A. D. BARLING.
Among our younger raisin-growers and packers, Mr. A. D. Barling occupies a prominent place. A sketch of his life and connection with the raisin industry is most interesting. He came to the raisin district with only a dollar in his pocket. To-day he is a wealthy grower and packer, whose raisin brand is among the best in the State.
Mr. Barling, formerly of Michigan, was educated at Ann Arbor. In 1873 he left college and started West, settling in Merced county, California. There he became connected with the Farmers’ Canal Co., as their chief engineer, which position he held for seven years, and in that capacity conducted the water of the Merced river down to Livingston on the S. P. R. R. From Merced he went to Mexico in the employ of the Mexican Central Railroad, but returned to San Francisco, California, in 1882. Here he had charge of the construction of the large wharf at Alameda point, then being constructed by the S. P. R. R. Co.
Becoming tired of working for a salary, Mr. Barling went to Fresno and rented a lot in the Central Colony. By dint of hard work, not having any capital at all to start with, he and his wife saved one thousand dollars, with which they purchased the present El Modelo vineyard, paying forty-five dollars per acre for the rough land in 1885. Mr. Barling and his wife went to work with a will and set out the land in Muscat cuttings, but through unfortunate and unforeseen circumstances all the first planting was lost. Undaunted they replanted in 1886 with great success, and to-day they own one of the finest and best-paying 150-acre vineyards in the county, having yearly added new territory to the first purchase. Last season they packed sixteen thousand boxes of Muscat raisins, and established the El Modelo brand, which in the market is considered second to none, and which has established an enviable reputation for its packers. This year’s pack is estimated to reach fifty thousand boxes of twenty pounds each. Mr. Barling’s thorough education and skill and experience as an engineer has materially contributed to his success. He has also held the position of assistant cashier in the Fresno Loan & Savings Bank for the last five years.