USA > California > A history of California and an extended history of its southern coast counties, also containing biographies of well-known citizens of the past and present, Volume I > Part 63
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The great flood of 1825 was followed by a
terrible drought in 1827-28-29. During the pre- ceding years of abundant rainfall and consequent luxuriant pasturage, the cattle ranges had be- come overstocked. When the drought set in the cattle died by the thousands on the plains and ship loads of their hides were shipped away in the "hide droghers." There was another great drought in 1844-45 with the usttal accompani- ment of starving horses and cattle.
The great floods of 1859-60 and 1861-62 were followed by the famine years of 1862-63 and 1863-64. The rainfall at Los Angeles for the season of 1862-63 did not exceed four inches and that for 1863-64 amounted to little more than a trace. A few showers fell in November, 1863, but not enough to start vegetation; no more fell until late in March, but these did no good. The dry feed on the ranges was exhaust- ed and cattle were slowly dying of starvation. Herds of gaunt, skeleton-like forms moved slowly over the plains in search of food. Here and weak to move on stood motionless, with droop- ing heads, slowly dying of starvation. It was a pitiful sight. In the long stretch of arid plain between the San Gabriel and Santa Ana rivers there was one oasis of luxuriant green. It was the vineyards of the Anaheim Colonists, kept green by irrigation. The colony lands were sur- rounded by a close willow hedge and the streets closed by gates. The starving cattle and horses, frenzied by the sight of something green, would gather around the inclosure and make desperate attempts to break through. A mounted guard patrolled the outside of the barricade day and night to protect the vineyards from incursions by the starving herds. The loss of cattle was fear- ful. The plains were strewn with their car -. casses. In marshy places and around the ciene- gas, where there was a vestige of green. the ground was covered with their skeletons, and the traveler for years afterward was often startled by coming suddenly on a veritable Golgotha-a place of skulls-the long horns standing out in defiant attitude as if defending the fleshless bones. It was estimated that 50,000 head of cattle died on the Stearns rancho alone. The great drought of 1863-64 put an end to cattle raising as a distinctive industry in Southern Cali-
378
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
fornia. The dry year of 1876-77 almost de- stroyed the sheep industry in Southern Califor- nia. The old time sheep ranges had been greatly reduced by the subdivision of the large ranchos and the utilization of the land for cultivation. When the fed was exhausted on the ranges many- of the owners of sheep undertook to drive them to Utah, to Arizona or to New Mexico, but they left most of their flocks on the desert-dead from starvation and exhaustion. The rainfalls for the dry season of 1897-98 and those of 1898- 99 and 1899-1900 were even less than in some
of the memorable famine years of the olden time. There was but little loss of stock for want of feed and very little suffering of any kind due to these dry years. The change from cattle and sheep raising to fruit growing, the sub-division of the large ranchos into small farms, the in- creased water supply by tunneling into the moun- tains and by the boring of artesian wells and the economical use of water in irrigation, have robbed the dreaded dry year of its old-time ter- rors.
OFFICIAL TABLE OF RAINFALL AT LOS ANGELES CITY FOR THE LAST 20 YEARS BY MONTHS, Compiled by A. B. WOLLABER, Local Forecaster, U. S. Weather Bureau
Year
Sept.
Oct.
Nov.
Dec.
Jan.
Feby.
Mar.
April
May
June
July
Aug.
Total for Season
1887-88.
0.15
0.12
0.78
2.67
6.03
0.77
3.15
0,11
0.02
0.00 0.00
0.03 0.00
0.28
19.45
1889-90.
0.33
6.96
1.35
15.80
7.83
1.36
0.66
0.22
0.03
0.02
0.00
0.03
34.59
1890-91.
0.06
0.03
0.13
2.32
0,25
8.56
0.41
1.26
0.31
0.00
0.00
0.00
13.33
1891-92
0.06
0,00
0.00
1.99
0.88
3.19
3.39
0.22
2.06
0.06
0.00
0.01
11.86
1892-93
0.00
0.33
4.40
4.18
6.29
2.27
8.52
0.19
0.06
0.03 0.00
0.00
0.01
6.74
1894-95
0.73
0.02
0.00
4.62
5.84
0.46
3.77
0.46
0.19
0.01
0.00
0.00
16.10
1895-96.
