The Curtner, the Silva and the Goularte Families

The Curtner, the Silva and the Goularte Families. Rancho Higuera Historical Park. Henry Curtner, an enterprising American, arrived at Mission San Jose in 1852. He worked for farmers in the area. In 1856 Curtner returned home to Indiana to marry Lydia Kendall. By 1868 he was able to purchase the portion of Rancho Agua Caliente that included the adobe. He continued tobuy adjoining properties until he owned over 6,000 acres from “Mission Peak to the Bay.”, He hired James Leitch, a skilled carpenter, and other to build a new ranch house, a bunkhouse, a slaughterhouse, barns for storing hay, barns for horses and dairy barns. They built a concrete building where milk was cooled and processed and added a lean-to shed to the adobe., In 1869 the Curtners built a large, redwood, Italianate, seventeen-room mansion on the lower portion of their property (modern address is 45588 Wabana Common). They had six sons and two daughters. After Henry died in 1917, his son Arthur inherited the ranch and moved into the mansion., Images: , Henry Curtner, for whom Curtner Road is named, once owned 6,000 acres from “Mission Peak to the Bay.” (Courtesy History San Jose), James Leitch, a skilled carpenter, helped build many structures in the area. (Museum of Local History), From 1904 to 1918, the Joe Silva family moved into the ranch house and leaded this property as a dairy farm. Each morning they took the milk in 10-gallon cans to the Warm Springs Train Depot, which was on the southwest corner of present-day Warm Springs Boulevard and Warren Avenue. The “Peanut Train,” a small freight train dropped off empty milk cans from the day before and picked up the filled milk cans and mail sack and delivered them to Oakland., Images: , Manuel Silva rented the dairy farm from the Curtners. (Museum of Local History), The Silva children holding flags. (Museum of Local History), The Silva children with a steer. Note the barn in the background. (Museum of Local History), This wagon, hitched to a horse, was used to deliver milk in large 10-gallon cans. (Museum of Local History), Joaquin “Jack” Goularte, an immigrant from the Azores, worked as a foreman for the Curtners. In 1927 he and his wife, Adelaide, purchased this property and moved their growing family into the ranch house. They had many farm animals, including work horses, saddle horses, milk cows and many calves. In addition to large walnut, prune and apricot orchards, they grew hay and corn and a great variety of vegetables. They sundried the fruit and stored it in the adobe until it could be sold., Their fifteen children worked hard and enjoyed exploring the hills and playing with friends who lived on neighboring farms. They attended the original Warm Springs Grammar School, which is gone, but its replacement is still on Warm Springs Boulevard., Five Goularte sons served their country during World War II. Unable to find enough help to work the farm, Jack sold it to Dr. Stanley Innes in 1945. Without the care and protection of an onsite owner, the buildings and equipment suffered. The farmhouse burned down in 1947, and the adobe fell into disrepair., Images: , The Goularte family used the Higuera adobe for storage. (Photo courtesy of Lionel Goularte), Dr. Stanley Innes (left) bought the farm from Jack Goularte (right) in 1945. (Photo courtesy of Lionel Goularte), Apricots were cut, sulphured and sun-dried on large trays in the fields. Many neighboring families helped with the work. (Photo courtesy of Lionel Goularte), The dirt road to the Goularte farm from Curtner Road. (Photo courtesy of Lionel Goularte), The Joaquin “Jack” and Adelaide family in 1924, with nine of their children. They later had six more children. (Photo courtesy of Lionel Goularte), Three generations of the Goularte family picnic near Agua Fria in the 1930s. Note the “oilcloth” tablecloth on the table. (Photo courtesy of Lionel Goularte)