William Stewart and William Sharon crossed paths often in their lifetimes. Both Ohio
natives, they met in San Francisco or in Virginia City. Stewart made his name in Virginia
City as a lawyer with expertise in mining law. Sharon managed the Bank of California
branch in Virginia City. Since the Bank of California depended on Comstock monies
to develop San Francisco, Stewart had to be a valuable commodity to the California
bankers. Representing the big mines, Stewart made five hundred thousand dollars in a
few years. When Stewart could not win a case by presenting the facts, his bragadoccio
ways bullied the other side into submission. It was common practice on all sides to bribe
witnesses, jurors or even judges.
Sharon and Stewart had similar interests during their careers. Sharon worked in law,
mining investing, banking and politics. Upon accomplishing what he wanted to do in
Nevada, Sharon desired to be a senator. The jobs were taken. Sharon and his boss Ralston
probably urged Stewart to relinquish his position They made sure that happened by
withdrawing financial backing for the Stewart campaign. Stewart claimed personal finance
problems kept him from running again. Sharon took Stewart's place, but proved to be
totally ineffective. He spent practically no time in Washington D.C. during his term of
office. Ralston, a good swimmer, died by drowning in 1875 possibly by suicide the day
after the Bank of California closed its doors. Sharon stepped up and reorganized the bank.
He also acquired the palatial home of Ralston called Belmont and the Palace Hotel.
Close friends held an elegant dinner party for William Sharon at the Palace Hotel in
1876. Twenty men attended the grand event designated to celebrate the lifetime success
of William Sharon. William Morris Stewart was one of the guests that night. Each
attendee received an engraved silver ingot 61/4 by 4 1/4 inches forged from Comstock
silver. Few remain in existence, but one sold at auction for 21,000 dollars in
June 2011. The dinner had no formal speakers, but was a reunion of old friends from the
Comstock Days. Stewart might have shared his Panamint adventure of tricking robbers.
It was all about silver that night.
Historians usually give Stewart kudos for his mining law cases, but one of his most
famous was the divorce case of William Sharon and Sarah Althea Hill. Reporters showed
up at the trial every day in order to keep the public aware of the ongoing scandal. The
widower Sharon fell in love with the young and glamorous Sarah Althea Hill.
Sarah Althea Hill lived in San Francisco several years before meeting William Sharon.
She arrived in 1870. Her brother worked in the Bank of California, so she knew of
Sharon and his vast resources. Hill lived on the inheritance from her parents. She joined
many other women in San Francisco by investing in mining stocks. Sarah Althea Hill
was intelligent, cunning, greedy and opportunistic, but not a competent investor.
Her fund continued to shrink. When Sharon's wife died in 1875 Hill knew it was
time to cultivate Sharon's friendship. After a few miscellaneous encounters Sharon
noticed the beautiful young woman. He became smitten with the young schemer. She
played hard to get. Hill would not give in to his advances until he suggested
marriage. The sixty year old Sharon made Hill promise the marriage would
be secret for two years - an odd request but she agreed. Both Hill and Sharon signed a
paper to that effect on August 25, 1880. Sharon continued to live at the Palace Hotel. Hill
lived across the street at the Grand Hotel. They met secretly by using a connecting tunnel
between the two hotels. The honeymoon period did not last long.
Sharon asked Hill to move out of her hotel. She would not leave. He retaliated by
removing the doors and carpet from her rooms. Hill finally moved out and stayed with the
notorious Mammy Pleasant. Mammy helped girls by offering a place to stay as well as
voodoo like advice in order for girls to win over their men. Hill and Sharon did
get together from time to time. During this period she arranged for special potions to be
administered to Sharon. She also made trips to cemeteries to bury his clothing. These
weird activities illustrated the influence of Mammy Pleasant. They did not
seem to accomplish anything.
The litigation between Sharon and Hill lasted most of the 1880's. She won some and he
won others. The entire population of San Francisco followed the sordid details. Hill
did not stand a chance when the mighty William Morris Stewart became one of
Sharon's lawyers. Sharon might have called in a favor because Stewart did not usually
take divorce cases. Stewart brought in a handwriting expert that blew the case open.
Sharon died before the final decree in the case which did go in his favor. Even
Sharon's death gave her no victory. Hill never touched his money made from investments
and the Bank of California.
She did find her true love when she married her lawyer David Terry. He died tragically
in Stockton, California. Judge Stephen Field who gave the final decree about the divorce
being fraudulent and the Terrys traveled on the same train. It was a disaster
waiting to happen. Field's bodyguard shot Terry dead August 14, 1889 because he
thought Terry was threatening the judge. David Naegle, the bodyguard, went on to
become the bodyguard of William Morris Stewart in the contentious 1898 election
campaign for the U.S. Senator position from Nevada.
The tragedy of losing Terry drove his wife out of her mind. Mammy
Pleasant committed the deranged woman to a mental institution where she lived until her
death on Valentines Day in 1937. The only victory of Sarah Althea Hill Sharon Terry was
that she outlived everyone else involved.
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