Ada County ID Archives Biographies.....Archabal, John B. 1873 - ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/id/idfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Joy Fisher http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00001.html#0000031 October 12, 2010, 4:07 am Source: See Below Author: S. J. Clarke (Publisher, 1920) John B. Archabal JOHN B. ARCHABAL, one of the well known wool growers of Boise, who belongs to the Spanish or Basque colony, was born in Spain, June 24, 1873, and became a naturalized citizen of the United States in 1903. His Spanish ancestors had been shepherds for generations and as a boy John Archabal herded sheep, beginning the work when a mere lad. He came to the United States in 1893, making his way direct to Boise, where he arrived in the midst of the great financial panic of that year. He was then a young man of twenty and he had nothing but the clothes upon his back and the contents of his pockets, amounting to but a few dollars and a jackknife. On his way across the Atlantic the steamer on which he was making the trip met with disaster and sank in midocean, twenty-five of the people aboard being drowned, but the majority of the five or six hundred passengers were picked up by another vessel and taken to Galveston, Texas, although the vessel on which Mr. Archabal originally embarked was destined for New York. He was thus far off the route which he intended to take. With good luck he would have landed at New York in about six or seven days, and as it was he was thirty-six days on the water before being landed at Galveston. He had lost all his clothes but those which he wore when the ship sank and had barely money enough to pay his railway fare to San Francisco, California, and buy a change of clothing. Again ill fate seemed to overtake him. It was his intention to go to Boise instead of San Francisco, but a misunderstanding in arrangements took him to the California metropolis, where he remained until he could send to a friend in Boise for money enough to continue the journey. He reached Idaho's capital on the 18th of November, 1893, and during the first few months worked for his board for Bill Howell, remaining in Mr. Howell's employ as a ranch hand for five months and being paid wages after the first three months. Mr. Archabal next went to work for W. C. Cleveland as a sheep herder and after being thus employed for four years he bought a half interest in Mr. Cleveland's business and the two men were partners in sheep raising and in the wool business for eighteen years, sometimes having many thousands of sheep on hand. At one time their flocks numbered thirty thousand head. In 1916 Mr. Archabal purchased the interest of Mr. Cleveland in the business and has since continued alone, although at the present time he has twelve men associated with him in the sheep raising industry as side partners. His plan since buying Mr. Cleveland's interest in the business has been to provide these side partners with a certain number of sheep—from two thousand to six thousand head, the men to care for them on the shares. During the last three years, while the great European war was in progress, Mr. Archabal's profits have been large and he is now numbered among the wealthy men of Boise. Following out his present plan of business, he does all the buying and selling and is general manager of the dozen or more sheep industries of which he is the head, maintaining general supervision over all. In Boise, on the 1st of December, 1901, Mr. Archabal was married to Miss Benecta Aldecoa, also of Spanish birth. She came to the United States two years prior to her marriage and to them have been born five children, two sons and three daughters: Hazel, who is sixteen years of age; John, a lad of thirteen; Matilda, who is nine years of age; Pidel, who is seven years old; and Juanita, a little maiden of four summers. The family have membership in the Roman Catholic church. Mr. Archabal is a member of the Boise Commercial Club. Only once since coming to the new world has he returned to his native country, having made the trip to Spain in 1907, accompanied by his wife and two children. After six months spent in his native land, however, he again came to the new world, where he had found the business opportunities which he sought and which have brought him to success. He is the owner of a ranch of one hundred and sixty acres seven miles from Boise and another of equal size in Oregon and he also owns considerable valuable income property in Boise. He has been a most liberal contributor to all worthy enterprises, giving generously to the Red Cross, the Young Men's Christian Association, the Associated Charities, the Salvation Army and other projects looking to the benefit of the soldiers or the amelioration of hard conditions of life for the unfortunate. He has been a liberal buyer of Liberty Bonds and War Savings Stamps and belongs to the Boise Limit Club, having bought one thousand dollars' worth of stamps in his own name, while his purchases altogether amount to about fifty thousand dollars. America, which afforded him his business opportunities, is the land where his interest and his affection center and he is putting forth every effort to advance the welfare and progress of community and commonwealth. Additional Comments: Extracted from: IDAHO DELUXE SUPPLEMENT CHICAGO THE S. J. CLARKE PUBLISHING COMPANY 1920 Photo: http://www.usgwarchives.net/id/ada/photos/bios/archabal74nbs.jpg File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/id/ada/bios/archabal74nbs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.net/idfiles/ File size: 5.8 Kb