Imperial County CA Archives History - Books .....Leading Promoters And Some Of Their Achievements 1918 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/ca/cafiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com February 14, 2006, 4:28 am Book Title: History Of Imperial County California LEADING PROMOTERS AND SOME OF THEIR ACHIEVEMENTS While the biographical section of this work will be found to include detailed accounts of the life and history of the great pioneers and promoters of this Valley, it is not out of place perhaps to make some general reference to their work in this general article as well. Among these is Mr. W. F. Holt, who is credited with being the most noted man here and has become wealthy through his legitimate promotion of the Valley's interests. His town property holdings at one time were the largest of any single individual in the region. He is a virile and able business man and far-seeing, tireless worker in any good cause that appeals to him, always optimistic and enthusiastic regarding this Valley and its glowing possibilities, ready to infuse new courage into despondent men who may be overcome by adversity. A strict philanthropist, he would give a tramp a pile of wood first and double pay afterward. The needs of this Valley have been uppermost in his mind, and he has spent vast sums of money in its development. A Missouri man, born on a farm there, married his old-time sweetheart, and they have been active partners ever since. He established banks in different parts of the West, but was always in search of some new country where he could help it grow and develop. What a find he was, therefore, to this Valley! It was in the spring of 1901 when he first looked across the vista of years into a country of many homes and big with possibilities. He thought it might become an empire, and he began at once to boost its interests. His first thought was to build a telephone line to the outside world. After receiving an exclusive franchise for this purpose and a small block of water-stock from the Imperial Land Company he went right ahead stringing his wires. Meanwhile he saw the advantages of a local newspaper, and this was accordingly established on a similar basis. He installed the plant and placed Henry Clay Reid in charge. This was the beginning of the Imperial Press. Being a churchman and in favor of promoting ethics, morality and education, and the higher principles of civic progress, he secured the influence and association of friends and an organization was effected and a small church edifice was built, Mr. Holt paying the salary of the preacher for two years. Meanwhile the land company was in hearty accord with him and agreed to furnish water stock to repay him. He always regarded this move of vast importance to the best interests of the Valley and said it was a start to build here a civilization ahead of the time. One day, riding out on the stage, he heard two thirsty men bemoaning the absence of saloons, saying they would not put a cent into the country until sure that saloons would be permitted. Mr. Holt told them such men were not wanted there at all, nor one cent of their capital. Strange to say, however, that one of these very men has since invested thousands of dollars there and now says that this prohibition of saloons was the best thing the Valley ever did. Mr. Holt was also instrumental in securing the railway from Imperial to the main line on the Southern Pacific, some 28 or 30 miles. He afterward made large profits from a favorable contract with the California Development Company as a promoter, to which he was justly entitled. He in turn assisted the development company to much ready money at different times, and, in fact, became a sort of national banker for the settlers. This man had implicit faith in the future of this Valley. He believed in the people and the righteousness of human nature in general. He had never been cheated out of a dollar in his life, never brought a lawsuit to collect damages or claims, never foreclosed a mortgage, and yet had been loaning money and selling on credit all his life. Give a man a chance and time to pay and don't crowd him, was his motto. He believed in people. It was in this way that he kept on buying, building, improving and spending money in the Valley. Thus at the opening of 1903 he had increased his capital by over $20,000. After irrigating No. 7 district he saw water running to waste in the Alamo channel and was told it had between 500 and 1000 horsepower of electric energy. Then he formed the Holton Power Company, and a few months afterward men wanted to buy stock in that corporation, but there was none on the market. He purchased townsites and built the Interurban Railway. One of these townsites became El Centro later. He built a business block and the Opera House, costing $50,000, even then when the total population of the town could have been seated in a single passenger coach. People said a lot of mean things about him, some of which were true, too. Many don't like him, but lots of others do. The Holt Power Company is capitalized for a million dollars, owning the electric-light plant in five towns, three other power-plants and five cold-storage houses. And during late years Mr. Holt