Ralph O. Yardley

Ralph Yardley on his last day at the Stockton Record, July 1952, Haggin Museum Collection

Like many of his generation whose lives bridged the 19th and 20th centuries, Ralph Yardley witnessed many momentous social and technological changes in his world. He bid farewell to the horse and buggy and said “hello” to the automobile and airplane; he listened to the birth of radio and watched the development of television; he looked on as the United States survived the Great Depression and four wars to become a global superpower; and he watched with great interest the growth and changes that time brought to Stockton – his hometown. As an illustrator and newspaper artist for over 50 years, he compiled a remarkable chronicle of his world and a fascinating legacy for succeeding generations.

The son of John and Caroline Yardley, Ralph Oswald Yardley was born in his parents’ home on East Sonora Street on September 2, 1878. His father was a founding partner in the pioneer grocery firm of Hammond, Moore, and Yardley located on Weber Avenue directly across from the old courthouse. Young Yardley attended local grammar schools where his penchant for drawing was first recognized, but it was his design of the title head for the first issue of THE GUARD AND TACKLE – Stockton High School’s official publication – that convinced his parents that he was serious about pursuing an art career.

In 1896 Yardley left Stockton to begin his formal art train­ ing in San Francisco, first at the Hopkins Art Institute and later at the Partington Art School where he perfected his pen-and-ink technique. One of that school’s instructors, Richard L. Partington, was also an artist for the SAN FRANCISCO EXAMINER and may have helped Yardley secure his first professional position as an artist with that paper in 1898.

At this time, photographs could not be reproduced in newspapers and staff artists provided all illustrations for news stories, feature articles, and editorials. Often accompa­nying reporters in the field, newspaper artists would execute a quick sketch on the spot or take a photograph from which a drawing would later be made. After about a year of such sketchwork, Yardley tired of these routine assignments.

He returned to Stockton in 1899 and attempted to establish himself as an art instructor and freelance commercial artist. This move proved less than successful and he was soon back in the Bay Area drawing for the SAN FRAN­ CISCO CHRONICLE. It was not long before Yardley once again felt stifled by the mundane work he was given at the CHRONICLE; and in 1900, he sailed for Hawaii to become the staff artist for the PACIFIC COMMERCIAL ADVER­ TISER (later to become the HONOLULU ADVERTISER).

It was in Hawaii that Yardley was given his first real opportunity to develop and express himself as an artist. Soon he was providing three and four drawings an issue, including special column headings, portrait work and, for the first time, political cartoons. Often published in conjunction with the firey editorials by the ADVERTISER’S editor, Walter Giffard Smith, Yardley’s “pen-point” attacks were directed against the courts, the clergy, prohibitionists, and politicians. Many of these cartoons elicited howls of protest from the offended parties and one even resulted in a mistrial of a criminal case along with a contempt of court citation and a jail sentence for Smith. By the time he returned to the mainland in 1902, Yardley had established himself as one of the more promising young newspaper artists on the West Coast.

He settled again in the Bay Area and worked alternately for the SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE and the SAN FRAN­CISCO BULLETIN. In addition to his regular sketches for news articles and an occasional political cartoon, Yardley also began to draw sports cartoons and comic strips. It was during this time that Yardley became good friends with two of his co-workers – Thomas Aloysius Dorgan “TAD” and Rube Goldberg – both of whom went on to become renowned cartoonists. New York City was generally regarded as the best location for aspiring newspaper artists to advance their careers; and with that in mind, all three friends eventually moved there in 1905.

For two years Yardley worked as a member of the NEW YORK GLOBE’s art staff; but unlike TAD and Goldberg who remained in New York, Yardley once again returned to the Bay Area, this time to accept the position as head of the SAN FRANCISCO CALL’s art department. From 1907 through 1909, Yardley worked for the CALL; and during that time, his most interesting work was for the paper’s Sunday Magazine section. Published in full color and often covering the entire page, these illustrations featured beautiful women in seasonal activities. Viewing Yardley’s artwork from this period, it is evident that while in New York City he had paid considerable attention to the works of the leading illustrators of the day, including Charles Dana Gibson, James Montgomery Flagg, Howard Chandler Christy, and J. C. Leyendecker.

