Themes in the History of Labor and Work in the Point Reyes Peninsula, Olema Valley, and Tomales Bay Region, 1860-1980: An Introductory Essay.
Miller MA. 2007. Themes in the History of Labor and Work in the Point Reyes Peninsula, Olema Valley, and Tomales Bay Region, 1860-1980: An Introductory Essay.
Brief Description: This essay focuses on the significance of the tenant ranching system related to the high productivity of the dairy ranches in the Point Reyes Peninsula during the Shafter era. Full Description: While it has been declared that the success of the dairy industry in the Point Reyes Peninsula region is the result of the exceptional land itself, here the claim is made that instead “cow heaven” was the product of the Shafter tenant system of farming. The focus of this introduction to the history of farming on the Point Reyes Peninsula is the Shafter era which began in 1860 and continued until 1980. The farming history of the Point Reyes Peninsula in some ways reflects the shifting economic values of the different eras spanned by the time range examined here. For example, the Shafter’s tended to pick tenants who were upwardly mobile, resourceful citizens and immigrants who were then granted access to, but not ownership of, productive resources. This essay also makes suggestions of areas that require further research.