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4. A War Made By Ink & Blood
During 1863, Emperor Norton was growing his popularity in northern California. He visited many major cities in northern California, building popularity. Norton met up with many local politicians and supported them through investments he earned through his commercial payments given to him by businesses. He even began funds for Civil War troops relieved of duty but struggling in life. However, he wasn't entirely loved in the cities, as some people still saw him as insane, and even San Jose mayor, John A. Quinby, did not allow Emperor Norton to officially make a visit to the city, until nearly a year later.
Funeral of Lazarus, By Edward Jump
However, there was also some sad news in San Francisco. Lazarus, in the dog duo of Bummer and Lazarus, had died, presumably due to being kicked by a horse of San Francisco’s fire engines. Many people mourned Lazarus’s death, including Bummer. A funeral took place for the hound, being buried amongst great men of San Francisco [1]. However, Bummer was still lamenting the death of his companion. Emperor Norton then decided to take care of the mourning dog, and from that day forward, Bummer became Norton’s “Royal Hound”.
Firefighters at the burning San Francisco Bulletin building
Even with all that, no blood had been spilled over those who saw Norton as a war hero and those who saw him as a lunatic. That statement would soon be proved wrong. In 1864, Emperor Norton soon tried to branch out his character in southern California, as he tried to instate relief funds as he did in the north. In the city of Los Angeles, newspapers called him the "Emperor of Insanity & Madness". San Francisco newspapers were quick to fire back, calling the newspapers bashing Norton, "lesser ink boys", as well as call out the Los Angeles Star, who was most vocal, calling them a "confederate mistress-paper", putting out there that their founder was pro-slavery. Then, the San Francisco Bulletin building had caught fire. Although no major damage was done, tons of equipment needed to be replaced, and papers ready to be published, were now ash and set back the newspaper. They claim the L.A. Star was involved, with them denying the allegation. A fortnight later, an L.A. writer would be found in an alleyway dead. This was the beginning of something, a war at opposite ends of a golden state. Locals coined the conflict the "War of Ink & Blood".
The L.A. Star pinned the blame on the San Francisco Bulletin, but they denied any wrongdoing. Los Angeles police arrested a few suspects, but nobody clearing pointing the finger to anyone in San Francisco. However, the L.A. Star still thought it to be the work of the San Francisco Bulletin, claiming the crooks were paid by the newspaper. With the law not joining their side, some who worked at the Los Angeles Star tipped off sympathetic crooks against San Francisco, in hopes to destroy the powerbase of the San Francisco newspapers. It was not just the L.A Star. Many Los Angeles newspapers saw the newspapers in San Francisco as obsessed with strange characters, such as Emperor Norton. When word got out that an L.A. writer was killed, many thought that San Francisco was to blame. So the crimes began.
Photograph of presumed San Francisco Redcoats
They started off small, muggings and a few killings not specifically directed to the Bulletin, but many were working in newspapers in San Francisco. However, the San Francisco police thought it wasn't the newspapers in Los Angeles doing the work, and even Emperor Norton believed that the crimes were just committed by common criminals. However, like some of the writers of Los Angeles, they fixed their problems on their own. The writers at San Francisco would hire small local gangs, eventually unifying into a secretly-sponsored gang known as the San Francisco Gang. This inclined the Los Angeles ruffians to organize themselves as the Black Star Mob. War across the Golden State would begin, the most famous being when San Francisco crooks broke into a writer of the Los Angeles Star's home, killing him, as well as his wife. The men were dressed up in wonky-fitted, fancy clothes, and the incident would nickname the San Francisco Gang as the San Francisco Redcoats, which would be a name they would adopt.
