San
Joaquin County
Biographies
JOHN C. KELLEY
Prominent in community affairs and
well known because of his active connection with agricultural interests, John
C. Kelley has in his business career manifested the traits of character which
lead to success. He is a man of
enterprise and energy, strictly fair and just in his dealings with his fellow
men, and has won for himself a place among the substantial citizens of San
Joaquin County. As superintendent of the
Fred H. Rindge ranch he has shown much executive ability in the management of
this vast tract of land. He was born
near Dandridge, Jefferson County, Tennessee, December
3, 1890 his parents, William J. and Hannah M. (Ketner)
Kelley, being farmers in that state.
His education was obtained in public
schools and he early began assisting on the farm and when twelve years old was
following a plow and doing general farm work during the summers, and after that
it was only winter school for him.
Twelve years ago Mr. Kelley left his
native state and came west, settling in the Imperial Valley in the fall of
1910, having only a few dollars in his pocket; he secured work on the George A.
Long ranch, where he did general farm work, teaming, etc., until September,
1916 when he located in Stockton.
Frederick H. Rindge was just starting his farming operations on the
Rindge tract in the Delta district of the county and Mr. Kelley secured a
position driving a caterpillar tractor.
Within one month he was promoted to the position of superintendent of
the farming operations, a position he has filled to the entire satisfaction of
Mr. Rindge. Last season, 8,000 acres
were cultivated to barley, 1,000 acres to potatoes and 1,000 acres to
corn. Deep plowing has been a factor in
the development of this extensive ranch, also the use of heavier, more modern
machinery; special plows were built for plowing ten to fourteen inches deep;
formerly five and six inches was the depth for plowing. The Rindge ranch was the first to use
fertilizer on an extensive scale, which has brought most satisfactory
results. Potatoes, by use of fertilizer,
yield from thirty to seventy-five sacks to the acre more than formerly; last
year the yield of barley on 8,000 acres of the Rindge tract was thirty sacks to
the acre. Mr. Kelley has made some
suggestions for minor changes in the construction of the Holt tractor, which
have been followed by the Holt Manufacturing Company with the result that they
have done more satisfactory work in the Delta section; among them the use of
five truck wheels instead of four on each side, which gives more general satisfaction. Mr. Kelley has had every opportunity to know
the possibilities of the Delta section of San Joaquin County and has been in a
position to demonstrate that the heavy soil of this section, if properly
cultivated and fertilized, will produce heavier crops than any soil he is
familiar with; his words of praise for the productivity of the Delta soil is
not without foundation, for he knows what he can do with it under proper
conditions. He is one of the most success
agriculturists in the county, and as a public-spirited citizen, he has always
deserved and retained the confidence of his fellow men.
Transcribed by V. Gerald Iaquinta.
Source: Tinkham, George
H., History of San Joaquin County, California , Page
1323. 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