"Colonel" Ed Fletcher (December 31, 1872 – October 15, 1955) was an American real estate developer and

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

Early life and career

Fletcher was born on December 31, 1872 in

Littleton, Massachusetts Littleton (historically ''Nashoba'') is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 10,141 at the 2020 census. For geographic and demographic information on the neighborhood of Littleton Common, please see the a ...

, son of Charles Kimball Fletcher. His family moved to

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engl ...

and

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, where he attended school. In 1888, Fletcher came to

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

alone, and with $6.10 in his pocket began selling produce. He was a born salesman and soon had his own business with a partner. In 1901, he entered the real estate business as a land agent, and started a partnership in 1908 with William J. Gross, silent film actor and producer. That partnership developed Grossmont, Casa de Oro-Mount Helix, and Del Mar. Fletcher donated land on Mt. Helix where Easter Sunrise services are held. With George Marston, he developed Pine Hills. In 1907, Fletcher was appointed Lieutenant Colonel of the

California National Guard The California National Guard (Cal Guard) is part of the National Guard (United States), National Guard of the United States, a dual federal–state military reserve force in the state of California. It has three components: the California Army ...

, which earned him the title "Colonel", which stuck for the remainder of his life. Fletcher became interested in road building and saw to it many road projects were completed. With Fred Jackson, Fletcher raised civic interest to building a road to

Imperial Valley The Imperial Valley ( or ''Valle Imperial'') of Southern California lies in Imperial and Riverside counties, with an urban area centered on the city of El Centro. The Valley is bordered by the Colorado River to the east and, in part, the S ...

, thence a

plank road A plank road is a road composed of Plank (wood), wooden planks or wikt:puncheon#Noun, puncheon logs, as an efficient technology for traversing soft, marshy, or otherwise difficult ground. Plank roads have been built since antiquity, and were comm ...

across the desert to

Yuma, Arizona Yuma is a city in and the county seat of Yuma County, Arizona, United States. The city's population was 95,548 at the 2020 census, up from the 2010 census population of 93,064. Yuma is the principal city of the Yuma, Arizona, Metropolitan ...

. Fletcher was later active in having state and U.S. highways built to San Diego. Fletcher also took an interest in developing projects delivering water to San Diego, including creating

Lake Hodges Lake Hodges is a lake and reservoir in San Diego, California. It is about north of downtown San Diego, just north of the Rancho Bernardo community, and just south of the city's border with Escondido. When full, the reservoir covers , has a max ...

. Fletcher and Montana businessman James A. Murray purchased the San Diego Flume Company on June 1, 1910, renaming it the Cuyamaca Water Company. Fletcher and Murray owned and operated the company for 15 years, making or planning improvements to the water system of

San Diego County San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwest corner of the U.S. state of California, north to its border with Mexico. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634; it is the second-most populous ...

including the construction of San Vicente Dam and San Vicente Reservoir, among others. Fletcher was a director of the

Panama–California Exposition The Panama–California Exposition was a World's fair, world exposition held in San Diego, California, between January 1, 1915, and January 1, 1917. The exposition celebrated the opening of the Panama Canal, and was meant to tout San Diego as t ...

in 1915, and

California Pacific International Exposition The California Pacific International Exposition was an exposition held in San Diego, California, during May 29, 1935–November 11, 1935 and February 12, 1936–September 9, 1936. The exposition was held in Balboa Park, San Diego's large ...

in 1935. After the 1915 Exposition, he raised funds to save the well-received temporary buildings from destruction. He also raised funds to buy land for the Naval Training Station in San Diego, and for building the YMCA. In 1919, Fletcher was elected the first president of the Dixie Overland Highway Association. In 1923, Fletcher presided over a ceremony full of

fanfare A fanfare (or fanfarade or flourish) is a short musical flourish which is typically played by trumpets (including fanfare trumpets), French horns or other brass instruments, often accompanied by percussion. It is a "brief improvised introdu ...

