John Wesley Fly was a valiant Civil War veteran and resilient cattleman born in Missouri in 1844. At nineteen, he volunteered for the Union Army, joining the First Missouri Cavalry and seeing active service in the battles of Little Rock and Camden before his honorable discharge in 1865. In 1864, during a wartime furlough, he married Charity Clark, who remained loyal to him despite her family’s Southern ties.

The couple farmed in Missouri until 1883, when they relocated to Routt County, Colorado, to build a highly successful cattle operation under the “4/5” brand. Seeking a lower altitude for his health, Fly sold his ranch and relocated to Clovis, California, in 1904. He transformed his acreage near Clovis into a thriving Sultana vineyard, raised five children, and became a prominent local figure through his leadership in the Methodist Episcopal Church and the Grand Army of the Republic.