Sponsored by the Monterey County Historical Society
Introduction, by Assemblyman Peter C. Frusetta
Prologue
We will never know who first set foot on the Salinas Plain, but when the first Spanish explorers arrived in the winter of 1769, pushing northward with scant supplies into a territory completely unknown, they found village after village of peaceful, industrious Indians, who greeted them with signs of peace and offerings of food. Little could those Indians know the vast changes which would soon follow.
Chapter One. Explorers and Settlers, 1769 - 1851
The first Spanish explorers were followed closely by soldiers and settlers who came to conquer the vast new land, by force if necessary, and missionaries zealous for spiritual conquests. Prior to 1820, Monterey, although the capitol, remained a remote outpost and the surrounding area was sparsely settled. After Mexican rule replaced Spanish rule in the 1820s, settlement expanded rapidly. In the 1830s the mission system collapsed, but by then the Indian population had been reduced by nearly 90%. California was taken over by Americans in 1846.
Chapter Two. The Beginnings of Salinas, 1852 - 1874
Following the Gold Rush, American settlement expanded rapidly, with new towns springing up throughout the state. The Salinas Plain was largely unoccupied during the Mexican era, but many small communities sprang up in the 1850s. With the demise of the cattle industry in the mid-1860s, and the switch to agriculture which followed, one of these, Salinas City, thrived and prospered. First laid out in 1868, the town boasted a population of nearly 600 by 1870. The Southern Pacific Railroad arrived in 1872, the same year Salinas City was named the county seat.
Chapter Three. Hard Times for Salinas City, 1875 - 1909
After the promising beginning came hard times. Drought, flood, discontent with both major political parties, financial panic, depression, and social unrest began in the 1870s and lasted until the turn of the century. In spite of these problems, the city continued to expand, reaching a population of 3,304 by 1900.
Building on advances in the previous decades, Salinas continued to grow slowly. The Southern Pacific Railroad's coastline route was finally completed, with Salinas as a major stop. At the same time the age of the automobile began. Vast irrigation projects sponsored by Claus Spreckels and others led to large scale agriculture. Salinas was no longer isolated, but took its place in an expanding network of commerce and industry. Even the earthquake of 1906 did little to slow the expansion.
Chapter Four. Consolidation, Growth and War, 1910 - 1918
Salinas continued to grow slowly throughout this decade; indeed from 1880 to 1920 the town's population just barely doubled. The advent of World War I spurred the agricultural industry, and for a while prices soared. The California rodeo was organized. Salinas was brought into the war more directly in 1917, when Troop C of the National Guard was mobilized and marched to the train station. Irrigation agriculture expanded, but by the end of the war sugar beets and grains were still dominant in the Salinas Valley, with barley, wheat, oats, and corn the most important grain crops.
Chapter Five. The Roaring Twenties and the Depression Years, 1919 - 1939
Major changes followed the war. This period began with 95,000 acres planted in grains, over 20,000 acres in sugar beets, and only 60 acres planted in lettuce. Ten years later beets were down to 200 acres and lettuce planting had soared to over 40,000 acres. With the huge jump in lettuce output came economic expansion and a corresponding increase in population. The Roaring Twenties brought construction of an airport and many other improvements, as well as prohibition and rum running, but in the long run the agricultural revolution was truly the most important event.
The Roaring Twenties ended with the stock market crash of 1929 and the Great Depression of the 1930s. While the city benefited from the Public Works Administration and other government assistance, the economy of the area was also kept stable during the Depression by the increasing productivity of agricultural crops. The 1930s also saw the beginning of the labor movement and the agricultural strikes. By the end of the decade the population had nearly tripled from its 1920 level, and most of this growth was directly related to the agricultural revolution. Chapter Six. World War II and the Following Years, 1940 - 1945
As the country moved to a war footing many changes occurred in the Salinas area. In October of 1941, ground was broken for the first permanent USO building in the country, but the attack on Pearl Harbor occurred two days before it could be dedicated. Fort Ord was one of the largest training bases in the country, and the Army Air Corps built a facility at the airport. Even the Rodeo grounds were used, first as a branch garrison for Fort Ord then as an internment center for Japanese Americans. Salinas' Company C of the 194th Battalion was sent to the Philippines--to Corregidor and Bataan. Only 46 returned. In spite of the tragedy of war, Salinas continued to expand, largely due to agriculture; the vegetable industry became the world's largest, joining the Spreckels sugar factory, which was the world's largest refinery. After the war Salinas experienced another period of growth and expansion, which has continued to this day.
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Appendix.
Bibliography
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