Oscar Ford was active in Riverside, serving as city councilmember, mayor, road superintendent and county forester during his many years of community service. (Courtesy photo)
Oscar Ford was born in Winterset, Iowa, in 1856. He decided to come to California at age 20. First, he was employed by the Southern Pacific Railroad in Cabazon. A year later, he decided to seek his fortune in Riverside.
Ford became involved in the citrus industry, an obvious choice for a young man of that time, trying to make his way in Riverside. He developed citrus property in various parts of the city and also worked in the management of citrus properties for several companies. An ad in the Riverside Daily Press in 1887 mentioned he was the manager of a business called the Riverside Land Bureau. He was 31 years old.
In 1888, a young woman from St. Joseph, Missouri, visited relatives in Riverside. Apparently Miss Jennie Hunt caught the eye of Ford. She had to return home in October of that year, but they stayed in contact because in June the following year, Ford spent several weeks in St. Joseph. When he returned home at the end of June, he brought Jennie with him as his bride. They went on to have four children.
In 1904, Ford began working on the development of water sources and the planting of alfalfa in the Mira Loma area, today’s Jurupa Valley.
Always looking for new opportunities, in 1907 Ford went into the roadbuilding business. He constructed miles of roads in Riverside County. Most notably, he did the first paving of the Box Springs road from the city limits of Riverside to Perris.
Ford was elected to the City Board of Trustees in 1902 and reelected in 1906. Ford was on the Board of Trustees when it proposed making Riverside a charter city. When voters approved that change, Ford ran again in the first election under the new charter. The organization running the city became known as the City Council, and in 1907 Ford was elected to that first council.
Under the charter, the position of mayor became a separately elected office. Ford was elected mayor in 1914 and served until 1919. Ford continued to serve his community after his term as mayor. He was 63 by that point. He was appointed Riverside’s superintendent of streets in 1922. He then served as county forester from the early 1930s until he was forced to resign due to his health in 1940, when he was 84.
Ford died in 1946 at age 90. He was buried in Olivewood Cemetery next to his wife, who passed away in 1932. He was survived by four children and six grandchildren.
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After his passing, The Daily Press said, “There is no record of public service to match that of Oscar Ford … where the service performed covered so wide a range of official duties.”
If you have an idea for a future Back in the Day column about a local historic person, place or event, contact Steve Lech and Kim Jarrell Johnson at backinthedaype@gmail.com.
