Shuey, John W.

John W. Shuey was born near Quincy, Adams County, Illinois, on June 23, 1852, to pioneer farmer John Shuey and Lucinda Stowe. His father made several early journeys across the plains and eventually brought his family to California in 1856, where John was raised and educated in Alameda County. After reaching age twenty-two, John engaged in grain and stock raising with his twin brother Henry in Crow Canyon, at one point producing 38,000 sacks of wheat in a single year. After farming in Contra Costa County, he first came to Fresno County in 1887 and became the first man to lease lands in what became the Barstow District. He later moved to Douglas County, Oregon, where he raised stock with his brother until losing out in the panic of 1893.

Following the financial panic, Mr. Shuey returned to Fresno County and successfully farmed large tracts of leased land, including the Sharon estate and the area where Biola is located. In 1898, he purchased his original twenty acres in the Empire Colony, which he progressively expanded into a well-improved sixty-acre property featuring Thompson seedless grapes and alfalfa. Married in Alameda County to Mary Cull, daughter of early settler S. T. Cull, the couple raised four children: Bertha, Harry A., Grace, and Mary. Beyond his agricultural achievements, he served as a member of the Board of Trustees for the Empire School District and joined the California Associated Raisin Company. His long career in Fresno County reflects his perseverance in transforming local barren land into a highly productive agricultural region.