USA > California > San Benito County > History and biographical record of Monterey and San Benito Counties : and history of the State of California : containing biographies of well-known citizens of the past and present. Volume II > Part 40
USA > California > Monterey County > History and biographical record of Monterey and San Benito Counties : and history of the State of California : containing biographies of well-known citizens of the past and present. Volume II > Part 40
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The sons of David and Lavina (Lillie) Reid, Warren I. and George L. Reid were born in Chico, Butte county, Cal., in 1884 and 1885 re- spectively, but their knowledge of their birth- place is a matter of hearsay only, as when they were still very small children their parents re- moved to Monterey county, and here they have lived ever since. When they were old enough they were entered as pupils in the public school at San Lucas, and to the knowledge there gained they have continued to add by the reading of well-selected literature. As sons of parents who followed agriculture as a means of livelihood, their help, even as children, was made to count in behalf of the family welfare, for they were able to perform many of the chores which are necessary on every ranch, whether large or small. When their school days were over they gave their
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father their entire time, until 1903, when they de- cided to establish an enterprise of their own, leasing six hundred acres in the Oasis district, which they have operated ever since. In 1908 they added to their acreage by leasing the Green place. This comprises eleven hundred acres of fine land near San Lucas, which is their post- office and market town, and of this they have three hundred acres in barley, while the remainder is used as pasturage for the large number of horses, cattle and hogs which they raise. They have been engaged in business independently since 1903, and in the meantime have proven that they thoroughly understand the work they have undertaken, and all who know them predict a successful future for the Reid Brothers.
ANDREW HANSEN.
The tide of emigration which bore to the west so many of the industrious and capable sons of Denmark brought Andrew Hansen to Monterey county in 1880, his decision to emigrate hither having been made under the influence of a sis- ter, who preceded him in 1874 and from whom the most favorable reports were received con- cerning the country. Prior to his emigration he had followed the trade of millwright, at which he had served an apprenticeship commencing in 1864, when he was fourteen years of age. At the expiration of the apprenticeship he had re- ceived employment as a journeyman and con- tinued to follow the trade until 1880, when, at the age of thirty years, he left his native land of Denmark and sailed to the new world, arriv- ing at Salinas in due time and without any de- lays or incidents of note.
After having worked on a ranch and saved his wages with customary economy, Andrew Hansen in 1888 felt justified in starting out for himself, and accordingly he leased land from Jesse D. Carr. For eight years he rented the farm and during that time he had four hundred acres in wheat and oats. On the expiration of the lease he rented the Percy ranch, where he has five hundred acres under his control, and in addition he leases one hundred and fifty acres of the Sherwood land. Stock is to be found on his farm in sufficient numbers .to supply his own
needs. From the meadows he cut one and one- half tons of hay per acre. In 1908 he had four hundred acres in grain, from which he harvested ten sacks of barley per acre, and twelve sacks of oats to the acre.
The measure of success which has rewarded his efforts convinces Mr. Hansen that he made no mistake when he left his native country for the newer lands of the Pacific coast. The pros- perity he has won here would have been impos- sible to him under the conditions prevailing in the land of his childhood home. While living here he has witnessed the improvements made in Monterey county, has seen hamlets develop into villages of importance, and has watched the steady improvement and cultivation of the ranch lands. Possessing mechanical ability, he does all of his own repair work on the ranch and also is able to operate with ease the automobile of which he is the owner. In 1889 he was united in marriage with Nina Hansen, who was born and reared in Denmark. They have only one child, Harry D., who has been educated in local schools. Throughout the entire period of his residence in Monterey county Mr. Hansen has favored good schools and has spared no pains to aid in uplifting the standard of our public-school system. For a time he served as clerk of the board of trustees of El Sausal school. In politics he has been independent, supporting such men as he deems best qualified for official responsibil- ities and trusts.
STANLEY W. OLLASON.
In the future development and advancement of the agricultural and horticultural interests of Monterey county much may be expected from Stanley W. Ollason, one of the younger native sons of the state, who possesses the necessary qualifications to make a name and place for him- self in the community in which his life has been cast. Intelligence and practical judgment have been noticeable in his achievements thus far, and when to these essentials are added an inborn love for the work in hand one may safely predict his future success.
