The Superintendents & Their Legacies

Preston School of Industry, Ione, CA-

In previous blog posts and also mentioned within my book "Behind The Walls," I touch on the subject of mistreatment to the wards, under the supervision of the acting superintendents.

The first superintendent. E. Carl Bank, was accused of mistreatment only after he fired some of his employees at the school. There really wasn't enough evidence to prove the case, so nothing was done.  Bank was booted out of his position in favor of Edward Stephen O'Brien, for sheer political reasons, leaving many to wonder if the accusations of mistreatment were just a farce to soil his reputation.  Unfortunately, the era of actual abuse and mistreatment was just about to begin at Preston. The second superintendent, E.S. O'Brien ruled with an iron fist and it was his reputation that brought such reproach to the school that it was dubbed, "The Preston School of Scandal." His methods of torture and abuse was unfathomable, making his role at Preston, not that of just a superintendent, but that of a tyrant as well.  (To read about E.S. O'Brien, click here.)

Even after several affidavits to the authorities from not only wards, but staff and doctors who had good standing in the community, nothing seemed to happen. Even the Governor himself couldn't touch O'Brien. It seemed he had some friends in really high places, which kept him out of reach for any sort of disciplinary action.  Eventually though, the media attention he was getting must have got the better of O'Brien, so he resigned from his position, but not before threatening everyone that if he was continually smeared any further in the papers, that he would sue them.

The next superintendent to take on the job was D.S. Hirshberg. His time at Preston, January 1, 1898 up to December 15, 1900, was not without its share of scandals.  According to the Preston School of Industry's Biennial Report for 1896-1898, the "Corporal Punishment" section reads:

 “When low or base things are practiced , it becomes necessary to resort to vigorous punishment, which, however, is inflicted with discretion.”

 It goes on to say:  “Punishment is never inflicted without knowledge or authority of the Superintendent, and always in his presence, but never by him.”

On his watch, there was the ingenious escape of  Robert Byrd, and also the death of Joseph Morgan, a ward who was killed while attempting to escape. Those events alone brought so much unwanted attention, along with Hirshberg's open view of corporal punishment, making it necessary for him to resign his post and pass the torch to yet another superintendent.

C.B. Riddick entered the scene on December 16, 1900.  During Riddick's time at Preston there was only one reported death of a ward, June 24, 1902.  The young man's name was John Lawne, and his cause of death was reported in the Biennial Report as tuberculosis. The feat that Riddick managed to hold down his post at Preston for nearly four years without any sort of scandal was impressive, given the reputation of his predecessors. The Amador Ledger spoke of this accomplishment in an article mentioning Riddick's resignation in 1903.

"Superintendent Riddick Resigns-- The San Francisco Chronicle says that J.B {sic} Riddick, who for the past four years has filled the responsible position of superintendent of the Preston Reform school at Ione, has sent in his resignation, to take effect in December next. With many who desire the welfare of the institution, this action on the part of the superintendent will be regretted. The place is an arduous one; not every good man can manage a reformatory of this kind with credit. It must be admitted that under Dr. Riddick's care the school has been free from the rumors of scandal and mismanagement  that have marked it in previous years.The boys have been contented and happy; the attempts to escape have been few. That he has not pleased everyone is not to be wondered at.  That feat is beyond human accomplishment. Public interests will be well served if his successor proves as capable and efficient in the management of the school as the retiring superintendent has proved himself."----- Amador Ledger, September 25, 1903

When I wrote my book, "Behind The Walls," I hadn't been able to find a lot of information in regards to the fifth superintendent, W. T. Randall.  The only story I found at the time Randall was superintendent, was a story about a ward, Joe Pires, who claimed to have been wrongfully committed. He stated that he never had a trial, but instead was forced to plead guilty to petty larceny to a Justice of the Peace in Santa Barbara and immediately shipped off to Preston. He filed a petition on the basis of habeas corpus, but I was unable to find any outcome of this young man's case. In my past research, the only other information I found was that Randall retired in 1909, claiming that he wished to devote  more time for educational work at Berkeley, but I have found that couldn't have been further from the truth. An article in the San Francisco Call, enlightens the subject with more detail as to the real reason why Randall retired from Preston. 

