Description
The William L. Paul papers contain
correspondence, photographs, clippings, and other material regarding William L. Paul, a
pioneer date grower in Coachella Valley, California from 1909-1935. Topics include the
Coachella Valley Date Growers Association, Paul's personal date business, and the exhibition
and promotion of Coachella Valley, California dates. Records document the administration and
industry activities of the Coachella Valley Date Growers Association, Paul's professional
work and involvement with the Southern California date growing community, and aspects of the
commercial date industry in the United States, primarily Southern California.
Background
William L. Paul was born in Andover, Massachusetts in 1866. He purchased 160 acres of land
in Coachella Valley, California in 1902 and moved his family there in 1909. Paul built a
ranch on his land with the goal of starting a business growing date palm trees and
harvesting the dates as a commercial crop. The first date trees in the Coachella Valley were
planted in the late 1890s, but did not thrive. In 1904, the United States Department of
Agriculture set up a date experiment station in Mecca, California to study dates as a
commercial crop, invigorating the date growing industry.
Extent
1.42 Linear Feet
(3 boxes)
Restrictions
Copyright Unknown: Some materials in these collections may be
protected by the U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.C.). In addition, the reproduction,
and/or commercial use, of some materials may be restricted by gift or purchase agreements,
donor restrictions, privacy and publicity rights, licensing agreement(s), and/or trademark
rights. Distribution or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed
by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. To the extent other
restrictions apply, permission for distribution or reproduction from the applicable rights
holder is also required. Responsibility for obtaining permissions, and for any use rests
exclusively with the user.
Availability
This collection is open for research.