USA > California > Los Angeles County > History of Pomona Valley, California, with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the valley who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present > Part 58
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In the fall of 1906, Mr. Poling came to Pomona, and here he purchased an orange grove on San Bernardino Avenue, consisting of nine and a third acres, which he afterward sold. Then he bought his present fine orange ranch of ten and a third acres, at 700 East Kingsley Avenue. He erected a fine residence and other desirable buildings, and otherwise greatly improved the property; and after he had intro- duced the most scientific methods in its management, he took in 1913 about $9,000 worth of fruit from the farm. Since then he has dem- onstrated that in good years his ranch will produce 6,000 boxes of fruit. He also bought a fine grove on East Holt Avenue of eight
If Odling
myra E. Poling
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and a half acres. As might be expected of so enterprising and repre- sentative an orange grower, Mr. Poling identified himself with the Pomona Fruit Growers Exchange and also with the Palomares Irrigation Company.
In Pawnee County, Nebr., on March 26, 1878, Mr. Poling was married to Miss Myra E. Ennefer, a native of Eureka, Woodford County, Ill., and the daughter of William and Rebecca ( Carpenter) Ennefer, born in England and Ohio, respectively. They removed from Illinois to Nebraska in 1876. The father died in Jackson County, Kans., being survived by his widow, who is now 84 years old. Mr. and Mrs. Poling have had five daughters, all popular in their several circles. Lulu, the eldest, and Esther, the youngest, are at home; Nellie is the wife of C. F. Compton of Los Angeles, and the mother of two children; Minnie is the wife of E. C. Beesley of Ontario; and Eva has become Mrs. O. C. Williams of Pomona, and is the mother of three children.
Mr. Poling sold his orchards in Pomona in 1919, and removed to Anaheim, where he purchased twenty-four acres on East Center Street, which is devoted to raising Valencia oranges, and he is now a member of the Anaheim Citrus Fruit Association. With his family he is a member of the Christian Church in Anaheim.
HENRY B. DAVIS
A scientifically-trained ranchman whose expert knowledge of the citrus industry has led to his selection for most important posts of responsibility is Henry B. Davis, the ex-president of the Indian Hill Citrus Association of North Pomona, who was born near Monticello, Wayne County, Ky., on August 16, 1855. When only a year old he was brought to Putnam County, Mo., and in 1879 he graduated from the State University at Columbia. The next year he moved west to Deer Lodge, in the county of that name, in Montana, and there established himself in his profession as civil engineer.
It was not long before Mr. Davis became assistant engineer in charge of construction work for the Northern Pacific Railway, and by 1891 he had become mayor of Deer Lodge, an evidence of the esteem in which he was held. For fourteen years, too, he was county surveyor of Deer Lodge County.
At the same time, Mr. Davis became president of the Davis & Williams Live Stock Company, and with two others owned 17,000 acres of land and 20,000 sheep. In 1891-92, when Powell County, Mont., was formed, he was made chairman of the first board of county commissioners.
Fortunately for Pomona as well as for the subject of our inter- esting review, the year 1910 found Mr. Davis in Pomona, an orange
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grower, and in 1914 the possessor of a fine home on Hiawasse Avenue, which he erected that year. In 1889, at Deer Lodge, Mont., he was married to Elizabeth Woolfolk, a native of Kentucky and the daugh- ter of the Rev. A. M. Woolfolk, also a native of that state.
In 1913 Mr. Davis became a director in the Indian Hill Citrus Association, and he became its president in June, 1918, to fill a vacancy, but in September of that year he was elected president, a position he held until the return of Mr. Sederholm in November, 1919, when he became vice-president. He is also a director in the Canyon Water Company, and a stockholder and director in the Pomona Investment Company. During his term of president he rep- resented his company in the San Antonio Fruit Exchange.
Especially popular in fraternal circles, Mr. Davis is a Mason, a member of the Lodge, Chapter, Commandery in Pomona, and belongs to the Los Angeles Shrine. His oldest child, Harry B., is with the Standard Oil Company at Bakersfield; Alexander W. Davis, another son, is an attorney of Los Angeles; Julian R. is assistant cashier of the State Bank at Idaho Falls, Idaho; while Charlotte is a graduate of the University of California at Berkeley, a member of. the Class of '19, and now a teacher in Clifton, Ariz.
