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William Wolfskill (1798–1866)[1] was an American-Mexican pioneer,cowboy, andagronomist inLos Angeles,California beginning in the 1830s. He had earned money for land in a decade as afur trapper nearSanta Fe, New Mexico, where he had become a Mexican citizen. This enabled him to own land in California.
Wolfskill was highly influential in the development of California's agricultural industry in the 19th century, establishing an expandedviticulture and becoming the largest wine producer in the region. One of the wealthiest men for his time, he expanded his holdings, running sheep and cultivating oranges, lemons and other crops. He is credited with establishing the state's citrus industry and developing theValencia orange.[2] It became the most popular juice orange in the United States and was the origin of the name ofValencia, California.
With his brotherJohn Reid Wolfskill, in 1842 William bought a large parcel in theSacramento Valley; they called thisRancho Rio de los Putos, later known as the Wolfskill Ranch. The brothers later divided this land, near what is nowWinters, California. There John Wolfskill established orchards and vineyards. Three other Wolfskill brothers migrated to California, working first with John in the north.
Wolfskill was born in Madison County, Kentucky on March 20, 1798.[3] His family followed Daniel Boone to Missouri.[4] He moved to New Mexico in 1821, while the region was a province of Mexico calledSanta Fe de Nuevo México. He spent ten yearsfur trapping in the New Mexico area, as the fur trade was highly lucrative and he could put together a stake for his future. In 1828 he became a naturalized Mexican citizen.
Wolfskill leftTaos, New Mexico, in September 1830 with a party of mountain men that includedGeorge C. Yount. When they arrived in Southern California in early 1831 (using the trailJedediah Smith had mapped across theMojave Desert), Wolfskill and Yount went to the coast to huntsea otter. Wolfskill eventually returned to Southern California while Yount decided to go north, and the two parted company. Yount settled in theNapa Valley.
In 1832, Wolfskill led the massacre of the village ofPuhú by American and Mexican fur trappers.[5]
As a naturalized citizen of Mexico, Wolfskill was allowed to own land and bought a parcel where downtownLos Angeles later developed. He began to cultivate grapevines for wine. He eventually planted 32,000 vines on a 48-acre vineyard. Initially, he planted mission vines, which had been introduced by the Spanish missionaries. He expanded his plantings to include other varietals later.
In May 1842 Wolfskill was awarded a large land grant in that area that developed asWinters, California in what is nowYolo County.[6] His younger brother John joined him, and they named the propertyRancho Rio de los Putos, after a nearby creek.[6] The name was derived by Spanish colonists fromLake Miwokpuṭa wuwwe, meaning "grassy creek."[6]
The property was later known as the Wolfskill Ranch. John Wolfskill established orchards and vineyards. Three younger Wolfskill brothers, Milton, Mathus, and Satchal, also migrated to that region, settling and working with John. He and William Wolfskill later divided this land, near what is nowWinters, California in the Sacramento Valley.
By his death in 1866 in Los Angeles, William Wolfskill was producing 50,000 gallons of wine a year. He was, by far, the greatest producer of table grapes in California during the Mexican era. He has been ranked by historians as one of the three most important men in the history of California viticulture. Wolfskill's neighbor, friend, and business rival in the tiny pueblo of Los Angeles, was French immigrantJean-Louis Vignes.[7]
For his time, Wolfskill was one of the wealthiest men in Southern California. He owned large tracts of land throughout the region, which he used for everything from running sheep to cultivating orange groves.[citation needed] He developed theValencia orange,[2] which became the most popular juice orange in the United States and was widely cultivated in southern California. It was the origin of the name ofValencia, California.
Wolfskill is credited with developing and building the firstschooner in California.[citation needed]
John Bidwell, another early American pioneer in California, notes Wolfskill in his memoir as among European Americans he knew in early MexicanLos Angeles:
Los Angeles I first saw in March, 1845. It then had probably two hundred and fifty people [referring to non-Native Americans only], of whom I recall DonAbel Stearns,John Temple, CaptainAlexander Bell, William Wolfskill,Lemuel Carpenter,David W. Alexander; also of Mexicans,Pio Pico (governor), DonJuan Bandini, and others.[8]