USA > California > San Diego County > San Diego county, California; a record of settlement, organization, progress and achievement, Volume II > Part 39
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FRANCIS M. BATES.
Francis M. Bates, early settler in San Diego county and one of the most prosperous and enterprising farmers in Mission Valley, has gained his present substantial position by unremitting and courageous work in the face of obstacles which barred his path to success and hampered the activities of his early years. He was born in Jones county, Iowa, September 24, 1853, and was reared upon his father's farm, acquiring his education in the public schools of his native dis- trict. After he laid aside his books he engaged in farming for himself upon eighty acres of land in Franklin county but in 1883 came west to California, influenced by the hope of better fortune in the new section of the country. He arrived in San Diego county with his wife and three children and had in his pocket only five dollars as his capital stock and, therefore, the hope seemed at first far off and difficult of fulfilment. For a time he worked by the day in San Pasqual valley and saved his money so that eventually he was able to rent the San Bernardo ranch from its owner, E. S. Babcock. This he farmed for two years and then took up a homestead claim of one hundred and sixty acres on Palomar mountain, which he later sold and rented three hundred and fifty acres of land in the Black mountains. The three years during which he operated this property were all "dry" years and Mr. Bates' crops failed again and again. His financial condition grew so serious that in 1900 he was obliged to leave his farm and came to Mission Valley. Here he purchased with the remnant of his
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fortune twenty-eight acres of land and managed it for six years, success finally attending his efforts. In 1907 he purchased his present property of ten acres, upon which he raises alfalfa on an extensive scale, harvesting several crops yearly. He is likewise interested in dairying, keeping twelve high-grade cows for this purpose and selling the milk in the local markets, where it commands a good price. Mr. Bates' success is well deserved, for it came after years of struggle against adversity and as the reward of an upright, straightforward and honorable life. During the course of his career he has been engaged in various occupations, having operated a hay press in San Diego county, together with a bee ranch of forty stands. When he was in San Pasqual valley he acted as jus- tice of the peace for eight years and discharged his official duties in a conscien- tious, able and businesslike way.
In 1878 Mr. Bates was united in marriage to Miss Anna Hoyer, a native of Kentucky, and they have seven children, George S .; Theresa, the wife of W. W. Ward, of Imperial county ; Anna Bell, who married I. E. Arnold; Frank; Louis; Oliver ; and Eugene. As one of the landowners, successful farmers and pro- gressive business men of Mission Valley Mr. Bates is well known. His life rec- ord shows what may be accomplished by a determined spirit and unfaltering enterprise and his example of industry and perseverance is one well worthy of emulation.
WILLIAM STELL.
Few if any business men of the El Cajon valley are better known through- out this section of the state than William Stell. He is not only one of El Cajon's foremost citizens but a man who for more than a quarter of a century has been prominently identified with agricultural and financial interests, standing as a central figure in many projects which have promoted progress, development and advancement. He was born in Lyons, Wayne county, New York, in 1864, a son of George and Barbara (Schaub) Stell, and was reared and educated in that section. He remained there until he was twenty-three years of age, engaging during the latter period of his residence in farming and in clerking in a general store. He came to El Cajon in April, 1887, and took up one hundred and sixty acres of government valley land, proving up on this property, for which he paid two dollars and a half per acre. He farmed it in grain for seven years and also raised grain upon a large tract of rented land, after which he disposed of his property holdings and entered the E. E. Burgess general merchandise store in El Cajon as a clerk. His ability gained him rapid advancement and he progressed step by step until he became a member of the firm. In 1906 a stock company was formed, which is known as the Stell-Burgess Company, Mr. Stell being the majority stockholder. In the same year Mr. Burgess and Mr. Stell acquired a vineyard of two hundred and thirty-four acres but a short time afterward Mr. Burgess sold out his interests to his partner and Mr. Stell is now sole owner. Thirty-five acres are planted in grain and about two hundred acres in vine- yard, which produce some of the finest raisin grapes in southern California. Mr. Stell has paid special attention to the attractive appearance of his place
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and has arranged it in a unique manner by placing a row of olive trees around each ten acres of his vineyard, making the property one of the show places of the valley. He is specializing in Muscat raisin grapes, raising on an average one hundred and fifty tons yearly. He has systematized his operations along this line in a careful and businesslike way, having become associated with the El Cajon Raisin Company, which packs and ships most of the raisins grown in the valley to the eastern markets, handling about fifty carloads a year. In 1911 Mr. Stell also farmed seven hundred and twenty-five acres of grain land and in addition rented a one hundred acre vineyard near El Cajon. In January, 1913, he became one of the organizers of The Stell-Clark Company, at El Cajon, engaged in general merchandising and capitalized for twenty-five thousand dollars, of which he was chosen president.
