John B. Felton

Who was John B. Felton?

John Brooks Felton.

Felton was the son of an almshouse superintendent in Cambridge, Massachusetts and brother of Cornelius Conway Felton, a classics scholar at Harvard University and Samuel Morse Felton, Sr., a railroad executive. He graduated from Harvard in 1847 and briefly served as a Greek tutor before pursuing the law. He studied the Napoleonic code in Paris for one year and became fluent in both French and Spanish. In 1854, Felton moved to San Francisco to open a law practice with Harvard classmate, E.J. Pringle. The firm, which was later joined by A. C. Whitcomb, was successful in litigating land claims and their clients included Kelsey Hazen, José Yves Limantour, and James Lick Future Congressman Binger Hermann apprenticed under Felton before moving to Oregon. Felton was a legal advisor to Levi Parsons of the San Francisco Dock and Wharf Company during Parsons' attempt to have the "Bulkhead Bill" passed.

Felton campaigned unsuccessfully for a seat in the U.S. Senate in 1867 and 1874. He was Mayor of Oakland from 1869-1870 and a Presidential Elector for California during the 1868, 1872, and 1876 Presidential Elections.