San
Joaquin County
Biographies
ROBERT L. DARTER
A man who has intelligently directed
his efforts toward the goal of his ambitions and thereby attained success is
Robert L. Darter, who was born in Scott County, Virginia, on August 5,
1874. The only education he received was
in the district schools and when he reached the age of sixteen he ran away from
home and worked in the mountains of Kentucky for $6 per month; later he went to
Indianapolis, Indiana. In 1892 he came
to California and worked at Tipton for three years; then he returned to
Indianapolis but was not content, so in 1906 he again came to California and
landed in Stockton with $1.20 in his pocket.
His first employment was with the California Fruit Canners Association,
where he worked for twelve and one-half cents an hour and within six months he
became foreman; later he was employed by the California Traction Company and by
frugal living he was able to save $700 with which he bought thirty acres of raw
land in the “black land” section of Collegeville. Within seven months he brought it to such a
state of development that he disposed of it at a nice profit, and with this
start he settled in Stockton and entered the real estate business, dealing
exclusively in the “black lands.” He
realized the great possibilities of that district, which had been neglected,
and while he met disencouragement on every side when he started his
developments in the district, he was confident of success and he never
relinquished his determination to do what he first had in mind, and he has
demonstrated his faith in the district by what he has accomplished within the
past eleven years. He has sold thousands
of acres to J. W. Squier, J. F. Goodwin and other capitalists. When he first started his developments land
sold for $60 per acre, which now sells for $160 per acre. To demonstrate the possibilities of the
“black land” for raising of alfalfa and deciduous
fruits, he took five acres, leveled the land and planted it to alfalfa and was
rewarded with a fine yield. He further
demonstrated with fruit and vegetables, which grow in profusion on this
land. Many expert and experienced prune
growers from the Santa Clara Valley have inspected the land and are loud in
their praise of its producing qualities.
Mr. Darter subdivided 240 acres into twenty-acre tracts, which have all
been sold and settled upon. He
personally owns six ranches aggregating more than 1100 acres, and has installed
pumping plants on four of his ranches and on the other two a concrete pipe
system. Water is being taken from wells,
none of them more than one hundred feet deep.
Much credit is due Mr. Darter for the success he has won, which has been
accomplished by a life of industry and integrity.
Transcribed by V. Gerald Iaquinta.
Source: Tinkham, George
H., History of San Joaquin County, California , Page
1287. Los Angeles, Calif.: Historic
Record Co., 1923.
© 2011 V. Gerald Iaquinta.
Golden Nugget Library's San Joaquin County Biographies
Golden Nugget Library's San Joaquin County Genealogy
Databases