Collection context
Summary
- Title:
- William Wolfskill 1830-1855 Ledgers
- Dates:
- 1913-1955
- Creators:
- Wolfskill, William
- Abstract:
- John and William Wolfskill were pioneers to California and New Mexico from Kentucky and Missouri in the 1830s. William Wolfskill is credited with being the first to ship California oranges as a commercial commodity. This collection contains one typed copy and one carbon copy of William Wolfskill's dry goods store ledgers from 1830-1854, as well as biographical newspaper clippings on the Wolfskill family from 1913-1955.
- Extent:
- 0.4 Linear Feet (10 folders)
- Language:
- English .
- Preferred citation:
-
William Wolfskill 1830-1855 Ledgers, 1913-1955, Braun Research Library Collection, Autry Museum of the American West, Los Angeles; MS.594; [folder number] [folder title][date].
Background
- Scope and content:
-
This collection contains one typed copy and one carbon copy of William Wolfskill's dry goods store ledgers from 1830-1854, as well as biographical newspaper clippings on the Wolfskill family from 1913-1955. Ledgers were copied from the original account book by the courtesy of Mrs. Marcella Wolfskill Palethorpe, great-granddaughter of William Wolfskill. The copy was made by Madeline Amsden for the Southwest Museum research library. Ledgers are for Taos, New Mexico, 1830-1832, and for Willmington, California, 1843-1854. The New Mexico ledger pages are in English, and the California ledger pages are in Spanish.
The dates for folders 1-9 reflect the dates documented in the ledger. It does not reflect the dates the copies were created.
- Biographical / historical:
-
John and William Wolfskill were pioneers to California and New Mexico from Kentucky and Missouri in the 1830s. William Wolfskill is credited with being the first to ship California oranges as a commercial commodity.
William Wolfskill (1798, March 20 – 1866, October 3) was a cowboy and agronomist from Los Angeles, California, who was highly influential in the development of California's agricultural industry in the 19th century. Arguably his greatest contribution to agriculture was the Valencia orange, which quickly became the most popular juice orange in America and led to the naming of Valencia, California.
In California, Wolfskill took advantage of the Mexican land ownership laws and became a pioneer of viticulture in Southern California. After acquiring land from the Mexican government where downtown Los Angeles now stands, he began growing grapevines. He eventually planted 32,000 vines on a 48 acre vineyard. Initially, he planted mission vines, but he experimented with other varietals later. At his death in 1866, he was producing 50,000 gallons of wine a year. He was, by far, the greatest producer of table grapes in California during the Mexican era and has been named by historians as one of the three most important men in the history of California viticulture.
Wolfskill is credited with starting the commercial citrus industry by selling a shipload of lemons to the gold miners for up to $1 apiece and shipping oranges the following year. He is also credited with building the first schooner in California.
- Acquisition information:
- New Mexico ledger received in Library, 1941 April 18. California ledger received in Library, 1946. Other materials from donations from Charles Fletcher Lummis, 1913.
- Processing information:
-
Processed by Glenna Schroeder, circa 1977-1981. Finding aid completed by Holly Rose Larson, NHPRC Processing Archivist, 2012 October 19, made possible through grant funding from the National Historical Publications and Records Commissions (NHPRC).
- Rules or conventions:
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Indexed terms
About this collection guide
- Date Encoded:
- This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on 2023-10-06 17:32:47 +0000 .
Access and use
- Restrictions:
-
Appointments to view materials are required. To make an appointment please visit https://theautry.org/research-collections/library-and-archives and fill out the Researcher Application Form.
- Terms of access:
-
Copyright has not been assigned to the Autry Museum of the American West. All requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Head of Research Services and Archives. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the Autry Museum of the American West as the custodian of the physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the reader.
- Preferred citation:
-
William Wolfskill 1830-1855 Ledgers, 1913-1955, Braun Research Library Collection, Autry Museum of the American West, Los Angeles; MS.594; [folder number] [folder title][date].
- Location of this collection:
-
4700 Western Heritage WayLos Angeles, CA 90027, US
- Contact:
- (747) 201-8448