URIAH SERVISS

Butte County

Biographies

URIAH SERVISS

URIAH SERVISS.--A reminder of Canada’s great contribution to the development of California—an aid generously returned, in recent years, by Californians who have migrated to the Northwest—is found in the story of Uriah Serviss, now deceased, who was long one of the prominent and successful ranchers of Butte County. He was born in the Thousand Island section of the Dominion, across the river from Ogdensburg, N. Y., December 22, 1847, and having been brought up in that region, so favorable for the development of physique and character, he early longed to get out into the world and make his way. When he left home, therefore, he crossed into the States and worked as a farm hand in the service of others. When he had enough of that sort of experience he left New York and located for a while in Detroit, Mich. California, however, was destined to attract the young American to her mountains and valleys, and in the stirring Centennial year of 1876, when he was twenty-eight years of age, he arrived in Butte County. Here he bought one hundred sixty acres of land adjoining Gridley, on the east, a part of the Larkin Grant now owned by Mrs. Serviss, and taking possession, he farmed the land to grain, set out an orchard of orange and walnut trees, and raised alfalfa. He greatly improved the place, and from the first was successful in the undertaking.

Being of an inventive turn of mind, Mr. Serviss devised and patented a water-gate, which had much to do, when he had installed it on his ranch, with perfecting his irrigation system and making the place one of the best developed alfalfa ranches in the district. But Mr. Serviss went further than to improve his own farm by irrigation; he was the first man to give a right of way for an irrigation canal through his property, and he became a very active member of the Farmers’ Union and Water Users’ Association. On his finely appointed and well maintained ranch, he erected two modern dairy barns, and had a first-class dairy.

Mr. Serviss later acquired other valuable ranch-holdings in Butte County, and in Oregon. He owned four hundred acres in Colony Four Tract, a part of the old McCoy Ranch, and these he farmed to grain for a couple of years and then sold the lot. He bought four hundred acres of the Lewis place, north of Gridley, which he gave to his son, who is also one of the successful farmers of the valley. He owned nine hundred sixty acres in Sherman County, Ore., and there he lived ten years, while he was raising wheat, after which he also disposed of that property.

Although a Republican, taking an active interest in civic affairs, Mr. Serviss was never an office-seeker. On February 18, 1914, Mr. Serviss passed away. In religion he held to the Baptist faith.

Mrs. Serviss was Miss Ellen Boulware, before her marriage, a native of Butte County, and has one son, Oris E. Serviss, a member of the Knights of Pythias and the Foresters. She is a daughter of W. T. and Martha (Hurlburt) Boulware, pioneers of Butte County, represented elsewhere in this work. Mrs. Serviss owns the old Serviss Ranch at Gridley, where, aside from oranges and lemons, she is raising grain and beans.

Transcribed by Barbara Gaffney.

Source: "History of Butte County, Cal.," by George C. Mansfield, Page 564, Historic Record Co, Los Angeles, CA, 1918.

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