History of Santa Clara County, California, with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present, Part 25

Author: Sawyer, Eugene Taylor, 1846-
Publication date: 1922
Publisher: Los Angeles : Historic Record Co.
Number of Pages: 1928

USA > California > Santa Clara County > History of Santa Clara County, California, with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present > Part 25

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In the line of vegetables Santa Clara County is in the front rank as a producer. In 1919 over a million cases of canned tomatoes. string beans, peas, cucumbers and other odds and ends, aggregating over 250,000 cases, were packed, while as for onions, something like 500 tons were raised. There were also paying crops of asparagus, lettuce, beets, cauliflower, celery, corn, cabbage, squash, potatoes, etc., raised in the sediment soil along the creeks and in other favorable localities.

As for poultry, of all the prizes awarded of late years, ninety-five per cent went to Santa Clara birds. Including chickens, turkeys, geese and ducks, there were 17,220 head.

Dairying is also carried on extensively. The butter output averages 500,000 pounds, and over that amount in cheese. The southeastern end of the county, around Gilroy and Morgan Hill, is well suited to this kind of industry. Alfalfa can be readily grown on the level land of the valley, where the water supply is good. and as hogs and alfalfa go together, the same conditions will apply to both.

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HISTORY OF SANTA CLARA COUNTY

The orchards of the county are irrigated, sometimes from stream ditches, but mostly from artesian wells. These wells were first used in the valley in 1854, shallow wells and water from the creeks sufficing for the re- quirements of the earlier days. In January, 1854, when the Merritt brothers built their brick house on Fifth Street-it is still stand- ing-they commenced boring for a lower stratum of water, seeking a stream that did not act as a sewer for all the accumulated filth on the ground. They struck water at a depth of fifty feet, but determined to go deeper. At eighty feet they tapped a stream that came rushing to the surface like the erup- tion of a volcano. The hole was six inches in diameter and the pressure was sufficient, as Mr. Hall says in his "History of San Jose," to run a sawmill. The success met with in this well induced the boring of others. In the same month J. S. Shepard had a well sunk on his place. three miles from town. This well went through muck and clay to a depth of seventy-five feet and a stratum of sand. Five feet in this sand water was struck and, although the pipe rose sixteen feet above the surface of the ground, the water came out of the top as though forced by powerful machin- ery. During the next month T. Meyers bored a well and obtained a plentiful supply of water. But the greatest well in the history of the county was bored in August of the same year by G. A. Dabney, near San Fer- nando Street. Mr. Hall thus describes it: "After boring six feet the auger entered a bed of clay, through which, a distance of fifty-four feet, it penetrated, when the water rushed up with a force unknown here in well-boring. It flooded the surrounding lands so that it be- came a serious question how the water should be disposed of. The City Council declared it a nuisance and passed an ordinance directing Dabney to stop or control the flow of water, and if not, he should pay a fine of $50 for every day he allowed it thus to run. The ordinance had no effect on the dynamical properties of the water, nor any on Dabney ; for about six weeks it flowed on, rising nine feet above the surface of the ground, when other . wells bored in that vicinity lessened its force and volume. It was a curiosity and received visitors daily."

After this demonstration of the fact that artesian water could be had, there was no more complaint of the lack of this necessary fluid. The old acequia fell into disuse and finally disappeared. Wells were sunk in vari- ous localities and always with good results, but as the wells accumulated the force of the flow was somewhat diminished. The first irrigating was done on the lower land north

of town. At one time the California Invest- ment Company, which had acquired several thousand acres of salt marsh land along the shore of the bay, attempted to reclaim it by means of artesian wells. The project was to build levees around their property to shut out the sea, pump out the salt water and re- place it with fresh artesian water. They went so far as to bore many wells, but abandoned the project, either because it was impractica- ble or on account of the expense. The wells, however, were a great source of annoyance to the people living in the north. Being allowed to flow continually, the water in other wells was lowered and many ceased to flow at all. The matter became so disastrous that an act was passed by the Legislature declaring it a misdemeanor to permit artesian wells to re- main uncapped when not in use. After much labor this law was enforced and the injured wells recovered their vigor.

Many attempts have been made to trace and locate the artesian belt, but it is continually being struck outside these locations, and no one cares to risk his reputation by saying where it is not. It was at first thought to lie exclusively between San Jose and the bay, following the lower levels of the valley. In 1870 artesian water was supposed to have been found in the San Felipe tract southeast of Gilroy. But one night a well, windmill and tank, house and frame, on the property of Mr. Buck disappeared from sight and the longest sounding line was unable to discover the whereabouts of the missing improvements. This indicated that the supply was a lake and not an ordinary stream. In 1887 flowing arte- sian water was found at Gilroy and the neigh- borhood was afterward successfully developed. With all these facts understood, there can be no doubt that artesian water can be found at any point in the valley, not excepting the higher grounds near the foothills.

