Civilian
Residence: Willows
Cause of death: Fall from wagon
Place of death: Mojave Valley
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Biography Extracted From Letter To The San Francisco Examiner, March 10, 1869, page 2:

Letter From Fides - Early Pioneers Continued - Charles A. Imus and Others -
This long known and valued friend, Mr. Charles A. Imus, was born in Jo Davies county, Illinois on the 24th of July 1828. At the early age of seventeen years, he left the home of his nativity with his uncle, Mr. Charles Imus (of whom we shall speak bye and by) for California. This was in 1846. They joined a small party bound for the same distant region, among which were several gentlemen afterwards well know on the Pacific Coast. We name some of those......

Let us now return to our friends Charles Imus and his uncle.......Fremont requested recruits....Among those, and perhaps the very first to reach Fremont, were our heroic youth, Charles A. Imus and his uncle....they, with the brave Indian Truckee, went through the entire campaign.... The uncle and nephew...repaired to the Soquel, some four miles from Santa Cruz, and where they found Mr. Hecox, one of their companions across the plains, building the saw-mill spoken of. Here they employed themselves in various ways, and at length Charles and his uncle went to the Tulare plains to hunt wild horses, then exceedingly numerous in that region. Having caught quite a number, they were returning on the San Joaquin, when they received the astounding intelligence of the discovery of gold. Turning the horses loose on the plain, they at once repaired to the gold region. They returned to the San Joaquin in the fall of 1848, having in a few months extracted a considerable amount of gold dust from the aurifeous earth. They took up a rancho near the mouth of the Stanislaus on the right bank of the San Joaquim, and engaged in buying, selling and raising horses and cattle. In 1850 they sold out , and the two fond relatives then traveld extensively hither and thither through the country for a desirable place for a rancho, on which to settle permanently..In the meantime, the parents of Charles A., with several brothers and sisters were on their way to California and ultimately reached Santa Cruz in safety.

Our young hero, Charles, with a brother, William, just arrived in the country, took up his residence at Quien Sabe, a magnificent stock rancho, some miles southeast of the present town of Hollister, and over the first range of hills in that direction. We think it was in the year 1854 they moved to Chilamo Valley, in San Luis Obisbo county, where they have ever since resided and now reside, engaged in raising horses, cattle and other stock, in which they have been eminently successful.

A son of Truckee (the heroic Indian.....has lived on the rancho with Charles A. for many years as a vaquero, and like the fathers (old Truckee's) devotion for Capt. Imus, the uncle, he has a singular, unselfish attachment for the nephew. Another son of Truckee, the elder, had lived with Mr. Hiram Imus, the father of Charles A. at Santa Cruz for several years, but died sometime ago of consumption.

.....Charles Imus, familiarly known as "Capt. Imus," the uncle of Charles A. was born in Troopsville, near Auburn, in the State of New York in 1806. He moved to Ohio at an early age and remained there for about three years, thence to the lower portion of Illinois, and at last to Jo Davies county, in the northern part of the State. Here he remained till 1846 when he emigrated to California. He resided in Santa Cruz for several years before his death, which occurred there in 1854 or '55. On the stage of Life he performed his part honorably and well. He was a man without guile, of a generous, unselfish nature, beloved by his kindred and esteemed by every one who knew him.His death was sincerely and profoundly regretted among the people of Santa Cruz County.

His aged aged parents emigrated to California with those of Charles A. Imus, and the three, father, mother and son, now sleep their last in the silent cemetery of Santa Cruz. The venerable head of this Imus family died at the advanced age of 96 years. His wife Ruth, at 79, side by side, and by their son Capt. Imus they slumber in the grave to which they descended, full of honors as of years....

[Next line illegible, obviously about Hiram Jr.] Imus and his noble and intelligent wife with the greater portion of their offspring, on their arrival in California, at once took up their residence at Santa Cruz. Mr. Imus is now a few months over sixty-seven years of age, but still has the buoyancy almost of early youth, and elastic step of a mountaineer. His wife is now in her sixty-fifth year, but retains a cloudless intellect and bids fair to (as we sincerely hope she may) live for many, many years. They are the parents of thirteen children, eleven of whom still live to cheer and sooth their declining years. Two are in the grave; three daughters, happily married to highly respectable gentlemen, reside at Santa Cruz and one at Soquel; one daughter, married respectably , also lives in Chilamo Valley; two sons, with their amiable families, also reside in Chilamo; two daughters yet remain in single blessedness, and two sons are bachelors. Charles A., the eldest of the family being an incorrigible, confirmed celibate......The home of Mr. and Mrs. Imus is one of peace and serenity and of profuse hospitality....

Should this meet the eye of our friend Charles in Chilamo, he will be reminded of many a happy hour in days gone, we passed together beneath the foliage of a noble oak at Quien Sabe....Our friend Charles is one of the best equestrians in California....Many years have fled since we beheld him, yet we retain a lively recollection of the generous and noble nature of our pioneer friend of early days, Charles A. Imus.
Very truly yours, FIDES. March 1869
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From The Mohave County Miner, Mineral Park, Arizona, April 22, 1883, page 3:
William Imus of the Willow's was in town last Thursday. We understand that he has purchased the interests of nearly all the heirs to the estate of his brother Charles who died at Fort Mohave over a year ago, and that the estate will soon be divided among the remaining heirs. This will be a disappointment to many of our cattle men who were in hopes to be able to buy some of the celebrated Imus herd