Bobette and Charlie Giles

The Giles Memorial Park, the park outside where the Boys and Girl's Club is located in Manteca is named for Charlie and Bobette Giles.   This bench in Woodward Park is dedicated to Charlie Giles.  Who are Charlie and Bobette Giles and how are they important to Manteca?
Charlie Leo Giles, with his wife, built Mountain Valley Express trucking Company.  He founded the company in 1976 with just one truck and built the company to 400 vehicles and 250 employees.  The  company was known for its safety record.  However he is honored not only for his business successes, although that is part of the equation.  He and his wife Bobette were always big supporters of the Manteca Boys & Girls Club.  They are among those who made the club possible, supported it though out their lives, and even made donations to the club in their wills.  Charlie Giles also supported the Manteca Morning Rotary.  Bobette ran a restaurant, and would take the left overs at the en of the day to a programs feeding the homeless.  Mr. Giles passed away in 2003.  His family continues to run the business which now has terminals throughout the Western United States.

First LDS Chapel in Manteca: Pine Street Chapel

The Pine Street Chapel was the first LDS chapel in Manteca.  It is located close to Doctors Hospital.  The Manteca Branch was first organized as a Sunday School in 1946, and as a branch in 1947.  They met in the Legion Hall.  In 1950 the branch was formed with President Donald Nicolayson.  The chapel was dedicated in 1957.  They were still a branch.  The branch had to contribute $50,000 as their share.  They raised money by raising tomatoes and beans.  They also did much of the labor except for the electricity and the bricklaying.
A ward was organized in 1959.  D. Leon Ward was called as bishop.  When Manteca Stake was formed in 1981 there were three wards in Manteca.  Manteca had been part of the Modesto Stake, and Tracy part of the San Joaquin Stake.  They were combined as the manteca Stake.  D. Leon Ward, who had previously served as the Modesto Stake president, was the first stake president of the Manteca Stake.  The Union building was completed in 1984, and became the stake center.  Before this stake offices were in Tracy.  The Pine Street building was also proving too small.  The current stake center on Northland was completed in 1991, and the congregation and stake offices were moved there.
The Pine Street Chapel was sold.  It is currently occupied by the Fellowship Baptist Church.

 Looks great for an almost 60 year-old building.

Book Report: ***Manteca; Selected Chapters from its History

This book was published 31 years ago by the Manteca Bulletin and it written by Evelyn Prouty who is a docent at the Manteca Historical Museum.  I checked it out from the Manteca library.  It presents the prehistory, Native American history first, and then important persons in the history of Manteca, emigrants and founders.  It isn't until chapter eight that it presents the history of the city of Manteca.  However it is a great book to imagine what the area was like long ago.  It actually covers most of the area, rather than just Manteca, talking about Lathrop, French Camp, Mossdale and Atlanta.  It mentions that one of the oldest buildings still standing is the Zinc House barns at Wagner and 120.  This is well East of town. 

In a brief synopsis, Manteca was first populated by persons who turned from farming after the gold rush, and some he served in the transportation industry for those in the gold mines or farming--hotels, stage station managers etc.  However farming was the main industry.  There was also transportation via the river, taking wheat to Stockton.  The first manufacturing industry was a creamery.  Here they extracted the cream from milk for shipping, returning the milk product to the farmers for feeding cattle etc.  The fat was made into butter and ice cream. 

This book talks about many little things.  I now know that the first sewage plant is off of union where the park and gold course are now.  At a railway restaurant in Lathrop.  By chance, two feuding men where on the same train.  Judge David Terry had previously threatened to kill Judge Stephen J.Field. When Judge Terry discovered the presence of the other man, he approached him and hit him a couple of times.  Judge Field's body guard, David Neagle, drew a pistol and shot Judge Terry twice, killing him.  The two men then boarded the train and continued on their way.  They were arrested and brought back  for trial but where found not guilty.

The area was hampered by floods for many years, one of the most tragic was in 1950.  It talks about the response to the flu epidemic of 1920, which in a different part of the country killed a couple of my father's siblings, before my father was born.

This book gives a very good background history of e area.  I would recommend it for those seeking out local history.  However there is a lot of history which has taken place since it was written.

San Joaquin City: Ghost Town

Old San Joaquin City was located just south of where the Dunham Road goes over the San Joaquin River on the River Road, now Kasson Road.  It was on the west side of the road.  It originally was a ferry town, the Dunham Ferry crossing about where the bridge is now.  It later became a river time and at one time had 1500 residents.  Today there is one farm house in the area, and everything else is farms, or brush area leading to the river.  These pictures were taken on the east side of the river going towards Sturgeon Bend.  They are of the East Side Slough, but hopefully in the area where George Williams lived.  He was a resident who pioneers electricity in the area.  He also had the first wireless.  He had come up with an idea for smokeless gun powder.  In an effort to get money for his project, he attempted to rob a train in Manteca.  This went array when a hobo came from under the train and started George.  He ended up shooting him and killed him.  He was convicted of train robbery and sent to prison.  He was later paroled and returned to live long the river.

