Contra Costa County Biography

CAPTAIN JOHN B. TURNER 

Transcribed by Sally Kaleta, December, 2006.

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Captain John B. Turner was one of the oldest residents of Antioch. In early days 
- the '50s - he was captain of a steamboat called the "Antioch" which plied 
between Antioch and Collinsville. It was his delight to relocate incidents of 
early California history in which he took part and tell anecdotes of the 
prominent men of that time, with most of whom he had a personal acquaintance. 
The bell in the belfry of the Antioch Methodist Church was once on the old 
schoolhouse, then opposite the present school, and was at one time his property 
away back in the '50s when the bell was used on steamboats instead of a whistle. 
He left a large family that was his particular pride. He taught his family one 
principle that is frequently overlooked. They have the true family affection and 
love for each other. They are as closely knit by the bonds of love and 
affection, due to the family tie, as any family we have known. His father, 
Thomas Turner, was a pioneer of the great West, and built the first fort in 
Missouri, during the Black Hawk War. The decedent, John B. Turner, came to 
California in 1849, and settled on the San Joaquin, where, with his two 
brothers, he was connected with the cattle business. In 1863 he moved to Antioch 
and engaged in the steamboat business in company with his brother, Captain Abe 
Turner. His wife, who was Miss Maria Fleming, was born in Dunsmore, Galway 
County, Ireland, in 1847, and sailed for San Francisco with friends in 1869. A 
short time afterward she came to Antioch, where she met Captain J. B. Turner, of 
the ferry steamer "Antioch," and following a short courtship was married to the 
prominent river man. Never was there a more devoted mother, whose every thought 
was for her children, while the latter always considered her comfort. They left 
a large family to mourn them - eight boys and three girls: Thomas, John B., 
George A., James T., Lillie E., William G., Frank M., Bert, Ruth, Ben, and 
Sadie.
 
Source: "The History of Contra Costa County, California", Elms Publ. Co., 1917, 
pp. 504-505.