has begun the construction of a gridiron system of roads which reaches the shipping of every acre of ground in the entire district. Other most important enterprises are being rapidly carried forward, and the land company is now capitalized for over three million dollars. Mr. Holt surely has been a true pioneer and perhaps the greatest of them all in Imperial Valley. The record here given is only a brief summary of his many achievements. Mr. W. E. Wilsie is another of these prominent pioneer settlers who have won marked success. Coming first in 1901, in the following November he laid out the streets of Brawley, which then had only two other residents. In the succeeding winter he farmed 300 acres, and the next summer shipped three carloads of barley and one of wheat, the first ever shipped from the Valley. And it had been cut by a combined reaper and harvester. He afterward became associated with numerous corporations in the Valley in an official capacity, and was also Horticultural Commissioner of the county, winning high favor for his most effective service in that position. He was a director in the first creamery and stock-breeders' association, president of the first cantaloupe association, secretary of the library board, trustee of the Heber Collegiate Institute, and an official in various other corporations. Mr. George Nichols was also among these prominent early pioneers. He shared in the colonization of newcomers and in all public affairs, especially near Silsbee. He was also a leader in road and school district work. More than 100 persons were brought into the Valley by him, most of them from the old San Diego section. He opened the first real estate office in Imperial. His own ranch was six miles southwest of El Centro, where he now runs a real estate office. He saw the first crop of alfalfa grown in the Valley, near Diamond Lake. Roy McPherrin was among the first lawyers in this section, and he tells some quaint stories of conditions he found on arrival to take a position in the Imperial Mutual Water Company, in connection with which he had a prominent share in the reclamation of the land. W. H. Hartshorn was another leading pioneer. He became manager of the ice-plant erected by the Imperial Land Company, and he kept the price of this much-needed commodity at one cent per pound. He afterward piped the city for water and turned on the first water used in the homes. Then next he established a transfer company, with a specially designed dray for the purpose, with a big bay horse in front of the vehicle that created quite a sensation on the streets. He also shared materially in the colonization work, having an extensive acquaintance on the coastside of San Diego County. He built one of the first private residences in Imperial. Mr. J. H. Holland came from San Jose with a full line of stock and farming implements. After spending some time in building canals and hauling freight from the railroad he stocked his farm and planted alfalfa. For a time the introduction of Bermuda grass into this Valley was regarded as a dangerous accession, and it became known as "devil grass." But Mr. D. W. Breckenridge, who entered the Valley soon afterward, found use for it. He sent to Arizona for seed, and on this rich forage he raised the best fatted cattle of the season. And he subsequently had great success with this grass for years in rearing cattle and sheep. It starts growing early in the spring, and the animals seem very fond of it. He claims it has as much nourishment as alfalfa, with no tendency to disease. It also possesses great heat and drouth resisting qualities. This proved a decided innovation, as the grass had been universally condemned by others. He also thwarted successfully several attempts to rob him of his land there on a technicality, in the courts. The first important butcher and meat shop in the region was opened by the Thing Brothers, of Calexico. They bought and killed their own stock, and finally, in 1907, they built a fine business block, the largest in this southern end of the Valley. W. A. Young, another Valley pioneer, drove in from a point near Los Angeles in 1901. Poor and pretty nearly broke he said he was at that time. His family lived under a "ramada" made of arrowweed shoots thatched on a frame eight feet high. These "ramadas" are familiar objects all through the Valley, few of the ranches being without them. Their shelter from the sun is superior to anything else. W. C. Raymond, a Canadian, who went to Arizona several years ago and roughed it there until he heard of this Valley in 1903, saddled up and rode into this promised land. Here he camped until finding a suitable location, when he began his work upon improvements at once. But now the old river rushed into his ranch and drove him out, and he finally moved to another, planted 320 acres of barley and alfalfa, and raised hogs with success, cleaning up $7000 in 1909. Then he put in 80 acres of cotton the next year. William Lindsey was one of the great eastside pioneers who arrived in 1902, when the place was still a wilderness. But he also was driven out by the flood. The Colorado was no respecter of persons, but it sometimes seemed the great stream sought to discourage newcomers. But Mr. Lindsey finally