0.00
0.24
0.80
0.78
3.23
0.00
2.97
0.19
0,30
0.00
0.02
0.01
8.54
1896-97.
0.00
1.30
1.66
2,12
3.70
5.62
2,31
0.02
0.10
0.00
0.00
0.00
16,83
1897-98
0.00
2.47
0.01
0.05
1.26
0,51
0.98
0.03
1.75
0.00
0.07
0.00
7.13
1898-99
0.02
0,09
0,00
0.12
2.64
0.04
1.81
0.18
0.04
0.58
0.00
0,01
5.53
1899-00.
0.00
1.59
0.90
0.90
1.17
0,00
0.99
0,54
1.81
0.00
0,00
0.00
7.90
1900-01.
0.00
0.26
6.53
0.00
2.49
4.38
4.05
0.68
1.50
0.00
0.00
0.09
16.38
1901-02
0.03
1.88
0.46
0.00
1.62
3.35
2.98
0.16 3.77
0.03
0.00
0.00
0.00
10.51
1902-03
0.00
0.40
2.08
2.50
2.10
1.52
6.93
0.00
0.02
0.00
0.00
19.32
1903-04.
0.43
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.14
2.68
4.50
0.97
0,00
0.00
0.00
0.17
8,89
1904-05.
0.28
0.69
0.00
2.45
2.57
6.06
6.00
0.35
0.95
0.00
0.00
0.00
19.35
1905-96.
0.00
0.08
2.98
0.20
3.85
2.47
7.35
0.69
1.02
0.01
0.02
0.03
18.70
Average.
0.07
0.78
1.40
2.89
2.67
2.94
3.13
1.10
0.52
0.08
0.02
0.03
15.63
CHAPTER LV.
COMMERCIAL CORPORATIONS.
HE first commercial corporation formed in Los Angeles for the promotion of the business interests of the city and county was the Chamber of Commerce that was or- ganized in 1873. The first preliminary meeting of that organization was held August 1, 1873, in the district court room of the old court-house, which stood where the Bullard block now stands.
Ex-Governor John G. Downey, acted as chair- man and J. M. Griffith as secretary. There was
a large attendance of the leading merchants and business men of the city. It was decided at that meeting to call the proposed organization a Board of Trade, but at a subsequent meeting the name was changed to a Chamber of Commerce. At a meeting held in the same place, August 9, the secretary reported one hundred names on the roll of membership. The admission fee was fixed at $5. A Constitution and By-Laws were adopted and a board of eleven directors elected. The persons chosen as directors were R. M.
T
0.00
0.36
4.01
6.26
0.25
0.92
6.48
0,27
0.62
0,20
0.00
0.00
26.27
1893-94.
0.00
0.75
0.20
3.65
0.94
0.49
0.37
0.13
0.08
13.91
1888-89.
THE FIRST CHAMBER OF COMMERCE.
379
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
Widney, J. G. Downey, S. B. Caswell, S. Lazard, J. S. Griffin, P. Beaudry, M. J. Newmark, J. M. Griffith, H. W. Hellman, I. W. Lord, and C. C. Lipps. On the IIth of August, articles of in- corporation were filed. The objects of the or- ganization as set forth in the articles of incor- poration are: "To form and establish a Cham- ber of Commerce in and for the City and County of Los Angeles, and to transact any and all busi- ness usually transacted and conducted by Cham- bers of Commerce and Boards of Trade." It was incorporated for fifty years, and its charter is still in force.
The first president was Solomon Lazard and the first secretary I. W. Lord. Judge R. M. Wid- ney's office in Temple block was selected as the place of meeting for the directors. The mem- bers went actively at work and the Chamber ac- complished a great deal of good for the city and surrounding country. One of the first measures that engaged the attention of the board was an effort to secure an appropriation of $150,000 for the survey and improvement of San Pedro har- bor, and it was largely through the efforts of the Chamber that the first appropriation for that pur- pose was finally secured.