With the impressive work he had done for the CALL added to his portfolio,-Yardley set out again for New York – but this time as a free-lance illustrator. For almost three years, he specialized in cover art for national periodicals such as HARPER’s and, LESLIE’s, and gained some attention for a series of novelty postcards. His East Coast sojourn came to an end when after learning of his father’s health problems, he returned to Stockton.

Back in his hometown, Yardley continued free-lance work, occasionally providing the STOCKTON RECORD and other local publications with material, doing advertising art, and specialized work for various civic and social organizations. His “Girls of Stockton” calendars, featuring comely young ladies and Stockton vignettes, were quite popular as well. With the outbreak of the First World War, Yardley – like so many other fellow artists – used his talents to help aid the national war effort. Throughout 1917 and 1918, he produced a series of posters and cartoons that promoted the various Liberty Loan campaigns, several of which won him national recognition in federally sponsored competitions.

After the signing of the Armistice, San Francisco once again lured Yardley away from Stockton, and from 1919 through 1921 he drew political cartoons for the BULLETIN and continued to accept free-lance commissions. While working in San Francisco, he married Carmen Glauch in April of 1919; and two years later their first daughter, Patricia Ann, was born. It was also about this time that he received a job offer that would affect his life for the next three decades.

The STOCKTON RECORD had always been impressed with Yardley’s work; and in late 1921, the paper was in the position to offer Yardley permanent employment. A new wife and daughter coupled with family and social ties to Stockton as well as what was reported to be “splendid financial inducements” of the RECORD proved to be the winning combination in extinguishing the wanderlust in Yardley. In January of 1922, he began his 30-year tenure with the STOCKTON RECORD as its resident artist.

Yardley’s duties included a daily editorial cartoon and special layouts such as the “Out-O-Doors” section published every Saturday to promote automobile travel throughout the West. (It was not surprising that major advertisers in this particular section were local automobile dealers.) Because he was also an excellent photographer, many of the photos, as well as the artwork, were Yardley’s handiwork. Another feature that appeared every Saturday for many years was a series of caricatures of local personalities, sports figures, and National Park personnel. Yardley continued to receive national attention, with many of his car­ toons being republished by other newspapers and the LITERARY DIGEST. In 1937 Yardley’s cartoons were among those featured in an exhibition at the Huntington Library and Arts Gallery in San Marino, California.

RECORD readers soon became familiar with Yardley’s distinctive style. Using “Coquille board,” a drawing paper with a lightly “pebbled” surface, he would combine the delicate lines of the pen for detail with the bolder strokes of his pencil or crayon for the richly shaded areas. Nowhere was Yardley’s talent more evident than in his most popular contribution to the RECORD –      his “DO YOU REMEMBER?” series.

Published every Monday beginning in November of 1924, these illustrations/ cartoons highlighted people, places, and events from Stockton’s past. Working from old photographs and his own memories, Yardley would create nostalgic and highly detailed glimpses of the city’s bygone days, often with humorous touches so characteristic of the artist. Taken as a group, these drawings serve as a wonder­ful visual history of Stockton and reflect the love that Yardley had for his hometown. Avery Kizer, the long-time editorial writer for the RECORD who worked with Yardley for a number of years, remembers that the artist would sometimes have great difficulty coming up with a suitable idea for a cartoon to accompany the paper’s lead editorial. Kizer goes on to stress that nobody had to help him with ideas for “DO YOU REMEMBER?” So popular were these drawings, that years after Yardley’s retirement, the RECORD republished the series on a daily basis from 1966 through 1969. (In 1970 the STOCKTON RECORD donated almost 1,000 of the “DO YOU REMEMBER?” drawings to The Haggin Museum. This represents the largest single col­lection of original Yardley artwork in existence.)

Yardley was first and foremost a newspaperman, but he always took time to be a father. His second daughter, Maryjane, was born in 1925 and both she and Patty soon became the subjects for his artistic energy. Yardley pictured his daughters’ images in plaster, on canvas, and in hundreds of photographs. He was also fond of drawing giant Easter bunnies, jack-a-lanterns, and Santa Clauses that the girls would take to school, much to the obvious delight of their classmates and teachers. Although Yardley and his wife separated in the late 1930s, he and his daughters maintained their special relationship.

Yardley retired from the RECORD in 1952, just shy of his 74th birthday. He spent the remainder of his years either in the Stockton home of his sister, Caroline Moore, or in the Carmel home of another sister, Emily Yardley. His interest in art never really diminished and he occasionally painted landscapes or doodled for his grandchildren. Gradually his health declined and on December 6, 1961, Yardley passed away in the town where he had been born 83 years before.