Major crimes reported connected to the “War of Ink & Blood” (in order):
- Shootout at the Catalina Verdugo Adobe (modern-day Glendale), 11 casualties
- Attempted arson of the Bell Block (Los Angeles), 4 arrested
- San Francisco reporter found dead near the Golden Gate (San Francisco), 1 dead
- Home murder of L.A. Star writer and wife (Los Angeles), 2 dead
- Several executed thugs in a warehouse (Sacramento), 3 dead
- Shootout in Montgomery Street (San Francisco), 9 casualties, 6 arrested
Even when the newspapers pulled out of the crimes, due to allegations of involvement, the gangs still continued. The issue got so bad that the Governor of California, Leland Stanford would be involved at crushing the gang activity. However, no Union troops would be available for the issues at home, so the Royal Guard would make a comeback. Emperor Norton would be at the forefront of crushing criminal activity. The Royal Guard would be roaming across the entire State of California, hunting down Redcoat and Mob hideouts. This would prove effective in crushing crime, even taking down unrelated gangs while seeking the complete their task. As the year of 1864 ended, the Redcoats and Mob were a shell of their former selves, later dying out.
Henry Perrin Coon, Mayor of San Francisco
This would leave people who thought Norton as insane, as the minority opinion. With Norton helping to end crime within California as the Civil War was finishing up, Leland would personally meet with Emperor Norton at Sacramento, and after their exchange, both parties wrote letters to each other, discussing mostly the Civil War and what was to come after it. Emperor Norton became a state phenomenon, and after his work was done ending crime, Emperor Norton announced his candidacy for the Mayor of San Francisco. Emperor Norton tried to appease both local tycoons and commoners, balancing his pro-business and pro-worker policies. Many stores helped fund Norton's campaign, seeing an economic benefit to them if he won. Norton would be running against current mayor, Henry P. Coon, who was one of the few that hated Norton and saw him in the way of his power. However, when he called Norton the "Mad Emperor" in a speech, it backfired and he had to be escorted out of the public, as they threw sticks and stones at him. Norton would be assured victory when Leland Stanford voiced his support for the Emperor of the U.S, and as the year 1865 came to be, Emperor Norton was elected the 12th Mayor of San Francisco.
Emperor Norton would do quick work. He began to ease up on San Francisco businesses, but Norton would ensure rights to the worker. He would meet the founder of the Bank of California, William C. Ralston, after proposing Montgomery Street to be extended to the South of Market area. Norton would agree to this plan, and Montgomery Street would begin construction for an extension [2]. Norton would make plans to build a bridge from San Francisco to Oakland, wishing to call it the Norton Bridge, but those plans would soon be put in hold [3]. When the Civil War would finally end, a large influx of veterans headed west looking for work, largely at the Transcontinental Railroad. Norton believed that the veterans of the war should be given fair wages, with that idea eventually extending to all of the workers at the railroad. However, these proposals were largely ignored, including Leland Stanford, who was involved working on the railroad, much to Norton's dismay.
Frederick Low, Governor of California
However, Norton power didn't just extent within San Francisco. The new Governor of California, Frederick Low, was an associate with Norton at San Francisco and that influence allowed Norton to begin some ideas that he brewed to the entirety of California. One of the more effective plans was to end banditry and overall crime within the State of California. Many saw the effectiveness of a force other than the police stopping crime. Not just some bounty hunters, but actual volunteers fighting crime. Low would bring to effect this plan, and many men signed up to help make the Golden State a little safer.
During Low's governorship that the idea, being called “state-supported militia” by supporters, was in effect, much crime was being stamped out and most criminals found it easier to move east for their endeavors. This also gave a small salary to those who wished to participate and additional reward for effectiveness. As the years would go on, many men would turn out to be Civil War veterans after the Civil War. Emperor Norton's opinion of the Civil War was overall positive, but he did believe that Reconstruction was an ineffective system in the Civil War's aftermath. Emperor Norton joined to ranks of the Civil War's strange stories.
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[1] Lazarus would actually be stuffed by some saloon owner, IOTL, to be displayed in his saloon.
[2] Under the second mayoral term of Coon in OTL, the proposition by Newton Booth was rejected.
[3] IOTL, Norton did have an idea to make a bridge from San Francisco to Oakland, a plaque of Norton is at the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge for having the idea originally.
4. A War Made By Ink & Blood
“So as the war was being tucked away, the Emperor was already back out there, beating down the scum of California.” - Frederick Low, Governor of California, talking about the actions of Emperor Norton after the war.
