Sherman O. Houghton

History of Santa Clara County by J.P. Munro-Fraser

Date	Party	Office	Votes	Result
09-06-1871	Republican	CD-01	25971	Win
11-05-1872	Republican	CD-04	10391	Win
09-07-1875	Republican	CD-04	11090	Loss

Candidate Biography:

Sherman Otis Houghton
Born: April 10, 1828 in New York, New York
Married: Mary Martha Donner (m. 1859, d. 1860), Eliza Poor Donner (m. 1861)
Children: Mary M., Eliza P., Sherman O., Clara H., Charles D., Francis J., Stanley W., and Herbert S.
Military Service: ARMY (Mexican-American War, Civil War)
Died: August 31 , 1914 in Compton, CA

1846: Sergent, Company A, New York Regiment (sent to occupy California during the war)
1849: Built the first building at what later became the city of Sonora
1853: Deputy County Recorder, Santa Clara County
1853: Democratic Candidate for Santa Clara County Sheriff (Lost)
1855: Democratic Candidate for Santa Clara County Sheriff (Lost)
1854-1855: President, San Jose Common Council
1855-1856: Mayor, City of San Jose

• Both of Houghton's wifes (Mary and Eliza) were survivor of the Donner Party, and the two were actually cousins.
• PLACENAME: The Donner-Houghton House, the family residence for several years, was a large building in downtown San Jose. The building had been placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002, but burned down on the morning of July 19, 2007.
• Be Fruitful and Multiply: Houghton had eight children.

Source: "Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, 1774-Present" (U.S. Library of Congress) [http://bioguide.congress.gov/]