Butte County
Biographies
WILLIAM EVERETT BARNARD
WILLIAM EVERETT BARNARD.—The descendant of a distinguished family, and himself a credit to his forefathers, William Everett Barnard, formerly assistant manager and field superintendent for the Dodge Land Company, has reached a position of responsibility seldom attained so early in life. This is preeminently an age of young men; in all walks of life we hear of big ideas and enterprises being put through or helped to success by our young men, just out of college, and full of new ideas and enthusiasm for their life work. There are examples, however, of energy and achievement which stand out even in this new scheme of world work and as such are worthy of record.
Born in Oakland, Cal., August 19, 1890, William Everett Barnard is the son of William Clark Barnard, born in Portland, Ore., and Florence Butler Barnard, a native of Boston, Mass. The paternal grandfather, Professor William Edward Barnard, was president of Washington University, at Seattle, and was a classical scholar and graduate of Dartmouth. No man stood higher in social reform work on the Pacific Coast than Mr. Barnard’s father, William Clark Barnard. He was the organizer and president of the Public Welfare League of Oakland, and was made president emeritus of that society. His life was devoted to helping those less fortunate than himself and his memory is revered by all who knew him. His business interests were centered in San Francisco, where he was the senior member of the wholesale commission firm of Barnard and Bunker, dealers in grain and beans. The death of this worthy man occurred in Plumas County, June 5, 1914, when he was accidentally drowned in Gold Lake. The mother is still living, in Berkeley, Cal. Mr. and Mrs. William Clark Barnard had four children who grew to maturity, two boys and two girls, all university students and graduates.
The early life of William Everett Barnard was spent in Mill Valley, Marin County, until he reached the age of fifteen. He graduated from the Oakland High School in 1909, and entered the University of California, pursuing the regular four years’ agricultural course, and finishing with a six months’ course at the State Agricultural College at Davis, Cal. He then went to work for his father’s firm, first in the city office and then traveling as buyer of grain and beans, covering the Sacramento, San Joaquin and Salinas Valleys, and most of the state. He also assumed management of the Salino Land Company ranch of fifty-seven hundred acres and became farm manager of the property, which was owned by the firm. He later came up to Butte County and went into the rice fields at Biggs, in 1914 becoming manager for the California Rice Milling Company at that place.
In the fall of 1915, Mr. Barnard took charge of the field and development work for the Dodge Land Company, the largest rice-growing concern in the United States, with their main offices in San Francisco and working offices in Butte County. He continued with this concern until July, 1918, when he resigned and organized and became president of the Avery Farm Service Company, Northern California distributors of the Avery Tractor.
The marriage of Mr. Barnard, which occurred in 1914, united him with Miss Ethel Silvey, of Dixon, Cal., and one child, William Clark Barnard, has come to brighten the family circle. Fraternally Mr. Barnard is a Mason. He is public spirited and supports measures that have for their aim the upbuilding of the community he has selected for his home.
Transcribed by Sharon Walford Yost.
Source: "History of Butte County, Cal.," by George C.
Mansfield, Pages 1318-1319, Historic Record Co, Los
Angeles, CA, 1918.
©
2009 Sharon Walford Yost.
Golden Nugget Library's
Butte County Biographies