History of Orange County, California : with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its earliest growth and development from the early days to the present, Part 24

Author: Armor, Samuel, 1843-; Pleasants, J. E., Mrs
Publication date: 1921
Publisher: Los Angeles : Historic Record Co.
Number of Pages: 1700

USA > California > Orange County > History of Orange County, California : with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its earliest growth and development from the early days to the present > Part 24

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

As has been explained in a former paragraph, drainage is one of the most important projects before the Farm Bureau. Eight drainage demonstrations have been held and four special meetings. The area in the four drainage dis- tricts under way of organization is 18,000 acres. The Farm Advisor has con- tinually emphasized the necessity and advantage of drainage in reclaiming alkaline salts, the only practical means of properly carrying away the salts from the land. About one-fourth of the farm visits made by the Farm Advisor have been in relation to the problem of reclaiming alkaline soils.

The economical use of water and obtaining the maximum duty of irrigation water is receiving considerable attention from the farmer in Orange County. Water is the limiting factor in the production of crops here. It is largely pumped

183

HISTORY OF ORANGE COUNTY

and brought in through the expensive canal system, and therefore it behooves the farmers to arrange it so as to obtain its maximum duty, because of the high value of this water. In many cases the Farm Advisor has tested soils for moisture and found that either too much or too little had been used, owing to the wrong method of irrigation, or the time allowed for irrigation. The use of a soil auger has been advised in every orchard visited, to determine the depth of moisture, penetration, and the length of time for each application. Four soil moisture demonstrations were held during the year, at which the use of the soil auger, various methods of water application, and the time used in running. the water in furrows or checks were exemplified.

With the aid of the Farm Account Expert from the University. 102 books have been started by the Farm Accountant or the Farm Advisor personally. It was found that most of the farmers of the county are employing one method or another of keeping books, but in most cases their systems are more complicated than the one suggested by the University. Eight Farm Account Demonstra- tion meetings were held during the year, at which the farmer was instructed in the value of bookkeeping and the simplicity of the method recommended by the University. The Farm Advisor expects to place at least fifty books more in the county during the next two months.

It is becoming a fact now that bud selection in trees is as important as cow testing in a dairy. The trees have to be bred up as well as stock, in order to obtain the best returns. The Farm Bureau has been alert to this necessity and has been guiding the orchardist along that line. Three orchards have been located by the Farm Advisor for the purpose of showing the value of bud selec- tion, marking trees, and tree performance records. The citrus men of the county, especially, are much concerned in this project. In going over the county, we can pick out one orchard after another in which the trees are not bringing the desired returns. Although every care has been given them in orchard man- agement they do not respond. Such trees in most cases have been developed from buds taken from non-bearing stock. The Farm Bureau expects to cooperate with the Plant Physiologist of the Department of Agriculture through the coming year and bring before the farmers of the county all records and data that may be furnished by the plots conducted by the Department.

Among the most popular demonstrations that have been conducted by the Farm Advisor during the year are the pruning demonstrations, inasmuch as a large portion of the county is devoted to horticultural interests. Six citrus pruning demonstrations, nine deciduous pruning demonstrations, and one walnut demonstration were held during the year. At some of these demonstrations men- bers of the Pomological Department and the Citrus Experiment Station assisted. In the deciduous work the long system of pruning has been advocated over the old system of heading back. Demonstration trees have been located in four orchards of the county, where the comparison between the two systems may be observed.

Two demonstrations were held showing the effect of arsenical poisoning in the control of the morning glory. These demonstrations have not given satis- factory results. The application of liquid arsenical poisoning has not proven to give any better results than a very deep cultivation. However, we have been able to show the farmer that he may use the poisoning as a substitute for culti- vation under our conditions here, but that he must not allow the growing plant to develop above the surface of the ground. If he would substitute spraying for cultivation, he must do the same with absolute regularity so as to finally choke the life out of the weed in question.

