Santa Clara County Biographies This file is part of the California Genealogy & History Archives http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cagha/index.htm CHARLES F. W. HERRMANN SURVEYOR of SANTA CLARA COUNTY SURNAMES: PURGOLD, HOERST A finely-trained, experienced and thoroughly practical civil engineer and surveyor is Charles Herrmann of San Jose, for three terms the surveyor of Santa Clara County. He was born in Germany in April, 1846, the son of A. Herrmann, a German by birth, and his English-born wife, who was Eliza Purgold before her marriage. Charles attended the Polytechnic Schools at Hanover and Carlsruhe, and in 1865 was graduated as a civil engineer. Then he accepted the post of mechanical engineer on the steamer Saxonia, and made about twenty trips between New York and Germany. In 1867 he took up civil engineering and surveying in his native land. In the spring of 1869, Mr. Herrmann came out to California by way of the Isthmus of Panama, and having a brother, A. T. Herrmann at San Jose, he came here and spent a couple of years at which time they established the firm of Herrmann Bros., civil engineers and surveyors. Later he was in the employ of the Southern Pacific at Sacramento for a year as mechanical engineer and on returning to San Jose he devoted his time to the interests of Herrmann Bros. He and his brother made the first complete map of Santa Clara County, which gives each subdivision of land with the owners' names, school districts, roads and other very desirable data; it took two years, and the assessments for 1873-74 were based on this map, and from it all later maps of the county have been made. During his public service as surveyor of Santa Clara County--for three years--Mr. Herrmann and his brother laid out Lick Avenue, popularly known as the Mt. Hamilton Road, to Lick Observatory. At Sacramento on April 14, 1872, Mr. Herrmann was married to Miss Helen Hoerst, a native of Germany, but who was reared in this country from the age of four years and with whom he has traveled life's journey in the eventful intervening years. A Republican given to standing by the party in matters of national moment, Mr. Herrmann is still so deeply interested in Santa Clara County and all that may pertain to its promising future, that he never favors partisanship as a local issue. He owns a summer home at Saratoga, but has always lived San Jose. He remains active in the Germania Club, and belongs to Schiller Lodge No. 105, I. O. O. F. of Sacramento, and lives the exemplary life of a patriotic American. Transcribed by Marie Clayton, from Eugene T. Sawyers' History of Santa Clara County,California, published by Historic Record Co. , 1922.page 500 [Ed. note: Numerous maps are noted via an internet search-----Thompson, G. H. and A.T. HERMANN. 1881. Plat of the Pueblo Lands of San Jose. Finally confirmed to Mayor and Common Council of the City of San Jose. Surveyed under Instruction from The United States SURVEYOR General by G. H. Thompson (1866) and A.T. HERMANN (1879). Final Approval April 2nd, 1881. Map on file, California State Office, Bureau of Land Management, Sacramento.] CHARLES HERRMANN Charles Herrmann was born in Germany, in 1846, his parents being Adolph and E. (Purgold) Herrmann, both natives of that country. He was educated at the Polytechnic School at Hanover and Carlsruthe, in Germany, graduating in 1865 as a mechanical engineer. He at once accepted a position in that capacity on a steamer plying between New York and a German port, and also made one trip to New Orleans as engineer on the Saxonia. In 1867 he gave up this employment and devoted his time to the study of civil engineering and land surveying in Germany. In the spring of 1869 he came to California from his native land, via New York and the Panama route, coming direct to San Jose. Here he continued the study and practice of surveying, with his brother, A. T. Herrmann, two years, when he went to Sacramento City and there was employed by the Southern Pacific Railroad Company, in his former profession as mechanical engineer and locomotive builder. After remaining there about two years, he returned to San Jose and resumed his occupation of land surveying, to which he has since devoted his time exclusively. He and his brother made the first complete map of Santa Clara County, which contains the subdivisions of land with the owner�s name, also the school districts, roads, etc.; this work occupied nearly two years, and the map formed the base of the assessments of the year 1873-74. From this all later maps of the county have been constructed. He has been elected County Surveyor of Santa Clara County three terms. One term he was obliged to resign the office and return to Germany to settle some affairs that required his attention. In 1882, when General Stoneman was elected Governor of this State, the only Republicans elected to office in this county were Messrs. Herrmann, Chipman, and Harris. Mr. Herrmann was married, in 1872, to Miss Helen Hurst, a native of Germany, who came with her parents to this country when she was but four years of age. Mr. Herrmann owns sixty acres of land about nine miles from San Jose, on the Young road, near the Lieb orchard and the Hecney vineyard. This he intends to plant in prunes and apricots. Mr. Herrmann is, and ever has been, an ardent adherent of the Republican party, and believes in the protection of American industries. Pen Pictures From The Garden of the World or Santa Clara County, California, Illustrated. - Edited by H. S. Foote.- Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company, 1888. Pg. 366-367 Transcribed by Kathy Sedler Proofread by Betty Vickroy