California Biographies Source: History of Fresno County, California, with biographical sketches of the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with its growth and development from the early days to the present (1919) History By Paul E. Vandor Illustrated, Complete In Two Volumes Historic Record Company, Los Angeles, California, 1919 Notes: Missing+page1185-1186 Transcribed by Peggy Hooper This file is part of the California Genealogy & History Archives http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cagha/index.htm VIRGIL S. MILES. � With his interesting family consisting of his accomplished wife and three bright children, Virgil S. Miles lives comfort- ably domiciled at what is commonly known as the Riverdale Parsonage, a residence property which he acquired in the spring of 1919. This property contains two acres of land which he has improved, with two dwellings, giv- ing an acre to each. When he sold his twenty-acre ranch, he reserved his living house � a cute little bungalow, which he himself had built � and this he moved onto the west half of his recent purchase at Riverdale, thus afford- ing comfortable homes for two families. In addition to this he owns twenty acres of excellent land one and a half miles west of Lanare. He was born in Missouri in 1877, being a son of J. C. and Almira (Dome) Miles, the former having been born in Connecticut and the latter in Indiana. The father was a California forty-niner and a pioneer lawyer of Sacramento, but later returned east to Leavenworth. Kans., where he practiced his profession and specu- lated in lands. He was one of the first persons to take up land at the gov- ernment land-opening at Guthrie, Okla., in 1889, but died in that state soon afterwards, at the age of fifty-nine years. His widow married again and now resides in New Jersey with her younger sons, who are engaged in operating a factory at Newark, N. J. Virgil S. was reared in Leavenworth County, Kans., and when eleven years of age accompanied his father to Guthrie, Okla.. to attend the opening sale of land, remaining there from June to October, 1889, when he returned to Leavenworth. After his father's death, and following his mother's second marriage, he left for the great northwest, working at various occupations and at different places, and finally reaching British Columbia. From this country he returned to the United States, stopping awhile in Wyoming, where with a brother he engaged in the cattle business. The severe winters of Wyoming led Mr. Miles to consider the advisability of seeking a milder climate, and it is not strange that California appealed to him and claimed his attentions. After his arrival in Fresno County, Mr. Miles worked for H. E. Vogel, the creamery man, where he remained twenty-two months, and during this time he learned the dairy business. Afterwards he was engaged for two years to work for J. B. Lewis. Mr. Miles was much pleased with California, especially with Fresno County, and decided to make it his permanent home. For a while he worked in the vicinity of Riverdale, and in 1910 purchased twenty acres of land two miles east of Riverdale, which he improved and paid for and where he. resided until 1919, when he sold it and bought the aforesaid residence property at Riverdale. In 1917, Mr. Miles purchased an- other twenty-acre tract of land, located one and a half miles west of Lanare, on Mt. Whitney Avenue, and he is now leveling, checking and ditching this place preparatory to planting alfalfa. In 1907 he made his first venture, in the bee business, purchasing for the purpose 500 stands of bees, but through inexperience and the "black-brood" he lost a very large portion of his bees and investment. Undaunted by the failure of his initial venture, through intelligent perseverance and pluck, he continued to operate an apiary and has so well succeeded in gaining a thorough knowledge of the business that today he is regarded as one of Fresno County's successful apiarists. During the season of 1918. Mr. Miles sold sixty-four cases of honey for $1,706. 62. and has 200 stands of bees. In 1910, Virgil S. Miles was united in marriage with Miss Louise Perkins, from Wisconsin, a graduate of Carroll College, Waukesha, Wis., and who became a teacher and taught in Wisconsin, also in Santa Cruz and Fresno Counties, California, where she received a life certificate for teach- ing. Mrs. Miles is a daughter of Peter Perkins, who was born in Jefferson County, N. Y. He came west to Wisconsin and became a farmer and gained public prominence as the postmaster at Oconomowoc, Wis., for several years. Mr. and Mrs. Miles have three children: Virgil Perkins, Gloria Louise, and Seward Corrington. Mr. Miles has purchased a one-and-a-half- ton motor-truck and supplements his income from the ranch and apiary by conducting a trucking and freighting business. Mr. and Mrs. Miles are very studious_ and thoughtful people and are greatly interested in the eco- nomical and industrial questions pertaining to this age, and are earnestly seeking to do their part in the uplifting of humanity.