A Message from the President
Dear Friends, Supporters and Members,
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I saw a very apt post the other day by a dear friend who put up a drawing of the solar system. The sun is shining brightly as per usual. Then there is a little dot very close to the sun called “Fresno” and the rest of the Earth is a normal distance away. That certainly illustrates how most of us are feeling in the triple-digit heat day after day.
I can only imagine what months like this must have been for the earliest non-native settlers in the area – including those that founded the original Fresno City on the Slough in 1855 near what is now Tranquillity.
You see, THAT is where the name “Fresno” came from in our Valley and that was technically the first platted town in our county as Millerton, despite being named the county seat, was never platted or registered as a legitimate community. That is a story for another day.
In 1952, the Fresno County Historical Society dedicated a physical monument on the site of Fresno City on the Slough. Sadly, vandals ruined the plaque in 1969 and it wasn’t until last week that the California Landmark Foundation and their generous donors unveiled a new marker. As president of FCHS, I was honored to have able to participate in the rededication and share the story once again of this overlooked town – which is what I would like to do with you now…
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Steamer on Skaggs Bridge, Fresno County Historical Soceity |
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The original monument was dedicated to the memory of the “pioneers of an earlier day who left to succeeding generations a pattern of courage and perseverance for the development of this great valley.” At the time, Fresno Historian, Ben Walker explained the significance of the old townsite, where, he said, no trace remains of a community which once furnished the Pacific Coast with most of its news from the East. “It was no great city,” he said. “Let’s not kid ourselves, but there were a number of buildings there. It was the head of the San Joaquin River navigation toward the south when the easiest way to travel was by water, and for a time, it was the southern terminus of the telegraph line. A subsidized stage line from Independence, Kansas to San Francisco passed through the community. It brought passengers, mail and newspapers from the East. Many of the enterprising papers of San Francisco stationed men right there in Fresno City to intercept the Eastern newspapers and telegraph the news to them.” Those of us steeped in Fresno County history, know the importance of Fresno City to the development of the Valley that we know today.
Fresno City on Fresno Slough below White’s Bridge of Watson’s Ferry as it was known of old. Fresno City was located at the head of navigation on Fresno Slough at an elevation of 164 feet. The city was named after the Spanish word for the Oregon Ash trees that commonly grew along the riverbanks.
The city was conceived in connection with a gigantic scheme, the character of which may well be questioned in the light of subsequent happenings. Fresno City was intended to be a great maritime port that would lay tribute upon all the vast inland region from the San Joaquin Valley.
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A.J. Downer was one of a number of enterprising enthusiasts who conceived the idea and of whom early records note that he always referred to himself as “of Fresno City”, as if he had a copyright on the designation. Fresno City, in the vision of these early developers, was to be a commercial emporium. Grants of fertile and well-watered swamp and overflowed lands were voted to aid the enterprise. The town was started in 1855.
A pier was built to accommodate flatboats and barges that could make it through the shallow waters. Docks, wharves, and warehouses were planned to have marked the meanderings of the slough through the city. In 1858 The Casa Blanca Hotel, a large white structure was built on the townsite and in addition to housing visitors it became the stage station for the Butterfield Overland Mail.
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Butterfield Overland Mail Stage Coach |
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On April 25, 1860, the townsite Map, hand drawn on oiled tracing paper, was filed with the county clerk at Millerton. No record remains of who filed the map or whose idea it originally was to lay out this town at the head of the steamer navigation on the slough.
We know that it was not meant to be a small town. The drawing showed an ambitious 89 block area that measured 2 and a quarter mile east and west and one mile north and south. Head of navigation to be sure it was, but there is only one well-authenticated case of a steamer ever having passed the city. It had started for Tulare Lake from the San Joaquin on the flood water of a winter’s deluge. The water receded unexpectedly and the steamer heading back for water in the river was left stranded and its hulk for years was thereafter a landmark on the plains.