HAROLD C. DEWEY
Among the many good citizens that the Empire State has con- tributed to increase the population of California, Harold C. Dewey is worthy of mention. He was born in Lincoln, Wayne County, N. Y., January 26, 1880, the son of Morris M. and Julia (Lee) Dewey, the former born in Delta, Oneida County, N. Y., and the latter in Somers, Conn .; she died in Pomona in 1893, leaving three children-Mamie, Mrs. Harris, now of Yuma, Ariz .; Helen, Mrs. Chown, living in Portland, Ore .; and Harold C., of this review. The family settled in Pomona, Cal., in 1883, where the father was in the employ of J. E. Packard and others, in setting out orchards and vine- yards in this Valley, and later engaged in the real estate business in Pomona for many years. He is now in business in Portland, Ore.
Harold C. was but three years old when the family settled in Pomona Valley, where he has passed nearly all the years of his life, therefore is full of reminiscences concerning Pomona when it was but a struggling village. As a boy he shot rabbits in what is now the main business section of the town. Here he attended the gram- mar and high schools, graduating from the latter in 1900, and when he was able he assisted his father in his work of setting out and caring for citrus and deciduous orchards, later taking up the real estate and building business, which he has since followed. He has built many
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residences and business structures in Pomona and nearby cities for himself and has owned four orange groves. He has put on the market and sold off three subdivisions, and has done as much to develop the Valley as any one man within its confines. The position he has attained has been through his own efforts and his display of good business ability and reliability in his transactions.
The marriage of Harold C. Dewey and Miss Bernice Surtees, a native of Colwich, Kans., was solemnized in Princeton, Kans., in June, 1907, and they have become parents of two children-Mildred H. and Virginia A. Mrs. Dewey is active in social and club life, and is president of the Ebell Club (1919). Mr. and Mrs. Dewey are members and workers in the First Methodist Church of Pomona.
GEORGE R. TYLER
A pioneer horticulturist of Pomona Valley and one who has done much toward developing that industry in this section of the state, George R. Tyler has in the last decade seen many changes in the growth and upbuilding of this wonderful Valley and has done his share ยท in aiding it to a successful and prosperous state of development. Born in Perry County, Ill., March 22, 1871, he was raised in that state and there received his early training along horticultural lines which fitted him for his work in the West. He later went to Kansas and lived there for a time, then, September 16, 1890, came to Pomona. After his arrival he first worked in the orchards then being set out in the Valley; and later, with his brothers, Lewis and Charles, engaged in budding and grafting oranges, lemons and grapefruit, and the Tyler brothers became well known throughout the Valley for their expert work in that line, and their services were much in demand.
Later, Mr. Tyler assisted in the development of the property south of Claremont known as the "Loud Ranch." He was super- intendent of the ranch and set out many trees, also developed the water system on the property. Mr. Tyler did more of this kind of work than any other one man in the Valley, and the value of his services in horticultural development can readily be seen.
Since 1905 Mr. Tyler has been in the fertilizer business, a pioneer in that line. He has been most successful in this undertaking, and not only sells the product, but his thorough knowledge of horticulture enables him to give advice as to its use, and all who have used it have greatly increased the yield of their orchards.
The marriage of Mr. Tyler united him with Bertha Barrett, a native of England, and two sons have been born to them: George G .. who enlisted in the One Hundred Forty-fourth Field Artillery in service in the World War, was sent to France, and was discharged
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June 29, 1919; and Arthur, a student of Pomona College, taking a course in civil, hydraulic and structural engineering, and now attending Stanford University.
In the midst of his development work and business interests, Mr. Tyler has found time to devote to the social and fraternal life of the community. He is a member of the Pomona Lodge of Odd Fellows since 1900. Energetic, and with progress for his watchword, Mr. Tyler believes that the way to get things done is to get to work and do them, and the results show that he is a man of keen vision. In his early reminiscences of this section, he tells of shooting quail and rabbits where the Pomona High School now stands, and also on the present site of Claremont. This section has developed with such remarkable rapidity that a young man can still be an old pioneer here !
JOHN P. EVANS
Like many of his fellow citizens in Pomona, John P. Evans had varied and interesting experiences, in travel and business, before set- tling down in this peaceful and prosperous Valley. He is a native of Lexington, Davidson County, N. C., born August 27, 1877. His parents were Alexander and Eliza ( Clodfelter) Evans, farmer folk in the Southern state; the father entered the Southern army when six- teen years old and served with Lee three and one-half years ; he is still living.
