Imperial County CA Archives History - Books .....Looking Back 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, 3:31 am Book Title: History Of Imperial County California LOOKING BACK There is so much of interest in the Valley Year Book of 1902 as indicated by Jose Huddleston in her contribution to the history of the following year that the writer takes the liberty of quoting copious excerpts therefrom in this chapter. It shows the contrasting conditions between then and now in this great Valley in a vivid manner. She arrived at Flowing Wells in October, 1901, and she called that the "jumping off place," or the end of civilization. Nothing was visible then but glistening sand, a little sagebrush and mesquite. Her little party spent the night under a tent in the desert and without sleep. Next morning at six she took the stage for Imperial, 33 miles away. They finally reached there at four in the afternoon and again stopped under a tent, kept this time by a Chinaman in payment of the rent, wood and water being furnished him by the owners. The land company had a very small office in the town, and Le Roy Holt, now a banker, kept a small grocery store. The Imperial Valley Press was issued from this building every week over a miniature printing office where the printer's family lived. There was also a Christian Church building through the influence of W. F. Holt, and a school building, and these few small structures comprised the town of Imperial at that time. A little patch of sorghum was the only green spot in sight. This had been planted as an experiment by Mr. Patton and was the only touch of color in that great sand waste. Mr. Huddleston opened the first barber shop in October, 1901. Then for the first time, it seems, the men of that Valley began to cut their hair and clip their beards. Soon after this two more tents were struck, and in one of these Mr. Huddleston baked bread with a gasoline stove, three loaves at a time, and 21 loaves a day. As room in this oven could be found he slipped in a pie. Of course, all were delighted with this homemade innovation. Then the writer relates in the following December the Valley was treated to a violent storm of snow, rain and sleet. When the first cow was brought in, tied behind a wagon, a great sensation was created. Mrs. Huddleston was keeping a restaurant, and the owner of the cow stopped there and told her she could have some fresh milk if she would milk the cow. It was the first milk she had seen in seven months. The main canal was then under construction and she received water through a small branch ditch when it was not choked with sand. In August, 1902, the ice factory began operations there. But in the May previous she had gone to Calexico, which was separated from Mexico by a small ditch ten feet wide. A hotel, blacksmith shop, custom house office and half a dozen tents comprised this first town in the Valley at that time. Then this picturesque writer describes the beauties of the mirages seen in that region in this way, and says that those who have never lived where these wonderful aerial phenomena occur can have no conception of such beauties. "On looking south we have often beheld the mountains turned upside down, one above the other. At other times a full-rigged battleship was seen so plainly that even the port holes were visible. Again we have seen the ocean and watched the breakers sweeping over the sands, and could see the spray from the rolling waves. Toward the east there was an immense castle with beautiful turrets with iron bars at the windows. A little farther north there appeared to be a hole through the mountain which seemed about four feet in diameter, showing beautiful green on the other side. Another time, toward the east, an immense bird seemed to be feeding, a crane perhaps, with a bill about a foot and a half long." "And so, where the winds have met, and the seas were swept aside, We have builded our homes, we have tilled the soil, and we view it all with pride." 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 Printed by Taylor & Taylor, San Francisco File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ca/imperial/history/1918/historyo/lookingb209nms.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.net/cafiles/ File size: 4.7 Kb