Literature descriptive of Southern California was circulated abroad and considerable atten- tion was given to the extending of the trade of the city among the mining camps of Arizona. The Chamber continued actively at work on va- rious schemes for promoting the advancement of our commerce through the years of 1873 and 1874. In 1875 came the disastrous bank failures, which were followed by the dry years of 1876-77. These calamities demoralized business and dis- couraged enterprise. The members of the Cham- ber lost their interest and the organization died a lingering death. It was buried in the grave of the "has beens" at least a decade before the pres- ent Chamber of Commerce was born, but the good that it did was not all "interred with its bones."
BOARD OF TRADE.
The oldest commercial or business organiza- tion now existing in Los Angeles is the Board of Trade. It was organized March 9, 1883, in the office of the Los Angeles Produce Exchange, Arcadia block, Los Angeles street. C. W. Gib-
son acted as president of the meeting and J. Mills Davies as secretary. At that meeting six directors were elected, viz .: C. W. Gibson, M. Dodsworth, I. N. Van Nuys, A. Hass, H. New- mark and John R. Mathews. The articles of incorporation were adopted March 14, 1883. The incorporators were C. W. Gibson, H. Newmark, M. Dodsworth, A. Hass, Walter S. Maxwell, I. N. Van Nuys, John Mills Davies, Eugene Germain, J. J. Mellus and John R. Mathews. "The purposes for which it is formed" (as stated in its articles of incorpora- tion) "are to develop trade and commerce, ad- vance and protect the interests of the merchants of the city and of the county of Los Angeles, to prevent fraudulent settlements by dishonest debtors, to investigate the affairs of insolvent debtors, to unite and assist the merchants of said city and county in the collection of debts other than in the ordinary course of business, and to prescribe rules and regulations of trade and commerce for the government of the members of this corporation."
In the earlier years of its existence, being the only organized commercial body in the city, it frequently took the initiative in originating and pushing forward to completion enterprises bene- ficial to the community, but which were not di- rectly in the line of work laid down as the ob- jects for which it was formed. Among these may be named the securing of the location of the Soldiers' Home at Santa Monica; the securing of appropriations for the erection of the post- office building at Los Angeles, and the removal of the army headquarters of the department of Arizona and New Mexico to the city of Los An- geles. The organization of the Chamber of Com- merce in 1889 relieved it of the burden of pro -. moting work outside of the objects for which it was directly organized. Its presidents and their years of service are as follows :
C. W. Gibson 1883-84
George H. Bonebrake 1885
E. L. Stern 1886
Eugene Germain: 1887-88
S. B. Lewis 1889
George E. Dixon 1890
W. C. Patterson 1891-92
R. H. Howell 1893
J. M. Johnston 1894
380
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
A. Jacoby 1895-96
P. M. Daniel 1897-00
A. Haas
1900-OI
H. S. Woollacott 1901-06
The following-named have filled the position of secretary :
J. Mills Davies 1883-85
A. M. Laurence 1885-87
T. H. Ward
1887-90
Gregory Perkins, Jr.
1890-06
Its first home was in the second story of the Baker block; from there it moved to the two- story brick building on the northwest corner of Broadway and First street, which was known as the Board of Trade building. The building was bought by a committee or association of members with the intention of locating the Board there permanently, but the scheme failed. The building was pulled down in 1898 and the present four-story block located on its site. In October, 1906, the Board of Trade and the Whole- salers' Board of Trade consolidated, the new or- ganization taking the name of the Wholesalers' Board of Trade.
THE SECOND CHAMBER OF COMMERCE.
To W. E. Hughes belongs the credit of in- augurating the movement that resulted in the or- ganization of our present efficient Chamber of Commerce.
Mr. Hughes came to Los Angeles in 1887. He had noticed the lack of unanimity among the people here in pushing forward any projected enterprise, and the want of an organization whose chief objects would be to promote the business interests of the city and county of Los Angeles and aid in developing the resources of all Southern California. Having had some ex- perience in the organization and management of a chamber of commerce in his former place of residence, Wheeling. W. Va., it seemed to him that some such organization was needed in this city.