The youngest of eight children born to his parents, John P. Evans received his education in the rural schools of North Carolina, and in the school of experience. At the age of twenty he followed in his patriotic father's footsteps and enlisted in Company F, Second Mis- souri Volunteer Infantry, at Clinton, Mo., to serve in the Spanish War as a private ; he was made a corporal and later received his honorable discharge from the service. On his return to business life the young man went into the shipping room of a wholesale grocery house, and when twenty-one years of age worked ten hours a day and then attend- ed night school and took a business course ; an example of ambition and industry which speaks for the character of the man.
In 1900 Mr. Evans came West and settled for a time at Colorado Springs ; for one year he worked in a grocery store, then was interested in mining for a few months, and later worked for the Colorado Mid- land Railway, in the bridge and building department, remaining in that employment fourteen months. He found his natural leaning to be toward mercantile pursuits, however, and for four years worked for B. G. Robbins Clothing Company; then for three years was with Gid- dings Brothers Dry Goods Company, and with a partner maintained a clothing store under the firm name of Evans & Gorton for one year. This business he sold out and in 1910 came to Corona, and here pur-
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chased an orange grove. February 15, 1911, Mr. Evans opened his present business, a men's clothing and furnishing establishment, in Po- mona, and has met with success in the line he had spent years of ex- perience in learning.
The marriage of Mr. Evans, on October 4, 1905, united him with Miss Mary Grace Combe, and one son has been born to them, John Alexander. During his business career Mr. Evans has found time to take part in fraternal organizations ; he is a member of Pomo- na Lodge, No. 789, B. P. O. Elks, and past exalted ruler of that order ; is a member of the Knights of Pythias, the Modern Woodman, and in business and civic affairs belongs to the Chamber of Commerce, in which he is a director. He was active in war work during the years of the World War, and was second lieutenant of the Pomona Home Guards. Since his first residence here Mr. Evans has shown himself a man of public spirit and progressive ideas, and has won the respect of his community in his willingness to cooperate in advancing the welfare of this section along all lines of endeavor.
GEORGE H. WITTENMYER
A master artisan, whose continuing and increasing success for years has undoubtedly been due to the superiority of his workmanship, is George H. Wittenmyer, the decorator and painting contractor of 1050 East Sixth Street, Pomona. He was born at Centerville, Appa- noose County, Iowa, on October 12, 1882, and there attended the public schools, while he grew up on a farm. At the age of sixteen, however, he went to Minneapolis for a year, but then returned to Iowa; and from his eighteenth to his twenty-first year of age, he worked in the boiler making shops of the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad at Centerville, in that state. When he first went to Chicago, he was fireman with the Illinois Northern Railroad; then he entered the wholesale store of Sells, Schwab Shoe Company, and after that he was employed by Marshall.Field & Company, the Cutler Shoe Company, and the Edison Electric Company. In the end, he removed further west, to North Dakota.
In 1909, dissatisfied with even the best that the Dakotas and other sections of the West had to offer, Mr. Wittenmyer moved on to Cali- fornia, and in Ontario he worked for a while with C. M. Kellog, the painting contractor. Next he removed to Pomona and here entered the employ of Harry W. Freyermuth; for two years he filled that post with ability and satisfaction to everybody, and then he concluded to strike out for himself.
From the beginning, Mr. Wittenmyer has been unusually success- ful, as even the briefest list of some of the edifices he has decorated will show. These include the residences of Fred H. Baringer, Thomas
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A. Williams, B. Chaffee Shepherd, Anson C. Thomas, Mrs. J. S. Brownell and H. G. Witte, also the Beckley and Head residences, all in Pomona. He also has painted, among others, the homes of Charles Barnum at Claremont, George W. Chessman and Fred B. Palmer in Walnut, and G. D. Tageman in San Dimas. He decorated the interior of the Pilgrim Congregational Church, the Ebell Club House, the nurses' home of the Pomona Valley Hospital, the State Bank Building, and the interior of the Orange Belt Emporium Block. He was called upon to add the finishing touches to several of the finest homes at Riverside and Rivera.
