Larkin, Thomas (1802–1858)

Thomas Larkin (b. 16 September 1802; d. 27 October 1858), California merchant and U.S. consul in Monterey, California. A Bostonian, Thomas Larkin came to California in 1832 to work for his half-brother, Captain Juan Bautista Rogers Cooper, in Monterey. Larkin soon began his own successful career trading in flour and hides, provisioning vessels, and collecting debts for eastern U.S. merchants. His wide network of merchant contacts in Mazatlán, Mexico, Honolulu, Hawaii, and the United States made natural his appointment as U.S. consul in 1843. His diligence and his wide circle of acquaintances among the leading citizens of Mexican California led to his appointment as confidential agent by President James K. Polk in 1846. Larkin was successful in warding off European influence in California, in persuading leading Californios to favor acquisition by the United States, and in mediating between them and Americans intent on acquiring California by force. He later became a major land speculator in the San Francisco area.

See alsoCalifornia; Californios.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Harlan Hague and David J. Langum, Thomas O. Larkin, a Life of Patriotism and Profit in Old California (1990).

George P. Hammond, ed., The Larkin Papers: Personal, Business, and Official Correspondence of Thomas Oliver Larkin, Merchant and United States Consul in California, 10 vols. (1951–1968).

John A. Hawgood, ed., First and Last Consul: Thomas Oliver Larkin and the Americanization of California, 2d ed. (1970).

                                               E. Jeffrey Stann