These interests, however, do not indicate the scope of Mr. Stell's activities for his efforts have extended to many other lines covering commercial, indus- trial and financial concerns. He is a director in the Cuyamaca State Bank of El Cajon, vice president and a director of the California Life Insurance Com- pany of San Diego and one of the founders of that institution. He is also inter- ested in the Central Securities Company of San Diego and aside from all of these fields, in which his labor has brought him substantial returns, he has put forth effective efforts for the benefit and upbuilding of the valley, cooperating heartily and actively where the general welfare of the community is involved.
In 1905 Mr. Stell was united in marriage to Miss Mabel A. Hofflund, a daugh- ter of Alexander and Matilda (Peterson) Hofflund and a native of Illinois, and they have one daughter, Leslie Mabel. Mr. Stell is a very public-spirited and patriotic citizen, taking a commendable interest in local affairs. He is a mem- ber of the republican central committee and since 1906 has been postmaster of El Cajon, having been appointed by President Roosevelt and reappointed by President Taft. Fraternally he is affiliated with the Order of Elks. He has lived in this section many years and is well known and favorably regarded, being trustworthy in business, progressive in citizenship and loyal to all the duties and obligations of his life.
COLONEL JAMES F. RANDLETT.
The ranks of the veterans of the Civil war are fast being decimated as year by year death overtakes the heroes of that conflict, who gave up their ambitions and private hopes in the days when they were young to serve the country when danger threatened. All the more honor is due to the surviving veterans so that the great debt which we owe them and which can never be cancelled or for- gotten may in some slight degree be repaid. La Mesa numbers among its citi- zens an honored soldier of that conflict, Colonel James F. Randlett, who through all the four dark years of the struggle helped his country upon the battlefield, proving himself an upright, honorable and valorous soldier. He holds the commission of colonel in the United States regular army, with which he was connected until his retirement in 1896.
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Colonel Randlett was born in Rockingham county, New Hampshire, Decem- ber 8, 1832, and acquired his education at Atkinson Academy, in his native state. At the outbreak of the Civil war he raised. a company of volunteers and was appointed its captain, holding this office in Company F, Third New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry. He was mustered into service on August 16, 1861, and was with Sherman in his expedition against Charleston, South Carolina. He was present at the siege of Fort Wagner and was at the head of his company at the final assault. In the Virginia campaign he received a serious wound but did not allow it to interfere with his service .. In the campaign on the James river in Virginia he went up the river with nine hundred and eighty men and thirty officers, returning to Richmond with only two hundred men and he himself the only surviving officer besides the surgeon of the company. After the capture of Wilmington, North Carolina, in recognition of his able service Colonel Randlett was made provost marshal of the city and retained that position until he was mustered out with his honorable discharge at Concord. After the close of the war he returned to South Carolina, where he was appointed captain in the regular United States army and afterward saw service on the frontiers of Texas and New Mexico and along the valley of the Rio Grande, where he made the acquaintance of that grand old warrior and statesman, President Porfirio Diaz, of Mexico. He was later transferred to Utah, where he built the post of Duchesne one hundred miles from a railroad and there he was stationed for eleven years. In 1896 he was retired from the army after many years of faith- ful, honorable and loyal service. After his retirement Colonel Randlett went to Oklahoma, where he served for seven years as Indian agent, at the end of which time he came to San Diego county and purchased a fine fruit ranch of twenty acres in La Mesa, which he named Loma Alegre. This he planted in lemon trees and upon it he now lives retired in a beautiful home.