In addition to his busy life as contractor in the field mentioned, Mr. Wittenmyer has been identified with real estate development in this section in an interesting manner. He bought ten acres of raw land in the Ontario district, and traded the same for two lots on North Park Avenue in Pomona. This he in turn traded for two acres on Phillips and White avenues, Pomona. He set the same out to walnuts, and established a fine irrigation system, and then traded that for a Seventh Street residence, which once more he traded for his present home at 1050 East Sixth Street.
In San Bernardino Mr. Wittenmyer was married to Ethel I. Hull, a native of Jamestown, N. Y., by whom he has had two children, Durward E. and Loretta May. His family are members of the First Methodist Church. Mr. Wittenmyer is a member of the Knights of Pythias of Pomona.
TODD & PATTERSON
The firm of Todd & Patterson, undertakers, is on a par with the other up-to-date business establishments in Pomona, and ranks as one of the best in this line in the Valley, with every modern convenience for the conduct of their business, and the two partners give their entire time and undivided attention to the thorough management of the same.
Walter B. Todd, the senior member of the firm, is a native of New York state, born May 20, 1847, at Brewster, Putnam County. At the age of one year he was taken to Ohio by his parents, and was reared in that state, attending the public schools. His first busi- ness venture was one of seven men to organize the A. B. Chase Organ Company at Norwalk, Ohio, and he was associated with the company for ten years, when he took up the retail business of musical instru- ments in Norwalk.
In 1905, Mr. Todd came to California and settled in Pomona, and here engaged in the undertaking business in partnership with J. E. Patterson on Second Street, continuing for eighteen months. He then engaged in business for himself. On July 1, 1914, he formed a partner- ship with Tillman W. Patterson under the firm name of Todd & Pat-
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terson, and the business has grown with the passing of the years, in keeping with the growth and expansion of the city, and the firm now occupies a modern establishment at 570 North Garey Avenue, with everything in keeping with the surroundings. Both partners are licensed undertakers, and take pride in their reputation for work that is recognized as the best in that class of business. They have a Winton motor hearse, ambulance service car, and three touring cars. The establishment has a chapel in connection, and a lady attendant in the parlors.
Mr. Todd has also been interested in orange growing, and owns a thirteen-acre bearing orange grove at La Verne. He is prominent in fraternal circles, a member of the Masonic fraternity, lodge, chapter, council and commandery in Pomona and the Shrine of Los Angeles, and past patron of the Eastern Star; and is an Odd Fellow. He is an officer in the First Methodist Church. In all civic affairs Mr. Todd has taken a prominent part and has always had the welfare of his district at heart.
Mr. Todd has been twice married, and by his first wife, Fannie S. Green, he has two children, Charles W. of Great Falls, Mont., and Bertha (Mrs. C. H. Landmeister) of Bellevue, Ohio. His second marriage united him with Miss Emily Richardson of Ohio, and one son has been born to them, John R., who as chief yeoman in the United States Navy, saw service in France during the World War. Returning from the service he has taken a course of embalming at Columbus, Ohio, and on January 1, 1920, became a partner in the firm of Todd & Patterson. He is a Mason and a member of the Knights of Pythias.
Tillman W. Patterson, the junior member of the firm of Todd & Patterson, was born in Linn County, Iowa, March 29, 1880, and when seven years old came to Pasadena, Cal. Returning to Iowa, he was raised on a farm in that state, and educated in the public schools, finishing with a college course near Barnesville, Ohio.
After finishing his education, Mr. Patterson entered the employ of the Providence Life & Trust Company of Philadelphia for two years. He then returned to Iowa and with a brother carried on a farm implement business in Springville, that state. The West was his goal, however, and in the summer of 1910 he returned to California and settled in Pomona, first conducting an undertaking establishment alone, at 230 North Garey Avenue, continuing this business until July 1, 1914, when he joined forces with Mr. Todd and the firm of Todd & Patter- son was formed, a full description of the business being given in the senior partner's sketch. Mr. Patterson received an extensive training in the work to which he devotes his time; in 1906 he graduated from the Barnes School of Embalming of Chicago, and in 1907 received his license as an embalmer in the state of Iowa.
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Since first taking up his residence here, Mr. Patterson has been active in fraternal circles as well as in the business life of the city; he is a member of Pomona Lodge, No. 789, B. P. O. Elks, a member and deputy grand chancellor of the Knights of Pythias, and has passed through all the chairs of the Pomona lodge, also attending meetings of the Grand Lodge of that order; he is active in church work in the community, and is secretary of Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church Sunday School.