Happening to meet S. B. Lewis and Maj. E. W. Jones on the street he briefly broached the subject to them. After a short discussion of the scheme they parted, each agreeing to secure the attendance of at least five other business men at a proposed meeting to be held in the Board
of Trade rooms, then in a two-story brick build- ing standing on the northwest corner of Broad- way and First streets opposite the Times build- ing. The time of the meeting was set for Thursday, October 11, 1888, at 3:30 P. M. At that meeting twenty-five persons were present. The following extracts from the minutes of the different meetings give a condensed history of the organization of the Chamber :
The meeting of October II was called to or- der by S. B. Lewis. Maj. E. W. Jones was chosen chairman and J. V. Wachtel, secretary. The object of the meeting was stated by W. E. Hughes. Short addresses were made by S. B. Lewis, Col. I. R. Dunkelberger, J. F. Humphreys, C. A. Warner, J. P. McCarthy, H. C. Witmer. Mayor William H. Workman and T. A. Lewis. The assemblage decided to form a permanent organization, and adjourned to meet in the same place Monday, October 15, at 3 P. M.
At this meeting, after some discussion on the method of forming a permanent organization and its objects, Col. H. G. Otis offered the following :
"Whereas, We business men and citizens of the city and county of Los Angeles are in favor of inducing immigration, stimulating legitimate home industries and establishing feasible home manufactories for the further upbuilding of the city and county and for the development of the material resources of Southern California upon a sound basis ; therefore,
"Resolved, That we hereby associate ourselves into a temporary organization with the above objects, to be known as the
and that a permanent organization be effected at the earliest practicable time."
The preamble and resolutions were adopted.
J. F. Humphreys moved that the organization he known as the Los Angeles Chamber of Com- merce. The motion was seconded and carried. The initiation fee was fixed at $5. The follow- ing-named persons handed in their names for membership :
W. E. Hughes, E. W. Jones, S. B. Lewis, W' H. Workman, Thomas A. Lewis, I. R. Dunkel- berger, John T. Humphreys, John I. Redick, J. H. Book, Charles E. Day, H. Jevne, Clarence A. Warner, Frank A. Gibson, Burdette Chand-
381
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
ler, M. L. Wicks, H. C. Witmer, James P. Mc- Carthy, W. F. Fitzgerald, W. H. Seamans, Her- vey Lindley, H. G. Otis, L. N. Breed, H. A. Rust, William Rommel, J. C. Oliver, L. H. Whitson, C. E. Daily, L. L. Dennick. A. W. Palmer, William H. Avery, J. S. Van Doren, H. Z. Osborne, Los Angeles Oil Burning and Supply Company, W. W. Montague & Co., Har- rison & Dickson, R. H. Hewitt, Milton Thomas, T. W. Blackburn, Horace Hiller, John C. Flour- ney, H. H. Spencer, S. J. Mathes, G. W. Tubbs, A. H. Denker, D. Gilbert Dexter, T. C. Nara- more, C. F. Garbutt, W. A. Bonynge. John J. Jones, H. P. Sweet, M. R. Vernon, T. M. Mich- aels, Charles C. Davis. Louis R. Webb, E. C. Neidt and M. D. Johnson. At the meeting of the 19th, before the adoption of the constitution and by-laws, the following additional names were handed in: B. L. Hays, L. A. McConnell, J. W. Green, G. W .. Simonton, H. H. Bixby, E. W. B. Johnson, Strong & Blanchard, G. R. Shatto, Dr. M. Hagan. John Goldsworthy, Houry & Bros., H. V. Van Dusen, R. C. Charlton, R. W. Dromgold, C. S. McDuffee, John Lang, T. WV. T. Richards, W. B. Herriott, W. H. Toler, M. R. Higgins and J. T. Barton.
