Baraboo weekly news. [volume] (Baraboo, Wis.) 1912-197?, 1917-05-31
LETTER ABOUT
SAN DIEGO
Former Baraboo Resident Tells Of
Industries in Southern Califor-
nia--On Way to Dawson, Alaska


first went there. to live. All were
there then, except the powder plants
or 'kelp industries. They were built
the last summer of our stay. Like
yourself, when we first went there we
thought there was nothing doing"
and wondered how the people earned
their living-that is, what they found
to do. 1t seemed so quiet there.
By talking with people in the no.
tells and those we met outside, we
found out very little except that there
were lot of knockers" there-the
same as in our home towns people
who have saved enough to live COM
fortably and come into town to live,
hoping to make more in an easy way.
These people come to California ex-
pecting to make something big-to
get rich auckland are disappointed
to find conditions on the coast have
changed, and the opportunities are no
better than they were in the old home
in the east, and SO proceed to knock
everything and everybody. Unprinci-
pied real estate men are greatly to
blame for all this. N
There is plenty of work to be had
in San Diego, and at as good wages
as are paid in other places. What |
shall tell you is from my own observa-
ton, not from hearsay.
AS you know, we had our own car,
and there were very few days we
did not drive about. AS we went
made a point of looking to see what
there was there, and at the same time
jotted down in a little blank book
what we found. Said book was al
ways in the car, and the following are
what we found:
First are the two kelp plants, the
ing company and the Hardy Tin Can
factory that told you of in my last.
Enclosed find an article in regard to
the building of the kelp plant, which
forgot to put in my letter.
Then large Tuna fish cannery (see
enclosed clipping, and a sardine can
merry. A feet of rs boats leave the
harbor every morning at 5 o'clock to
fish for sardines, returning at night.
The Western Stone works, on the
north side of the bay, employ large
force of men and make all kinds of
beautiful things from great blocks of
granite-beautiful statues, collonades,
seats, benches, urns, fountain basins,
etc. ~f.
Just beyond this, on the same side
Of the bay are the E. S. Babcock's
Salt works, where a large force of
men is employed and thousands of
tons of salt are made. It is shipped
everywhere. Most of it is used by the
fish canneries, thousands of tons be-
ing shipped to the Alaskan fisheries.
AS | write, it seems to me told you
of this in my last letter.. There is
also a smaller salt field owned by an
other company.
There are also two large breweries
MIA is trying to be a dry state these
will not add to the city's prosperity
much longer.
Three large marble shops, monu-
ments and ornamental work; wood
en- box factory; paper box factory, a
sausage factory, macarona factory;
two candy factories; one soap and
washing powder factory;a dustless
mop and dust cloth factory; pre-
serve, jam and jelly factory; Bishop
ID 70
tile factory; a large union ice factory
all ice used by San Diego and Cor
anado, as well as the smaller towns
near by is made in San Diego; a very
large red brick yard; a window shade
factory; a disappearing bed factory;
a bed spring factory; a mattress and
cot factory; a fire brick and hollow
tile factory; the Savage Auto Tire fac
tory, a large concern with fine red
brick buildings; sash, door and blind
factory; a stained glass and mirror
factory; a window screen factory;
window shade factory; silk factory,
which only makes silk thread and en-
brodiery silks; colonial rug factory
which does fine work; kelp factory,
where they make only kelp curios; a
small place where they make beads
of rose Ieaves-beautiful and quite
expensive; two large steel mills;
three large lumber mills and an onyx
mill. These, with the auto tire fac
tory and the Standard Oil works, are
all, with the city incinerator, along
the bay. The smokestacks can be
seen from the Palace hotel
The lumber for the mills is brought
down from Oregon and Washington
on immense log RATS. The RATS are
400 feet, and sometimes more, in
length, very wide, and draw so feet
of water. They are built in the shape
of fat cigar and bound together with
heavy chain cables. When raft is
due to arrive the lumber company
puts notice in the papers and the
whole city, or nearly so, all goes down
to the bay to see it towed in. 1t is
q fine SIGHT