Broderick – Terry Duel Marker

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Daly City in San Mateo County, California — The American West (Pacific Coastal)

Broderick – Terry Duel

By Syd Whittle, April 22, 2009

1. Broderick – Terry Duel Marker

Inscription. The famous duel that ended dueling in California was fought in a ravine east of here, near the shore of Lake Merced. In the early morning of September 13, 1859. The participants were U.S. Senator David C. Broderick and Chief Justice David S. Terry of the California Supreme Court. Senator Broderick was mortally wounded. The site is marked with a monument and granite shafts where the two men stood. STATE REGISTERED LANDMARK NO.19
Tablet placed by California Centennials Commission, Base furnished by County Board of Supervisors in Cooperation with San Mateo County Historical Association.
Dedicated October 16, 1949

Erected 1949 by California Centennial Commission, County Board of Supervisors, and San Mateo County Historical Association. (Marker Number 19.)

Location. 37° 42.49′ N, 122° 29.05′ W. Marker is in Daly City, California, in San Mateo County. Click for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1100 Lake Merced Boulevard, Daly City CA 94015, United States of America.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 5 miles of this marker, as the crow flies. Mount Olivet Cemetery Office and Streetcar Line (approx. 2.3 miles away); Colma Historical Museum (approx. 2.3 miles away); Railroad Semaphore Signal (approx. 2.4 miles away); Old Colma Railroad Station (approx. 2.4 miles away); a different marker also named Old Colma Railroad Station (approx. 2.4 miles away); Colma City Hall (approx. 2.6 miles away); Molloy’s Springs (approx. 3.2 miles away); Roald Amundsen (approx. 4.5 miles away).

By Syd Whittle, April 22, 2009

2. Broderick – Terry Duel Marker

More about this marker. Marker is located at the entrance to the trail to the duel site. The duel site is a short walk from the marker.

Regarding Broderick – Terry Duel. This site was designated as California Registered Historical Landmark No. 19 on June 1, 1932.

Also see . . .
1. The Last Duel in San Francisco History. Among the most arcane of Bay Area historical landmarks is the site of the Broderick-Terry duel, September 13, 1859. Designated California State Historical Landmark No. 19, two granite shafts mark the spots near Lake Merced (1100 Lake Merced Boulevard, Daly City) where two distinguished pioneer gentlemen stood in defense of their honor. (Submitted on April 26, 2009, by Syd Whittle of El Dorado Hills, California.)
2. The Broderick Terry Duel. Dueling was still considered a proper way to settle feuds in San Francisco in the 1850s. In 1936, San Francisco Municipal Court Judge Charles R. Boden spoke before a meeting of the California Historical Society about the Broderick-Terry duel, and his comments were published in society’s quarterly for December of that year. (Submitted on April 26, 2009, by Syd Whittle of El Dorado Hills, California.)

Additional comments.
1. From the Guide to Old Sacramento by Robert Miller, Published by River City Press, 1976:

Directional Obelisk Located on Trail to Site Photo, Click for full size

By Syd Whittle, April 22, 2009

3. Directional Obelisk Located on Trail to Site

Western Side of Obelisk
Duel Site
Broderick
&
Terry
Sept. 13, 1859

In Old Sacramento on “L” Street there was the Magnolia Saloon. The saloon served as headquarters for Senators David Broderick and William Gwin. They were both Democrats and started out as allies but ended up as mortal enemies. As the Civil War approached their differences became more apparent. Broderick was a strong Unionist and Gwin was a Southern sympathizer. Gwin's friend and a hot-tempered protege, Chief Justice David S. Terry was so incensed by Broderick's pro-Union attitudes that he resigned his position, goaded Broderick into a duel, shooting and killing him. For a short time it appeared that California, under the thumb of pro-slavery leadership, would join the South, but Gwin was arrested on a boat heading for Washington, while attempting to recruit Union officers for the Confederacy. The pro-Southern firebrands eventually disbanded or, like Terry, fled to the South, leaving the state secure for the Union.