The new liquid gas method of fumigation is revolutionizing the fumigation methods of the county. The Farm Bureau has been instrumental in disseminat- ing the latest information, both chemical and field methods, to the citrus growers of the county. The members of the Experiment Station Staff and United States Department of Agriculture, having this work in charge, have cooperated

184

HISTORY OF ORANGE COUNTY

fully with the Farm Bureau during the year in promoting this new system. Two special fumigation meetings were held at which the new method of applying the gas was shown.

The walnut growers of the county are facing a very serious pest in the codling moth. inasmuch as fifty per cent of the fruit of some groves has been infested. The Experiment Station has been working on a dust spray for the purpose of controlling the walnut worm. Six demonstrations were held during the year, showing the method of mixing and applying the arsenical dust spray for this purpose.

A very destructive pest infesting the beet and garden truck fields of the county is the soil nematode. The Farm Bureau is conducting a demonstration plot in the sugar beet section in which substitute crops are being planted for the purpose of demonstrating their resistance to the nematode, and also their adaptability to the soil and climatic conditions of the county. With the coopera- tion of the Bureau of Plant Industry, it is hoped to work out a satisfactory system of rotation by which the nematode infestation may be overcome.

A very satisfactory tractor demonstration was held in connection with the annual meeting of the Farm Bureau. Ten tractors were on the ground. showing many desirable features, and also demonstrating their class of work. Two thou- sand two hundred people visited this tractor show. The Farm Advisor is also arranging three special meetings at which repairing and the upkeep of the farm tractor will be discussed by University experts.

During the last days of the war, last fall and winter, the Farm Bureau appealed to the barley growers of the county to plant a larger acreage to wheat. The farmers responded nobly. Instead of the average planting of 700 acres in the county as usual, they came forth with 4,400 acres, an increase of 600 per cent. The use of Defiance wheat has been urged, as it is quite rust resistant. The valley in which our wheat is raised is very subject to rust disease. The yield per acre in Orange County was very encouraging this year, in spite of the dry season generally experienced.

The Citrus Experiment Station has made a survey of irrigation waters in Orange County for the purpose of determining the prevalence and degree of alkalinity both in well waters and rivers from which waters are taken. The Farm Advisor gave considerable time to collecting samples and getting the farmers and water companies in general to take advantage of this survey. Some injurious water was located through this analysis, and farmers warned not to use same in large quantities for irrigation purposes.

The high values of land in the county make it practically impossible for the farmer to borrow to the extent that he may need help. He is limited to a $10,000 loan on a valuation not to exceed $400 per acre. This amount should be greatly increased, at least on citrus and walnut property. The Farm Advisor has assisted in placing six loans with the Farm Loan Bank during the year.

The following is a numerical recapitulation of the Farm Advisor's activities during 1919: Miles traveled by auto, 13,380; miles traveled by railroad, 1,495 : office calls on agent, 1,362: letters written, 1,230; circulars and notices, 12.649; farm visits, 1,101 ; meetings and demonstrations, 213; total attendance, 11,573 ; telephone calls, 1,195.

The Directors of the Orange County Farm Bureau have been the stanch support of the County Agent in his work. Whatever success has been accom- plished by the Farm Bureau has been due to their unqualified cooperation and determined efforts. Credit is also due the splendid cooperation of the Extension and Station Staff of the College of Agriculture, and also the Department of Agriculture.

