PAUL H. STEUDE

Sacramento County

Biographies

PAUL H. STEUDE

PAUL H. STEUDE--In the final analysis, farming is the basis of prosperity in America. It is the very beginning of the intricate operations which furnish man with food. Paul H. Steude, of Sacramento, has made a life study of the science of agriculture; and his expert knowledge thereof has not only resulted in the attainment of individual prosperity, but has been of great benefit and value to his fellow-men. A native of Germany, he was born December 25, 1860, and his parents, Edward and Paulina Steude, are both deceased.

Mr. Steude acquired his education in his native land, attending the public schools and later completing a course in the Freiburg Agricultural College. In 1882, when a young man of twenty-two years, he emigrated to the United States, arriving in this country on August 20, and he first located in Texas. He followed the life of a cowboy and engaged in the raising of sheep and Angora goats, later turning his attention to the nursery business. He lived for four years in the Lone Star State and in 1886 made his way to California. He spent three months at Fresno and nine months at Santa Rosa, later going to Newcastle, where he operated a fruit ranch. From the time of his arrival in the state he has taken a leading part in the development of its fruit industry upon which he is regarded as an authority. He called the meeting which resulted in the organization of the California Fruit Exchange, and in association with J.G. Boggs contributed three-fourths of the contents of the first carload of fruit shipped to the California Fruit Exchange, paying the freight charges and making a gift of the shipment to that organization. Mr. Steude also had the largest Tragedy prunes at the Paris Exposition, that were presented to the president of France; and the fruit grown upon his ranch was of the highest quality. He had the largest exhibit of any deciduous fruit grower in the United States, at Portland, Ore., at the Lewis and Clark Exposition.

Since 1900 he has been a resident of Sacramento and his activities have been attended by a gratifying measure of success. He gives expert advice on orchard lands and their adaptation to the growing of fruit; his office is situated at No. 609 J Street. During the World War, when the conservation of food was of the greatest importance, he introduced the use of potato flour in the United States.

Paul H. Steude has been called the "world's champion small farmer." He is, without doubt, the most successful small-space farmer in California. His residence at 3039 Sixth Avenue, in Sacramento, is situated on a lot 40 by 151 feet. On it in 1922, he produced 156 different products valued at more than $600. While his main business is real estate and farm expert work, yet he does all the labor on his place himself, and the knowledge that he acquired as a student and later as an instructor in the agricultural colleges in his native land stands him well in hand. He has never been afraid of hard work, and the two hours a day spent in his garden is a matter of delight to him, as it keeps him in excellent health and gives play to his generous disposition. He gives away to his friends and neighbors great quantities of his choice fruits, nuts and vegetables. Mr. Steude's garden has thirty-seven types of vegetables, seven kinds of berries, eight kinds of melons and roses of thirty varieties. Flowers and herbs of sixty-five species are also grown on the property. Cotton was tried with success, as were a number of tropical and other vegetables. The city agriculturist estimates that he gave away bulbs and young plants valued at $700 during the season. Mr. Steude leaves for his office every morning at 8:30 o'clock and tends his garden in his spare time at the end of the day.

Mr. Steude married Miss Anna Klette and they have become the parents of two sons, Max and Bruno. The former acts as manager of Hart's lunch room at Fresno, and the latter is associated with his father in business. Mr. Steude gives his political support to the Republican party, as he believes that its principles constitute the best form of government for the majority. He is a lover of flowers, of which he has many fine varieties, and was awarded first prize at the local flower show. He is broad in his views, progressive in his standards and high in his ideals, and his life has been an intensely active and useful one, characterized by the successful accomplishment of valuable results.

Transcribed by: Jeanne Sturgis Taylor.

Source: Reed, G. Walter, History of Sacramento County, California With Biographical Sketches, Pages 643-644. Historic Record Company, Los Angeles, CA. 1923.