Charles Edward Barns, early 1870s, Burlington Historical Society.( Photo from Wikipedia.)

TODAY probably think that my curiosity about the person of Charles Kellogg is reaching an unhealthy level. While I have a huge cache of stories yet to tell about the Bird Man and Nature Singer, I decided to spare you another such article and write about one of his best friends— Charles Edward Barns instead. Today there are a few locals who recognize the name of Charles Kellogg as a prominent figure from early 20th century California history. But Charles Barns’ residency in Morgan Hill for the last twenty years of his life is so obscure as to be almost completely forgotten. In my opinion, the story of Charles Barns deserves to be told because he, too, was a bit of a renaissance man.

I came across the Barns name when I first picked up Charles Kellogg’ s anecdotal autobiography published in 1929. Charles Barns wrote one the most concise and informative introductions to that book that I have ever read. He was able to capture the essence of who Charles Kellogg was— his personality, his outlook on life, and why his message was, and is today, of such importance. Not only did Barns introduce the book, he also published it at his printing shop on Diana Avenue. His grandson, years later, remembered that the print type was set with manual fonts and the press was operated by a foot pump mechanism. Today, the property on Diana Avenue to is covered by Highway 101. The publishing house was originally called the Diana Printery, but Barns changed the name by 1927 to the Pacific Science Press, publishing his own works on amateur astronomy as well as, in 1934, a book by Aphelia Adams Cochrane( Cochrane Road and Jackson Ranch) called“ Folks of Maine.”

The Wikipedia entry notes that“ Charles Barns( July 23, 1862- May 24, 1937) was an American writer, journalist, astronomer, theater impresario and publisher— a man of many interests.” By the early 1900s, Charles Barns had become highly regarded in the literary circles of the East Coast. And it was at this time that the vaudeville fame

of Charles Kellogg was at its peak. Kellogg was performing at theaters and lecture halls in Maine, Massachusetts, New York, and overseas in London, as well contracting with the Victor Talking Machine Company to record his bird songs. Sometime after the Barns family moved to Philadelphia in 1905, the two men met at a theater( Kellogg was performing and Barns was the house manager) and their long-time friendship commenced. Ten years later, Charles Barns traveled west to visit his friend who had purchased Kellogg Springs in the hills of Coyote Ridge. And in 1918, the Barns family moved to Morgan Hill, purchasing a twenty-acre prune ranch.

Charles Barns did not have any particular skills as an orchardist, or much motivation to pursue the agricultural lifestyle, but his enthusiasm for astronomy was fed by his proximity to the Lick Observatory at Mt. Hamilton. His magnum opus was entitled“ 1001 Celestial Wonders As Observed With Home Built Instruments.” An amazing book, it is filled with star charts and photos of distant nebula. Yes, photos— he designed and built his own telescopes, grinding the lenses, and some had camera mounts. As a highly respected self-taught astronomer, he was elected as a Fellow of the prestigious Royal Astronomical Society in 1929.

I speculate that the most significant reason for Charles Barns and his wife Mabel to relocate from Philadelphia to Santa Clara County was their relationship with Charles and Sarah Kellogg, who were living in a hillside cabin above the valley floor at the end of Tennant Avenue. In 1918, Charles Kellogg was traveling across the United States talking up the need for redwood forest conservation and promoting the sale of war bonds. While Mrs. Kellogg did go on the road with Charles in his“ Travel Log” on occasion, my hunch is that she missed her East Coast friendships and the Barns’ went west to be close to Sarah. They were ready for a new start and so they decided upon a complete lifestyle change—

Written By Mike Monroe

from the metropolitan scene to a very rural setting. A couple of years later, the Barns’ daughter Cornelia and her family settled next-door to her parents, also on land set in prunes. Cornelia was an artist, author and poet of some distinction.

Mrs. Sarah Kellogg was referred to as Sa’ di by her husband Charles as term of endearment. It is an unusual nickname, one that I think relates to the great Persian poet Saadi Shirazi who is recognized as a master in the literary world for the depths of his moral and social thoughts. Sa’ di might have been a name bestowed upon her originally by Charles Barns as the Persian culture was highly advanced in its practice of astronomy. Charles Kellogg dedicated his book to“ Sa’ di- The Beloved.”

Charles Barns wrote of his friend in the introduction to“ The Nature Singer” that Charles Kellogg“ represented a type of genius of which there are perhaps two or three in a generation—‘ dedicated spirits’ untiring in their search for what is beautiful and true. The melody of his matchless bird songs, nature’ s mark of her own child, his words and message had the very spirit of a woods prophet.”

To conclude my season of Charles Kellogg writing for the time being, I would like to quote a short passage from the last chapter of his book and, unhesitatingly say that Charles Barns was the instrument at hand that made the publication of his story possible.

The Dream Comes True

Water coaxed from the hills. The rocks, the stones, the pool, the building, All fashioned by my own hands.

Leisure to work, to read, commune, enjoy true neighbor friends.

Unhurried busy days, the quiet evenings, the great log burning, the little brook cascading down the fireplace rocks and across the hearth.

My faithful dog, and best of all … The Angel in the House.

GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN MARCH / APRIL 2016 gmhtoday. com

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