The first and only US Consul to Mexican California and later along with General Vallejo, a financial backer of the new town of Benicia. Larkin was a shrewd business man who invested in San Francisco and Monterey as well to the detriment of Benicia according to Dr. Semple. Larkin and Semple clashed almost from the beginning as Larkin targeted most of his energies to building businesses in San Francisco and Monterey instead of Benicia and was very little help to Semple. Interestingly, it was Semple not Larkin who pulled out of Benicia first.