The Farm Owners and Operators' Associa- tion was organized in 1919 for the purpose of becoming a part of a state organization. A constitution has already been prepared and when in operation the various branches in the state will become as units. The object of the association is to protect the farmers and orch- ardists and at the same time promote their in- terests. The officers are: J. J. McDonald, chairman ; T. D. Landels, vice-chairman ; Mary P. Richter, secretary; B. T. McCurdy, treas- urer. Board of trustees-Robert Britton, Mor- gan Hill; Frank Stevens, Coyote; Luther Cun- ningham, Saratoga; J. H. Harkness, Morgan Hill; J. H. Fair, San Jose; John Hassler, San Jose; A. R. McClay, San Jose; H. F. Curry, San Jose ; Albert M. Foster, San Jose ; John W. Shaw, San Jose; Arthur P. Free-

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HISTORY OF SANTA CLARA COUNTY

man, Lawrence; A. W. Greathead, San Jose ; T. J. Herndon, Campbell; S. T. Johnson, Cup- ertino; E. K. Clendenning, Campbell; J. K. Durst, Sunnyvale; E. L. Fellow, Santa Clara ; R. T. Van Orden, Mountain View; Lewis H. Britton, Morgan Hill; V. T. McCurdy, Santa Clara ; F. C. Willson, Sunnyvale. Although organized but three years, the association has done considerable work. It has been instru- mental in equalizing fruit tree assessments. It has also materially assisted in the move- ment for conserving the water of the valley. In 1920 it took up the county season labor problem and is now receiving the hearty sup- port of the canneries and packing houses.

The Fruit Growers of California Associa- tion, Inc., was organized in 1919 and is a sort of detached auxiliary of the California Prune and Apricot Growers, Inc. It handles green fruit only and sells to canners and ships to Eastern buyers. It does for the green fruit what the dried fruit operators do for dried fruit. R. P. Van Orden of Mountain View is president, and J. U. Porter is acting secretary. The directors and I. O. Rhodes, C. C. Spauld- ing, A. C. Gordon, James Mills, H. N. Schroe- der, Herman A. Clark, W. E. Moore, L. E. Walker and E. R. Clendenning. Every fruit section of the county is represented in the di- rectorate. Mr. Bone, who was the first sec- retary, was one of the leaders in the organiza- tion of the California Prune and Apricot Growers, Inc., and for two years was its sec- retary.

The California Prune and Apricot Growers, Inc., have organized growers', packing and warehouse associations with plants in Santa Clara County as follows: Plant No. 1, Camp- bell ; No. 2, Morgan Hill ; No. 3, Gilroy ; No. 4. San Jose, Fourth and Lewis streets; No. 6, San Jose; No. 7, Vasona, Los Gatos; No. 8, Mountain View ; No. 10, San Jose ; No. 11, San Jose, Cinnebar and Senter streets ; No. 13, Los Gatos; No. 14, Lincoln Avenue, San Jose. They also have plants in various sections of the state, and the list extended to forty in 1921.

The following packers of the county are af- filiated with the association: Plant No. 14. J. W. Chilton & Co., San Jose; No. 15, J. B. Inderrieden Co., San Jose; No. 16, Pacific Fruit Products Co., San Jose ; No. 17, Warren Dried Fruit Co., San Jose; No. 22, Geo. E. Hyde & Co., Campbell; No. 37, Warren E. Hyde, S. E. Johnson, Cupertino ; No. 38, West Side Fruit Growers' Association, Cupertino. In addition to the above, there will be estab- lished at numerous points in the state receiv- ing stations. Growers' Packing and Ware- housing Association, Inc., has already nego- tiated the purchase of several properties nec- essary for these plants.

Contracts for handling fruit have been made with the green fruit buyers of the county. The independent packers of the county are as fol- lows: San Jose-C. H. Anderson, J. K. Arms- by, Castle Bros., California Fruit Canners' As- sociation, California Packing Corporation plants Nos. 50, 51 and 52; Earl Fruit Com- pany, Golden Gate Packing Company, J. C. Moore, Guggenheim Packing Company, Rich- mond-Chase Company, Polak Packing Com- pany, Wayne Packing Company. Campbell- Ainsley Packing Company. Saratoga-Soro- sis Fruit Company. Santa Clara-Block & Company. Sunnyvale-J. K. Armsby.