At the meeting of the 19th of October a com- mittee of five (appointed at a previous meeting ), consisting of H. G. Otis, W. E. Hughes, S. B. Lewis, I. R. Dunkelberger and W. F. Fitzgerald, submitted a plan of organization and presented a draft of a constitution and by-laws. These were adopted. The objects of the organization, as stated in the constitution, are: "To foster and encourage commerce ; to stimulate home manu- factures ; to induce immigration, and the sub- division, settlement and cultivation of our lands : to assist in the development of the natural re- sources of this region, and generally to promote the business interests of Los Angeles city and county and the country tributary thereto.'
At a meeting of the 24th the organization was completed by the election of officers and the ap- pointment of fifteen standing committees. The following were the first officers: E. W. Jones, president ; W. H. Workman, Ist vice-president ; H. G. Otis, 2nd vice-president : S. B. Lewis, 3rd vice-president : John I. Redick, treasurer ; and Thomas A. Lewis, secretary.
As with the first Chamber of Commerce so with the second, the first subject to engage its attention was the question of harbor improve- ments. At the meeting of November 13. 1888, J. R. Brierly, then collector of the port of San Pedro, and Judge R. M. Widney, who had been most active in the old Chamber of Commerce in securing an appropriation for a survey of the harbor, addressed the Chamber on the subject of harbor improvements. It was decided at the meeting to invite Senators Stanford and Hearst to visit San Pedro as guests of the Chamber.
The first pamphlet issued by the Chamber was entitled "Facts and Figures Concerning South- ern California and Los Angeles City and Coun- ty." Ten thousand copies were distributed.
After the newness of the organization wore off there came a period of depression. The boom had burst and many who had posed as capitalists in 1887 were bankrupts in 1889. An attempt was made to unite the counties of the south into a Southern California Chamber of Commerce, but the scheme failed through local jealousies. Then a few of the substantial citi- zens of Los Angeles, who always succeed in what- ever they undertake, bent their energies to its upbuilding and success crowned their efforts.
One of the novel methods of advertising the resources of our state that owed its success to the Chamber of Commerce was "California on Wheels." This was a handsome car filled with the products of the state. It made the tour by rail of the agricultural sections of the south and west, stopping at the cities and larger towns. Its free exhibits drew crowds of visitors. And the wonders of fruits and vegetables displayed in- duced many to sell their possessions and follow the "star of the empire" on its westward way. In 1891 under the auspices of the Chamber of Commerce the famous "Orange Carnival" was held in the exposition building on the lake front at Chicago. Over 100,000 people visited the Carnival exhibit. In .1893-94 the Chamber of Commerce was drawn into a contest out of the line of its usual work ; and that was a struggle for the location of a free harbor at San Pedro. The Southern Pacific Railroad Company had built a long wharf at Port Los Angeles above Santa Monica. That company used all its power-
382
HISTORICAL, AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
ful political influence to secure an appropriation for a harbor there. The contest became quite acrimonious. Delegations in the interests of each of the contestants visited Washington to use their influence on the members of congress for their respective harbors. While a large ma- jority of the members of the Chamber favored the San Pedro harbor, there was an active minor- ity in favor of the Southern Pacific scheme. The San Pedro harbor won, and its opponents quietly acquiesced in the decision of the majority.
HOMES OF THE CHAMBER.
The first home of the Chamber of Commerce was in a small two-story building on West First street. From there, in 1890, it moved to the armory, in the Mott building on South Main street. Here the permanent exhibit feature was inaugurated and has been maintained ever since. From the Mott building it moved in 1896 to the Mason building on the southeast corner of Broadway and Fourth streets. These quarters were secured by rental. In 1903 it moved into a home of its own. The Chamber of Commerce building is located on the east side of Broadway, between First and Second streets. It is a hand- some six-story structure, the front of granite, with interior finish of marble. The building is 135×179 feet in dimensions, providing 21,000 square feet of exhibit space. The finishing of the offices is rich and artistic. The second and third floors are occupied by the office and exhibit rooms of the Chamber, the remainder of the building being rented for offices and store rooms. The total cost of the land and building amounted to $325,000. The cornerstone was laid with Masonic ceremonies in March, 1902, and the building completed in December, 1903. The exhibit was installed and the doors of its new home thrown open to the public, February 10, 1904.