During 1863, Emperor Norton was growing his popularity in northern California. He visited many major cities in northern California, building popularity. Norton met up with many local politicians and supported them through investments he earned through his commercial payments given to him by businesses. He even began funds for Civil War troops relieved of duty but struggling in life. However, he wasn't entirely loved in the cities, as some people still saw him as insane, and even San Jose mayor, John A. Quinby, did not allow Emperor Norton to officially make a visit to the city, until nearly a year later.
Funeral of Lazarus, By Edward Jump
However, there was also some sad news in San Francisco. Lazarus, in the dog duo of Bummer and Lazarus, had died, presumably due to being kicked by a horse of San Francisco’s fire engines. Many people mourned Lazarus’s death, including Bummer. A funeral took place for the hound, being buried amongst great men of San Francisco [1]. However, Bummer was still lamenting the death of his companion. Emperor Norton then decided to take care of the mourning dog, and from that day forward, Bummer became Norton’s “Royal Hound”.
Firefighters at the burning San Francisco Bulletin building
Even with all that, no blood had been spilled over those who saw Norton as a war hero and those who saw him as a lunatic. That statement would soon be proved wrong. In 1864, Emperor Norton soon tried to branch out his character in southern California, as he tried to instate relief funds as he did in the north. In the city of Los Angeles, newspapers called him the "Emperor of Insanity & Madness". San Francisco newspapers were quick to fire back, calling the newspapers bashing Norton, "lesser ink boys", as well as call out the Los Angeles Star, who was most vocal, calling them a "confederate mistress-paper", putting out there that their founder was pro-slavery. Then, the San Francisco Bulletin building had caught fire. Although no major damage was done, tons of equipment needed to be replaced, and papers ready to be published, were now ash and set back the newspaper. They claim the L.A. Star was involved, with them denying the allegation. A fortnight later, an L.A. writer would be found in an alleyway dead. This was the beginning of something, a war at opposite ends of a golden state. Locals coined the conflict the "War of Ink & Blood".
The L.A. Star pinned the blame on the San Francisco Bulletin, but they denied any wrongdoing. Los Angeles police arrested a few suspects, but nobody clearing pointing the finger to anyone in San Francisco. However, the L.A. Star still thought it to be the work of the San Francisco Bulletin, claiming the crooks were paid by the newspaper. With the law not joining their side, some who worked at the Los Angeles Star tipped off sympathetic crooks against San Francisco, in hopes to destroy the powerbase of the San Francisco newspapers. It was not just the L.A Star. Many Los Angeles newspapers saw the newspapers in San Francisco as obsessed with strange characters, such as Emperor Norton. When word got out that an L.A. writer was killed, many thought that San Francisco was to blame. So the crimes began.
Photograph of presumed San Francisco Redcoats
They started off small, muggings and a few killings not specifically directed to the Bulletin, but many were working in newspapers in San Francisco. However, the San Francisco police thought it wasn't the newspapers in Los Angeles doing the work, and even Emperor Norton believed that the crimes were just committed by common criminals. However, like some of the writers of Los Angeles, they fixed their problems on their own. The writers at San Francisco would hire small local gangs, eventually unifying into a secretly-sponsored gang known as the San Francisco Gang. This inclined the Los Angeles ruffians to organize themselves as the Black Star Mob. War across the Golden State would begin, the most famous being when San Francisco crooks broke into a writer of the Los Angeles Star's home, killing him, as well as his wife. The men were dressed up in wonky-fitted, fancy clothes, and the incident would nickname the San Francisco Gang as the San Francisco Redcoats, which would be a name they would adopt.