Colonel Randlett was united in marriage to Miss Hannah Hodgsdon, who passed away in 1910, leaving one daughter, Mrs. Fred C. Tufts. Colonel Rand- lett is president of the Loyal Legion and belongs to the Grand Army of the Republic in Nashua, New Hampshire, besides being an honorary member of many posts throughout the country, thus maintaining pleasant relations with his old army comrades. No soldier was more brave or loyal to the interests of the country during the dark days of the Civil war and in times of peace he has been equally faithful, proving himself always an upright, honorable and courte- ous gentleman. He is a Master Mason, becoming affiliated with Rising Sun Lodge of Nashua, New Hampshire, in 1861, and politically upholds the repub- lican standard.
W. O. SANFORD.
W. O. Sanford, a successful general and consulting civil engineer of San Diego, was born in this city in May, 1877, and is a son of O. M. and F. M. San- ford. His education was received in the public and high schools of San Diego and was completed in 1896. Afterward he worked under his father, a promi- nent and important civil engineer of the city. He studied under the latter's direc-
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tion until 1898 and learned the profession in all of its details. Finally he went to San Francisco in order to acquire wider experience and when he returned to San Diego was already known as one of the most able men in the profession in this part of the state, his excellent work having gained quick recognition. Since his return he has continued in the same line of activity but acts entirely as a consulting engineer.
On the 5th of April, 1905, Mr. Sanford was married in San Francisco to Miss Gay and they have one child, Bertram, aged six. Mr. and Mrs. Sanford are well known in social circles of the city and Mr. Sanford is a member of the Order of Panama. Although still a young man he has made his influence felt in the profession which he has chosen and in which he has become unusually proficient. In barely one year he has built up a gratifying business in San Diego as a consult- ing civil engineer and his friends, recognizing his ability, do not hesitate to pre- dict for him continued progress along professional lines.
A. McALLISTER.
A. McAllister, proprietor of the Central Sheet Metal Company and one of the most active and enterprising young men of San Diego, was born in Pittston, Pennsylvania, in 1882, a son of William and Emma McAllister. After com- pleting his education in the public schools of his native city he obtained employ- ment with the firm of Toms & Blaine and worked in their interests for five years, learning metal working in all its aspects. At the end of that time he came west and settled in Los Angeles, where he remained until 1910, when he came to San Diego and organized the Central Sheet Metal Company, with which he has been identified since that time. His business has expanded rapidly for he has known how to direct its growth along the most modern and progressive lines. It has become one of the most important concerns in San Diego and Mr. McAllister's able management of its affairs has placed him among the successful business men of the city.
In May, 1909, Mr. McAllister married Miss Mary Sanders and they have one child. He is loyal to San Diego institutions and an enthusiast on the sub- ject of the opportunities which the city offers a young man. He is only thirty years of age but has already accomplished definite success and traveled far on the road to prosperity.
EDGAR G. DAVIES.
The development and progress of every community depends upon its busi- ness interests and the class of men who are in control of its industrial and com- mercial affairs. In this connection Edgar G. Davies may be termed one of the leading and prominent citizens of San Diego, where he is president and man- ager of the Hunt Auto Company, one of the successful business institutions of.
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the city. He was born in Langhor, South Wales, May 23, 1884, and is a son of Frederick and Mary Davies.
Mr. Davies of this review studied until he was eleven years of age in the . public schools of his native country and then learned the harness-making trade under the direction of his brother and worked at it until he was fourteen. After that he traveled through England and Wales, working at his trade and becoming expert in it. When he was seventeen, however, he returned to Langhor and there established himself in business in partnership with his brother. The enterprise was successful and together the brothers operated it until 1904, when Edgar Davies determined to try his fortune in America. After crossing the Atlantic to this country he went westward and settled in Los Angeles, California,
where he worked as a harness maker for the Los Angeles Leather & Refining Company for four months and then held a similar position with Bride & Brothers. After six months he came to San Diego and for one year worked in the employ of a Mr. Topping as harness maker. His next association was with the Kessler Machine Supply Company, for whom he acted as polisher until 1907, when he formed a partnership with Wilson Smith in the conduct of an automobile busi- ness. After one year the concern was incorporated under the name of the Hunt Auto Company, with Mr. Davies as vice president, and in January, 1912, he was made president and manager and has filled this position since that time, ably demonstrating his executive force and far-seeing business judgment. During the years of his connection with the business interests of San Diego his keen dis- cernment and unfaltering energy have constituted the basis of a success which is as commendable as it is desirable. The volume of business done by the Hunt Auto Company has increased in extent and importance under his management and he is now at the head of one of the most prosperous automobile concerns in the city.