overcame this unfriendly greeting and prospered. D. H. Coe rode in on a bicycle in 1901, passed through all the trials and tribulations incident to that period, and now has a ranch of 200 acres six miles northwest of Holtville, and is one of the most enthusiastic boosters of the country. The mercury stood at 117 when he arrived, and his wheel was a great help to him, although he saw not a soul except from a distance at the time. But he rode straight to the spot he wanted and now has some 200 acres planted in alfalfa, barley and cotton, a large herd of stock, and is a purely business rancher. F. E. Van Horn, three miles east of El Centro, was among the first to reach and grow up with the Valley, and his faith in it has never flagged. He started the first school ever held there, walking three miles each way, with books very hard to get, and the methods of teaching very primitive. Among those who became early impressed with the value of cotton as a Valley crop was L. E. Srack, who came from Riverside in 1901. Later he installed plants for the care of the by-products of cotton-oil and cotton-seed meal, which were built in 1910. Among the pioneers there with unconquerable souls, who fought the water floods back and won, was B. F. McDonald. When he saw the flood coming in he said: "We have put this water on the land where we want it; now we can surely keep it off when we don't want it. Let's try." They did, and won in the end. The waters receded and their ranches and stock were saved because of their vigilant and effective efforts. Being a Louisiana cottonman originally, he knew the game and how to manage it, having 160 acres in cotton. He was enthusiastic over the merits of that staple for that region. Steve Lyons was of Irish descent. Having been reared on a ranch in Salinas, some of the advantages of city school life and social intercourse with cultured and educated people had left an impress upon his native character. And it is said of him that he possessed the spirit of the Valley in a marked degree. He brought some capital into the new country, and much sound business judgment, all products of hard work and good thinking. The Valley had been only partially developed in 1904 when Steve arrived. The territory west of Calexico was barely scratched, although the ditch system was under construction in the entire west side. Lyons saw that land was to be king and he filed on a half-section at once. But seeing a more profitable field for his activities in the contracting business, he pitched into that with his brothers, and they built over fifty miles of the main ditches and laterals for the California Development Company. Being skilled in the work, they found no difficulty in securing good contracts for grading and ditching. Meanwhile Steve began developing his own property, and in the fall of 1907, when the new County Imperial was launched, these Lyons boys baled more hay and threshed more grain than any other combination in the district. They operated on a large scale and kept forever going ahead with courage and unshaken nerve, in spite of all threatened river dangers. They bought 565 acres in Mexico, near Calexico, which they purposed to use as a model stock farm or a cotton plantation. Such are some of the characteristics which go to make up the aggressive spirit, and yet conservative business balance in agriculture. It is ability coupled with willingness, good health, mental, moral and physical, and above all an abounding faith in the work in hand. This imparts self-confidence and insures success. Socially, perhaps, no man in the Valley has done more for the promotion of affairs than Phil. W. Brooks, whose ranch is between El Centro and Holtville. His generous hospitality is well known from Yuma to Cuayamaca.He came from a New England agricultural school, at Amherst College, in 1903, possessing enthusiasm and energy and capital. He bought and sold ranches and developed them, and now, near El Centro, he has 80 acres of Thompson's seedless grapes, besides other lands. He is now the general manager of the Britten-Cook Land and Live-stock Company, which is investing hundreds of thousands of dol-dollars in the hog-raising industry in Imperial Valley. Mr. Brooks has recently resigned the office of receiver of the U. S. Land Office at El Centro. Mr. Brooks has been a powerful factor for good in that community, through his influence in relieving the monotony of frontier life. Dave Williams was among the early pioneers in the realm of sports. He organized, financed and managed the Imperial Valley Wild West shows, which furnished so much entertainment and amusement for thousands in the winter of 1909. He is called the father of the Christmas fiesta idea that made Holtville famous. He is also a public-spirited man who never fails to respond when called upon for assistance in the promotion of the best interests of the district. He takes time to enjoy life as he goes along and tries to help others do the same. And yet he is not a retired capitalist, but only a plain rancher. He came originally from Canada, ranched for some years in Washington, and then heard of this Valley, where he bought a ranch in the spring of 1907. Here he now has 560 acres in alfalfa and 27 stacks of hay containing