Following are the fruit and vegetable can- neries of Santa Clara County: Alviso-Bay- side Canning Company. Campbell-Ainsley Canning Company, California Canneries, Geo. E. Hyde & Company, Gilroy-H. A. Baker Cannery, Felice & Perelli Canning Company. Los Gatos-Hunt Brothers. Mayfield-Foon Canning Company. Milpitas-California Pack- ing Corporation. Mountain View-Concen- trated Tomatoes Company, John W. McCar- thy, Jr., & Co. Santa Clara-Pratt-Low Pre- serving Company. Sunnyvale-California Sup- plies Company, Libby, McNeil & Libby, Sun- nyvale Canneries. San Jose-Alba Canning Company, Beechnut Company of California, Bisceglia Brothers & Company, California Growers' Assocation, California Prune and Apricot Growers, Inc. ; California Packing Cor- poration (two plants), Contadina Canning Company, Di Fiore Canning Company, Flick- inger & Company, Greco Canning Company, Golden Gate Packing Company, Herbert Pack- ing Company, Italian Canning Company, J. F. Pyle & Son, Richmond-Chase Company, Sal- sina Canning Company, San Jose Canning Company, Shaw Family, Inc .; Sunlight Pack- ing Company, Wool Canning Company, De- hydrating Plant, Spolster & Company ; Banks' Evaporator.

Following are Santa Clara County statistics up to December, 1921 :

Area, acres. 867,200

County area, square miles .. 1,355

Number of farms and orchards. 23,900

Number of acres assessed 743,822

Tax Rates

County tax rate (outside incor-

porated cities) $ 2.15

San Jose tax rate-City, $1.52;

county (inside cities), $1.72;

schools, $1.15; total. 4.48

County Assessment

County real estate $ 31,932,740

Improvements on same. 13,169,670

Imp'ts on property not assessed to owners. 26,795

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HISTORY OF SANTA CLARA COUNTY

City and town lots 18,436,405 15,569,400

Improvements on same

Improvements on property not as-

sessed to owners.

20,800

Total value. $ 79,155,810

Personal Property

Inside

$ 4,687,550

Outside 4,412,495

Collected by Assessor, inside 2,713,125

Collected by Assessor, outside. . . . 322,230

Money and solvent credits, inside .. 281,160

Money and solvent credits, outside 137,345

Total personal $ 12,553,905

Total of all non-operative prop. 91,709,715

Operative Roll

Real estate $ 2,144,060

Improvements

297,955

Personal property, money, solvent

credits

6,921,045

Total operative property. $ 9,363,060

Grand total of all property 101,072,775

Exempt Property

Veterans, 605 exempt; value of exemption $ 533,255

College of Notre Dame. 220,860

University of Santa Clara. 155,880

Stanford University 411,560

College of Pacific. 48,400

Total exemptions $ 1,369,955 Total property, non-operative, operative and exempt. 102,442,730

Property in Road Districts

Road District No. 1 $ 8,295,525

No. 2

4,750,410

No. 3

6,379,905

No. 4

16,591,460

No. 5.

13,796,950

Valuation Incorporated Cities

San Jose

$ 27.411,825

Gilroy

1,064,225

Morgan Hill 284,495

Santa Clara 2,574,435

Los Gatos 1,343,470

Sunnyvale

446,795

Mayfield

484,175

Mountain View

746,905

Palo Alto

4,347,675

Alviso

270,515

CHAPTER XIII.

County Government and Good Roads-The Transportation Facilities of the Early Days-History of Various Important Road and Railway Enter- prises-The Rise and Fall of Toll Roads-Early Modes of Transporta- tion-First Telegraph Line.

There is no better index of the character of a people than the nature of the laws and the manner in which they are administered. As a rule the California codes closely follow the codes of New York, but in matters of state, and especially of county, government there are many vital differences. An intelligent ex- amination will show that all the best experi- ence of the older states has been embodied in the California legislative laws, for hither came. in the early days, some of the brightest minds in the legal profession at a time when the laws were ready to be made on the most ap- proved plans. It is hard to budge an estab- lished system of government, even when its defects are apparent. California, therefore, having few laws and no prejudices in early days, was ready to profit by all that had been learned in the older communities. 10

