Yolo
County
Biographies
C. E. BERRY
C. E. Berry, county agricultural
commissioner of Yolo county, is in every way well
qualified for this exacting position.
Years of experience and close study of the problems which confront and
annoy farmers and fruit raisers have gained for him a practical knowledge and
understanding which have enabled him to be of great practical usefulness, and
since coming to Yolo county he has won the respect of
all who have come in contact with him.
Mr. Berry was born in Newark, Knox county,
Missouri, on the fourth of May, 1888, and when about two years of age, was
brought to California by his parents. He
was educated in the grammar and high schools of Santa Clara, after which he
assisted his father, who was engaged in ranching, giving special attention to
fruit and livestock. Later Mr. Berry
engaged in farming on his own account, raising grain and grapes, near Dos
Palos, and was afterwards for eight and a half years superintendent of the of the Sonnisken ranch of two hundred forty acres, the greater
part of which was dedicated to fruits and vines. Going to Santa Barbara county
he was associated with the county agricultural commission for two years as
field man. During the three years
following he served as deputy inspector, having charge of all the work of that
department outside the city of Santa Barbara, with headquarters at Santa
Maria. At that time Santa Barbara county was infested with ground squirrels, which were
destroying crops. Mr. Berry was one of
the first men in California to use thallium sulphate
as a poison for squirrels, and he has probably used more of that poison than
any other man in the United States.
Having a force of one hundred and thirty-eight men under him, he
succeeded in eradicating the pest from Santa Barbara county,
to the relief and joy of the ranchers of that locality. In May, 1930, he was appointed to his present
position, in which he is doing very effective work. He has under him a force of three
agricultural inspectors and one bee inspector.
He is thorough and painstaking in everything does and the results which
he has attained testify to his ability and conscientious work.
Mr. Berry was united in marriage to
Miss Erma Pearce, a native of Texas, and they are the parents of a son, Philip,
aged six years. Mr. Berry is a member of
the Free and Accepted Masons, the Knights of Pythias
and the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, in which he is affiliated with the
lodges in Santa Maria. He is fond of
hunting and fishing, in which he frequently indulges in his spare time. In August and September, 1930, Mr. Berry was
in charge of the exhibit for Yolo county at the
California State Fair, held in Sacramento.
He is a wide-awake, progressive man in his special field of labor and
his ability and accomplishments have gained for him a well merited reputation
throughout this section of the country.
Transcribed by
Gerald Iaquinta.
Source:
Wooldridge, J.W.Major History of Sacramento Valley
California, Vol. 2 Pages 156-157. Pioneer Historical
Publishing Co. Chicago 1931.
© 2010
Gerald Iaquinta.
Golden Nugget Library's Yolo County Biographies