some 900 tons. On one of these fertile fields this farmer found a single stalk of alfalfa 7 feet 8^2 inches long. This ranch is five miles from Holtville, on the Highland Boulevard, the finest nine-mile stretch of road in that district. He delights in outdoor sports, and is always ready to "start something" of that nature. He is credited with having added, more than any other man, to the joy of living on that side of the Alamo River. H. J. Messinger of Holtville was a frontiersman, having served as Indian trader, teacher and reservation superintendent. Next he became a member of the territorial legislature, and assisted in the government formation. While in northern Arizona, trading with the Indians, he learned of the Imperial Valley settlement. Gathering a carload of work-stock, he reached there in 1903, when the east side was beginning to blossom. He began building ditches and sowing seed, mainly upon leased land. But, prospering in grain raising, he soon entered the grain commission and seed business. In 1904 he finally settled in Holtville, opened a livery and feed business, but also continued his farm work on leased land, although he afterward acquired an extensive acreage and speculated most advantageously. In 1908 he brought to the front what is known as the "high-line country." Mr. William J. Mansfield came into the Valley in 1903, having some capital and business experience. He went to work himself in a new suit of overalls, with his team, on the hummocks, which he bravely subdued. He thinks he spent some $22,000, exclusive of his own work. But it resulted in one of the finest ranches in the district, where he soon became a prominent leader. Later he was selected as the Republican candidate for State Assemblyman from that district, for which he had every qualification, being a farmer, business man and director in various corporations. It is of course unnecessary to add that Mr. Mansfield has been an Imperial Valley booster from the first. Mr. George A. Long was for years called the "cattle king" of the Valley. He fattened more steers than any other man, and built a modern sanitary meat packing house from government plans. He fattened stock at his own expense, and bought 320 acres between the towns of El Centro and Imperial, put it into alfalfa, fenced and divided it into separate pastures. In addition to this, however, he leased nearly 1000 acres adjoining, upon which he fattened the Arizona mountain-bred steers, of which he usually had from 1000 to 3000 head in various stages of preparation. Thomas O'Neil, a ranch owner near Imperial now, came from a peaceful town in Pennsylvania with an absorbing desire to fight Indians, but without any idea of the hardships, discomforts and dangers attendant upon that warlike pursuit. He followed the intrepid Custer through the Yellowstone campaign in 1873, and the round-up in the Black Hills the next year which led to the fatal Big Horn fight in 1876. But O'Neil had left the Black Hills and went pioneering on his own account in Phoenix, Arizona, and finally brought up in Imperial Valley in the winter of 1902. Here he leased 64 acres and established a small dairy. He was then a bachelor with only his famous "Snip" pony as a companion, but later he took Mrs. Adams as life partner, and he now laughs as he recalls the place and methods of his courtship, as he smokes his evening pipe of contentment in his comfortable home. Other romantic incidents of this nature might well be cited here if space permitted. And yet the career of Harry Van den Heuvel, who came in from Riverside in 1903, with $25 of borrowed money, seems worthy of mention. He went to work for others with a vim that meant success. In 1904 he began to coax his quarter-section of land west of El Centro upon which he had filed into productiveness. His only partner was an old gray mare, and she stood by him from first to last and did most effective service. Finding trouble in securing help to thresh his grain crop, he secured a threshing machine and went at it himself and also worked for his neighbors with it. In this way he re-established his credit, paid all his bills with interest and had a surplus left. The old gray mare at last accounts was feeding in a broad field of alfalfa, pensioned for life. Six hundred of these fertile acres are now under Heuvel's control, and his place is valued at $60,000, free and clear. Between El Centro and Mobile is the "Poole Place," which is noted for its high state of cultivation, with many fine shade trees and a prosperous looking home. Mr. Poole is a typical American farmer who came in November, 1903, with no capital save his personal energy and determination to succeed. With these valuable assets he went to work. put in his crops on 2220 acres, housing his family in a rude shelter for a time until he could build a more permanent home, which now stands in sharp contrast with the old quarters. Meanwhile he leased 320 additional acres near at hand. While on a short vacation a fire broke out in his house, destroying 60 tons of hay and a much valued young stallion, and considerable other property. But he took this misfortune resignedly, and in the spring of 1910 he erected a fine new dwelling at a cost of $2000. It has been customary in