Potter, Joseph Webster

Joseph Webster Potter was born on December 31, 1876, northeast of Clovis, Fresno County, California, to John Wesley Potter and Martha Jane Webster. His father, born in Cooper County, Missouri, came to California in 1853 and later moved to Fresno County in 1871, where he farmed, raised sheep, mined, and grew early regional vineyards and figs. His mother was born in Napa County in 1852 after her pioneer parents crossed the plains, eventually marrying his father in Vacaville, Solano County. Joseph grew up alongside his two sisters, Mrs. Kate Clark of Kingsburg and Mrs. Lizzie Russell of Clovis, attending local Mississippi district public schools before graduating from Pacific Methodist College in Santa Rosa with an A.B. degree in 1898.

Following his graduation, Potter returned home to farm with his father, managing acreage dedicated to raisins, peaches, olives, and figs under ditch and pump irrigation. He married Bertha Frances Allen near Upper Lake, Lake County, on January 5, 1903, and together they raised four children: Marjorie Dorothy, John Allen, Russell, and Donald. After his father passed away on April 15, 1915, Potter managed the family estate and assumed leadership as director and president of the First National Bank of Clovis. Deeply involved in his local community, he served as a trustee and Sunday school superintendent at Grace Methodist Church in Clovis and held a seat on the board of trustees for Clovis Union High School.