Mrs. Cliff Wiggin was a pioneer — at least in Manteca.

Several community members gathered at her home on March 17, 1911 to watch her iron clothes with an electric iron.

We know this because it made the front page of that week’s edition of the Manteca Bulletin.

Almost two months earlier on Jan 20, 1911, the first electricity started flowing over lines to Manteca locations.

Manteca had streets lights one month after electricity arrived.

The wires arched  across the street with seven lights on each arch.

There were four arches east of the tracks and three west of the tracks.

After 11 p.m., only the center light was left burning on each arch.

The lights, by the way, were 100 watts each.

That’s roughly the light provided by a porch light.

The story reporting Mrs. Wiggin’s feat also noted “soon townspeople and farmers of the district will be grinding their morning coffee with electric power.”

It should be noted we do not know Mrs. Wiggin’s first name given it was the standard of the day that married women were referred to formally by using  “Mrs.” in front of their husband’s first and last name.

That rarely happens today.

Actually, ironing clothes also seems to be going the way of the dodo bird in most households these days as well.

Prior to electricity, clothes irons were heated in a fire.

Manteca got electricity because San Francisco’s street cars needed power.

A concern out of San Francisco was able to obtain the Stanislaus Electric Power Co. in 1908.

It had gone bankrupt after completing a large powerhouse and flume on the Stanislaus River.

The new company formed was the Sierra and San Francisco Power Company.

Pacific Gas & Electric eventually bought the company and became Manteca’s power provider.

Work starts on city’s

community garden

A grassy area the downtown area next to the Center Street tennis courts is being transformed into a vibrant community garden.

The site on the southeast corner of Center Street and Poplar Avenue is across from the library.

The City of Manteca is working in concert with a community non-profit with the cost of putting in improvements to accommodate the garden being paid for with pass through COVID relief funds the city received from the federal government.

The community garden would not only make use of the large swath of grass adjacent to the tennis courts that was nothing more than eye candy, but could potentially expand into the dirt lot to the north of the tennis courts.

The city acquired the parcel that was once the site of the Boy Scout Hut in 1991.

It originally built as a Christian Science Reading Room.

The historical society at first considered it as a location to open a museum.

They ended up determining it was too small for their needs.

The organization ended up buying the original Methodist/Episcopalian Church at Sequoia and Yosemite to house the museum.

The former Boy Scout Hut was razed over 30 years ago leaving the city with the vacant parcel ever since.

The advantages of the site are numerous when it comes to a community garden.

*It has access to city water.

*There is ample on-street parking bordering the tennis courts for their needs.

*It is a highly visible site that enhances security.

*There is already lighting in place at the tennis courts.

*The organization could make use of the McFall Community Room across the street at the Manteca Library when necessary.

*It is a high profile location that could serve to attract people interested in participating with the community garden.

*Given its location, it could inspire workshops and such aimed at educating the community.

*Eliminates the city’s need to water and maintain a large area of ornamental grass.

To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com