Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park
Encyclopedia
Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park is a state park
unit of California
, USA, preserving Allensworth, the only California town to be founded, financed and governed by African Americans. The small farming community was founded in 1908 by Lt. Colonel Allen Allensworth
, Professor William Payne, William Peck, a minister; John W. Palmer, a miner; and Harry A. Mitchell, a real estate agent, dedicated to improving the economic and social status of African Americans. Uncontrollable circumstances, including a drop in the area's water table, resulted in the town's demise. The "Allensworth Historic District" is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Allensworth is now an unincorporated area
in Tulare County
.
Historically notable founder Colonel Allen Allensworth (1842–1914) had a friendship with Booker T. Washington
and was inspired by the Tuskegee Institute and development in its neighboring town. Allensworth hoped to develop the "Tuskegee of the West."
, he wrote a proposal to restore the Allensworth settlement as a state historical site. Finally, in 1974 then-Governor Ronald Reagan
authorized the department to establish the park. Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park was established on 240 acres (97.1 ha) in 1976. Ed Pope returned to the area in his retirement "to become a preservation activist on the scene."
The 100th anniversary of Allensworth was celebrated in October 2008. Events are held throughout the year to commemorate the park's history.
The preserved townsite features nine restored buildings, including a schoolhouse, a hotel, a general store and several homes. The park has a visitor center, and tours are available by making arrangements with the park in advance. The visitor center features a video presentation, "The Spirit of Allensworth."
Fifteen campsites, open all year, accommodate RVs or tents. Each site includes a picnic table and a camp stove; flush toilets are nearby. Facilities for disabled people are available. Turf, trees, and shade ramadas are other features. A nearby picnic area is shaded by 75 large trees, planted by the California Conservation Corps.
The park is 10 miles (16.1 km) southwest of Earlimart
on County Road J22.
In the year 1908, United States Army veteran Lt. Colonel
Allen Allensworth and Professor William Payne, Rev. William Peck and John W. Palmer, and Harry A. Mitchell sought to build a town where African Americans could own property, learn, and live the American Dream
. They chose an 800 acres (323.7 ha) Tulare County
site for a new town near the present location of Earlimart, California, and about 45 miles (72.4 km) north of Bakersfield
. The site was chosen for fertile soil, adequate water, and its location along a railroad corridor. Black men and women — craftsmen, artisans, businessmen, farmers, ranchers, retired military — moved their families to the newly purchased land. In 1914, the California Eagle
newspaper stated that Allensworth deeded land was worth more than $112,000. The affairs of the town were administered by a council form of government known as the Allensworth Progressive Association, which directed the community through its formative and critical early years. Men and women held responsible positions in the community.
Allensworth's economy depended on agriculture; farmers cultivated alfalfa, wheat, sugar beets, and cotton; and raised dairy cattle, chickens, turkeys, and Belgian hares. The town had several businesses and public buildings: bakery, drugstore, livery stable, barbershop, church, school, library, and a machine shop. Sources such as the Oakland Sunshine, a leading black Oakland, California
newspaper in 1913, claimed that Allensworth generated nearly $5,000 monthly in its business ventures.
In 1910 Joshua and Henrietta Singleton opened the Singleton’s General Store & Post Office. The store sold a variety of merchandise and served as a weigh station for wagons. Allensworth Hotel was opened by Clara and John Morris; the hotel had eight guestrooms and charged 75 cents per night.
. The artesian wells and water mains laid throughout the residences during and since 1912 were controlled by Allensworth Rural Water Company, a State corporation. But water problems began developing in 1912 and by 1914 had become serious. The declining water tables throughout the area and increasing problems with alkali salts helped to doom the community. As the original settlers moved away, the land values declined, some of the houses were left empty, and others were rented or sold.