"Sacramento, November 19.--- Dr. William T. Randall, former superintendent of the Preston School of Industry at Ione, did not resign of his own accord to pursue educational work in the bay cities, but gave up his position under pressure following an investigation held by the governor and the trustees of the reform school.

Mistreatment of the boys under him was one of the charges brought against Doctor Randall. Another was that he favored the Free Methodist sect in the appointment of teachers on the school staff. These charges by Dr. J.K. McLean of Oakland and Rev. Charles A. Ramm of San Francisco, were kept secret by the investigators by agreement. Secretary of the Board of Examiners Deming  admitted that pressure had been brought to bear in Doctor Randall's case.

"Doctor Randall's conduct of the school was above reproach," said Deming. "The only thing that could be said against him was that he was a little too severe with some of the boys. The worst thing he did was to imprison one boy for 90 days in a room in an attic. There were other things not quite so severe.  We did not suspect any of this until the state board of charities and corrections investigated complaints that had been sent to it. Its charges were in turn investigated by the governor and the trustees, and it was agreed that Doctor Randall should resign. He would not agree that he was wrong, and that was the only course left open to him."--- San Francisco Call, November 20, 1909.

The horror stories would not stop with Randall's resignation. No, the Preston School of Industry would continue to carry on its reputation for scandal and mistreatment for many years to come....

(© Copyright 2012-2015, J’aime Rubio, Originally published either on blog “Dreaming Casually” by J’aime Rubio, on my Facebook Page or in the book “Behind The Walls- A Historical Exposé of The Preston School of Industry” by author, J’aime Rubio.)  All rights reserved. No part of this blog may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission by the author/publisher, J’aime Rubio. 

The Tyrannical Rule of Superintendent O'Brien

The Tyrant Emerges -May 20^th, 1897 

Newspaper Clipping

Dr. Edward Stephen O’Brien's reign was the start of a terrible legacy that was rumored to have lasted throughout many decades even after he had been long gone. That legacy was cruelty. From the very beginning of his days at Preston, O’Brien ruled over the boys with an iron fist, literally. Rumors and gossip spread around town of his terrible temper and lack of self-restraint. By November of 1897, O’Brien had earned the title of “Tyrant.” Seven people which included employees and wards, filed petitions and affidavits with the Governor accusing O’Brien of “awful brutality” and “torturing the wards.”

H.R. Bernard, the Board Secretary for Preston stated this about O’Brien, “He who cannot govern himself, must not expect to govern others.” Bernard went on to accuse O’Brien for mismanaging the school and having an“uncontrollable temper.” He also claimed that O’Brien’s “egotism persuaded himself that he is indispensable and harbors under the hallucination that, as he expressed it, he is a ‘stone wall’ and ‘cannot be removed’.”

Bernard continued to state an account that would then be the start of many stories to come, which inevitably earned the school the title “Preston School of Scandal.”

ACCOUNT:

“ I was called upon one evening to report immediately to the Superintendent’s office, and rushed in to find Dr. O’Brien wildly excited and beating A. Ascensio over the head and face with a cane, which he soon broke. He continued his blows with the part left in his hand. Which was also broken a moment later from the force of the blows.

Then the Doctor grabbed a pole about four feet long and proceeded to belabor the yelling lad over the body. The force of the blows was terrific.

I have also witnessed a rough and tumble fight on the front portico of the administration building between O’Brien and a 16 year old lad from Ione……. Each pummeled the other for some time, until a blow from O’Brien cut the lad’s face. The boy was allowed to go, but later Mr. Phillips, an officer of the school and Deputy Sherriff was sent after the boy whom he brought back and was taken to the Superintendent…..O’Brien became brave and threatened the boy that if he ever dared to speak to him in Ione that he {O’Brien} , who had just handed the revolver to Phillips, would blow a hole in him that a team could run through”- H.R. Bernard's Affidavit.