The marriage of Mr. Patterson united him with Harriett B. Williams, a native of Iowa, and two children have been born to them : Orrin T. and Cecil A. Mrs. Patterson is as interested in civic affairs and the welfare of their home community as is her husband, and she is active in the Pythian Sisters, in which she is past chief, and in the Red Cross work in Pomona.
ROBERT WHITE
Among the highly-trained artisans of Pomona, such as are always an asset to any community, one cannot fail to mention Mr. Robert White, the expert foreman of the moulding department of the Pomona Manufacturing Company on East Bertie Street. He was born at Cres- ton, Union County, Iowa, on May 16, 1876, and attended the public schools there until he was twelve years of age. Then he started to learn the trade of a moulder in a small shop of the town, managed by the Brennan Company. This was a combination blacksmith shop and foundry, and that was where Mr. White got his first idea of the moulder's trade.
At eighteen, he left Creston and followed his trade in some of the largest foundries in southern Wisconsin. He was with the Fuller- Johnson Company of Madison, the Westbrick Foundry Company of Galena, and the Baker Manufacturing Company of Evansville, Wis., and at Beloit he was foreman in the moulding shop of the Berlin Machine Works, and had charge of a large crew of men, since over two thousand men were employed, all in all, in the foundry. He also followed his trade in Texas.
In 1908, attracted happily to the Pacific Coast, Mr. White came to Southern California, and was for a while with the Union Tool Com- pany of Los Angeles. Later still, he was in the employ of the Hot Point Company of Ontario. In each of these establishments he was able to show both his superior natural ability and his superior training.
In 1909, Mr. White entered the employ of the Pomona Manufac- turing Company, where he was active for two years as a moulder, and then he was appointed to the foremanship that he now holds. His years of experience in many of the best shops of the Middle West
Robert L. Norton
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made him from the beginning of the engagement a valuable man to have in town; and each year his value increases, both with respect to his employers and to the public.
Rather naturally, Mr. White was not long in identifying himself with Pomona, and in the most permanent fashion. The same year that he came to Pomona, he bought five acres of raw land in the Ontario district, located on Central Avenue south of First Street, in the Monte Vista tract, and this, having built there a house and barn and planted orange trees, he has developed into a fine place. His Navel orange trees are now seven years old and in bearing.
Mr. White joined the Odd Fellows when he was twenty-one years old, and he now belongs to the Pomona Lodge, I. O. O. F.
ROBERT LEE MORTON
Pomona Valley and adjacent districts are noted for the large number of automobiles, and their progressive and enterprising citizens demand the best conveniences of modern twentieth century civiliza- tion. The fact that there are so many garages throughout the country is a sure indication that this is a business both popular and profitable.
Robert Lee Morton, proprietor of the Motor Inn Garage, at La Verne, Cal., is a native of San Luis Obispo, Cal., and was born May 23, 1892. His father, Robert B. Morton, was born in Ohio, and his mother, who in maidenhood was Miss Alice Andrews, was born in San Luis Obispo, Cal., and is a daughter of the San Luis Obispo pioneer family founded by J. P. Andrews of '49er fame. Robert B. Morton was reared in Ohio and came to California in 1851, where he followed the vocation of school teaching. Later he turned his attention to tilling the soil, in which occupation he has had experi- ence all over the state of California. He was one of the early settlers at Redlands, and later, in 1888, located at Ontario. At present he is living at Pasadena and owns a ranch at San Gabriel.
Robert Lee Morton located in Pomona in 1910. He worked his way through Pomona high school and in the meantime used his spare time in working in the garages of Street and Zander and E. W. Davis at Pomona, gaining a thorough knowledge of the business. After finishing his education he entered the employ of W. B. Gates at Pomona, and later was in the employ of the National Motor Car Com- pany of Los Angeles. He then entered the employ of the Layne & Bowler Company at Los Angeles, manufacturers of turbine pumps for irrigation purposes, and came to Chino, where he installed pumps on the ranches in that district. For a short time he was located at Grays Harbor, Aberdeen, Wash., in garage work, then returned to California and entered the employ of the Burt Motor Company at Los Angeles. From there he came to La Verne and worked for C. H. Larimer in his garage for two years, when he resigned and purchased
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