Down to 1879, the state had moved along under the constitution of 1863, but the grow- ing power of certain strong corporations and the large influx of Chinese brought about a revolution in politics. The working classes asserted themselves and in 1879 a new con- stitution was adopted that radically changed not only many of the vital principles of the laws, but at the same time provided great changes in the legislative branches of the gov- ernment. Some of these changes went into effect by the terms of the constitution (such as the abolition of District, County and Pro- bate courts and the establishment in their place of the Superior Court), but others, par- ticularly those governing county and munici- pay legislative bodies, required action by the Legislature. Such action was soon taken, but working under the new constitution was an

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HISTORY OF SANTA CLARA COUNTY

experimental business, and the acts passed for those purposes were declared by the Supreme Court to be unconstitutional. It was not un- til 1883 that a law providing for a uniform system of county government was passed that stood the test of the courts. Since then, sey- eral amendments, relating principally to county officers and their remuneration, have been passed, but the general system of gov- ernment has not been impaired.

As the constitution requires that all laws shall be uniform in their operation, and as special legislation of all kinds is prohibited, a general system of county government is provided ; but as some counties are more in the most skillful and intelligent manner so that common justice is done and a uniformity of public interest preserved. The system, therefore, is far more complicated than the uninformed are aware of. densely populated than others, and as there- fore there had to be a variation in the number of county officers, the counties were divided into classes, according to population, the only material difference in the laws for the various The board is composed of five members, one classes being the number of officers provided . from each district, the districts electing their for, the law for the administration of the county affairs in all the counties being the same. This plan greatly simplified matters in many ways, especially in the determination by the higher courts of vexations problems that occasionally arise. Nearly every problem of consequence has already been determined, so that now the business of all the counties pro- ceeds on established lines.

The judicial branch of the county govern- ment is the Superior Court. Santa Clara County, according to class, is provided with three judges. They divide the work between themselves, handling probate, civil and crim- inal cases. The officers of the Superior Court are the county clerk, sheriff and district at- torney. These, of course, and especially the clerk. have multifarious duties apart from those appertaining to the court. Santa Clara County is Republican in politics, but in county elec- tions politics cuts small figure, so that the offices are divided between the Republicans and the Democrats. In 1920 the Republicans held the sheriff's, the surveyor's, the treasur- er's. the superintendent of schools' and the coroner's offices, while the Democrats held the offices of clerk, tax collector, assessor, dis- trict attorney and auditor. All the officers hold four years, except the judges, who hold six years.

The board of supervisors takes care of the finances of the county schools. The county superintendent is Miss Agnes E. Howe and the following are the members of the county board of education : Francis Gallimore, Santa Clara ; J. E. Hancock (president), San Jose; Robert Loosemore, Los Gatos; W. P. Cramsie, San Jose : Agnes E. Howe (secretary), San Jose. There are ninety-one schools and 350 teachers in the county, exclusive of San Jose. The

school houses are handsome, well-built and commodious structures, with up-to-date ap- pointments.

At the head of the administrative depart- ment of the county government stands the board of supervisors. The county is divided into five districts on the basis of population. Hence it follows that some districts are much larger in area than others; some are wholly in the valley ; others partly in the mountains ; some include the cities of the county, which have separate governments of their own and manage their own roads, schools and taxes, while others have to be adjusted and managed

own members. These elections are so regu- lated that at least two of the members on any elected board shall already have been in office two years, thus securing a constant quantity of experience. This is a very important fea- ture. A board composed entirely of new mem- bers might easily get into trouble through mistakes. The duties of the board are intri- cate. It must establish school districts, fix boundaries and provide money ; it must take care of the roads, fix the tax rate, care for and maintain the county buildings, almshouse and infirmary; provide for the inspection of orchards, for the care of the county sick, infirm and poor ; make provision for every need of the county, fill vacancies in county offices, de- clare the result of county elections, make ap- propriations for various humanitarian and other purposes, sit as a board of equalization, and perform such other duties as befit the guardian of the county's welfare. The mainte- nance and establishment of good roads is one of the most important of the board's duties, and it may be said without fear of contradic- tion that in no county of the state has this work been more satisfactorily carried out. The preliminaries for road work are entrusted to the county surveyor. During the incum- bency of Surveyor Irving Ryder (seven years) ninety-eight miles of paved roads have been completed and in 1922 contracts were let for sixteen additional miles. Before his time the county had but twenty-two miles of completed paved roads. This does not include the state highway of about seventy-five miles, which runs from Palo Alto on the northwest side of the bay to San Jose and on to the southern end of the county at Sargent's Station ; and from a short distance beyond Milpitas on the north to San Jose and on to Los Gatos. The beginning

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HISTORY OF SANTA CLARA COUNTY

of the good roads movement came with the advent of the automobile. At first the super- visors made experiments in road paving, but all proved failures until the present concrete system was tried. Nearly all the roads in the county are paved with concrete. Other ma- terial, oil macadam, is used on some of the orchard roads and excellently answers all pur- poses. During the fiscal year 1919-1920 the road and bridge improvements of the county cost $582,000.