WORK OF THE CHAMBER.
The following brief summaries of the "work of the Chamber" and its "exhibitions" are taken from its last annual (April, 1906) :
"The Chamber has issued fifty-five pamphlets, descriptive of this section and its resources, with a total circulation of over one million and a half copies. Matter has been prepared for hundreds
of eastern magazines and newspapers. Statistics of crop returns have been secured in large num- bers from farmers and publishers. Information was prepared for the United States census. Hun- dreds of thousands of sample copies of the daily papers of Los Angeles city and their annuals have been distributed.
"Thousands of letters of inquiry are answered yearly, with literature and individual letters. Cir- culars of advice and information are printed and circulated among farmers, dealing with the raising of winter vegetables, beets for sugar, olive-growing, fruit-packing, orange and nut culture."
EXHIBITIONS.
"Besides maintaining a permanent exhibit of California products in its own quarters, which has been visited by over a million people, the Chamber has had charge of, and participated in, four local citrus fairs, visited by 100,000 people. Among other fields of activity have been the fol- lowing :
"The Orange Carnival in Chicago visited by 100,000 people. Three agricultural fairs, all suc- cessful and instructive. Regular shipments of fruits to 'California on Wheels,' a traveling ex- hibit visited by a million people. The Southern California exhibit in the World's Columbian Ex- position. The Southern California display at the Mid-Winter Fair in San Francisco. The permanent exhibit maintained for two years in Chicago, visited by half a million people. Dis- play at the National Convention of Farmers Al- liance, 1891. Display at the Dunkard Confer- ence, 1891. Exhibits prepared for lecturers and travelers. Exhibits sent to Eastern fairs. Ex- hibit permanently maintained in the Board of Trade in San Francisco. Exhibit at Atlanta Cotton States and International Exposition. Ex- hibit at Hamburg. Exhibit at Guatemala. Trans- Mississippi, and International Exposition, Oma- ha. Exhibit at World's Fair, Paris.
"A highly successful display of products was made by the Chamber of Commerce at the Pan- American Exposition, in Buffalo, in 1901. St. Louis, 1904. Portland, 1905. An annex to Portland Exhibit was made at Shasta Springs, where thousands of passengers en route to and
383
HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.
from Portland had a chance of seeing products from Southern California."
The following named gentlemen have filled the office of president of the chamber :
E. W. Jones 1888-91
C. M. Wells 1891-93
D. Freeman 1893-95
W. C. Patterson 1895-97
Charles Forman 1897-99
J. S. Slauson 1899-1900
M. J. Newmark
1900-OI
A. B. Cass
1901-02
F. Q. Story
1902-03
F. K. Rule
H. S. McKee 1903-04
1904-05
J. O. Koepfli 1905-06
W. J. Washburn 1906-07
W. D. Stephens 1907
The following have filled the office of secre- tary :
J. V. Wachtel 1888
Thos. A. Lewis 1888-89
M. R. Higgins 1889
H. W. Patton 1889-90
H. J. Hanchette 1890-91
C. D. Willard 1891-97
Frank Wiggins 1897
THE MERCHANTS AND MANUFACTURERS' ASSO-
CIATION.
The youngest of our commercial corporations is the Merchants and Manufacturers' Associa- tion. It has for its object "the promotion of the common interests of its members by increasing the facilities for our mercantile and commercial enterprises ; by finding a market for our local manufactured products ; by co-operating with the National Association of Manufacturers; by such social features as may from time to time be intro-
duced to promote better acquaintance among its members; and by taking such an intelligent in- terest in public affairs as will tend to advance the business enterprises of Los Angeles and vicinity."
The organization was formed by the union of two associations-the Merchants' Association, which was formed in the early part of 1894, and the Manufacturers' Association, which was organized in August, 1895.
"In June, 1896, a committee of conference representing the two associations arrived at the conclusion that a union of their respective mem- bers into one organization would best promote the interests of all, and formal action ratifying the report of the conference led to their legal consolidation under the name of the Merchants and Manufacturers' Association."
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