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Have you hear the one about…
…the first centrifugal pump in Sacramento County? …the dynamiting of the wide
open plains off Highway 104?...the subsoil breaker built to break up the
hard-pan soil by penetrating the earth to a depth of 5 feet? This was the first
experiment of its kind in this part of the county! And all of this happened
right here in Herald. DO you know who was responsible for such innovative
farming? No? Shame on you. The family responsible for all of this creative
excitement is the third piece in the Lewins-Bolton-Bottimore connection.
Introducing William W. Bottiomore and family!
William W. Bottimore was the son of William T. and Louise Cecil Bottiomore. William W. was a native of Old Dominion, born in Tazewell County, Va., on June
27,1866. Both of William’s parents were of English ancestry and the Cecil family
was of colonial stock. William T. was born in Baltimore, Mr., and Louise Cecil
came from Virginia. William W. was the oldest of seven children born to
this hardy pair.
In 1870, the Bottimore family made its trek to the Golden West. As with so
many of our pioneering forbearers, life’s beginning here must have seemed to
hold unfortunate twists of fate. Fortunately, things do have a way of working
out and happening for the best. When the Bottimores arrived in California, they
came to Woodbridge and stayed on the Woods place. However, their stay there was
short-lived. Six months later, they moved to New Hope, where they remained for a
year before they were flooded out. They then moved to Galt, where father William
T. pursued his trade of brick mason until 1886. The brick buildings on 4th
Street were his legacy to Galt. It was then that the entire family-except
William W.-moved to San Diego. Lucky for us that one Bottimore remained, and
what a Bottimore he was!
Young William W. Bottimore attended the Galt district school. At 17, he began
work on the Need ranch. Five years down the road, he rented 500 acres east of
the Need place, where he raised grain for the next nine years. In 1897, he
purchase 400 acres on the open plains near what is now Highway 104 and built his
home and farm buildings on it. The next time you mail a letter at the Herald
Post Office or visit the Herald Store, look northwest. You can’t miss the huge
grain storage silo. Yep! That’s the spot where William built the homestead. (Sold in 2006.)
William W. planted trees and shrubs and a 30-acre vineyard of Tokay grapes. That’s where the centrifugal pump part of the story comes in. He installed this
irrigation system to water the grapes, and by doing so he used the first
centrifugal pump in Sacramento County. He also woke up the neighbors when he
dynamited three acres of hardpan soil to plant peaches – the very finest fruit
in this area in his day. (Dynamite! What a great idea. We should try this the
next time when digging a fence post or planting a tree.)
Enough work, you say? No way! Mr. Bottimore also maintained a dairy and
raised grain, cattle, horses and mules. Think about that the next time you
complain about feeling tired because of all the work you do! He did, however,
have three 60-horsepower Best tractors to help with the farming of his own land
plus large, leased tracts of acreage. Who fixed the tractors? In those days, you
couldn’t exactly take your machinery to the local fix-it-quick shop. So,
who fixed the machines? He and his sons, of course. Ephe Ray, his eldest
son, was the expert mechanic.
Now, the next part of the story is really interesting. Remember the part
about the dynamite? That’s my favorite part. I just love excitement. Well, it
seems that that hard pan soil must have been really giving William a hard time. Except this time he didn’t use dynamite. Shucks! Maybe the neighbors and the
livestock didn’t appreciate the fireworks. At any rate, tenacious fellow that he
was, William found another way. He did it again-a first for this part of the
county. He used a subsoil breaker “built to go to a depth of five feet,
which, instead of lifting the ground, pushed each cutting to one side, taking a
strip five feet wide to each cutting.” What a guy! Imagine if the world were
full of William W. Bottimores, those who dare to be creative and are not afraid to try
the new and different for the sake of making our lives better? They are the
spirit that made us great and it is their vision that we must never lose sight
of. That’s one reason why we study their human experience.