Alas, the Butterfield stagecoach line closed in early 1861, the Great Flood of 1862 did lasting damage and the City was practically abandoned by 1865. A post office operated at Fresno City from 1860 to 1863. The final nail perhaps was the big flood in the winter of 1867 which put an end to shipping by water as the slough filled up with sand.
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Land on the former James Ranch was ideal for many types of farming. Grain silos marked the homesteads of families who chose wheat and barley as their staple crop, June 18, 1918, courtesy of Pop Laval Foundation.
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The old Fresno City on the Slough land became part of a nearly violent controversy, in particular by land barons Jefferson G. James and Henry Miller, who filed suit to take ownership of the San Joaquin River. While this is a story unto itself, the important point related to the story of the land around the slough is that James (as in James Road) had incredible success.
In 1867, he established the James Ranch headquarters in its permanent location, forming the nucleus of West Side agriculture. James established thirty-six ranches on the 167,000 acres that he accumulated, renting them to many smaller operators including Japanese immigrant Esaboro Wada, who raised the first rice in the district.
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The death of James in 1910 started the dissolution of his holdings and began the march of population onto the fertile plains southwest of Fresno. It brought one of the valley’s biggest land promotion campaigns, participated in by some of the state’s outstanding developers. A prospectus published in 1913 describes the James Ranch land as “fertile as a garden” and situated in Fresno County, celebrated throughout the west as a producer of great crops where growth goes on through the whole year, where farming is easier than anywhere else in California.
The history of this land is also the story of the city of Tranquility which progressed from swamp to intensified and diversified farming. Aided by his son-in-law, W.C. Graves, Jefferson James had waged and won a battle to reclaim the land of Tranquillity Colony from flood waters each year. After the land reclamation was complete, a system of irrigation was developed.
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By 1910 the Tranquillity townsite began to take shape with a school, hotel, saloon and post office. The area was well-suited to raising cows and many fields supported alfalfa. A creamery was also built. Other crops grown include sugar beets and cotton.
I encourage you to take a drive and visit the freshly-installed monument - a valuable reminder of the roots of our city and what could have been an easily forgotten piece of our Valley history.
Warmest regards,
Elizabeth Laval
President, Fresno County Historical Society
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ROOTS OF THE VALLEY: Hotel Fresno |
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Hotel Fresno exterior on Broadway Avenue, Fresno CA, April 15, 1958, photo courtesy of Pop Laval Foundation |
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Hotel Fresno opened its doors in 1912 on Broadway at Merced Street as Fresno’s finest hostelry. Actually, it was known throughout the state as THE place to see and be seen in high society. Over the next decade and a half, this seven-story Classical Revival structure served as the center of Fresno’s social life.
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The Hotel was designed by Edward T. Foulkes, a significant figure in our community’s architectural history. He brought to the project a sense of urban elegance and sophistication. In fact, the Hotel Fresno’s lobby was designed to resemble the Palace Hotel in San Francisco’s “Garden Court." The hostelry’s elegant two-and-one-half story reception area featured rich wood paneling, a huge fireplace, a pipe organ and a cantilevered glass ceiling hung with four chandeliers. A grand ballroom and elegant formal dining room opened off the lobby on the ground floor. |
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Hotel Fresno Lobby, 1962,
photo courtesy of Pop Laval Foundation
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Uniformed Bell Boys stood in front of the main entrance of the Hotel Fresno, ready to usher guests to their rooms and to carry their suitcases. They had been trained to give service and to make each guest feel welcome. A stay in a fine hotel meant a level of amenity that made a visit not only enjoyable, but also gave visitors a feeling of being pampered.
The dining room of the Hotel Fresno featured waiters in white jackets and black ties, white linen tablecloths, elegant table settings, and delicious food—all in an ambiance of taste and refinement.
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Hotel Fresno Bell Boys stand in front of building,
photo courtesy of Pop Laval Foundation
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National Women's Party Banquet, Suffrage Meeting at Hotel Fresno, September 26, 1916, Pop Laval Foundation |
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This was a place for romantic dates, anniversary celebrations, family dinners, and special evenings out. A pipe organ in the adjacent lobby provided music that underscored many a magical evening. In its heyday, this dining room was Fresno ’s finest restaurant.
