Riverside County
Biographies
CASSIUS
C. POND
Cassius C. Pond, pioneer grower
and realtor of Riverside enjoys an enviable reputation in real estate circles
as senior member of the firm of C. C. Pond & Son, with offices at 3644
Seventh street [sic].
He was born in Indiana, March 8 1857, a son of T. H. Pond, also a native
of the Hoosier state and a farmer and tanner by occupation. The American progenitor of the family came to
this country from England about the time of the Revolutionary war [sic]. The paternal grandfather of Cassius C. Pond
was a pioneer of Indiana who traveled much in company with George W. Campbell,
the Evangelist singer, and whose efforts constituted a factor in the early
development of the state as well as in the advancement of the cause of religion. When a lad of twelve years he ran away from
home to enlist for service in the War of 1812 but was rejected on account of
his youth. His death occurred in
Indiana.
Cassius C. Pond acquired his
education in the public schools of the state of his nativity and subsequently
engaged in farming pursuits until thirty years of age, when he came to
California, reaching Riverside in the spring of 1887. Here he entered the service of the Riverside
Water Company, having charge of the water from the old Arlington drive [sic] at
the head of Magnolia avenue [sic] to the head of
Temecula wash [sic], but after seven and a half years of this kind of work he
turned his attention to general ranching.
He planted an orange grove at Arlington, where he resided for sixteen
years, at one time being extensively engaged in agricultural pursuits. There were only two houses in Arlington at
the time of his arrival. Eventually he
disposed of his property at that place to take up his abode in Riverside, where
he has continued active in the real estate business to the present time. We quote from the “History of San Bernardino
and Riverside Counties,” published in 1922: “Mr. Pond will probably never give
up his love of ranching, however, for he is always engaged in it in some
manner. Just now he has about
thirty-five acres in oranges. He was at
first engaged in the real estate business with J. A. King, but afterwards the
firm was composed of himself and his son, B. H. Pond. In 1916, when the Realty Exchange was
organized, J. S. Wagner was taken in as a partner. Mr. Pond has probably handled as much real
estate as any other dealer in the country, and he knows the real estate of this
district from Alpha to Omega. For a
number of years he dealt extensively in San Bernardino property and for three
or four years also operated around the towns of Bloomington and Rialto,
practically selling the first named town.”
In 1879 Mr. Pond was united in
marriage to Ina L. Miller, a daughter of John Miller, of Indiana. They are the parents of six children, four
sons and two daughters, as follows: Edward E., who is head of the machinery
works of Fairbanks, Morse & Company in Los Angeles; B. H., who is
associated with his father in the real estate business under the firm name of
C. C. Pond & Son; Wilna Fay (Mrs. Edward Oleson), secretary of the Fisk Tire Company of Riverside;
Claude C., who is engaged in the automobile business in Los Angeles; Doris, the
wife of Franklin Kent, of Long Beach, California and Buel
C. of Riverside.
Mr. Pond has passed the seventy-fifth
milestone on life’s journey, has been a resident of southern California for
forty-five years and is well entitled to representation in this history as one
of Riverside’s most valued and highly respected citizens. He is an honored member of the Riverside
Pioneer Society.
Transcribed by Jeanne Turner.
Source: California
of the South Vol. II,
by John Steven McGroarty, Pages
313-314, Clarke Publ., Chicago, Los Angeles,
Indianapolis. 1933.
© 2012 Jeanne
Turner.
GOLDEN NUGGET'S RIVERSIDE
BIOGRAPIES