By the 1950s Allensworth was an impoverished area without drinkable water supplies; its only water wells were contaminated with arsenic, and state health official declared them unusable. When the state acquired the land for park purposes, state officials said land owners were paid "market value" but because these values were so low, the state also provided financial assistance to relocate the former owners. According to State Park Ranger Greg Kauffman, "only two or three families were unhappy with the move". And, he said, "the project itself has received strong support".
wrote in her book The Negro Trail-Blazers of California:
Widely loved and respected, Allensworth received a military funeral by the Grand Army of the Republic
veterans of Los Angeles. Memorial services held for him throughout the state and nation. He was interred at the Rosedale Cemetery on September 18, 1914. The Allensworth community was devastated. Although Professor William Payne and Oscar Overr assumed the leadership of the colony, no one could replace the colonel. Without Allensworth's spiritual guidance and leadership, the community began to disintegrate. By 1920, the two leading figures, William Payne and the widow Josephine Allensworth, had left the area. Payne accepted a teaching job at El Centro, while Mrs. Allensworth returned to Los Angeles to live with her daughter Nella. The exodus of residents continued during the years of the Great Depression and World War II.
s, which are believed to have been the residence of the station agent
at Allensworth, have been been restored by the California State Railroad Museum
and are displayed at Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park. California State Parks contracted with the nonprofit museum in mid-2002 to conserve and restore the two railroad boxcar bodies associated with Allensworth. Wheels and axles had been removed after the turn of the 20th century; today the boxcars are today considered rare specimens of early railroad freight cars. For the project, one car was fully documented and received a museum-level conservation.
. Excepting the railroad roadbed, there is less than 5 feet (1.5 m) elevation difference across town. Like most of the valley, there has been some subsidence
probably related to historic overpumping of ground water for irrigation.
A generally warm, dry climate prevails in the Central Valley; it is hot in the summer, mild in the winter. In the Central Valley precipitation falls mainly from October through April. Winter temperatures well below freezing producing frost; however, snow is very rare. Summer temperatures above 100 °F (37.8 °C) are part of the normal pattern.
The valley was historically the site of vernal pool
s and seasonal lakes before 20th Century diversions of water and agriculture. A natural gas well field exists west of town. Burrowing owl
s, a species active in daylight hours, are sometimes present in the park.
Just North of Allensworth is the 6389 acres (2,585.5 ha) Pixley National Wildlife Refuge
, operated by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service
. Adjacent to the town is the Allensworth Ecological Reserve. The endangered San Joaquin Kit Fox
(Vulpes macrotis mutica) can be found in this area.
In 2007 the State of California passed Assembly Bill 576, which established a 2.5 miles (4 km) dairy-free zone around the park. The bill was in response to two proposed dairies
. Environmental activists protested that the operations were likely to have a potentially negative impact (dairy flies and odors) on the adjacent Pixley National Wildlife Refuge, Allensworth Ecological Reserve, and the historic park.
State park
State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the federated state level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational...
unit of California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, USA, preserving Allensworth, the only California town to be founded, financed and governed by African Americans. The small farming community was founded in 1908 by Lt. Colonel Allen Allensworth
Allen Allensworth
Allen Allensworth was an American soldier and chaplain in the United States Army, a Baptist minister and educator, who had been born into slavery. He escaped by joining the 44th Illinois Volunteers during the American Civil War, and later served two years in the Navy...
, Professor William Payne, William Peck, a minister; John W. Palmer, a miner; and Harry A. Mitchell, a real estate agent, dedicated to improving the economic and social status of African Americans. Uncontrollable circumstances, including a drop in the area's water table, resulted in the town's demise. The "Allensworth Historic District" is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Allensworth is now an unincorporated area
Unincorporated area
In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...
in Tulare County
Tulare County, California
Tulare County is a county located in the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California, south of Fresno. Sequoia National Park is located in the county, as are part of Kings Canyon National Park, in its northeast corner , and part of Mount Whitney, on its eastern border...
.
Historically notable founder Colonel Allen Allensworth (1842–1914) had a friendship with Booker T. Washington
Booker T. Washington
Booker Taliaferro Washington was an American educator, author, orator, and political leader. He was the dominant figure in the African-American community in the United States from 1890 to 1915...
and was inspired by the Tuskegee Institute and development in its neighboring town. Allensworth hoped to develop the "Tuskegee of the West."