Mr. Ollason was born in the Carmel valley, June 7, 1882, the son of Sinclair and Mary (Bolce) Ollason, the former a native of Scotland
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and the latter born in New York state. Some time before the birth of their son the parents had come to the west and located in California, on a ranch in Monterey county, the same on which the birth of their son occurred. Here it was also that the father rounded out the years of his earthly life, his death occurring in 1894, at the age of fifty-eight years. He had made a specialty of dairying and fruit-raising, in both of which lines of agriculture he was well versed, and he became known as one of the prosperous agriculturists in this part of the county. Stanley W. Ollason was reared on the home ranch, and on attaining the proper age became a pupil in the public schools of Salinas, supplementing this training by a course in the Chestnut Business College, from which he graduated in 1902. Instead of putting his commercial training to account in the busi- ness world, however, he returned to Carmel val- ley and assumed charge of the ranch of his step- father, his mother in the meantime having become the wife of Daniel Snively. Here he has charge of fourteen hundred acres of excellent land, well adapted to general ranching, as well as dairying and fruit-raising, in all of which he is equally successful.
Mr. Ollason formed domestic ties by his mar- riage, October 19, 1904, with Miss Mary A. Stirling, who was born near Salinas, July 21, 1887. Two children have come to brighten the home of Mr. and Mrs. Ollason, Mildred Louise and Mary Ruth. It is Mr. Ollason's firm inten- tion to make agriculture his lifework, and that he has chosen the Salinas valley for his field of operation speaks eloquently of his opinion of this part of the county as a rich agricultural cen- ter.
VALENTINE J. LANINI.
It is just twenty years since Valentine J. Lanini came to the United States and took up his lot in the midst of conditions entirely un- familiar to him, while a still greater obstacle with which he had to contend was unfamiliarity with the language. These difficulties, however, were but temporary, and today he is able to take his place among the progressive, well-posted residents of Monterey county.
Mr. Lanini was born in the Canton of Ticino,
Switzerland, February 27, 1872, the son of par- ents who knew no other home than Switzerland. The parents were farmers and the home farm furnished ample opportunity for Valentine and his brothers, Henry and Simon, to get a practical knowledge of farming as conducted in Switzer- land. Ambitious to get ahead in the world, the brothers finally decided that their opportunities were limited in their native land and determined to locate in the New World, where opportunities could be had on every hand. Valentine left home and set sail for the United States in 1889, when he was a lad of seventeen years. California was his objective point, and hither he made his way after debarking from the ocean steamer at New York. Coming direct to Monterey county, he found work on dairy ranches in the vicinity of Gonzales, where he remained for three years, after which he became foreman of the large dairy of J. G. Armstrong in Salinas. This was one of the largest and best-established dairies of the county, containing seven hundred acres, and for eleven years Mr. Lanini had entire charge of the management of the property, giving satisfaction to his employer. At the end of this time he rented the property on shares for three years, at the same time renting eighty acres of the John Hitchcock ranch in company with his brothers. In 1904 Mr. Lanini removed onto the latter ranch, and made this his home until purchasing and removing upon property of his own. How- ever, he still retains the latter property which he carries on in connection with his own. This comprises four hundred and twenty-seven acres in the vicinity of Gonzales, which the brothers purchased in 1908, and which they operate in partnership. It is their intention to make this one of the largest dairies in the country, and if their present prospects are any criterion their success is assured. Of this property they have one hundred and forty acres in alfalfa to furnish feed for their stock, of which they have one hun- dred and twenty-five head on the home ranch, while on the Hitchcock ranch they have fifty head of fine cows. They have recently completed a plant for irrigating their land. There are three wells with a ten-inch pump and this is operated by a gasoline engine having a forty- horsepower boiler. The pipes run down into the well to the water, twenty-eight feet below the
-
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surface. The brothers work harmoniously to- gether, and in their undertaking they are meet- ing with the success which their efforts deserve.