Major crimes reported connected to the “War of Ink & Blood” (in order):
- Shootout at the Catalina Verdugo Adobe (modern-day Glendale), 11 casualties
- Attempted arson of the Bell Block (Los Angeles), 4 arrested
- San Francisco reporter found dead near the Golden Gate (San Francisco), 1 dead
- Home murder of L.A. Star writer and wife (Los Angeles), 2 dead
- Several executed thugs in a warehouse (Sacramento), 3 dead
- Shootout in Montgomery Street (San Francisco), 9 casualties, 6 arrested
Even when the newspapers pulled out of the crimes, due to allegations of involvement, the gangs still continued. The issue got so bad that the Governor of California, Leland Stanford would be involved at crushing the gang activity. However, no Union troops would be available for the issues at home, so the Royal Guard would make a comeback. Emperor Norton would be at the forefront of crushing criminal activity. The Royal Guard would be roaming across the entire State of California, hunting down Redcoat and Mob hideouts. This would prove effective in crushing crime, even taking down unrelated gangs while seeking the complete their task. As the year of 1864 ended, the Redcoats and Mob were a shell of their former selves, later dying out.
Henry Perrin Coon, Mayor of San Francisco
This would leave people who thought Norton as insane, as the minority opinion. With Norton helping to end crime within California as the Civil War was finishing up, Leland would personally meet with Emperor Norton at Sacramento, and after their exchange, both parties wrote letters to each other, discussing mostly the Civil War and what was to come after it. Emperor Norton became a state phenomenon, and after his work was done ending crime, Emperor Norton announced his candidacy for the Mayor of San Francisco. Emperor Norton tried to appease both local tycoons and commoners, balancing his pro-business and pro-worker policies. Many stores helped fund Norton's campaign, seeing an economic benefit to them if he won. Norton would be running against current mayor, Henry P. Coon, who was one of the few that hated Norton and saw him in the way of his power. However, when he called Norton the "Mad Emperor" in a speech, it backfired and he had to be escorted out of the public, as they threw sticks and stones at him. Norton would be assured victory when Leland Stanford voiced his support for the Emperor of the U.S, and as the year 1865 came to be, Emperor Norton was elected the 12th Mayor of San Francisco.
Emperor Norton would do quick work. He began to ease up on San Francisco businesses, but Norton would ensure rights to the worker. He would meet the founder of the Bank of California, William C. Ralston, after proposing Montgomery Street to be extended to the South of Market area. Norton would agree to this plan, and Montgomery Street would begin construction for an extension [2]. Norton would make plans to build a bridge from San Francisco to Oakland, wishing to call it the Norton Bridge, but those plans would soon be put in hold [3]. When the Civil War would finally end, a large influx of veterans headed west looking for work, largely at the Transcontinental Railroad. Norton believed that the veterans of the war should be given fair wages, with that idea eventually extending to all of the workers at the railroad. However, these proposals were largely ignored, including Leland Stanford, who was involved working on the railroad, much to Norton's dismay.
Frederick Low, Governor of California
However, Norton power didn't just extent within San Francisco. The new Governor of California, Frederick Low, was an associate with Norton at San Francisco and that influence allowed Norton to begin some ideas that he brewed to the entirety of California. One of the more effective plans was to end banditry and overall crime within the State of California. Many saw the effectiveness of a force other than the police stopping crime. Not just some bounty hunters, but actual volunteers fighting crime. Low would bring to effect this plan, and many men signed up to help make the Golden State a little safer.
During Low's governorship that the idea, being called “state-supported militia” by supporters, was in effect, much crime was being stamped out and most criminals found it easier to move east for their endeavors. This also gave a small salary to those who wished to participate and additional reward for effectiveness. As the years would go on, many men would turn out to be Civil War veterans after the Civil War. Emperor Norton's opinion of the Civil War was overall positive, but he did believe that Reconstruction was an ineffective system in the Civil War's aftermath. Emperor Norton joined to ranks of the Civil War's strange stories.
----------
[1] Lazarus would actually be stuffed by some saloon owner, IOTL, to be displayed in his saloon.
[2] Under the second mayoral term of Coon in OTL, the proposition by Newton Booth was rejected.
[3] IOTL, Norton did have an idea to make a bridge from San Francisco to Oakland, a plaque of Norton is at the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge for having the idea originally.
- Alpha_North
- Word Count: 1.6k