the East in referring to these farmers and rural residents by writers who speak of them as "hayseeds," with long hair and whiskers, unkempt and unsophisticated, and even yet this class is furnishing inspiration to caricaturists and pencil-pushers for comic supplements. But it may be said here that these early pioneers in this Valley were not of that class, if indeed there ever was such a class of people any way as these imaginative writers try to picture. Pioneers with the courage and grit to squat in such a desolate waste as this was before its reclamation are made of wholly different stuff. In order to bring a ranch into a high grade of efficiency and make it yield dividends there must be business sagacity back of all the hard work. Mr. J. H. Blodgett, who filed on a full section of this reclaimed land five miles northwest of Holtville, is a man of this type. He came from Nebraska in the fall of 1904 with small means and lots of energy and ambition. He put in alfalfa, with some grain and other annual crops, and hogs as a side line, and also a few dairy features. And he says he has found this combination profitable and desirable and would not run a ranch without it. But he also planted cotton, of which he had 250 acres in 191 o, without even suspecting or anticipating the sharp advance in price of this staple that the war would bring. He has made good in hog-raising, feeding them skimmed milk, alfalfa, corn and barley. This man was the first in the No. 5 district to drill for artesian water, which he struck with a strong flow at a depth of 580 feet. This supply has been piped into his house and farm hydrants. James M. Potts is another example worthy of emulation by anemic youths who stand behind dry-goods counters, or sit upon high office stools wrestling with figures and bemoaning their lack of opportunity to do something worth while at a big salary and be somebody. Mr. Potts was only 21 when he reached the Valley in 1905. But he borrowed $100 cash in some way and took up some land near Holtville. Mixing brains with his labor, he traded, worked for others and tilled his own farm, all with success. He brought a carload of horses and mules from the coast, turned them loose in his alfalfa patch for a time, which renewed their youth and vigor in a way that enabled him to sell out at a handsome profit. This experiment was frequently repeated with like results, and the profits were put back into the ranch improvements, where he now has 60 acres of alfalfa and 20 acres of cotton. This shows what industry, persistence and faith will do for a man who is in earnest to succeed. The record does not show that Mr. Potts was a great genius, as the world defines that special gift. But it does show that he made the very best use of his native equipment. Lee Dutcher, who came to the Valley early in 1905, is another man of this type. And it should be said that the region has been very fortunate in having so many of this class among its early settlers. But for this fact its development and progress would not have been so marked nor so permanent. W. S. Moore, who came from western Pennsylvania in the fall of 1903, with $45 cash and a roll of blankets, struck a job as laborer at once, and kept at it until he could buy a team of horses and a hay-press. The following summer he secured 160 acres of land near the present site of El Centro. He planted barley and alfalfa, and the next year added some stock. In 1909 he began to call his place a "ranch" like the rest of the "fellers" because he had 150 hogs and 27 cows, and planned to feed them. He then lost a little by a cantaloupe experience which, however, he made up with his hogs and forgot about his melons. His 1910 trial balance showed assets aggregating $35,200. The personal history and achievements of I. J. Harris, who came to the Valley with an invalid wife from Louisiana in 1904, is also interesting. She was suffering from a bronchial affection and came here in search of relief. Instead of taking government land, as most of the settlers did, Mr. Harris bought his land outright, though he came to Imperial without any capital. He went to work by the day, and after a time he saved money enough to buy 80 acres more, this time in the Mes-quite Lake section. He is a great believer in the eucalyptus, but he also raised fine crops of alfalfa, barley and grapes. After six years of this Valley life his wife had regained her health. Mr. Harris is one of the best citizens of the Valley. In a public address to college men at an informal luncheon in Imperial in 1910 President Babcock, of the University of Arizona, advised small farm units of from 15 to 20 acres in this reclaimed section. While this might result in dense population in large central towns, and increased business of all kinds, it would mean also more intensive farm methods. Acting perhaps upon these suggestions, Mr. S. C. Tomkins purchased 40 acres near Holtville, where he plans to make a fortune. He started a small dairy with 30 cows, experimenting with "balanced rations," with mixed feed and hay. And he reports most encouraging results, having already built an alfalfa mill large enough for his own work and for the use of his neighbors. He now claims he can feed one dairy cow on an acre the