This picture is from the other side of the river where the city was actually located.  In the early days the boats would tie up to the trees.  Grain and wood were hauled from here to Stockton.  The landing helped the west side of the valley develop the wheat industry.  Today the channel of the river has moved east some yards.  The plaque is now missing, having been stolen at least five years ago.

Book Review: San Joaquin: A River Betrayed

 http://books.google.com/books?id=Z4hmwY9r8cYC&pg=PA59&lpg=PA59&dq=san+joaquin+a+river+betrayed&source=bl&ots=kazmG6od5N&sig=A4arjfIya51mOBKbp7RyHk-no3s&hl=en&ei=wl1tTueDLtDTiAKenOzADg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4&sqi=2&ved=0CDoQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q&f=false

I checked this book out at the Manteca Library.  It is written by Gene Rose and was published in 1992by Linrose Publishing, Fresno, CA.  It is available online at Google Books.  I was worried this was just going to be some environmental wacko book, but in fact I really enjoyed it. Maybe I am more an environmentalist wacko than I admit.  I like to call myself a conservationist; after all, I did earn my Conservation of Natural Resources Merit badge.  (I don't know if they still have that one.)

This book included enough history to keep it interesting.  It did go off on its environmental soap opera a few times, and using its labels of others like I use the label wacko, "Greedy, selfish, etc."  It was published in 1992, and left me wanting more of the story, the story of the last 20 years.  Maybe I got some from the news a couple years ago when farmers were starving for water and had fields unplanted. This may be a response to this book, as the river passing by Manteca looks very vibrant.  In fact it was flooding earlier this year.  But the contention of the book is that the river is diverted up stream; 95 percent of the water is run through irrigation, and the run off is overly polluted with chemicals and run off from the natural minerals in the ground.  Selenium occurs naturally in the western side of the Valley.  This has resulted in a toxic river and irrigation system downstream and salts and minerals being overly applied to fields.  Most notably the Kesterson Reservoir, where the runoff waters were accumulated, became a dead reservoir, casing bird and animal deformities.  Some of the water is put back into the river, causing higher levels of minerals there as well.

The most interesting part of the book is the history.  It starts with the Native populations, who used the tulle reeds which were supported by the river.  They made canoes and baskets from the tulle.  The river supported their lifestyle.  It talked of Jedediah Smith who hunted beaver in the valley.  Of Smith he said, "Some historians have speculated that Smith first discovered gold during his 1827 trip when he was exploring and trapping along the Stanislaus River." (p 19) The book informs us that only Smith knew where the gold was, that they didn't have proper equipment to extract the gold, and that he went East to obtain this.  However on his way back to California, he was killed by Indians along the Santa Fe Trail.  It is interesting to note the supposed location of the find, "...near the confluence of the Stanislaus and San Joaquin rivers--although the geology of that area does not support a known gold bearing lode." (p 20)  (Let me note that this is within five miles of our current home.  I was talking to the docents at the history museum today who said it is possible for gold to travel that far, washing down from the lodes higher up, especially in wet years.)
 reason, they soon established a community, New Hope, in the wilds of the valley. 

Also close to this confluence is the community established by Mormons.  "A group of Mormon settlers forced their way up from the San Francisco Bay in a small boat rigged with sails form the larger "Brooklyn."  Led by Sam Brannan, the group made their way up the San Joaquin channel to the Stanislaus River.  About a mile above the confluence, they went ashore.  Putting hope and prayer before reason, they soon established a community, New Hope, in the wilds of the valley.  A barn, sawmill and a collection of shelters were built.  Others began tilling the virgin soil; planting wheat and other crops in preparation for the arrival of their spiritual leader Brigham Young, along with other members who were fleeing religious persecution of Nauvoo, Illinois.  Next, the settlers turned to the construction a small sailing craft, the "San Joaquin"--the first known bot to be built along the river.  But something went wrong.  Somewhere along the line, the Saints' revered leader, Young, failed to arrive at new Hope.  Puzzled by this incident, Brannan then made his was to Salt Lake City, only to find Young committed to the Utah location.  Despite his appeals, Brannan was unable to sway the church's elder and he returned to New Hope discouraged and dismayed.  Gradually dissension set in and the members of the colony began drifting away.  Today, New Hope remains on a facing enigma, its fate and precise location unknown."

The author also mentions the Mormons when talking about navigation on the San Joaquin River.  "No craft of man had rippled its waters save the rude balsas and tule rafts of the Indians, till one day in 1846 the nose of a little schooner worked its way up the crooked channel of the Suison bay to the mouth of the Stanislaus.  This Mormon boat was he first to which the San Joaquin submitted..."

