Description
The Waring Miller & Lux Collection consists of Stanislaus County Recorder, Richard
Waring's notes on Henry Miller and Charles Lux together with a copy of the Decree of
Distribution of their estate (1900).
Background
Richard Waring served as Stanislaus (Calif.) County Recorder (1931-1965). In this post,
Waring was able to study at first hand documents relating to the land acquisitions of
19th c. cattle barons, Charles Lux (1823-1887) and Henry Miller (1827-1916). Miller was
the last surviving partner in the firm of Miller & Lux, which once owned the greater part
of the San Joaquin Valley, as well as lands in Oregon and Nevada. Lux and Miller were
German immigrants who first worked together as San Francisco butchers during the 1850s.
For many years the two purchased cattle lands in the Central Valley, acquiring many of
these acres from U.S. Army veterans and others who preferred cash to land options, until,
with 1.4 million acres, they had become the state's largest landowners. After the firm
was dissolved (1900), attorneys for the estate had the record of the distribution of the
firm's property published in a single volume and distributed to county recorders
throughout California. Richard Waring had this volume microfilmed and gave the original
hardcopy to the University of the Pacific. Waring also donated materials he had gathered
on Henry Miller and Charles Lux.