Yardley was once asked why he had ever taken up drawing as a profession. He replied, “At a very early age, I began itching for something and have been scratching with pen, pencil, and brush ever since,” It is indeed fortunate that Yardley was so “afflicted,” for his many “scratchings” have captured and preserved for us the mood and tenor of an earlier time. Even though Yardley has been gone for over 25 years, his illustrations and cartoons help to keep his unique sense of artistry, creativity, and humor both alive and vibrant.

California Indian Basketry

BASKET 1952 40 87

The Museum is the steward of many cultural treasures, but none combine beauty with functionality as well as its collection of baskets created by Native California women, recognized as the finest basket weavers in the world. Examples of gathering, storage, cooking, gift, and ceremonial baskets from various tribal groups from throughout the State reflect the diversity of California’s original inhabitants.

An indispensable aspect of Native Californians’ everyday lives, the baskets on display illustrate the different techniques and designs employed by our State’s various tribal groups, including Yokuts, Miwok, Pomo, and Washoe. In addition, while baskets were woven in every region of California, and the raw materials utilized by Native weavers depended upon each group’s environment, some common fibers included bear grass, willow, redbud, maiden hair, and bracken fern. Although the baskets in the museum’s collection were made many decades ago, they continue to serve as a tangible link between today’s Native people and their cultural heritage.

Stagecoach

This painting represents another moment in mountain stage travel in the 1880s. Humorously, Edward Lamson Henry shows the perils of this mode of transportation. As the coach travels along an unpaved road with a valley far below, the passengers atop the stage look nervously at the sheer drop. A lady peeps out from the coach, apprehensive about the incline, but the driver is ready with his whip and his foot on the break.

The vehicle is a Concord coach, an early nineteenth-century improvement over older vehicles. Not only was it more stylish in appearance, but the body, hung on thoroughbraces, was better equipped to absorb the shock of bumpy roads like the one depicted here. Not surprisingly, the most highly prized seat was the one next to the driver.

Henry frequently painted horses, and those in this painting demonstrate how skillfully he did so. They are a result of intense, first-hand study; each is shown from a different viewpoint and convincingly foreshortened.

Stephens Brothers

tug beaver

Stephens Brothers

Stephens Brothers—one of the most respected names in pleasure craft design—began in 1902 when brothers Thod and Roy Stephens launched their first boat into the Stockton Channel. Initially, they built work boats and launches that were instrumental in the development of agriculture throughout the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta region. By the mid-1920s, their focus shifted to pleasure crafts including both cruisers and sailboats. One of their iconic early boats—a fully restored 1927 26-foot runabout— is on display in the Museum’s California Room.

During WWII they were one of nine local shipbuilding firms that built a variety of vessels for both the Army and Navy. Following the war, Stephens Bros. resumed building stock and custom pleasure crafts for boating enthusiasts both here and abroad. The company closed in 1987 and donated their records and marine architectural drawings to the Haggin creating invaluable research resources for the hundreds of Stephens Bros. boat owners around the globe.

Learn more about the Stephens Bros. in this video:

Emma LeDoux

emmafront

Emma Ledoux

One evening in March 1906, a large trunk was delivered to Stockton’s Southern Pacific railroad depot in route to San Francisco. Employees became suspicious of this peculiar smelling trunk, so police were summoned only to find the lifeless body of Albert McVicar inside. Police traced the trunk to a merchant who had delivered it to the California Hotel for a woman hotel staff believed to be the late Mr. McVicar’s wife.

The woman—whose name was Emma LeDoux—was arrested and details about the grisly crime were splashed across the nation’s newspapers during her trial. Found guilty and sentenced to hang, Emma became the first woman in California to receive the death penalty. She appealed the decision and was eventually paroled, but Emma continued to have run-ins with the law for the remainder of her life. The infamous trunk is on view at the Haggin as a reminder of one of Stockton’s most intriguing court cases.

Pioneer Ranch Home

women jennie room

Jennie Hunter Rooms

Once belonging to a pioneer family of San Joaquin County, these period rooms are arranged as they would have been in the 1860s-70s. Anthony and Eliza McGill Hunter, both natives of Ireland, established a grain farm near Linden, California, Their daughter, Jennie, was a successful business woman who attended Stockton Business College and Mills College, and after her father’s death she managed the family’s ranch. These rooms were part of the family’s home until Jennie’s death in 1946 at which time they were donated to the museum.