year through and leave room enough for truck raising, fruit and poultry. All his experiments thus far have been confined to this 40 acres of land. He came from Los Angeles after a long experience in commercial life, and has therefore conducted his ranch on business principles. J. M. Cardiff came from San Bernardino when things in the Valley didn't look very promising. After living in an irrigation country for many years he looked upon the vagrant Colorado River with considerable alarm unless it could be permanently controlled. But he concluded to cast his lot with the many powerful corporations which he knew had everything at stake and were taking every chance. He had invested every cent he had in the Valley and never lost faith in it because he was a cheery optimist by nature and training anyway. But he lost his life in an accident in 1907, though his family were left with a comfortable competence, and his sons resumed the work where their father left off, and they have a fine ranch of 320 acres. The hog-raising industry has become popular throughout the Valley because of its unfailing returns year after year. But owing to the high price of pork and its numerous products, and the haste to produce them little attention was at first given to careful breeding in order to secure the best results. But that is a thing of the past. Today Imperial Valley swine are among the best in the country. Among the first to bring in thoroughbreds was Arthur McCollum, who had a ranch near Imperial. He had been a postal clerk in San Jose after twenty years on a farm, where his health failed. He preceded his wife in this Valley by some three weeks, and their combined capital at that time was $2.15. And yet he managed to secure a bit of ranch land, some 40 acres, upon which he raised only pedigreed stock, as Ohio Improved Chesters and Poland Chinas, and all under the most perfect sanitary conditions. He dealt only with hog-breeders and not with pork men. Another man of this class is Mr. J. R. Sturgis, who has both the means and the ability to insure success. He has 160 acres not far from Holtville which are mainly devoted to alfalfa, barley and wheat. He experiments with thoroughbred stock, such as Poland China and Berkshire, and he is making a careful study of the whole problem of hog-raising. He has found that this stock costs about one-third less feed and care, and can be fattened more rapidly than the common stock. He expects to ship a carload of this stock every two months. He also contends that the quality of this pork is always superior, the animals are smoother in appearance, stronger and better nourished. He came into the Valley from Ventura County in 1908. One of the largest breeders in the Valley, however, is Mr. J. M. Prim, who arrived in 1965 from an Illinois farm after considerable experience with hogs there. He leased 320 acres of land in the rich No. 5 district, four miles from Holtville. But just about that time the big river came into the Valley too, and it was a dark outlook for Prim for some months when this unwelcome water was pouring over the hopes and plans of the settlers. But by 1907, when the river break had been closed, Prim was animated with fresh courage, and he even leased some more property. But the next year there was a decided slump in the pork market, and he lost some $10,000 with his pigs. But he kept at it, and in 1910 the buyers were fighting each other, and he sold three carloads for $5000. Having then 3200 hogs, he had to buy 80 more acres of land. Upon this he raised barley and Filipino wheat. This he feeds to his stock by an automatic feeder, with no waste nor any dirt, although the device is costly in the first instance. Mr. Prim is a systematic man with careful methods, though in some respects he has been called a "plunger." Among his many improvements on that ranch is a large reservoir from which he can irrigate his land if necessary. Mr. A. L. Bliss, a man of reputed wealth, was also an early believer in hogs for this Valley. He came from Illinois, where he had served as secretary, president and superintendent of the Swine Breeders' Association, and a student of the hog industry for some time. On one occasion he had owned a Poland China boar that was valued at $8000. His advent into the Valley was in the fall of 1909. He then had an idea of buying from 40 to 80 acres for certain experiments he had in mind. But he finally bought 640 acres on the northern limits of Holtville, and afterwards invested in 320 more near El Centro. For once it seems the advertisements he had read about the Valley fell short of the truth. The surprise was most agreeable and really prolonged the short visit he had intended to a permanent stay. When a young man he taught school, became a trustee and later superintendent of the schools for many years. But now he can afford to go back on the farm and take life easy. Additional Comments: Extracted from: THE HISTORY OF IMPERIAL COUNTY CALIFORNIA EDITED BY F. C. FARR IN ONE VOLUME ILLUSTRATED Published by ELMS AND FRANKS BERKELEY, CALIFORNIA 1918 File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ca/imperial/history/1918/historyo/leadingp217nms.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.net/cafiles/ File size: 31.7 Kb