James S. Rice
| James Stephen Rice | |
|---|---|
| Born |
October 31, 1846 Cleveland, Ohio |
| Died | 1939 Tustin, California, United States |
| Residence | Tustin, California |
| Nationality | American |
| Alma mater | Western Reserve College BA 1866 |
| Known for | pioneering rancher in Tustin, California |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Coralinn Frances Barlow (1849–1919)(m. 2 Oct 1872) |
| Children | James Willis Rice (1873–1951) Merrill Barlow Rice (1876–1919) Harvey Rice, Jr. (1878–1900) Percy Fitch Rice (1882–1954) |
| Notes | |
James Stephen Rice (1846–1939) was an American businessman and rancher who was a pioneering resident of Orange County, California and a civic leader in Tustin, California.
James Stephen Rice was born 31 October 1846 in Cleveland, Ohio to Harvey Rice (1800–1891) and Emma Maria (Fitch) Rice (1812–1889). Rice was educated in the public schools in Cleveland and attended Case Western College in Hudson, Ohio, graduating with a BA degree in classical studies in 1866. Rice married Coralinn Frances Barlow (1849–1919) of Cleveland on 2 October 1872, and they had four children. From 1866 to 1877, he was in business with his half-brother Percival Wood Rice and his brother-in-law Proctor Rollin Burnett, who were proprietors of the Rice & Burnett Company a crockery and home furnishing business in Cleveland.
James Stephen Rice and his family moved to Orange County, California on 18 January 1877, first residing near the head of Newport Bay in one of the former ranch houses owned by José Antonio Andres Sepúlveda (1803–1875), the owner of Rancho San Joaquin. Rice began ranching by working for his brother-in-law James Irvine who had purchased the Rancho San Joaquin from Sepúlveda in 1864 and established the Irvine Ranch.
In 1878, Rice purchased a small tract of land from Peter Potts in the village of Tustin, shortly after Columbus Tustin laid out the first real estate plats, and he planted Valencia orange trees and Muscat grapes. A few years later, he purchased an additional tract of 50 acres (200,000 m2) and expanded his lucrative agricultural operations. In the California real estate boom of 1886-87, he sold off all but 12 acres (49,000 m2) of his land for development at $4000 per acre, allowing him to build a three-story home on his remaining property. Mrs. Coralinn Rice was a noted Orange County socialite frequently hosting performing artists including Helena Modjeska at their home in Tustin. Mrs. Coralinn Rice died in 1919.
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