Originally an old Virginia Family
W.T. Davis and John Davis , moved from Granville, North Carolina to Tennessee when they
were quite young, and attended school while living upon a farm in the meantime.
In 1840 they went on the Mississippi river, following the shipping and forwarding business until
1848, when they went to Arkansas, changing their business to stock- raising and farming. On the
11th. of January, 1847, while in Arkansas, Mr W.T. Davis Married Miss Mary Ann Burks, a
native of Jackson County, Alabama. The Davis brother started for California April 8 , 1857,
accompanying the Fancher train until they reached Green river . The Fancher party going south,
were killed by the Mormons. The Davis brothers went north , and so escaped that violent death;
however, while on the trip they saw three men lying dead in one place and two in another.
They came by the south route, entering California at Sierra valley, where they remained six weeks,
then pressed onward until they arrived, October 15, 1857, at Tuolumne river, where they
purchased land in Stanislaus county, California and went into the business of stock- raising,
remaining in that occupation until 1868, when they engaged in general farming.
The farm consists of one thousand acres, devoted largely to wheat. Besides the large annual yield
of wheat from this farm their is some general farming conducted, and on the place are kept some
thirty head of horses, fifteen cows, and two thousand two hundred sheep. It is situated seventeen
miles from Modesto and nine miles from the railroad. It is three miles to the public school and four
to the church. The farm is located on the river, and is valuable and productive, yielding about thirty
bushels of wheat per acre.
Mr. W.T. Davis died February 9, 1872, leaving a wife and eleven children to mourn the loss of
their husband and father. They still reside on the farm. ( not sure of the date at this writing , need
to check the date)

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