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HISTORY OF ORANGE COUNTY

CHAPTER XXXV

POPULATION AND VALUATIONS

The question about the growth of a community is always an interesting one for the inhabitants thereof. Hence various methods have been devised, and are in vogue in all communities, for estimating population at other times than when a federal census is pending. Such estimates are based on the school census, on the registration of voters, or on the names in a directory. Provision also has been made in the state law for a special census to be taken at intervals under control of the board of supervisors. To show the unreliability of such estimates, and even of a special census, let us give a few recent examples, as follows :

Just prior to the harbor bond election, June 10, 1919, the county clerk pub- lished the number of voters registered in each precinct in the county. Applying the usual rule for estimating population from the registration, of two and a half people to each voter, the number of inhabitants in each incorporated city in the county would appear to be as follows:

Population of Cities

Names of Cities

Registration 1,998

Population

Anaheim

4,995

Brea

432

1,080

Fullerton

1.602

4,005

Huntington Beach

745

1,863

Newport Beach

557

1,393

Orange

2,310

5,775

Santa Ana

7,224

18,060

Seal Beach

286

715

Stanton.

161

403

If the total number of voters in the county, as registered by party affiliations. were multiplied by two and a half, the product would make the population of the county appear to be as follows :

Population of County

Names of Parties

1919

1918

Republican

12,169

11,715

Progressive

144

141

Democratic

5,679

5,477

Prohibition

1,702

1,680

Socialist

511

500

Decline to state

2,861

2,565

Total Registration

23,066

22,078

Population of . County

57,665

55,195

The opportunity to compare an estimate of population with an actual count of the same is quite rare, for when the people have the count they do not need the estimate. There are, however, two instances in which an indirect comparison may be made, without any intention to flatter or disparage either place. In 1916 a special census of the township of Santa Ana, which is of immense area, dis- closed only 16,602 people in the whole township; now three years later the esti- mate based on registration gives the city itself a population of 18,060. In the same year, 1916, a special census of the city of Anaheim showed a population of 5,163 ; now three years later the estimate based on registration gives the city covering the same territory, a population of only 4,995. While the city of Santa

186

HISTORY OF ORANGE COUNTY

Ana has undoubtedly made a good growth in the past three years, it is hard to believe that she made the giant strides indicated by the foregoing figures at a time when the whole country was hampered by the restrictions of war. On the other hand it is absolutely impossible to believe that the city of Anaheim, without disaster of any kind and with all the evidences of prosperity, has actually lost 168 in population during the same three years. These two examples, similar in length of time between the count and the estimate and in the method of making the estimate, will suffice to illustrate, by the opposite results obtained, the uncer- tainty of estimates of population.

Since the foregoing discussion of estimates of population was written, a census of Anaheim township has been taken, under the authority of the board of supervisors, which credits that township with a population of 9.241. Then, as if to disparage Anaheim's special census and the estimates of both cities. along came the federal census about August 12, 1920, with a population of 6,936 for Anaheim township, instead of 9,241 reported in the special census, and 5,526 for the city of Anaheim, instead of 4,995 given in the estimate on registration, and with a population of 15,485 for the city of Santa Ana, instead of 18,060 given in the estimate on registration.

Most people have heard the old chestnut about the farmer who could count all his pigs except a little black one that wouldn't stand still long enough to be counted. It seems as though the counting of the people living in a given territory would be a comparatively easy task : so it would be, if the censustaker could always find everybody at home when he calls. There are certain data about each person, required in the enumeration, that he alone can give with any degree of accuracy ; hence the censustaker must often make a second or third visit before he can secure a personal interview with some of the people. The work of census taking is not so pleasant and profitable as to attract many applicants, for the Government had difficulty in getting enough to fill the positions. How- ever, the field work has been completed and, while the results are not up to the expectations of most people, yet they show a consistent growth all along the line in Orange County.

The population of the county, and of each of the nine incorporated cities. as given by each federal census back to the organization of the county, or at least as far back as each city's record goes, is as follows:

County and Cities

1920

1910

1900

1890

Orange County

61,375

34,436

19.696

13,589

Anaheim

5,526

2,628

1,456

1,273

Brea

1,037

Fullerton

4.415

1,725

Huntington Beach

1,687

815

.....

. ....

