Sunday, March 28, 1999

Woman recounts time living in Suisun Valley

Lowe was first in family to attend school

‘My father, Chun Tim, came into America in 1873 at 20 years old. He traveled from his village, Sek Keh, to Hong Kong and took a boat to San Francisco. The trip was four months. Toward the end their supplies were getting low.

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Sunday, March 21, 1999

Ex-Vacan recalls town’s Japanese past

Joseph Saito’s family was sent to internment camp for WWII

During the heyday of the fruit orchards in Solano County, the ethnic mix of orchardists and workers was astounding. The early arrivals were the original settlers, the Spanish and then the trailblazers from back East. Then came the Chinese.

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Sunday, March 14, 1999

Tracing ranch ties through generations

High school, museum stand where family once farmed

‘My mother’s grandfather, John Wesley Hill, came from Missouri in 1847. He rode up here when the oats would come up to the top of the horse’s back. He says, ‘That’s good enough for me,’ and he squatted on some land. His main thing was raising cattle.

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Sunday, March 07, 1999

Longtime Solanoan recalls family’s past

Fred Jones’ great-grandfather farmed 125 acres of cherries in Green Valley

Granville Swift was my great-grandmother’s brother. He got to California in 1841. In about 1844, he moved to Orland where he started a horse and cattle ranch. “In 1848, when gold was discovered, he went over to the American and Feather rivers and made a killing. After he got his fistful of money, he went back to Missouri and brought his entire family back to California - father, sisters and brothers. He bought up an estate in Orland and became the largest rancher up there.

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