In 1903 Valentine J. Lanini was united in marriage with Miss Emily Anselma, a native of Blanco, and three children have been born into their home, Nellie, Louis and Mary. Henry Lanini has also formed domestic ties, his mar- riage uniting him with Miss Anna Anselma, by whom he has two children, Lillie and Frank.
JOSEPH W. GREGG.
The rugged pioneer environment that moulded the sturdy characters of many of the makers of nineteenth century history evidenced its influence in the temperament of Joseph W. Gregg, an early settler of the Carmel valley and for many years an honored citizen of Monterey county. The formative period of boyhood was passed in Ohio, where he was born December 8, 1828, and where his early recollections embraced memories of farming on the then frontier. At that time railroads had not spanned the conti- nent and travel was by water or across country with teams. Modern methods of agriculture had not been introduced and machinery had not yet superseded hand labor.
Chance caused Mr. Gregg to learn the millers trade in the place where he had lived as a child, and where, in brief respites from labor, he had been privileged to attend the rural schools. However, he never followed the milling business to any great extent, agriculture being more to his taste. When he was a young man Califor- nia came into general prominence by reason of the discovery of gold and settlers were attracted to this region in large numbers. When the op- portunity presented itself he closed out his Ohio interests and started for the Pacific coast by way of Panama.
Shortly after his arrival in California and his settlement in the Carmel valley, Mr. Gregg be- came a pioneer in the development of large tracts of undeveloped land still in the primeval condition of nature. The first tract which he purchased comprised the property now known as the Snively place. Upon selling out there he bought one thousand acres in the valley and
started a dairy, which eventually he enlarged un- til it contained two hundred cows. For many years he made a specialty of the manufacture of butter and cheese. In the meantime he im- proved the place in various ways, the most im- portant being the erection of a neat farm house. When old age came to him and lie was no longer under the stress incident to earning a livelihood, he retired from the dairying business and for four years made his home in Monterey. His death occurred at the home place February 13, 1905, and removed from the community one of its honored pioneers. All through his active life he was firm in his allegiance to the Republi- can party. In the early days he was a promoter of every enterprise for the general good. Large- ly through his efforts the school district was or- ganized and he generously donated the land for the erection of the schoolhouse. For some years prior to his demise as well as ever since then, his daughter and her husband, Thomas Oliver, have occupied the old home place and have conducted a large dairy business. Their family numbers five children, George, Grace, Dewey, Thomas and Ralph.
CHARLES EMERICK LUZIER.
Descended from a colonial family of Pennsyl- vania, on the one side of German extraction and on the other side of Irish lineage, Charles Emer- ick Luzier was born in Clearfield county, Pa., June 10, 1856, and received such educational ad- vantages as the locality and day afforded. From an early age he worked in the lumber districts and engaged in rafting lumber down the Susque- hanna river. The course of business responsibil- ities took him to West Virginia, where he worked in the lumber regions of Tucker county. While living there in 1879 he married Miss Annie B. Macomber, member of a well-known family of the county. During 1889 he went to the territory of Washington on a tour of inspec- tion and from there he proceeded to California. settling in Monterey county. For a short time he worked in the hay and harvest fields and later farmed one hundred and fifty acres to grain.
The farm which Mr. Luzier now owns and occupies comprises twenty-eight acres situated near Spreckels and purchased by him in 1900,
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during which year he began to raise sugar beets. The tract cost him $900 without any improve- ments, but in the first year he harvested twenty- eight tons of sugar beets to the acre and on an average the land produces fifteen tons, so that the investment has proved a wise one. Success has rewarded his energy and sagacity. During the twenty years of his residence in this county he has seen many changes and won many friends.