Newport Beach

898

445

Orange

4,884

2.920

1.216

866

Santa Ana

15,485

8,429

4,933

3,628

Seal Beach

669

Stanton

695

The population of each of the eighteen townships, as given by each federal census back to the organization of the county, or at least as far back as each township's record goes, is as follows:

Townships

1920

1910

1900

1890

Anaheim

6,936

4,051

2,261

2,917

Brea

2.515

Buena Park

947

1,441

995

Fullerton

5,037

4,984

1,719

Huntington Beach

3,363

1,058

Laguna Beach

363

La Habra

1,911

....

Los Alamitos

620

190

253

...

187

HISTORY OF ORANGE COUNTY

Newport Beach

1,300

Orange

8,134

5,430

3,293

2,721

Placentia

3,619

San Juan

1,064

967

905

801

Santa Ana

17,777

11,501

6,680

4,220

Seal Beach

669

Stanton

695

Tustin

1,681

Westminster

4,181

4,023

3,300

1.854

Yorba

563

477

290

Such are the plain figures of the federal census of Orange County and its subdivisions, without comparisons, percentages or qualifications of any kind. Each person can make his own comparisons or percentages, according to the point he wishes to make; but they should not be made in any invidious spirit, for, as Admiral Schley said of the naval victory at Santiago de Cuba, "There's glory enough in it for us all."

"Comparisons are odious," because they are too often made with improper motives, to crow over or sneer at a competitor, without taking into account the real reason for his getting ahead or falling behind in the race. There is, however, a legitimate use of comparison in argument, "to point a moral or adorn a tale." For instance, the comparison of the growth of Anaheim with that of Orange, while they were typical "wet" and "dry" cities respectively, with practically the same area and other similar conditions, was a fair argument against the influence of the saloon upon the growth of a city. Orange, starting behind the "Mother Colony," caught up with and passed her in 1910, and would doubtless have con- tinued in the lead, had the conditions remained the same ; but Anaheim, discard- ing her saloons and securing a sugar factory, together with the development of the oil industry in her vicinity, outstripped Orange in the 1920 census. In like manner the growth of Orange County might be compared with that of River- side County, its nearest competitor ; but the conditions of the two counties are not the same, and the comparison would serve no good purpose.

Perhaps the best way to exhibit the material resources of the county and to show how they have been developed by the people, is to present the valuations of the property in the county and in its principal subdivisions, as fixed by the county assessor for the purpose of taxation.

. The present constitution of California, adopted in 1879, started out with the plan of requiring all property, with very few exceptions, to pay taxes for the support of the government. To this end, and to equalize the burden of state taxation pro rata among the counties, it was required that "all taxable property must be assessed at its full cash value." Biennially the legislature adopted one or more amendments to the constitution exempting large blocks of property from taxation. The county assessors throughout the state, in spite of efforts of the state board of equalization to hold assessments up to the constitutional require- ment, gradually lowered them to protect their constituents against paying an undue proportion of the state taxes.

An amendment to the state constitution, authorizing the separation of state and local taxation, was adopted by the legislature of 1909, having been under consideration since 1905. This measure does away with the necessity for the same valuations among the counties on account of state taxes, since such taxes have been shifted thereby from taxpayers generally to public service and other corporations. On the other hand, it is immaterial whether assessments are high or low within a single county or district for local taxation, since, if they are high, the tax rate will be low, or vice versa, to raise the necessary amount of money ; but, of course, individual holdings within the county or district must he similarly assessed according to the quantity, quality and other conditions of such holdings.

188

HISTORY OF ORANGE COUNTY

Each county assessor, at least each conscientious, faithful one, being thus practically released from the obligation to assess property at its full cash value, tries to find a happy medium that will produce the necessary amount of taxes without too high a rate and that will appear to 'all reasonable taxpayers to be fair and just. Hence independent action among the counties must produce vari- able results as to per cent, even if all could agree on the basis of "full cash value"; but it is safe to say that property is generally assessed away below its market value in all the counties of the state. For instance, the Los Angeles papers, in announcing the amount of the 1920 assessment of their county. claimed that said amount was only forty-two per cent of the real value of the property thus assessed.

