Rapp's house site where the children and friends had the run of the ranch. A 

 longtime tradition of free public access to Bear Valley, started by Charles Webb 

 Howard, changed as Rapp began to charge a fee for entry. Rapp also sold some 

 prime property: he sold 466 acres in the northeast corner of the ranch to his 

 realtor, August Lang, in November 1923, for $18,000. This property eventually 

 became Noren Estates and the Silverhills subdivisions adjacent to Inverness 

 Park. 167 



At the old W Ranch dairy, Rapp hired John Watson as manager, and 

 embarked on a program that would make the Bear Valley Dairy one of the first 

 certified dairies in Marin County. Certification was the precursor to Grade A 

 labeling which was established in the 1930s, where sanitary standards were 

 upheld in order to produce milk for popular consumption. To do this, Rapp 

 improved the dairy herd and built a sanitary barn and two trademark silos in 

 1922. Rapp's milk, taken from the cows by white-uniformed milkers, was sold 

 on contract to hospitals and restaurants in San Francisco. A newspaper report 

 mentioned the status of the dairy: 



Rapp is said to have one of the best certified milk 

 dairies in Northern California. All of his product, 

 which is shipped in bulk, is transported to leading 

 hospitals in San Francisco. Those who have visited 

 the ranch state it has been transformed into a 

 veritable marvel of perfection in every detail. The 

 herd, comprising purebred cattle, now numbers about 

 200 head, and Rapp employs about 20 men to handle 

 their product. 168 



The other dairies on the ranch, U, Y, and Z, continued producing cream under 

 leases from Rapp that duplicated the old Shafter leases. Rapp and Watson also 

 hired Greek laborers to clear about 10 acres of dense willows in the flats 

 opposite the dairy ranch, and to channelize Olema Creek, rerouting it to a 

 tangent from the village of Olema to near the head of Tomales Bay. Rapp 

 planted feed crops on the flats, in cooperation with the county farm advisor, M. 

 B. Boissevain. Irrigation was introduced to the ranch, with water from the dam 



Rapp family information from an interview with his daughter, Joan Rapp Mayhew; interview 

 with Mary Menzies Page; Marin Journal. March 22, 1923, p. 1; Petaluma Argus, undated clipping 

 circa 1922; Mason, Point Reyes, p. 95. 



168 Marin Journal. March 22, 1923, p. 1. 



300 



