10 FIELD OPERATIONS OF THE BUREAU OF SOILS, 1907. 



The discover}' of gold in 1849 and 1850 brought prospectors into 

 northern Cahfornia, and the town of Shasta was soon after founded 

 and became the center of the mining industry and the principal set- 

 tlement of this section of the State, although smaller minmg towns 

 soon sprang up. 



The settlement of the country by prospectors created a demand 

 for hay, grains, fresh and dried fruits, and vegetables, which was 

 only supplied b}^ the limited number who refrained from the search 

 for gold and undertook the production, by primitive methods, of 

 these crops. Fresh vegetables were considered luxuries at this time, 

 and wild ha}^ from the Cow Creek bottoms is said to have been sold 

 in the mining camps for $150 per ton. 



With the building of the railroad in the early seventies the new 

 town of Redding increased in importance and became the metropolis 

 of the district and Shasta was abandoned. Shipment of fruits and 

 farm produce to a distance was now possible and the agricultural 

 resources were rapidly developed. The production of green and dried 

 fruits, consisting of prunes, peaches, and pears, became of much 

 importance in the Anderson Valley. Fruit production was soon 

 taken up by the Happy Valley section, which came into prominence 

 about 1883 and 1884, and the fruit industry has been steadily devel- 

 oped in both places. 



In the Anderson and adjacent minor stream valleys prunes are 

 the leading crop, followed by peaches, pears, and, to a much less 

 extent, by grapes and small fruits. Fig trees bear abundantly, but 

 figs are grown only for home use. Alfalfa is produced to a small 

 extent, and with proper care and irrigation should produce 5 tons 

 per acre. Even without irrigation three crops can be cut each season 

 in some sections of the bottom lands well suited to its production. It 

 is usually baled at a cost of about $2 per ton and generally brings 

 from $12 to $15 per ton baled, on the ground. The trucking industiy 

 is locally of considerable importance and is largely controlled by 

 Cliinese. Grains, consisting of wheat and barley, are grown quite 

 extensively, but much less than in the more southern part of the 

 Sacramento Valle}-^, the greater proportion of these crops being cut 

 green for hay. Dairying and poultry raising are carried on only to 

 a limited extent. The products of these industries, however, bring 

 good prices. 



In the Happy Valley district general farming is practiced on a 

 small scale, the valley being essentially a fruit-producing section. 

 Peaches are the leading crop, followed by table grapes, strawberries, 

 and bramble fruits. The peaches are well colored and of particu- 

 larly fine flavor. Strawberries and bramble fruits yield abundantly. 



The value of orchard products for Shasta County, according to the 

 United States Census for 1900, was $110,276, a sum which has been 