Following are the official valuations of the property of Orange County and its principal subdivisions, exclusive of operative property, which consists of public service and other corporations and is reserved for state taxation. What per cent of the full cash value of the property these valuations represent, depo- nent saith not ; but they answer very well as a basis for local taxation.

Valuation of County

Names of Items

1920

Increase

Operative Property

$ 5,498,275

1919 $ 4,548,930 87,129,900

$ 949,345 16,449,745

Non-Operative Property

103,579,645

Valuation of County

$109,077,920

$91,678,830

$17,399,000

Valuation of Cities

Names of Cities

1920

1919 $ 2,130,020

Increase

Anaheim

$ 3,017,415

$ 887,395

Brea

718,880

594,550

124,330

Fullerton

19,558,695

20,015,805

*457,110

Huntington Beach

1,023,635

999,650

23,985

Newport Beach

1,289,685

1,117,445

172,240

Orange

3,034,980

2,311,580

723.400

Santa Ana

9,076,950

7,474,535

1,602,415

Seal Beach

638,755

630,270

8,485

Stanton

629,335

472,640

156,695

Valuation of Cities

$ 38,988,330

. $35,746,495

$ 3,241,835

Valuation of High Schools

Names of High Schools

1920

1919

Increase

Anaheim Union

7,742,035

$ 5,384,590

$ 2,357,445

Capistrano Union

1,723,215

Fullerton Union

46,985,505

40,934,920

6,050,585

Huntington Beach Union.

5,677,400

5,154,980

522,420

Orange Union

10,296,620

7,006,525

3,290,095

Santa Ana High

9,076,950

7,474,535

1,602,415

Total Valuations

$ 81,501,725

$65,955,550

$15,546.175

Valuation of School Districts

Names of School Districts

1920

1919

Increase

Alamitos

525,850

$ 425,710

$ 100,140

Anaheim

4,885,070

3,500,980

1,384,090

Bay City

1,009,555

959,145

50,410

Brea

6,478,200

5,669,210

808,990

Bolsa

423,425

319,255

104,170

189

Buena Park

1,958,710

1,789,370

169,340

Centralia

627,025

459,490

167,535

Commonwealth

639,470

406,155

233,315

Cypress

+30,100

335,715

94,385

Delhi

1,131,970

1,242,120

*110,150

Diamond

321,455

249,345

72,110

El Modena

1,873,150

1,241,330

631,820

El Toro

523,980

458,490

65,490

Fairview

554,290

431,150

123,140

Fountain Valley

597,030

491,610

105,420

Fullerton

20,105,755

10,081,605

10,024,150

Garden Grove

1,452,385

1,060,555

391,830

Greenville

462,740

360,985

101,755

Harper

500,235

387,320

112,915

Huntington Beach

2,137,895

2,164,640

*26,745

Katella

1,150,355

772,905

377,450

Laguna

738,975

601,190

137,785

La Habra

3,505,540

5,897,930

*2,392,390

Laurel

705,200

867,015

*161,815

Loara

1,049,625

646,460

403,165

Lowell Joint

692,660

584,125

108,535

Magnolia

656,985

464,245

192,740

Newhope

177,900

167,580

10,320

Newport Beach

1,368,425

1,177,730

190,695

Ocean View

838,030

595.535

242,495

Olinda

3,856,445

3,632,345

224,100

Olive

1,758,415

1,110,200

648,215

Orange

5,304,105

3,803,645

1,500,460

Orangethorpe

1,231,970

7,996,515

*6,764,545

Paularino

349,550

266,940

82,610

Peralta

335,505

206,825

1.29,680

Placentia

7,536.820

6,787,660

749,160

Richfield

721,575

199,390

522,185

San Joaquin

4,738,720

3,598.880

1.139,840

San Juan

1,479,570

1,200,230

279,340

Santa Ana

9,076,950

7,474,535

1,602,415

Savanna

196,390

151,055

45,335

Serra

243,645

207,970

35,675

Silverado

164,440

146,025

18,415

Springdale

430,600

377,520

53,080

Trabuco

186,095

160,895

25,200

Tustin

4,496,455

3,092,500

1.403,955

Villa Park

1,360,950

851,350

509,600

Westminster

664,290

566,530

97,760

Yorba .

