Imperial-Orange-Los Angeles County CA Archives Biographies.....Wiest, John Alfred 1882 - 
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Author: F. C. Farr (editor, 1918)

JOHN ALFRED WIEST.—An industrious and well-to-do agriculturist, John Alfred
Wiest, is the owner of a finely improved and valuable ranch at Wiest,
California, in Water Company No. 5. His ranch in regard to appointment compares
favorably with any in his locality. In all he has 160 acres. Mr. Wiest came to
Imperial County November 6, 1903, and was born in Arcadia, Kansas, January 6,
1882, the son of Phillip A. and Elmina E. (Johns) Wiest. The father of Mr. Wiest
died in 1906 and is buried in Arcadia, Kansas. Mr. Wiest's mother resides in
this county. The family is of old Pennsylvania origin, members of which came to
this country long before the Revolutionary war from France and Wales. Owing to
wounds received during the Civil war, Mr. Wiest's father succumbed in 1906, as
above mentioned. The effect of imprisonment and the hardships at Libby prison,
where he spent nine months in 1863, had much to do with breaking down the health
of Mr. Wiest's father. George Wiest, uncle of the subject of this review, was a
captain in the nth Pennsylvania Volunteers, and Mr. Wiest's father was in the
51st Pennsylvania Volunteers. Mr. Wiest received his education in Arcadia,
Kansas, where his parents were listed among the pioneers from 1878 until 1902,
when they moved to California. John A. left school at the age of 18 years and
went to Spokane, Washington, for the purpose of locating on a homestead. After
that, however, he had attended school at Fullerton, California. Later he took up
electrical engineering at Pasadena for twelve months, coming to the Valley on
November 6, 1903. He located at Wiest, filing on 160 acres of desert land, being
the first permanent settler. Mr. Wiest returned to Kansas some time afterward,
where he remained for sixteen months. Then, on November 3, 1905, he again set
foot on California soil and immediately began cultivating his property in this
county, which, at present, has been brought to a high state of cultivation.
During the year 1910 Mr. Wiest filed on an additional 160 acres of land, and
Mrs. Wiest also filed on 320 acres. That same year he also purchased another 160
acres, making in all a total of 800 acres of finely situated and valuable land.
It was in 1912 that Mr. Wiest sold 640 acres of land for $19,000, which had been
improved prior to the selling. Politically Mr. Wiest is a Republican, and is
also one of the first trustees in the school district at Wiest. He is a raiser
of thoroughbred hogs in his district. Fraternally Mr. Wiest is a member of the
I. O. O. F. of Brawley. In the beginning of things the town of Wiest, wherein
Mr. Wiest resides, was called after the Wiest family, and was formally named by
Congressman Smith of the 8ist District. John Alfred Wiest was the first pioneer
within many miles when he first came to the county of Imperial. John A. was
married at Wiest, August 21, 1909, to Miss Winifred Netta Robertson, daughter of
James W. and Margaret Anna Robertson, of Honolulu, having been born and raised
in that city. The father and mother of Mrs. Wiest were pioneers of that island
country. Her father died February 4, 1900, and is buried in Honolulu. Her mother
died in 1894 and is buried at Stockton, California. Mr. and Mrs. Wiest have
three children: Bya Joy, born in Los Angeles; John Adam, born in Wiest,
California; and Clinton Edward, born at Wiest, California. Mr. Wiest has found
dairying and hog raising very remunerative, milking as many as 110 cows at one
time, but has discontinued the business in order to devote his time to other
pursuits. In the good-road movement in this county he has been an active factor.
For six years he has been roadmaster, and was a delegate to the Southern
California road convention at Los Angeles in 1911. Politics also have taken up
much of Mr. Wiest's time. His fine home was destroyed by fire, but since that
disastrous conflagration he has constructed a new, modern and more pretentious
dwelling. Originally Mr. Wiest was a grading contractor and leveled more than
15,000 acres of land in Imperial County, all of which is now producing heavily
each year. He has experimented with dates, asparagus and other fruits in the
county successfully. Mr. Wiest went through many hardships to achieve the
results which are so apparent today. He has labored hard during his time in the
Valley, and it has been primarily through thrift and well-concerted energy that
he has acquired his place of prominence among his fellow men.

Additional Comments:
From:

THE HISTORY
OF
IMPERIAL COUNTY
CALIFORNIA
EDITED BY
F. C. FARR

IN ONE VOLUME
ILLUSTRATED
Published by ELMS AND FRANKS
BERKELEY, CALIFORNIA 1918

Printed by Taylor & Taylor, San Francisco

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