Another account was recorded by Amador County Physician, E.E. Endicott on 11/14/1897 that reads:

“This incident, among many others of a similar nature, came under my personal observation while in professional attendance at the said school, and serves to confirm in my mind, as I believe the of many citizens of Ione, the serious charges now appearing in the daily press…

A youth by the name of Nick Hamilton, in an endeavor to escape, had sustained a sprained knee. When called in to attend the injured lad I found him lying in the hospital suffering great pain. I examined the knee and found it badly swollen and inflamed. Dr. A.L. Adams of Ione had also examined him and confirmed diagnosis. Treatment was at once instituted with a view to relieving the suffering boy, when the Superintendent appeared and desired to examine the injury.

He rudely grasped the boy’s limb, and to our astonishment began vigorously flexing, extending and rotating the limb, heedless of the yells of pain emanating from the tortured boy, his only reply being “LIE STILL, I’M BOSS HERE!!”- E.E. Endicot, M.D.'s Affidavit.

Copyright: J. Rubio

One note I like to make right here is that this boy, Nick Hamilton died six months after this story was published in the paper. His cause of death according to the Biennial Report states he died from “pulmonary tuberculosis” and that he was kept “isolated” from all the boys. Yes, I guess anything is possible, but wouldn’t that be the perfect excuse to keep him isolated?  It also says they used “strict antiseptic precautions” to avoid contamination with the other wards. Perhaps he wasn’t sick at all, and this was a terrible punishment for his story leaking out to the press. By him being kept isolated there was no way for any of the other boys to know whether he was really sick or not. 

Remember, he had been there a while and had they known he had tuberculosis upon arriving there they would have kept him isolated all the time. Maybe the poor boy didn’t survive O’Brien’s torture, so they made an excuse that he died from tuberculosis. His body was never claimed, so he was laid to rest in the cemetery behind Preston.  Two more witnesses P.J. Glas and J.J. Harlon stated that O’Brien “flogged a boy until his flesh peeled from his back.” He also “lashed” another boy until he“exhausted him to the ground.”

Sadly, although so many came forward to testify against O’Brien for his misconduct and vicious cruelty to the boys, he was exonerated. According to the December 18^th edition of the 1897 newspapers, the headline read “Dr.O’Brien Has Been Vindicated.” It was obvious there was some sort of payoff and cover-up on the part of O’Brien and his friends in high places. Even the Governor himself couldn’t seem to have anything done to O’Brien despite his very best efforts.

In regards to the entire investigation, The Board of Trustees for Preston ruled in favor of O’Brien, completely exonerating him of the charges of cruelty and unnecessary severity to inmates. The vote passed 2 to 1, being that Trustee Tyrrell voted negatively towards O’Brien. Unfortunately, O’Brien got off without so much as a slap on the wrist and even threatened to sue the State if they alleged any more wrongdoing. He was asked to resign on good terms to avoid any further scandal and he agreed as part of the stipulations of his investigation.

I am a firm believer that you reap what you sow in life and death. I also believe that when justice is not served, for whatever reason, that it will be left in God's hands to judge those who are guilty of horrible crimes upon meeting their "maker." With that being said, I have recently tracked down the grave of Preston's 2nd Superintendent, Dr. E.S. O'Brien. Although I feel that what he did there was completely horrible and wrong, again, he has paid for his sins in death and I respect the graves of all people, good or bad. At the same time we do not have to forget the horrible legacy he was made infamous for. At least we can do that much to remember the boys he affected during his reign at the Preston School of Industry. (Check out E. S. O'Brien's grave HERE).

For more information on Superintendent O'Brien and the rest of the Preston School of Industry's history, please keep reading my blog, and check out my book, "Behind The Walls" today! 

(© Copyright 2012-2015, J’aime Rubio, Originally published either on blog “Dreaming Casually” by J’aime Rubio, on my Facebook Page or in the book “Behind The Walls- A Historical Exposé of The Preston School of Industry” by author, J’aime Rubio.)

All rights reserved. No part of this blog may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission by the author/publisher, J’aime Rubio.