The Victorian furniture in the four rooms, which include a parlor, back parlor, and two complete bedrooms, dates back over 150 years. Souvenirs from the family’s travels, highly ornamental draperies, and marble fireplaces accent the spaces. Personal touches like family portraits, hand embroidered quilts, hair styling tools, crocheted chamber pot cozies, and vintage sheet music paint a picture of how this middle-class California family lived during the Victorian-era.

“Willy the Jeep”

Willy in Gallery

Willy the Jeep

“Willy the Jeep” and the entire “Jeep-a-Week” program is a tribute to the people of Stockton and their unique Home Front contributions during World War II. Through a partnership between Stockton High School and the Port of Stockton—the largest vehicle consignment center in the US during the war—the school’s students and faculty set out to raise funds to purchase jeeps for the armed forces.

From January 1943 to September 1945 they raised today’s equivalent of $3 million today to purchase a fleet of 275 jeeps, each bearing a small plaque on its dash acknowledging the school’s contribution and requesting information on the vehicle’s status. Throughout the war, Stockton High received letters from grateful service men and women thanking the school for their support and providing updates on the vehicles. In the late 1970s, one of the Stockton High jeeps found a new home here at the Haggin, and in 2006 “Willy” was restored to his original 1944 glory.

Learn more about Willy the Jeep in this video:

“Old Betsy”

Old Betsy

 Old Betsy

Stockton’s fire fighters’ legacy of service and distinction—from the earliest volunteer brigades to today’s modern Class 1 department—is preserved in the museum’s collection of historic engines, equipment, and photographs on display in our Vehicle Gallery. The helmets, coats, and other gear on display personalize the heroism of the City’s fire fighters, both past and present.

One of the most popular elements of this gallery is the antique steam fire engine affectionately known as “Old Betsy.” It became only the second steam fire engine in California when it was purchased by the Stockton’s Weber Engine Company in 1862. In addition to battling blazes throughout the city, “Old Betsy” was featured in various celebrations such as the completion of the trans-continental railroad in 1869 and the Nation’s Centennial in 1876. It came to the museum in 1931 after being cared for over the years by an association of former volunteer firemen.

Back to History

Tillie Lewis/Italian Vacuum Pan

Steam Device

Tillie Lewis/ Italian vacuum pan 

While working in a grocery store in New York City, Tillie Weisberg Lewis recognized there was a great demand by Italian immigrants for imported cans of Italian pear-shaped tomatoes, and she began investigating how they might be grown in America. She entered into a partnership with Florindo del Gaizo, an Italian cannery owner who provided her with seeds and canning machinery. In 1935, she persuaded some local farmers to grow the Italian tomatoes and opened the FloTill cannery in Stockton. The Italian tomatoes they introduced are still a staple of American agriculture. In addition to canning whole tomatoes, the company employed Italian-made vacuum pans—like the one on display in the Holt Hall—to produce tomato paste. Over the years, San Joaquin County became the nation’s top tomato producing county, and Lewis—dubbed the “Tomato Queen”—would go on to manage Tillie Lewis Foods, Inc. one of the top five canning operations in the United States.

Benjamin Holt/Holt ’75 Caterpillar track-type tractor

Holt 75

Holt ’75 Tractor 

In 1883, Benjamin Holt and his brothers opened a factory in Stockton and began manufacturing combined harvesters and steam-powered traction engines helping to make California one of the world’s most productive agricultural regions and Stockton as the state’s leading manufacturer of farm machinery.

Any number of lucrative orchard and row crops could be grown in the rich peat dirt of the Delta islands west of Stockton, but the heavy, round wheels of the traction engines used to pull farm machinery often became mired in this soft, spongy soil. In response to this problem, Holt developed the first commercially successful track-type tractor, which he trademarked as the “Caterpillar.” It employed a self-laying continuous track that provided more traction and surface bearing area than round wheels, thereby preventing the tractor from becoming stuck. A restored Holt ‘75’ Caterpillar is the highlight of the Holt Hall at the Museum which pays tribute to Benjamin Holt‘s contributions to the mechanization of agriculture.

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