Ventura County Biographies

J. R. Bennett

Submitted by Sandy Neder

This file is part of the California Genealogy & History Archives
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cagha/index.htm

 
    J. R. Bennett, a rancher near Nordhoff, was born in Ireland, December 1, 
1845, the son of respectable Irish parents. In 1864, at the age of nineteen 
years, he set sail for America, land at Quebec, June 15 of that year. He had 
relatives there engaged in business, and for a time he was employed by his 
cousin as supercargo. They bought provisions and clothing and took them to the 
coast of Labrador, bringing back a load of fish and oil. After three years thus 
engaged he went to Thurso on the Ottawa River, where for two years he clerked in 
a general merchandise store. In July, 1869, he came to California and worked in 
a saw-mill a year in Mendocino County. In 1870 he sent for his brother George 
and gave him a position in the mill. Starting out in search of easier and more 
profitable employment, he next went to Vallejo, where he was engaged in laying 
water pipes until he could accumulate a little money to go still further in 
search of better employment. Going to San Francisco he worked for a while on the 
wharf, unloading vessels, and then obtained a situation in a wholesale dairy 
produce store, conducted by T. H. Hatch & Co. Soon he secured a position there 
also for his brother George. Two years later he and his brother engaged in the 
dairy produce business for themselves in the California market, which they 
continue to the present time, supplying the elite of San Francisco with 
"Bennett's Celebrated Butter."
    While in the market, Mr. Bennett contracted catarrh, which extended to his 
bronchial tubes, and he was compelled to seek a milder climate than San 
Francisco. Leaving the business there in charge of his brother, he started in 
search of health, traveling the whole length of California, from Sisson's to San 
Diego, and found the most desirable place for pulmonary complaints to be the 
Ojai Valley. Here he purchased sixty-one acres of land, on which he is now 
building a handsome residence. He is entering largely into fruit culture, having 
planted French prunes, almonds, olives, and raising grapes. The property is now 
in a flourishing condition, and is destined to become one of the most delightful 
homes on the coast.
    Mr. Bennett was married in 1878, to Miss Hatty Greeleese, a native of 
Thurso, Canada, and a daughter of William Greeleese. Mr. Bennett became 
acquainted with her while in Thurso ten years previous, and succeeded in 
persuading her to meet him in California. Upon her arrival, Mr. Bennett went to 
meet her, taking a minister with him, and they were married in Sacramento. They 
are the parents of four interesting children, the three eldest having been born 
in San Francisco, and the youngest in the Ojai Valley. Their names are: Lillian, 
Stewart R., David S. and Anita. Both Mr. and Mrs. Bennett are members of the 
Baptist Church. Mr. Bennett is independent in politics, but shares the views of 
the Republican party. He is a member of the I. O. O. F., and also of the F. & A 
.M.
 
BIOGRAPHICAL HISTORY OF THE COUNTIES OF SANTA BARBARA, SAN LUIS 
OBISPO, AND VENTURA, CALIF. by Ida Addis Storke, 1891, p 505