looked later in her life. Mrs. Judge was attracted by the emerging architectural grandeur of East Brigham Street in the mid- 1890s. She decided to purchase a large lot on the corner of " J" Street on which to build a new home, plus a carriage house, stable, tennis court, and chicken coops. The home became a center of activity. As time went on the ladies of the Judge family became a part of the social whirl. Reserved and serious in public, Mary was warm, compassionate, and charming in her private life, having the faculty of drawing people around her. There were rounds of golf and chatter about tournaments, horseback riding in the country, beaus, dances, parties, and teas. Their " at homes" were well attended, receiving special mention in society news columns. A country home in Holladay gave the family an added social advantage and a retreat from the summer heat of the city. Mary herself was also a competent horsewoman. She had a beautiful matched team, as well as a favorite horse, Bill, used when she drove out alone. In later years traveling became an adventure for Mary; on one of her trips to Japan she visited an orphanage operated by French nuns and there found four young Japanese girls whom she brought to America. Each of the married daughters invited one of the girls to become a part of her family. The orphan girls formed attachments for their new homes and 102 Twelve- foot clock once owned by the Judge family was presented to the Utah State Historical Society. Photo taken in 1971. families and remained with them for many years. It was quite a sight for visitors to the Judge home to see the maids in their colorful kimonos helping with the children and attending to the family's other needs. Mary enjoyed the visits of her grandchildren and often made strange little hollyhock ladies and showed them many other wondrous things that could be made from nature's gifts. The same year the home was under construction, Mrs. Judge made a proposal to Bishop Lawrence Scanlan concerning plans for a memorial to her late husband. She had long dreamed of a home for aged and infirm miners where they could receive proper care and medical treatment. The bishop was to draw on her bank account for all expenditures. Property was purchased on Tenth East between Sixth and Seventh South; but Mary was never to see her dream fulfilled, for she died in 1909, one year before the hospital and chapel were completed. But as events would have it, the hospital was short- lived. The number of miners taking advantage of its services did not begin to fill the three hundred beds. In 1915 the building was converted into the Catholic school that still bears the family name. Nor was the hospital Mary's sole endowment. Others included a generous contribution toward the erection of the Cathedral of the Madeleine, construc- 103 ed at the same time as the miners' home, a ten thousand dollar check to the Young Men's Christian Association, and a number of beautiful windows for the chapel at All Hallows College. As Bishop Scanlan eulogized at her life's end, there was no way of estimating the amount of money she dispensed in private charities and benefactions. After the death of Mary Judge, Frances and Agnes kept the home for Katharine, the youngest sister, and a temporary residence for their own families on visits. But Katharine eventually went to Washington, D. C., to live with Agnes and her husband, Theodore Baldwin, and the home stood a lonely place. It was later rented for a time, but unfortunate circumstances with renters caused the family great concern. Also, during the 1910s many of the Brigham Street residences were becoming boardinghouses, and the family, having too much pride to see the family home accept this fate, decided to have it demolished. For over a half- century a vacant lot, a broken concrete path, traces of a fine wrought- iron fence, and a carriage stoop shunted to one side marked the place where once stood the gracious home of the Judge family. & JOHNJUDGE 737 East South Temple Built 1896 Architect: D. C. Dart Owner: Mary H. Judge Demolished 1913 104 |
