Tulare County
History
History of Tulare and Kings Counties, California - History by Eugene L. Menefee and Fred A. Dodge - Historic Record Company - Los Angeles, California, 1913
CHAPTER VI
THE GENERAL RODEO
Three things were necessary in the early days of cattle raising in Tulare county to insure success. These were a branding iron, a range claim and a number of active cowboys.
There was a law at that time which had been passed by the legislature of '51, entitled "An act to regulate rodeos," which caused this condition. This law provided for a general rodeo on every stock farm, and if a rancher failed to make it, it could be made by any of his neighbors at his expense; and provided further that no man should mark or brand his stock cattle except at one of these general rodeos.
Of the law and its workings, Stephen Barton, writing in 1874, says: "The cap sheaf of the enactment, however, was this section: 'All unmarked neat cattle, the mothers of which are unknown, shall be considered the property of the owner of the farm on which they may be found.' These provisions of law resulted in this county in the unoccupied public domain being divided into range claims, and he that was unable to make a general rodeo soon found that he had no business to keep cattle, while those who undertook it found that the business of the year simplified itself to the task of assembling on his rodeo ground as many unmarked neat cattle without mothers as it were possible to do. Can it be wondered at that, under such circumstances, cattle stealing should rise to the dignity of a science, and finally to that of a fine art? The business of manipulating a rodeo was at once more simple than that of stacking a deck of cards or that of picking the pockets of an unwary traveler. Further, it was more respectable and required, in one ease, less capital, in the other, less courage."
In 1907 occurred an incident at White River which at once illustrates the wealth once frequently found in the gold pockets of this section and brought to light a story of a mysterious disappearance, buried treasure and unfounded suspicion strange as any fiction.
It develops that in the early '80s Tom Bradford, a miner thought to have been quite successful, suddenly disappeared. No clue was obtained to his whereabouts; it was believed that he had met with foul play, and suspicion rested on J. M. White. At this time, so the story goes, Dave Hughes and old man Caldwell were interested believers in spiritualism and gave seances and table rappings. At one of these performances they announced that Bradford had met his death at the hands of White. Great excitement ensued in the camp and White's denial of guilt was not believed.
Mr. White, by means of letters to almost every town in the state, finally located Bradford and received letters convincing the neighbors of his innocence. In one of these letters Bradford stated that he had buried some gold in Gordon's Gulch, described the location and told White to get it and keep it to repay him for the trouble he had experienced. Mr. White and his sons searched Gordon's Gulch over and over, but failed to discover the treasure.
In 1907 Bradford returned, having lost his eyesight and one arm through a dynamite explosion, and is now known as "Blind Tom." Securing a guide, Tom Willard, in Delano, Blind Torn arrived in Gordon's Gulch and by describing the location, which was by a chimney and near a flat rock surface, was conducted to the spot. A little digging unearthed gold in various tin cans to the amount of twenty-five pounds.
Following the Civil war the failing output of the mines caused a lessened prosperity. The lack of transportation facilities was severely felt and many endeavors were made to secure rail connections.
Cattle raising continued profitable and herds were increased. The discovery of the immense grazing territory of the Sierras gave an impetus to sheep raising, and wool became the principal product.
The completion of the railroad through Goshen and Tulare in 1872, with the westward branch through Hanford in 1877 caused a rush of settlers. These either purchased land of the railroad or acquired title by pre-emption of homestead. The population increased very rapidly and farming on a large scale had its inception. Irrigating enterprises on a large scale were inaugurated.
It must be remembered that the county by this time had been greatly reduced in area, Kern having been cut off in 1856, and Fresno and Inyo in 1866.
The "No Fence" law of 1871, passed just before the coming of the railroad, rendered farming practicable and now commenced the era of wheat growing. Immense ranches were sown to the cereal, an acreage of from five to twenty thousand in one body not being unusual. A section, or 640 acres, was considered a small farm. Tulare became the banner wheat producing county of the state. Fourteen thousand carloads were shipped in one season. The construction in 1888 of the east side branch of the Southern Pacific passing through the Dinuba, Exeter, Porterville and Ducor country, brought an immense acreage of fine wheat lands into cultivation. Sheep raising, meanwhile, since the disastrous drought of '77, had been declining.
In 1890 the county experienced what may be termed its third boom. The extraordinary yields and profits of fruit raising had been demonstrated by the crop sales of orchards in the two preceding years and now a general rush to plant trees took place. Probably fifteen thousand acres were set to trees and vines in this season.
The discovery of the adaptability of the foothill belt to citrus fruits, the finding of subterranean rivers, and the exploitation of the power of the mountain streams were incidents of the succeeding years. Dairying, conducted at first on a small scale with inconsiderable profit, became shortly, from the increasing necessities of the rapidly growing city of Los Angeles, an industry of great importance.
In general, the history of the county during the last fifteen years has been the prosaic development caused by the flourishing growth of industry, accounts of which are given under separate headings.
Transcribed by Kathy Sedler.