The history of road building in Santa Clara County shows that the matter of furnishing easy and convenient means of communication between the different sections of the county has been an important question before the county government since its organization. The demand for good roads has been met, almost before it was expressed, and the result of this policy, long continued with a liberal spirit, is seen in the broad, smooth, well-kept paved highways reaching to every part of the valley, winding through the orchards, among the foot- hills and extending over the mountains. These roads are watered during the summer months, making them always comfortable for travel.

Before the Americans came into possession in Santa Clara County, there were practically no roads. Travel was chiefly performed on horseback, and for this a narrow trail was suf- ficient. Where the ox-carts ran there were tracks a little wider, but they had no legal ex- istence as roads. There being no fences and the country being used mainly for grazing. there was no necessity for the warning to "keep off the grass," and in going from one point to the other, the route was generally an air-line, except where intervening water courses compelled the traveler to seek an easy ford or crossing, or where opposing hills re- quired a circuit to be made. Even when wagons first came into use, this system was kept up, and in the winter time, when the ground was wet and soft, the wagon tracks ran parallel to each other to such an extent that it was a common saying that the road from San Jose to San Francisco was three miles wide. With the Americans came a dif- ferent system. About the first order made by the county government after its organization was in reference to public roads. The order is of interest, as it established the first high- ways in the county. It was made by the Court of Sessions on July 6, 1850, and is as follows ; "It is ordered by the court that the follow- ing roads be, and they are hereby declared, public highways within and for the County of Santa Clara, to-wit :

"First-A road commencing at the City of San Jose and running where the present road now runs, by James Murphy's, and from

thence to the right of Lucencia Higuera's ranch through the Mission of San Jose to the county line, where the road crosses the Ar- royo Delmaya at Sunol's ranch.

"Second-Also a road commencing at the City of San Jose, at First or Monterey Street, and running where the road now runs to San Juan, until it reaches the county line.

"Third-Also a road commencing at the City of San Jose, at Santa Clara Street, and running where the present road now runs, to the Mission of Santa Clara, and from thence, by the left-hand road, to the old Indian village, thence by Busard's to S. Robles', and from thence to where the present road runs to the county line.

"Fourth-Also a road commencing at the City of San Jose, at Santa Clara Street, and to run where the present road now runs, to Santa Cruz, through Fernandez' ranch, by Jones' mill to the county line." The Jones' mill referred to is the present town of Los Gatos.

The third specification in the order above set forth refers to the road to San Francisco, S. Robles' ranch being the present town of Mountain View. The road includes the Ala- meda, famous in song and story. This avenue was laid out by the Fathers of the Mission of Santa Clara. The trees were planted by Father Catala, the work being performed by the Indians under his instruction. There were originally three rows of trees, one on each side and one in the center. The ground was moist and full of adobe, which, when wet, made traveling troublesome. Ditches were made for the purpose of drainage, but they but imperfectly accomplished their object. The shade of the trees excluded the sunshine and prevented evaporation. While during the summer months the Alameda was a most charming drive, for four or five months in the year it was almost impassable for vehicles. Travelers passing between Santa Clara and San Jose were compelled to seek the side of the road and often make a circuit of four or five miles. After dark it was not unusual for people to lose their way and be compelled to pass the night in the open air.

To meet this trouble the county government opened another road by way of what is now known as Union Avenue, back of the Fair Grounds, now Hanchett Park. This did not entirely obviate the difficulties, and in 1862 a franchise was granted to a company called "The Alameda Turnpike Company," granting it the privilege of collecting toll on the Ala- meda, the company to keep the road in good condition for travel. This company erected gates, but owing to the nature of the soil could never make the road good in all its parts

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History of Santa Clara County, California, with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present, Part 25

Author: Sawyer, Eugene Taylor, 1846- Publication date: 1922 Publisher: Los Angeles : Historic Record Co. Number of Pages: 1928

Author: Sawyer, Eugene Taylor, 1846-
Publication date: 1922
Publisher: Los Angeles : Historic Record Co.
Number of Pages: 1928