California State Historic Park
In 1968 Cornelius "Ed" Pope, a former resident of Allensworth, worked in Sacramento as a draftsman and planner for the California Department of Parks and Recreation. With the help of a professor at California State University, SacramentoCalifornia State University, Sacramento
California State University, Sacramento, popularly known as Sacramento State, is a public university located in the city of Sacramento, California. It is part of the California State University system...
, he wrote a proposal to restore the Allensworth settlement as a state historical site. Finally, in 1974 then-Governor Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
authorized the department to establish the park. Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park was established on 240 acres (97.1 ha) in 1976. Ed Pope returned to the area in his retirement "to become a preservation activist on the scene."
The 100th anniversary of Allensworth was celebrated in October 2008. Events are held throughout the year to commemorate the park's history.
The preserved townsite features nine restored buildings, including a schoolhouse, a hotel, a general store and several homes. The park has a visitor center, and tours are available by making arrangements with the park in advance. The visitor center features a video presentation, "The Spirit of Allensworth."
Fifteen campsites, open all year, accommodate RVs or tents. Each site includes a picnic table and a camp stove; flush toilets are nearby. Facilities for disabled people are available. Turf, trees, and shade ramadas are other features. A nearby picnic area is shaded by 75 large trees, planted by the California Conservation Corps.
The park is 10 miles (16.1 km) southwest of Earlimart
Earlimart, California
Earlimart is a census-designated place in Tulare County, California, United States. As of the 2010 census, the CDP population was 8,537, up from 6,583 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Earlimart is located at ....
on County Road J22.
Early history
Lieutenant Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, United States Air Force, and United States Marine Corps, a lieutenant colonel is a field grade military officer rank just above the rank of major and just below the rank of colonel. It is equivalent to the naval rank of commander in the other uniformed services.The pay...
Allen Allensworth and Professor William Payne, Rev. William Peck and John W. Palmer, and Harry A. Mitchell sought to build a town where African Americans could own property, learn, and live the American Dream
American Dream
The American Dream is a national ethos of the United States in which freedom includes a promise of the possibility of prosperity and success. In the definition of the American Dream by James Truslow Adams in 1931, "life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each...
. They chose an 800 acres (323.7 ha) Tulare County
Tulare County, California
Tulare County is a county located in the Central Valley of the U.S. state of California, south of Fresno. Sequoia National Park is located in the county, as are part of Kings Canyon National Park, in its northeast corner , and part of Mount Whitney, on its eastern border...
site for a new town near the present location of Earlimart, California, and about 45 miles (72.4 km) north of Bakersfield
Bakersfield, California
Bakersfield is a city near the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley in Kern County, California. It is roughly equidistant between Fresno and Los Angeles, to the north and south respectively....
. The site was chosen for fertile soil, adequate water, and its location along a railroad corridor. Black men and women — craftsmen, artisans, businessmen, farmers, ranchers, retired military — moved their families to the newly purchased land. In 1914, the California Eagle
California Eagle
The California Eagle was one of the oldest and longest-running African American newspapers in Los Angeles, California and the West. It started in 1879, founded by John J. Neimore, who had escaped slavery in Missouri...
newspaper stated that Allensworth deeded land was worth more than $112,000. The affairs of the town were administered by a council form of government known as the Allensworth Progressive Association, which directed the community through its formative and critical early years. Men and women held responsible positions in the community.
Allensworth's economy depended on agriculture; farmers cultivated alfalfa, wheat, sugar beets, and cotton; and raised dairy cattle, chickens, turkeys, and Belgian hares. The town had several businesses and public buildings: bakery, drugstore, livery stable, barbershop, church, school, library, and a machine shop. Sources such as the Oakland Sunshine, a leading black Oakland, California
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
newspaper in 1913, claimed that Allensworth generated nearly $5,000 monthly in its business ventures.
In 1910 Joshua and Henrietta Singleton opened the Singleton’s General Store & Post Office. The store sold a variety of merchandise and served as a weigh station for wagons. Allensworth Hotel was opened by Clara and John Morris; the hotel had eight guestrooms and charged 75 cents per night.
