Jacob Hamblin and His Family’s Preservation during the 1862 Santa Clara Flood

During the catastrophic Santa Clara River flood of 1862, Jacob Hamblin was swept away with a bank of dirt but was saved when a rope was thrown to him just as his foothold gave way. Shortly afterward, he used the rope to return to the fort and carry a sick woman and her young child across the surging water; she was identified by historian Todd M. Compton as Sophia Staheli. As Hamblin reached shore with her, the pole used for the crossing broke loose, and her arms nearly strangled him during the rescue. In the same flood, Jacob Hamblin, Rachel Judd Hamblin, and Priscilla Leavitt Hamblin fled as the Santa Clara Creek became a raging torrent. The family survived, although their home and nearly all their possessions were swept away; the flood also destroyed the fort and stone homes and altered the landscape. Hamblin regarded the family’s preservation as a remarkable providence.