Yuba County CA Archives Biographies.....Garrett, James Riley 1837 - 1912 ************************************************ 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 http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00001.html#0000031 January 6, 2012, 12:21 am Source: See below Author: Peter J. Delay JAMES RILEY GARRETT.— The wholesale and retail merchandising business of the J. R. Garrett Co., of Marysville, stands forth as one of the most substantial and influential of its kind in the State of California. It is by far the largest in Marysville, and has greater facilities for handling and shipping grain, provisions, groceries and general produce than any other concern in the Sacramento Valley. At its head was a man who had worked his way up without missing any rounds of the ladder, and whose splendid achievement went hand in hand with profound respect on the part of his fellow men. He came to the West with the special attributes of the merchant; and these have made his specialty pay, through persistency of purpose and minute attention to details. J. R. Garrett was born on a farm near South Trenton, Oneida County, N. Y., July 19, 1837, his family having been established in New York by his paternal grandfather, Peter Garrett, whose youthful ambitions found an outlet in running away from his home in England, and in some way procuring passage on an American-bound ship. He lived on a New York farm for the remainder of his life. His son, Samuel Garrett, was born in Oneida County, and in early life married Jane Morton. Samuel Garrett left Oneida County in 1844, going via the Erie Canal to Buffalo, and from there taking a schooner to Milwaukee, Wis. With wagons and ox teams he moved his family to near Harvard, McHenry County, Ill., where he took up raw land in the wilderness and proceeded to establish a home for those dependent on him. His death in 1862 left much to be desired in the way of provision for the support of his family of seven children, and seeing no particular advantage in remaining in Illinois, the mother, her five daughters and two sons crossed the plains in the spring of 1864. As James R. was the oldest, he superintended the preparations and drove one of the wagons, the train being a large one, including people from all walks of life. The season was a dry one, and hay and provisions were exceedingly high, so that the first season they spent in California they had to pay as high as $50 a ton for hay, and four and one-half cents a pound for barley. Uninterruptedly, James Riley Garrett spent his Western life in Marysville, which gave him work as a teamster for about fifteen months, and then furnished other occupations, from all of which he succeeded in laying aside a part of his income. By August 1, 1866, he was able to buy an interest in the mercantile firm of E. W. Whitney & Co., his partners being Messrs. Freeman and Mathews. A year later he reached out still further and bought into the business of W. M. Bell & Co., operating under the firm name of Bell & Garrett, and several years later the firm name was changed to Garrett & Elder. Soon after the death of Mr. Bell, in 1885, Mr. Garrett became sole owner of the business, and in 1895 incorporated the J. R. Garrett Co., with a capital stock of $200,000 paid up, and he became president of the company. In August, 1902, the fine, large warehouses of the company burned to the ground; but with characteristic energy and progress Mr. Garrett added 60 by 160 feet to the original property of the concern, building up the largest and best-equipped warehouses in the valley and probably the best in the State. The partitions are of brick, floors cement, and all doors are absolutely fire-proof. No expense has been spared to make the buildings secure from fire and pleasant for employes, attention having been paid to sanitation, light and general furnishings. The equipment includes elevators and electric lights. The largest warehouse measures 160 by 160 feet, another one is 80 by 100 feet, and the third is 30 by 80 feet. Yet another warehouse, at the railroad tracks, for storage and forwarding, measures 100 by 50 feet. It will thus be seen that the storage capacity provided is enormous; yet it is at times barely adequate for the calls for goods which come in from all over the country, from Sacramento to Ashland, Ore. In 1903 Mr. Garrett erected one of the substantial residences in the city, located between E and F Streets, at a cost of $12,000. His home was presided over by his wife, formerly Mary E. Bandy, a native of Wisconsin, who, like himself, underwent the experience of crossing the plains in an ox-team train. Mr. Garrett was a member of the Marysville Chamber of Commerce, and in politics was a Republican. He passed away on April 13, 1912. Friends and business associates unite in according praise to this generous and high-minded merchant, not only for his well-merited success, but for the many fine personal traits which endeared him to the community. His position as an employer of labor cannot be overestimated, nor can the innumerable acts of kindness which he is known to have performed during his long and dignified career. Personally he was a genial and approachable man, one of the most public-spirited and generous of Marysville, and he numbered among his warm friends many of the foremost men in the State. Additional Comments: Extracted from: HISTORY OF YUBA and SUTTER COUNTIES CALIFORNIA WITH Biographical Sketches OF The Leading Men and Women of the Counties Who Have Been Identified with Their Growth and Development from the Early Days to the Present HISTORY BY PETER J. DELAY ILLUSTRATED COMPLETE IN ONE VOLUME HISTORIC RECORD COMPANY LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA 1924 File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ca/yuba/bios/garrett1104gbs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/cafiles/ File size: 6.0 Kb