Water problems
In 1908 the southwest corner of Tulare County had abundant water from wells drilled into the then shallow water tableWater table
The water table is the level at which the submarine pressure is far from atmospheric pressure. It may be conveniently visualized as the 'surface' of the subsurface materials that are saturated with groundwater in a given vicinity. However, saturated conditions may extend above the water table as...
. The artesian wells and water mains laid throughout the residences during and since 1912 were controlled by Allensworth Rural Water Company, a State corporation. But water problems began developing in 1912 and by 1914 had become serious. The declining water tables throughout the area and increasing problems with alkali salts helped to doom the community. As the original settlers moved away, the land values declined, some of the houses were left empty, and others were rented or sold.
By the 1950s Allensworth was an impoverished area without drinkable water supplies; its only water wells were contaminated with arsenic, and state health official declared them unusable. When the state acquired the land for park purposes, state officials said land owners were paid "market value" but because these values were so low, the state also provided financial assistance to relocate the former owners. According to State Park Ranger Greg Kauffman, "only two or three families were unhappy with the move". And, he said, "the project itself has received strong support".
Colonel Allensworth's death
In 1919 Delilah L. BeasleyDelilah L. Beasley
Delilah Leontium Beasley , was an American historian, and newspaper columnist for the Oakland Tribune, Oakland, California, USA...
wrote in her book The Negro Trail-Blazers of California:
"The death of Colonel Allensworth was most tragic, because after passing through three wars, he was finally killed by a careless motorcyclist on the streets of Monrovia, California, a few miles out from Los AngelesThe book had been sent to the publishers and was ready to come off the press when he was killed.Los ÁngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, the accident occurring on a Sunday morning in September, 1914. The aged Colonel was on his way to preach in a small church of the village and had just stepped from a Pacific Electric street car when these men knocked him down and ran over him, killing him through their careless driving, his death, occurring within twenty-four hours afterwards without his regaining consciousness, was like a thunderbolt from a clear sky to the people of the State. He had spent the two years previous in dictating and assisting Professor Charles Alexander to write his autobiography."
Widely loved and respected, Allensworth received a military funeral by the Grand Army of the Republic
Grand Army of the Republic
The Grand Army of the Republic was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army, US Navy, US Marines and US Revenue Cutter Service who served in the American Civil War. Founded in 1866 in Decatur, Illinois, it was dissolved in 1956 when its last member died...
veterans of Los Angeles. Memorial services held for him throughout the state and nation. He was interred at the Rosedale Cemetery on September 18, 1914. The Allensworth community was devastated. Although Professor William Payne and Oscar Overr assumed the leadership of the colony, no one could replace the colonel. Without Allensworth's spiritual guidance and leadership, the community began to disintegrate. By 1920, the two leading figures, William Payne and the widow Josephine Allensworth, had left the area. Payne accepted a teaching job at El Centro, while Mrs. Allensworth returned to Los Angeles to live with her daughter Nella. The exodus of residents continued during the years of the Great Depression and World War II.
Rare 1880s railroad boxcars
Two rare 19th-century railroad boxcarBoxcar
A boxcar is a railroad car that is enclosed and generally used to carry general freight. The boxcar, while not the simplest freight car design, is probably the most versatile, since it can carry most loads...
s, which are believed to have been the residence of the station agent
Station agent
In many countries, the station agent is the person in charge of a railway station Variants of station agents can also work at other transit terminals such as airports, ferry terminals, etc....
at Allensworth, have been been restored by the California State Railroad Museum
California State Railroad Museum
The California State Railroad Museum is a museum in the state park system of California, USA, interpreting the role of the "iron horse" in connecting California to the rest of the nation. It is located in Old Sacramento at 111 I Street....
and are displayed at Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park. California State Parks contracted with the nonprofit museum in mid-2002 to conserve and restore the two railroad boxcar bodies associated with Allensworth. Wheels and axles had been removed after the turn of the 20th century; today the boxcars are today considered rare specimens of early railroad freight cars. For the project, one car was fully documented and received a museum-level conservation.
