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Quintus Narcissus Atkins was
born in western Ohio August 20, 1831 to Narcissus A. and Lydia Waters Atkins,
natives of Massachusetts and Connecticut. He was educated at Albion Academy
in Pennsylvania and Poland Institute in Ohio. At twenty he left school
to join the Gold Rush. He mined first at Gold Run and then in Grass Valley.
Quintus came to Reading Springs
(Shasta) in June, 1853, just after one of the numerous fires of its early
days, so he moved on to Horsetown. There he worked with a group of men
who planned to divert Clear Creek by building a dam. This project proved
unsuccessful and he contracted ague (malaria) which bothered him for eight
years. Though the dam project failed, he had some success mining, but like
most early miners he didn't save his money.
Martha Adeline Hughes was born
in Wisconsin February 1842 to Andrew and Mary Morill Hughes. In 1853, Andrew
brought his family from Missouri to Shasta County.
Martha and Quintus were married
in 1858 and moved to Clover Creek. They had fourteen children:
| Benjamin | b. June 1860 | d. April 1939 | |
| Frank | b. Dec 1863 | d. June 1927 | m. Catherine Farley |
| Emma | b. Nov 10, 1864 | d. Nov 8, 1937 | m. Charles Peter Hufford |
| William | b. 1865 | d. Nov 24, 1899 | m. Lulu Eddington |
| Jesse | b. Apr 8, 1868 | d. Jan 21, 1951 | |
| Warren | b. Mar 16, 1869 | d. Feb 12. 1957 | |
| Flora | b. Aug 16, 1873 | d. Feb 21, 1954 | m. William Hunt |
| Octavia | b. Aug 16, 1873 | d. Feb 13, 1899 | m. William Hunt |
| Irwin | b. Dec 16, 1875 | d. July 18, 1914 | m. Lizzie Phillips |
| Clarence | b. 1877 | d. May 1961 | m. Olie Medford |
| Clinton
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b. Apr 20, 1878
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d. Jan 30, 1961
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m. Ruby Viola Covey
m. Hilda McCullough |
| Quentin | b. Jan 1882 | d. July 1938 | |
| Cleveland | b. Dec 9. 1884 | d. Apr 1929 | m Myrtle Covey |
| Hendricks | b. Dec 9, 1884 | d. Dec 20, 1966 |
All the children but
Frank and Emma were born in Shasta County. Those two were born in Humboldt
County when Quintus went out to the mines; then he went to Montana. Most
of the rest of his life he was a farmer/carpenter in Shasta County. They
owned 320 acres on Clover
They participated in the school
and community activities; Quintus became a Master Mason. He was elected
to three terms as County Surveyer and served several terms as Deputy County
Assessor, an appointed job. Quintus died at his home in Whitmore,
June 11, 1899.
Martha, who was well known throughout
the County as a midwife, lived in their home in Whitmore until her death
in March of 1925. Both are buried in the Masonic Cemetery at Millville.
Source: Shasta Historical Society - Aug 2000
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