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Edwin Perry Wray
b.31 Dec 1854 San Leandro, Alameda, California, United States
d.7 Nov 1947 White Salmon, Klickitat, Washington, United States
Family tree▼ (edit)
m. 1 Jan 1848
▼Facts and Events
"He was called by his initial all his life, EP. He is buried in Lakeport, Lake County, California. Died at an age of 94. At an early age, his parents moved back to Buchanan, Berrien County, Michigan. After his mother died, he and his brother, Jim (Zimri) and sisters Asenath (Sena) and Nancy Jane (Jennie) were placed in a Shaker Farm in South Bend, Indiana where they remained until Caleb bought a home and hired a housekeeper, Sarah Clark. They all entered school. Jennie got married in 1873 and he went to live with his grandmother, Nancy, and Aunt Margaret in Niles, Michigan, where he attended high school and graduated at the top of his class even though he worked at his father's brick and tile yard almost full time. At an age of 21 he returned to California and entered San Jose Normal. Upon graduation he taught at a school in Crescent Mills for 2 years before coming to Lake County, California. He taught at Sulfur Bank Mine (Clearlake Oaks), Blue Lakes (Upper Lake) and Big Valley (Lakeport) before marrying his wife at which time he bought a farm north of Lakeport about where Rainbow Resort is located. Since there were no roads to town, he built a small sailboat to go to town. He then bought a better farm in Scotts Valley and operated Appledale Nursery and planted an orchard and grew potatoes. He peddled his produce all over the county. He was a gifted plant propagator and developed and patented the Wray Potato. Besides the nursery, orchards and potato farm, he built and operated a cold storage plant to keep his apples, pears etc. and sold ice. In 1907 he took a trip to Hood River, Oregon and found a farm across the river in White Salmon, Washington and moved all his family to Washington, but for Alice who had married, selling his Scotts Valley farm. He cleared his land of timber and rocks, using the rocks as a natural fence that stands to this day. He developed and patented an appleN2 and the Wray Red strawberryN1, which was widely planted in Oregon and Washington. He lived the rest of his life at White Salmon, but wanted to be buried in the family plot at Lakeport upon his death. Late in life he spent much time with his daughter, Alice Deacon, in Lake County."S3 ▼References
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