Samuel B. Bell was ordained an Evangelist of the Presbyterian denomination at Onondaga, New York, in 1852, and in November of the same year was sent by the American Home Missionary Society to the Pacific Coast. He came around the Horn in the clipper ship Trade Wind, and on his arrival commenced his work on the ground on which the city of Oakland now stands, building the First Presbyterian Church there. He served as its pastor for many years, but his influence as a religious leader extended all over the San Francisco Bay Area. He had unusual qualifications for a pioneer and leader, not only in religious but educational affairs, possessing great breadth of view and intellectual vision. He procured the charter for the College of California, now the University of California, being one of the founders of that institution. He also represented his district in the California State Senate and the House of Representatives for three years, during which time he was connected with important legislation, particularly aiding in the passing of the homestead law and introducing the bill creating the board of regents for the university. He was one of the original Republicans when the party was formed, and attended the first Republican convention in California. He died in Santa Barbara, California in 1897 at the age of eighty-one.
From the description of Samuel B. Bell sermons and travel narratives, 1852-1894. (University of California, Berkeley). WorldCat record id: 466183980
