Born in Surry, Maine in November, 1850, James Wallace Milliken became a long-practicing doctor on the Mendocino coast. He graduated from New York Medical College in 1876 before returning to Maine to practice. Two years later James married Lizzie Sarah Farrington, and the couple had two children. In 1882, James visited his brother Horace, who had lived in Mendocino since 1874. He must have liked the coast, because James headed west the following year. Lizzie and their two children followed in 1884, giving James time to settle in and prepare their home.
The family initially lived on Ukiah Street, but they soon moved to the “McCornack Home” on Main Street. The house is sometimes referred to as the “House of Doctors,” because several of Mendocino’s physicians lived there. The couple would have four more children.
Dr. Milliken began his medical practice in 1883 on Main Street. He was one of the few early doctors on the coast. The 1870 census shows no physicians in Mendocino, and an 1874 Handbook and Directory of Napa, Lake, Sonoma, and Mendocino counties records three physicians here: N.W. Lane, A.P. Whittell, and W.A. McCornack. Little is known of the first two doctors, and it appears that their practices in Mendocino were short-lived.
Milliken quickly became a prominent figure in the community. When news of his move to the coast spread, Joshua Grindle wrote that James Milliken was “a mobile, high-minded man. Show this letter to your friends and do what you can for him, for he is an honorable and dependable and deserving man, well-qualified for the work he has undertaken, and truthful and kindly in his every relation.”
Milliken spoke at holiday gatherings, such as the 1890 Fourth of July celebration, in which he read the Declaration of Independence, and contributed many articles to the Mendocino Beacon. In 1894 he joined the Mendocino Hospital Company as a consulting physician and surgical doctor.
Milliken kept up to date with current medical developments. In 1889, he completed a postgraduate course in medicine. Among the papers passed down to his daughter Faith Milliken Henderson was a manuscript titled “A Treatise for Families on the Cause of Disease and Natural Remedies.” He did not date his writing, but discusses several new “terrible diseases” that were discovered in early 1884.
In 1909 after suffering from heart disease, James Milliken passed away in his home. His funeral was held at the Presbyterian Church, across the street from his home and was attended by over 200 people.
Averee McNear is curator at the Kelley House Museum in Mendocino, Calif.