Alpaugh

Alpaugh. . , A Wowol Yokuts village called Chaw-Lo-Win existed here on an island in Old Tulare Lake, once the largest fresh water lake in California. In 1859 Allen Atwell and Isaac Goldstein claimed the island. They ferried hogs to the island on rafts to fatten on tule roots, then took them off to the north shore and drove them to the mines and villages to be sold. This island was called Hog Island, Root Island and Atwell's Island. In 1875 Atwell built the first ship on Tulare Lake, the Mose Andross, a 50 foot long by 15 foot wide flat bottomed schooner which was changed to a side wheel steamer in 1876. The ship was used to ferry hogs and cattle and for fishing until the lake subsided and left it high and dry. The dry lake bed area was used for cattle grazing for many years, then in 1906 J.O. Brubaker organized a group of investors and formed a company which purchased 8,861 acres of lake bed land to subdivide into small farms. They placed the town on the high ground and named it Alpaugh after John Alpaugh, one of the company's members. The town had 96 business lots, 708 residential lots along with church and school sites. At first the town had artesian wells which produced both water and natural gas. After a few years these failed and wells were drilled, but insufficient amounts of water were produced. In 1915 an irrigation district was formed and canals built to bring enough water for crops. , First school and post office 1906 . First church, Lutheran 1909 . First high school 1913.