104 PUNCHMAGAZINE.COM Next on our historic meet-and-greet, get to know John Parrott, a colorful character behind San Mateo’s beautiful Baywood neighborhood. A trader in his early years, this southern gentleman was appointed U.S. Consul to Mazatlán, Mexico, in 1838, succeeding his brother in the post. During his dozen years at the American Consulate, John promoted international trade and commerce. He also sired a couple of illegitimate children and almost started a war. John’s inflammatory report with misleading information about conflict between the U.S. and Mexico spurred a commodore to action and resulted in the seizing of a Mexican village before the misunderstanding was finally cleared up. Despite engaging in a bit of smuggling in his youth, John became known as a reputable banker upon his return to the States around 1850. He married Abigail Eastman Meaher, one of his daughter’s classmates, fathered eight more children with her and bought Baywood in 1859. His French Second Empirestyle summer home had hydraulic elevators and sat on a comfortable 377 acres. After his death, his widow became locally known as a patron of the poor. It’s said Abigail fed somewhere around 300,000 hungry people at a campground expressly built for that purpose. Subdivided and developed in 1927, Baywood is a highly-desirable historic neighborhood with a mix of French, Spanish revival and Tudor-style homes along its winding streets, along with St. John’s Cemetery, built on land donated by Abigail. Hillsborough’s Parrott Drive neighborhood also once was part of the original Parrott property. The Banker Behind Baywood PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF: NORTON PEARL PHOTOGRAPHY - SAN MATEO COUNTY HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION (2015.1.00706.9) / BERNARD ANDRÉ / SAN MATEO COUNTY HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION (1968.204A.002B)
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