dedicating a commemorative highway milestone honoring

Robert E. Lee Robert Edward Lee (January 19, 1807 – October 12, 1870) was a general officers in the Confederate States Army, Confederate general during the American Civil War, who was appointed the General in Chief of the Armies of the Confederate ...

at Horton Plaza Park in downtown San Diego. The monument marked the arrival of the Robert E. Lee Highway at the Pacific coast. President

Calvin Coolidge Calvin Coolidge (born John Calvin Coolidge Jr.; ; July 4, 1872January 5, 1933) was the 30th president of the United States, serving from 1923 to 1929. A Republican Party (United States), Republican lawyer from Massachusetts, he previously ...

was reported to have pushed a button in the White House that triggered a gong at the ceremony.

Political career

In 1934, Fletcher was elected to the

California State Senate The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature (the lower house being the California State Assembly). The state senate convenes, along with the state assembly, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento. ...

, and served until January 6, 1947. Sometime while in the Senate, he switched his party affiliation from Republican to Democratic. He authored laws creating the San Diego County Water Authority and transferring ownership of Mission Bay to the city. While in the Senate he was able to acquire for San Diego a heroic statue of

Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo (; 1497 – January 3, 1543) was a Portuguese maritime explorer best known for investigations of the west coast of North America, undertaken on behalf of the Spanish Empire. He was the first European to explore presen ...

, donated to the state in 1939 by the government of

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

and claimed by both San Diego and

Oakland Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major West Coast port, Oakland is ...

. Fletcher personally "kidnapped" the statue from its storage in a garage at a private residence in Oakland; the statue is now on display at

Cabrillo National Monument Cabrillo National Monument () is a U.S. national monument at the southern tip of the Point Loma peninsula in San Diego, California. It commemorates the landing of Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo at San Diego Bay on September 28, 1542. This event mark ...

Personal life

Fletcher married Mary C. Batchelder April 8, 1896 in

Ayer, Massachusetts Ayer ( ) is a New England town, town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. Originally part of Groton, Massachusetts, Groton, it was incorporated February 14, 1871, and became a major commercial railroad junction. The town was home t ...

. They had ten children, including Charles K. Fletcher, who would become a Congressman in 1947 and served until 1949. Fletcher died on October 15, 1955, aged 82, in San Diego.

Recognition

Ed Fletcher's legacy includes a number of landmarks in the San Diego area. These include: *Fletcher Parkway in La Mesa, * Fletcher Hills in

El Cajon El Cajon ( , ; Spanish: El Cajón, lit. 'the box') is a city in San Diego County, California, United States, east of downtown San Diego. The city takes its name from Rancho El Cajón, which was named for the box-like shape of the valley tha ...

*Fletcher Chimes of Hardy Memorial Tower at

San Diego State University San Diego State University (SDSU) is a Public university, public research university in San Diego, California, United States. Founded in 1897, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CS ...

*Fletcher Cove in

Solana Beach Solana Beach (''Solana'', Spanish for "sunny side") is a beach city in San Diego County, California, on the South Coast. Its population was at 12,940 at the 2020 U.S. census, up from 12,867 at the 2010 census. History The area was first set ...

*Fletcher Point on the southern shore of

Colonel Fletcher Building

The Fletcher Building, located at Sixth and Broadway in San Diego, housed the Barnett-Stine department store and later the Owl Drug Company, was built by Fletcher in 1906 along with Frank Salmans, and designed by Edward Quayle. it was being remodeled by Champion Development Group.

References

* *, vol. 1, pp. 346–350:
Roads, by Ed Fletcher
; and vol. 2, pp. 128–132:
Ed Fletcher
, includes portrait. * Biography. Also has biography of his wife. *, pp. 27–47:
A Colony for Artists: 1902-1917
; photos.

Notes

External links

(San Diego Historical Society). Based on Heilbron's biography (above)

MSS 81
Special Collections & Archives
UC San Diego Library.
Join California Edward Fletcher
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fletcher, Ed California state senators Politicians from San Diego 1872 births 1955 deaths Businesspeople from San Diego California Republicans California Democrats People from Littleton, Massachusetts 20th-century members of the California State Legislature