The family of Mr. and Mrs. Luzier comprises eight children, of whom the three youngest were born in California. Agnes, the eldest, married Rollin Vierra and resides at Blanco ; they have one child. Blanche, the second daughter, is the wife of Fred Blohm and lives on a ranch near Salinas. Ernest and Oscar are interested in ranching, the latter residing with his parents. Lena is the wife of Dr. Earl D. Eddy, of Sa- linas. Myrtle died in childhood. Ruby and Charles Alton are with their parents on the home farm. The family hold membership in the Pres- byterian church and contribute to religious and charitable projects, besides being identified with other movements for the uplifting of the people. The political views of Mr. Luzier bring him into affiliation with the Republican party and he uni- formly votes that ticket in national elections. For a time he served as trustee of the Chualar school district. The Fraternal Brotherhood numbers him among its leading local workers.
PETER C. PETERSEN.
A goodly number of Danes have been attracted to Monterey county by reason of the opportuni- ties it has offered to men of limited means, but great energy and tireless perseverance. Here they have found conditions widely different from those existing in their native country; here the history in its making, with a broad future of prosperity in a sunny climate ; there, the history largely in the past, with an overcrowded popu- lation earning a meagre livelihood on a narrow strip of land between two rock-bound shores. It is not strange that many ambitious young men have left Denmark in search of the broader op- portunities offered in newer, less crowded coun- tries.
An humble cottage in Denmark sheltered the
Petersen family from the stormy blasts of win- ter. Nearby was the forge, where the father worked early and late, earning a livelihood for his large family and providing the means for giv- ing them practical educations. As a blacksmith he was more than ordinarily skilled and efficient, and for more than forty years he followed the trade, meanwhile gaining a reputation along his special line which was not surpassed by any artisan of his locality. Eventually, in 1900, he came to California, and afterward lived retired until his death, which occurred in 1907, at the age of seventy-two years and six months. His widow, Mrs. Marie Petersen, makes her home- with her son, Peter C., and, although now seven- ty years of age, bears no indications of the in- firmities incident to threescore years and ten.
The family represented by Peter C. Petersen comprised fifteen children, and he is one of the eleven survivors. During boyhood he was given a. common school education in the Danish language, and when not in school he assisted his father in the shop, thereby gaining manual dexterity at the forge and having the advantage of learning the trade under a skilled blacksmith. After starting out to earn his own livelihood he followed his trade among the farmers of his native county. Born March 25, 1872, he was a young man of twenty-one years when, in 1893, he resolved to. seek a home across the ocean in the new world. The ties that bound him to the old home were riven and he became an emigrant to America,. where he stopped in Wisconsin to work as a farm hand. During the two and one-half years that he remained in that state he earned enough money to pay his expenses to the Pacific coast, and forth- with came to the west, where he has since lived and labored in Monterey county.
After having worked for three years in the- employ of Jesse D. Carr, and for two years in the employ of James Borden, during which time he had frugally hoarded his wages, Mr. Petersen in- vested his savings in a tract of twenty-six acres, near Salinas, for which he paid $2,000. Imme- diately after purchasing the property, in 1903, he moved to the place, and here he has since re- mained, meanwhile building the barn and re- modeling the house. During March of 1905 he married Carrie Mickelsen, a native of Denmark. His principal crops on the farm are barley, oats.
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and corn, and by the exercise of wise judgment in the cultivation and care of the land he is able to secure a fair return on his investment. The constant care demanded by the land has left him little leisure for participation in outside mat- ters, and he has identified himself with no frater- nal organization, excepting Dania Lodge, No. 6, of Salinas; however, while not a participant in public affairs, he favors all progressive move- ments and is thoroughly loyal to the interests of his adopted country.
FREDERICK VETT.
As varied experiences of good and ill fortune have come to the west in the past twenty years, likewise the personal experiences of Mr. Vett in the west have been varied, including adversity through unforeseen circumstances, and also in- cluding a considerable share of good luck. On the whole, his experiences have been such as to ·convince him that there is a future in the west for every man who possesses energy, industry and perseverance, and while large fortunes here, as in the east, can come only to a few, competen- cies await the well-directed efforts of the many.
