Los Angeles County, CA, Biographies

This file is part of the California Genealogy & History Archives 
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cagha/index.htm


MARTIN LUPER, 
 
a farmer three miles south of Norwalk, is a native of the Keystone State, born 
in Crawford County, Pennsylvania, in 1817, and is a son of Jacob and Nancy 
(McMurtry) Luper. His father moved to Huron County, Ohio, when Martin was twelve 
years old, and there followed farming until his death. Mr. Luper went to 
Illinois when a young man, and there, on October 24, 1841, married Margaret 
Robinson, who died April 11, 1844, leaving one child. He married Frances Dunbar, 
April 14, 1846, with whom he crossed the plains in the early days of California, 
coming with three two-horse wagons and eighteen yoke of cattle, about half of 
them being cows, and one span of mules and one of mares. They were on the way 
from April till August 27, 1853. His wife died May 16, 1859, leaving five 
children. He followed farming very successfully in the Willamette Valley, 
Oregon, till 1878, when he moved to Los Angeles County. Since coming here he has 
also been very successful. He owned a fine farm near Downey till recently, when 
he sold out at a handsome profit and bought 160 acres of land where he now 
lives. He has built a very commodious residence and barn, overlooking the finest 
scope of country toward the ocean that can be seen in this county. On this ranch 
he has two fine artesian wells, and has planted some fine orchards of bluegum, 
oranges, peaches and apricots; and in his wide and fertile pastures may be seen 
some of the finest horses in this or any other part of the State. Mr. Luper 
married Mary Gosner in Los Angeles, February 8, 1889. She is a native of the 
Buckeye State, being born near Mount Vernon, and is a daughter of Dr. Joseph and 
Sarah (Plue) Gosner. Her father was of Pennsylvania Dutch origin, and her mother 
of French. Her father was a farmer in his early life, but later a practicing 
physician. Mr. Luper has been a man of energy and eminently successful. He is 
one to whom " Nature has been kind," and in his old days, which are now 
beginning to come on, he will be able to extract as much comfort from life as 
any man living.
 
An Illustrated History of Los Angeles County, California �  Chicago, The Lewis 
Publishing Company, 1889   Page 534
Transcribed by Kathy Sedler