In San Diego, June 24, 1912, Mr. Davies laid the foundation for a happy home life in his marriage to Miss Sarah McCrull. He is prominent in the Masonic order but not otherwise active in fraternal connections. He has made a most creditable business record and his keen insight into business situations, his knowledge of conditions and his enterprising methods have proved the safe and sure basis for his well deserved prosperity.
ALBERT A. FROST.
San Diego is a city of progress and it offers excellent opportunities for ad- vancement along every line of activity. As a natural result many young busi- ness men have been attracted to it, drawn by the spirit of enterprise and growth and by the opportunities which the city offers for quick business success along legitimate lines. The young men of San Diego are influencing and hastening its business activity and its general development and among them none is more deservedly prominent than Albert A. Frost, half owner of the business operated by Frost & Macfarlane, wholesale and retail dealers in hardwood lumber. He was born in Emporia, Kansas, March 21, 1887, and is a son of G. W. and A. E. Frost, of that state. He attended the public schools of Emporia and was grad-
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uated from the high school in 1907, after which he enrolled in Leland Stanford University, from which he was graduated in 1911. Since that time he has been half owner in the enterprise conducted by the firm of Frost & Macfarlane and in his management of the affairs under his charge has shown a business ability of a high order, a keen and discriminating judgment and an enterprising spirit which will undoubtedly hasten his prosperity.
Mr. Frost is a member of the San Diego Rowing Club and is well known in social circles of the city. Judged by the success he has already attained, his career will continue along progressive lines of expansion and will result in his acquiring an influential and prominent position in business circles of San Diego.
HARVEY D. ALLEN.
Harvey D. Allen, one of the most successful dairymen and retail milk dealers in Mission Valley, is a western man by birth and training, and the spirit of progress characteristic of this section has been manifested throughout his entire business career. Through successive stages of advancement he has worked his way upward to success, standing today by reason of his own efforts among the men who direct and control the business development of this part of San Diego county. He was born in Doniphan county, Kansas, August 25, 1876, and is a son of Sereno D. and Phemie (Williams) Allen. In this family were eight children : Ernest J .; Edna L., who married Eugene Schmitt, a city engineer in San Diego; Gertrude, a teacher in the San Diego high school; Harvey D., of this review; Benjamin D., of Doniphan county, Kansas, who is engaged in farming on an extensive scale, employing in the conduct of his enterprise more men than any other agriculturist in that county; Eric R., a resident of Liberty, New York ; Fred J .; and Myrtle, the wife of James R. Young, formerly a teacher in the State Normal School in San Diego but now a resident of Chicago, Illinois.
Harvey D. Allen began his education in the public schools of Doniphan county and when eight years of age came with his father, S. D. Allen, to Califor- nia, where the latter settled in Mission Valley, near San Diego, and purchased land. Harvey D. Allen began his career peddling milk on horseback from house to house in San Diego. From that small beginning has grown his present large and increasing business, for although his enterprise was at that time con- ducted on a small and humble scale, the milk was of high quality and Mr. Allen's methods of dealing were upright and straightforward. For fifteen years he drove to town every morning with his team, selling his dairy products in the city of San Diego. Every year his business expanded and he and his father operate one of the largest dairies in this part of the state. Upon their ranch of one hun- dred and sixty acres they keep one hundred and forty Holstein cows and the enterprise is conducted strictly as a dairy farm. To this in 1911 Mr. Allen of this review added a ranch of ninety-two acres near the old mission and upon this he keeps thirty head of fine Jersey cows and is also engaged in the raising of alfalfa, grain and hay. He cuts from three hundred to four hundred tons of alfalfa and averages two hundred tons of hay yearly. Besides he has over four hundred chickens of a fancy breed, his poultry raising forming a profitable
A.S. allen
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branch of his work. Upon the smaller farm he has installed a fine irrigating plant and everything else necessary for modern farm operation. His dairy is kept clean and sanitary in every particular and every variety of new equipment has been installed, including a patent separator which divides the cream from the milk. For the past five years Mr. Allen has devoted his entire time to the management of his dairy and the conduct of his retail business, which has now reached gratifying proportions. Five wagons deliver cream and milk to all parts of San Diego every morning, fifteen men being employed in the various depart- ments of the concern. Mr. Allen's patronage is rapidly increasing, its present dimensions being the direct result of the high quality of his goods, the sanitary conditions under which the work of his dairy is done and the straightforward and reliable business methods to which he steadily adheres.