Born in Sycamore, Dekalb county, Ill., in 1861, Frederick Vett received a common-school edu- cation and became familiar with agriculture through his father's training on the home farm. For some years after leaving school he remained in Illinois, idevoting his attention to general farming, but meanwhile he read much concern- ing conditions in California and in 1883 he came to the west. For three years afterward he was employed in a laundry in San Francisco, and from there he went to the San Joaquin valley, but in a few months, being ill with chills and fever, he determined to settle in Monterey county. During 1887 he came hither and at once enjoyed the restoration of his health, while at the same time he worked on a ranch. Start- ing out for himself in 1892, he raised beets and potatoes on the ground now occupied by the Spreckels factory. Twenty-one and one-fourth acres were in beets, which produced eighteen tons to the acre and brought $5 a ton, the im- mense crop being largely due to the fact that the beets were raised on sediment land. In the beet
industry he was a pioneer, few having tried their luck before that year. The potatoes yielded seventy-five to eighty sacks to the acre.
After having remained for four years on that place Mr. Vett embarked in grain farming on the Silacci ranch, but the year proved to be unusually dry and he lost all his former profits. Forced to start anew, he began to work for wages in the Santa Clara valley, where he remained for three years. In 1905 he came to his present place of five acres, where he is engaged in the poultry business. His start in this industry dates back to the purchase of four dozen hens and two roosters, which with a small incubator consti- tuted his outfit. Now he has three large incu- bators holding fourteen hundred and fifty eggs, and keeps a thousand hens of the White Leg- horn breed. The eggs and chickens are marketed in San Francisco at excellent prices and bring a gratifying return to the proprietor of the busi- ness. Many changes have been made in this lo- cality since he came here, not the least of these being the introduction of pumping plants, so that when dry years come the farmers do not suffer the complete losses common to earlier days. In politics he has taken no part aside from voting the Republican ticket.
J. A. BARDIN.
An able and successful lawyer, and a man of prominence and influence, J. A. Bardin, of Sa- linas, is active in public affairs and is now fill- ing the important office of district attorney of Monterey county. He was born in the city in which he now resides, December 27, 1873, the son of Jesse and Janette (Cockrill) Bardin, na- tives of Mississippi and California respectively.
The public schools of Monterey county fur- nished the early educational training which served as a foundation for the later knowledge acquired by Mr. Bardin. Higher training was received in the University of California, which he attended for two years. Having in the mean- time decided to become a lawyer, he set ear- nestly to work to accomplish his purpose, and as the first important step in the accomplishment of this he matriculated as a student in the Univer- sity of Michigan at Ann Arbor. At the end of
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the course he returned to California, and in 1905 was admitted to the bar of the state. Closely following upon his graduation he formed a part- nership for the practice of the legal profession with F. W. Sargent, under the name of Sar- gent & Bardin, which partnership still exists. In the county election of November, 1906, the name of J. A. Bardin appeared as the Democratic nomi- nee for the office of district attorney, and his election following, he at once assumed the duties of the office. He has always taken an active part in political matters, and at this writing. 1909, is a member of the Democratic state cen- tral committee.
Mr. Bardin formed domestic ties by his mar- riage, December 27, 1904, with Miss Mila J. Hills, a native of California, and one son, Dan. has been born to them. Fraternally he is a member of Salinas Lodge No. 614, B. P. O. E., and of the Native Sons of the Golden West. Mr. Bardin is a man of considerable ability, and at one time, in addition to his other duties, did special newspaper work in the middle west.
MANUEL FONTE.
Monterey county claims among her citizens a number who were born in the Azores or West- ern Islands, but of these none has been more successful in his undertakings in his adopted home than Manuel Fonte, whose residence here dates back to the year 1866. Born in 1844, he had attained young manhood years when, in 1866, he left his native home in the north Atlantic ocean and came to the United States, the land of op- portunity for the young man determined to make a success of his life. Coming direct to California, in Monterey county he secured employment on the ranch of Jesse D. Carr, working in the ca- pacity of sheep herder for three years. Subse- quently he worked in the same capacity with Dr. Flint at San Juan, San Benito county, for two years, during this time gaining a broad insight into the sheep industry and ranching in general as conducted in this western country. The re- sult of the five years spent in the employ of others led to his taking responsibilities on his own account, purchasing thirty-five hundred head of sheep which he ranged on government
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