Terrain and environment
The terrain is typical of the southern San Joaquin ValleySan Joaquin Valley
The San Joaquin Valley is the area of the Central Valley of California that lies south of the Sacramento – San Joaquin River Delta in Stockton...
. Excepting the railroad roadbed, there is less than 5 feet (1.5 m) elevation difference across town. Like most of the valley, there has been some subsidence
Subsidence
Subsidence is the motion of a surface as it shifts downward relative to a datum such as sea-level. The opposite of subsidence is uplift, which results in an increase in elevation...
probably related to historic overpumping of ground water for irrigation.
A generally warm, dry climate prevails in the Central Valley; it is hot in the summer, mild in the winter. In the Central Valley precipitation falls mainly from October through April. Winter temperatures well below freezing producing frost; however, snow is very rare. Summer temperatures above 100 °F (37.8 °C) are part of the normal pattern.
The valley was historically the site of vernal pool
Vernal pool
Vernal pools, also called vernal ponds or ephemeral pools, are temporary pools of water. They are usually devoid of fish, and thus allow the safe development of natal amphibian and insect species...
s and seasonal lakes before 20th Century diversions of water and agriculture. A natural gas well field exists west of town. Burrowing owl
Burrowing Owl
The Burrowing Owl is a tiny but long-legged owl found throughout open landscapes of North and South America. Burrowing Owls can be found in grasslands, rangelands, agricultural areas, deserts, or any other open dry area with low vegetation. They nest and roost in burrows, such as those excavated...
s, a species active in daylight hours, are sometimes present in the park.
Just North of Allensworth is the 6389 acres (2,585.5 ha) Pixley National Wildlife Refuge
Pixley National Wildlife Refuge
Pixley National Wildlife Refuge is located south of Tulare, California and north of Bakersfield in the San Joaquin Valley. The nature refuge represents one of the few remaining examples of the grasslands, vernal pools, and playas that once bordered historic Tulare Lake, the largest lake west of...
, operated by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service
United States Fish and Wildlife Service
The United States Fish and Wildlife Service is a federal government agency within the United States Department of the Interior dedicated to the management of fish, wildlife, and natural habitats...
. Adjacent to the town is the Allensworth Ecological Reserve. The endangered San Joaquin Kit Fox
Kit Fox
The kit fox is a fox species of North America. Its range is primarily in the southwestern United States and northern and central Mexico. Some mammalogists classify it as conspecific with the swift fox, V. velox, but molecular systematics imply that the two species are distinct.-Range:The...
(Vulpes macrotis mutica) can be found in this area.
In 2007 the State of California passed Assembly Bill 576, which established a 2.5 miles (4 km) dairy-free zone around the park. The bill was in response to two proposed dairies
Dairy
A dairy is a business enterprise established for the harvesting of animal milk—mostly from cows or goats, but also from buffalo, sheep, horses or camels —for human consumption. A dairy is typically located on a dedicated dairy farm or section of a multi-purpose farm that is concerned...
. Environmental activists protested that the operations were likely to have a potentially negative impact (dairy flies and odors) on the adjacent Pixley National Wildlife Refuge, Allensworth Ecological Reserve, and the historic park.
Further reading
- Allensworth the Freedom Colony
- Delilah L. BeasleyDelilah L. BeasleyDelilah Leontium Beasley , was an American historian, and newspaper columnist for the Oakland Tribune, Oakland, California, USA...
, The Negro Trailblazers of California,, A Compilation of Records from the California Archives in the Bancroft Library at the University of California, in Berkeley; and from the Diaries, Old Papers, and Conversations of Old Pioneers in the State of California (1919), reprinted in 1997 and 2004, pp. 141, 151-157, 287-288. - B. Gordon Wheeler, Black California: The History of African-Americans in the Golden State, Hippocrene Books, New York, 1993 - ISBN 0-7818-0074-9
- B. Gordon Wheeler, "Allensworth: California’s African American Community", Wild West, February 2000; carried at History.net
- Battles and Victories of Allen Allensworth, by Charles Alexander, 1914, Electronic Edition
External links
- Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park
- The Friends of Allensworth, Official Website
- The Friends of Allensworth, San Diego chapter