974,150

819,730

154,420

Yorba Linda

951,020

670,265

280,755

Totals of School Districts

$103,579,645

$87,129,900

$16,449,745

* Decrease by forming new districts or other causes.

The foregoing tables of population and valuations tell a wonderful story of Orange County's growth and development in the past thirty years. Only where many and varied natural resources abound and where the people are industrious and enterprising could such progress be made. The tables also show that the population and wealth are widely distributed over the county, thereby maintaining the ideal state of a maximum of producers and a minimum of parasites, which condition made France so prosperous before being devastated by war. The people.

HISTORY OF ORANGE COUNTY

190

HISTORY OF ORANGE COUNTY

as a rule, believe in the eternal verities and practice the old-fashioned virtues that make them dependable and good citizens in every way. They, almost without exception, own their homes and other property free of encumbrance, and figura- tively fulfill the prophecy of Micah, when he foretold the glory, peace and victory of the church, as follows:

"But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid; for the mouth of the Lord of hosts hath spoken it."

Santa Ana Chamber of Commerce's Estimated Value of Important Products for 1919

Apricots

$ 200,000

Apples

50,000

Avocados

15,000

Beans (90 per cent Limas)

3.000,000

Bees and Honey.

75,000

Berries (all kinds )

125,000

Celery

100,000

Dairy Products

350,000

Fish ( salt water)

100,000

Fruits (miscellaneous )

500,000

Grain (barley, corn, wheat, etc.) .

1,000,000

Hay (alfalfa, barley, oat, bean, etc.)

2,000,000

Lemons

3.500,000

Livestock

1.500,000

Loquats

37,500

Nursery Stock

500,000

Oil, Gasoline and Natural Gas.

31.275,000

Olives and Olive Oil.

125,000

Oranges

12,000,000

Peppers

1.125,000

Persimmons

25,000

Poultry and Eggs

1.500,000

Potatoes-Irish and Sweet.

950,000

Sugar and By-products.

10,500,000

Tomatoes and Tomato Seed

350.000

Vegetables (miscellaneous )

500,000

Walnuts (California )

5,750,000

Total

$77,152.500

1913 Grand Total Production

$32,769,000

1914 Grand Total Production.

31,800,000

1915 Grand Total Production

35,711,500

1916 Grand Total Production

40,746,323

1917 Grand Total Production

55,746,823

1918 Grand Total Production

63,410,500

191

HISTORY OF ORANGE COUNTY

CHAPTER XXXVI

ANECDOTES AND INCIDENTS

About the year 1894, while the supervisors were discussing the burden of the law library upon the litigants, one of the members got the title twisted into "the lie lawbray"; and so it clung to him to the end of the discussion, in spite of his efforts to correct the lapsus linguae. In like manner, on another occasion, an oid gentleman appeared before the board and offered to sell the county a piece of land in which it could bury its "indignant dead." "You mean indigent dead," suggested a supervisor. "No, I mean indignant dead," was the reply; so no further attempt was made at correcting the mispronunciation.

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History of Orange County, California : with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its earliest growth and development from the early days to the present, Part 24

Author: Armor, Samuel, 1843-; Pleasants, J. E., Mrs Publication date: 1921 Publisher: Los Angeles : Historic Record Co. Number of Pages: 1700

Author: Armor, Samuel, 1843-; Pleasants, J. E., Mrs
Publication date: 1921
Publisher: Los Angeles : Historic Record Co.
Number of Pages: 1700