In September 1916, the National Women’s Party held a “Suffragette” Rally in the banquet room.
The magnificent lobby of the Hotel Fresno played host to every type of event imaginable, from the time it was completed. A January 1917 photograph was taken during one of many automobile shows held annually to launch the latest models.
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Richard Nixon and family in reception line at Hotel Fresno event, February 1962, Pop Laval Foundation |
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For years, the Hotel Fresno was where everyone hoped to be on New Year’s Eve; as many as 1,500 partygoers crowded into the dining room, grand ballroom and mezzanine gathering rooms to celebrate into the early morning hours. Receptions, society parties, college dances, and formal dinners kept the Hotel booked year-round.
Over the decades, famous guests who signed the front desk register included Jack Dempsey, Gary Cooper, Joe Lewis, and Richard Nixon. Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig were honored at a banquet in the Dining Room in 1927. In 1962, the local Republicans gave a reception at the hotel for their nominee in that year’s race for California’s governorship – Richard Nixon which was momentous in that it was the first time his teenaged daughters appeared on the campaign trail for their father.
Even at the height of the Great Depression in 1930, the Hotel Fresno donned its merriest apparel and welcomed guests from around the world into its classy, yet cozy, arms. With restoration of this local landmark in full swing, it should not be too many holiday seasons before the hotel lobby will be decorated in such a grand fashion once again.
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Hotel Fresno Dining Room in 1913 and in the early 1960s, photo courtesy of Pop Laval Foundation |
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JOIN US FOR A BIKE TOUR OF HISTORIC KEARNEY BLVD
SATURDAY, JULY 24, 2021
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Join the Fresno County Bicycle Coalition on a ride along historic Kearney Blvd. from Chandler Executive Airport to the Kearney Mansion Museum and Gallery on July 24th from 7:15AM to 11:00AM. Ticket includes guided ride on your personal bicycle along Kearney Blvd and a tour of the Kearney Mansion Museum & Gallery.
Trip Itinerary
7:15 AM Check-in and park at Flight Line Café inside of Chandler Airport 510 W. Kearney Blvd., Fresno, CA 93706.
8:00 AM Depart on your bike with bike guide heading west on Kearney towards Kearney Mansion Museum 7160 W. Kearney Blvd., Fresno, CA 93706. Led by Fresno County Bike Coalition.
8:45 AM Park bikes at Kearney Mansion Museum’s secured porch and begin inside guided tour by 9 AM and ending at 9:45 AM. Tour led by Fresno County Historical Society professional guides.
10:15 AM Depart on bikes back east on Kearney Blvd. and ending at Chandler Airport by 11 AM.
Attendees will need to provide their own bike and helmet.
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FIELDS OF FRESNO AG TOUR: A Farmers Story
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On September 18th, the Society will partner with the Fresno County Farm Bureau to provide an engaging, educational and fun Ag Tour in and around Fresno County. This experience will include a coach bus ride through beautiful farmland, Q&A with local farmers, several stops with guided tours and a delicious lunch. Our FCHS special event will directly fund impactful and ongoing History and Social Studies curriculum to schools in Fresno County. All lessons present broad historic topics with local connections that can be accessed virtually or in-person and teach all children that they are personally Making History Every Day.
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This unique experience will start at the Kearney Mansion Museum & Gallery at 7:15 AM with hot coffee and a brief history of M. Theo Kearney and his historic Kearney Ranch and Fruit Vale Estate. Our comfortable and spacious coach bus will depart for three planned stops at Fresno County farms followed by a return to Kearney Park for lunch at 1:15 PM. Each guest will also receive a bag of goodies provided by the Fresno/Clovis Convention & Visitors Bureau. Space is limited so secure your tickets today.
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THE FRESNO COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY
valleyhistory.org
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