Fraternally Mr. Allen is a member of San Diego Lodge, No. 153, I. O. O. F., and gives his political support to the republican party.
GREENWOOD POULTRY RANCH.
Visitors to the El Cajon valley make the Greenwood Poultry Ranch in Bos- tonia one of their first stopping points, for it is one of the largest, most modern and most sanitary enterprises of its kind in this part of the county and in all respects unique as a place of interest. Its twenty acres present a most attractive appearance, being improved by up-to-date buildings, new equipment and with everything necessary for the conduct of the business along the most profitable and most modern lines. Everything is kept in excellent condition, experts are employed to care for the fowl and poultry-raising has here been given the dignity of an advanced science. In control of the enterprise are M. E. Ginn and O. H. Greenwood, men originally from Boston, Massachusetts, who recog- nized the opportunity which California offered along the present lines of their interests and who have made use of their advantages in an able and far- sighted way. This ranch is generally considered to be the most modern of its kind in the state and no detail of sanitation or equipment has been neglected. In the breeding pens, two in number, one one hundred by ten feet and the other one hundred and fifty by ten, are raised the Fisher strain of White Plymouth Rock poultry and the incubator house contains ten modern Cyphers incubators, from which are hatched three thousand eggs every twenty-one days and which are kept in continuous operation. Fancy-bred and high-grade hens are bought in all parts of San Diego county and they are put in fattening pens, which have a capacity of twelve hundred, and prepared for the market, an average of four hundred being put in condition for sale every month. The breeding pens are disinfected twice a month and new appliances for keeping them clean and for taking the eggs from the nests are used. The owners of the ranch pay par- ticular attention to the quality of their stock and frequently tests are made of the laying capacity of the hens. Six taken at random from the pens and closely watched, to avoid errors, laid thirteen hundred and forty-one eggs in one year, an average of two hundred and twenty eggs per hen. There is also upon the ranch a double brooding house, one hundred and fifty-eight by twenty, with a Vol. II-20
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capacity for the care of five thousand chickens from one day to ten weeks old. Broilers for the market are also raised, while day-old chickens are sold to the ranchers in lots averaging from one hundred to one thousand. The brooding house is heated by an automatic heating appliance and is well lighted and ven- tilated. Turkey-raising forms another important branch of the work done upon this ranch, for bronze turkeys are here found in large numbers. Sixty-two of the turkey hens laid forty-five hundred eggs in one year and many of the young birds when only nine months old weighed twenty-three pounds and over. Three turkey gobblers were bought at Hope, Indiana, at a cost of sixty-nine dollars and the brood, started three years ago with eight fowl, now numbers four hundred, all healthy and in excellent condition. That this forms one of the most profitable branches of the business is evidenced by the fact that at Christmas time in 19II three hundred and twenty-five turkeys were sold for ten hundred and fifty dol- lars. Excellent arrangements have been made for the feeding of the stock, for grain is bought by the carload and protected in a grain house seventy by forty feet in dimensions. From this twenty different kinds of feed are made and used as needed and in addition all the alfalfa raised upon the ranch is consumed by the poultry. The turkeys and chickens are cared for scientifically by three men who understand every detail of the work. Everything known to modern times for the promotion of cleanliness and sanitation is found upon this property, which is undoubtedly one of the finest poultry ranches in this part of California and a substantial contribution to the resources of the section. A fine water sys- tem has been installed, water having been found at a depth of twelve feet. A well forty-seven feet deep has been dug and an electric pumping plant installed. The men who are responsible for the conduct and management of this enter- prise are valuable factors in the development of the resources of the valley and their work has marked a distinct advance in scientific poultry-raising. The sec- tion owes them a great debt because what they have done they have done well and in a thoroughly modern and efficient way.
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