A couple corrections to the account should be made.  The Mormon's did not land one mile up the Stanislaus, but four miles before the confluence at Moss landing.  The traveled the last few miles overland.  Sam Brannan did not meet Brigham Young at Salt Lake City, but at Fort Laramie while the Mormons were enroute to Salt Lake.  They had not yet seen the valley. 

This book is worth reading.  It does have a few grammatical errors, but they can be easily over looked for the content, and the story of the river.  Of course there are many more stories than those I shared; the story of gold, of hunting, fishing, irrigating, ranching and of manufacture, etc.  The story of the high country and hydro electric power, and that of John Muir.  They all belong to this valley.

I previously wrote about New Hope and the plaque in Ripon.  http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=9070393224809863190#editor/target=post;postID=611725638337466151 

Corrall Hollow Road: Tesla Coal Mine and pottery works

I have been researching some local historical areas.  Corral Hollow road goes from Tracy to Livermore.  This road gets regular use today from people going to the Carnegie State Recreation Area where they do off road biking. 

However the area was first developed as a coal mining area.  The coal was used to power steam locomotives and the rail way.  The mine opened and closed several times.  Most recently is was called the Tesla Mine, after a developer for electrical energy and alternating currents.  During that period the coal was sent to Stockton to power the factories there.  At one time it was proposed to make a coal powered generator there, but this was not done as it was felt it couldn't compete with hydroelectric power.

Also in the area was a pottery works.  There was also sand and clay manufacturing.  The sand was sent to Stockton for manufacturing into glass. 

Today it is hard to recognize the original mine locations.  Entry into the area is discouraged for fear of falling into a mine shaft.  The links below provide additional historical information as well as a mad of the canyon.

http://wikimapia.org/1787312/Tesla-Coal-Mine-Corral-Hollow

http://www.teslasociety.com/teslatown.htm

Book Review: **The History of Old Farmington

This book was published in 1977 and tells the history of a small rural town which is between here and Sonora.  It is on highway 4.I borrowed it from the Manteca library.  It is part of my study of local history.

This town was originally established as a way place between Stockton and Sonora. It is about a day's drive by teamster from Stockton.  In the early days there were three or four hotels.  However its economy quickly became an agricultural based system.  Last week we saw the big picture of the combine which was hauled by over 20 horses, these were used in this area, as the primary crop was wheat.

This book gives glimpses into the life in this town over the years.  This includes looking at the business, government operation, fire fighting, recreation--bands and ball teams and track teams, schools and churches.  It provides information about the local Dr.  It was important they have there own doctor, as the roads could become impassable in the winter. It tells the story of the collapse of the local bridge over a creek, in which a horse was killed.  It talks of the early settlers.

I don't think I would recommend this book, unless you are really wanting to catch a bit of the flavor of growing up in rural San Joaquin Valley.  This is an area which looked for a boom which never came.  In this its history is different than that of Manteca.

Book Review: **A Guide to Historical Locations in San Joaquin County

This book I checked out from the Manteca library in an effort to get to know the history of the area where I am currently living.  This book lists 27 historical sites, and offers a brief description of each. It has a picture of the plaques if there is one, or a sketch of the historical site.  It was published in 1967 so some of the information is out of date.

He mentions New Hope and the Ship Comet landing site.  Both of these events had to do with the Mormon group under Sam Brannan.  The landing site is where they brought the sailing ship up the San Joaquin river and disembarked.  New Hope is where they established a farming community.  The New Hope plaques has moved, and the Comet plaque is no longer there, having been removed after vandals had their way with it.

The book includes illustrations of many old buildings in Stockton.  However it does have other signiificant information with regards to South San Joaquin County.  There are a couple sites up Coral Hollow road I want to go see--Corral Hallow, where a house use to be which was along the route of the 49ers from the Bay area to the mines, and Carnegie where there use to be a community of 3500 and a pottery and brick operation.

Another which interests me is the General Vallejo battle site.  This was a battle between Native Americans and Mexican forces.  It took place someplace near Ripon, but the book says the exact location of the battle is unknown.

I have a few places to visit, and have a bit more appreciation of the local history.

Manteca is a Sugar Town

from Manteca Bulletin

After moving to Manteca, I discovered it has a sugar history.  It was at the Kelly's Brother Restaurant, with all the displays, that I realized this.  I came through Manteca, going to the mountains, while the factory was still here, but never paid attention.   It has now been knocked down, and now a Target is on the property where it use to be.  In the corner is a memorial to the sugar factory, although there is no plaque identifying it as such.  The Spreckels Sugar Factory opened in 1917.  There were a few years it did not operate due to curly top.  The silos were torn down in July 1997, paving the way for Spreckels Park, and property for Home Depot, Target and Food For Less.

My mother's family comes from sugar beat workers, mostly with U&I Sugar.  My great grandfather, and grandfather worked in the sugar in Lehi, the first economically successful sugar factory in Utah.  However it succumbed to curly top.  My grandfather moved from their to Idaho Falls, Lincoln Street where he was the boiler operator for the Idaho Falls Sugar Factory.