So what about William W.’s other half? You know, his wife! That’s part of the
Lewins-Bolton-Bottimore connection. William A. married Miss Cora B. Quiggle,
granddaughter of Elizabeth Lewins. Cora was the daughter of Volaski Quiggle, who
built the Herald Store, and Isabella Lewins, daughter of Elizabeth and Thomas
Lewins. Isabella and her sister Agnes came by wagon train across the
country to this great place of ours.
Cora and William were the parents of 10 children. Ephe Ray, expert mechanic,
was the eldest son. He entered the U.S. Army in November 1917. His career in the
armed forces was uneventful and it took him all over the U.S. and to Western
Europe. In two years of military service, Ephe Ray served in the 23rd Recruit
Squadron in Kelly Fields, Texas, the 257th Aero Squadron in Waco, Texas, and the
332nd Aero Squadron in Camp Green, N.C. From there, the squadron was sent
to Virginia, then Liverpool and finally to Scotland, where he served with the
Royal Flying Corps and attained the rank of sergeant.
Just after the armistice, his squadron was routed home, but influenza broke
out. After a month delay, he finally came to New York on Christmas Eve, 1918,
and was discharged in January of 1919. On June 30, 1920, Ephe Ray married
Catherine Spencer of Galt. They became the parents of Frances Jane, Audrey and Ephe
Ray Jr. Ephe Jr. served in the reserves as a medic and saw front-line action
during one of the worst battles of the Korean War.
Donna was the second child born to William and Cora. Donna became Mrs. Robert
Fawcett of Galt. During World War II, she and Robert had all three of their sons
serving in three different branches of the military. Robert served in the air
corps, William in the army and Jack in the navy. Robert, their first son and
graduate of the College of the Pacific in Stockton, achieved the rank of
lieutenant in the U.S. Air Corps and became a World War II hero. Lt. Bottimore,
squadron leader of B-17 bombers, was on a mission to bomb a munitions factory in
Germany when he was shot down. He was buried in Germany.
Zelma became Mrs. Burton Scoon of Roseville. Their daughter is Joan Virginia. Son Cecil (Buzz) became a partner with his father. He married Pearl Gillespie. Their two children are Cecil Jr. and Ruth, who is now Mrs.
William Mori. Thae died in infancy.
There was Thomas and then there was Abner. We know Abner as Eb, Helen’s
husband. Of course, Helen is also a granddaughter of Elizabeth Lewins just
like her mother-in-law, Cora B. Quiggle. Connections, connections!
Helen and Eb are the very proud parents of four children. There is
Christopher who has one daughter, Susan, who is and airline stewardess; Janet,
who is now a Burrows and lives in Yuba City; and Marilyn, who is now Mrs. Mac
Norris of Sacramento.
Katherine came after Eb and she is our very own Kate Bottimore Georgi. Kate
still lives on the original Bottimore homestead. She has also been a
lifesaver in putting together the information about the Laguna School and the
information for this article.
William and Cora’s next child was Hallie. He married Helen Johnson. Robert
Lee married Annabelle (Andy) Billik. Their son, Robert (Tib) Bottimore, is
probably another familiar name to many of you out there. Robert Sr. farmed in
Herald all of his life. His interest in gasoline engines led to his active
involvement in the Gas Engines Club. He and Tib collected engines that Tib
still has in his possession.
The Bottimore children attended the Alabama and the Herald Schools. The 1987
Herald Day book features the early one-room schools that comprised what is now
the Arcohe District. You can find the Bottimore and Bolton children among
the many beautiful faces.
Today, only Kate Georgi and her brother Eb remain from the original family of
10. However, William and Cora’s legacy and their dreams live on in their
children and grandchildren. So, the next time you meet one of the many Bottimores who still live in this area, say hello and remember the grand couple
who dared to be different!
Corrections! Corrections!
Kate Bottimore Georgi has solved the mystery of the several spellings of the
name Lewins. It is Lewins. Thomas Lewins’ name appears as such on his
gravemarker on Hobday Road. Thank you, Kate! And thank you for sharing the
additional information about the Bottimore children that was needed to write
this.
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