We find stories of the Padres growing grapes in this
valley in the year 1832. Their records tell us they had 8000
vines.
The story is told about John Brown, who lived in Old Town
in the year 1850. He had Indians gather grapes in the
Padres' Vineyards and make wine. People in Old Town said it
was the best they ever drank.
An old story in the San Diego Union dated January 16,
1877 tells us they had 5000 vines of grapes cultivated in
Cajon Valley. Wheat was then grown over most of the
valley.
George A. Cowles was the man who started raising the
Muscat-Alexander grapes. This seemed the best kind to grow
in this valley.
In 1882 a man named R. G. Clark wanted to save his grapes
to eat all year round. He found out how to dry the grapes
into raisins. He found the Muscat grape made the best kind
of raisin.
The raisin industry became very big in this valley. The
El Cajon Vineyard Company was formed. This company was
started by Dr. R. E. Johnson as president and C. S. Marshall
as Secretary-Treasurer. The company built a raisin
de-steming plant near the railroad track. They said that 15
car loads of raisins were shipped out of El Cajon in
1894.
In these early days they had to haul their grapes to
market in wagons. Sometimes the sun shining on the grapes
would spoil them. Miss Kate Sessions helped the people of
the valley plan the planting of the olive trees to shade the
wagons.
Mrs. Burns told us that she could remember when the grape
industry started to disappear from the feilds and there was
a pile of empty grape boxes as large as a store. The W. D.
Hall Lumber Co. bought these and tore the redwood boxes
apart. They sold them and used them and used them for shake
shingles on many of the houses.
Copyright 2000 David @ Hillsdale Middle School
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