M. Theo Kearney Collection
“M. Theo. Kearney’s life is the story of Fresno. . . . A history of Fresno County without a sketch of Mr. Kearney would not be a history.” The validity of this assessment made in a November, 1897 editorial from the Fresno Expositor newspaper is seen through the photographs in M. Theo Kearney’s publication. In his book, Fresno County California and the Evolution of the Fruit Vale Estate (1903), the images not only showcase the dramatic progress of agricultural development on his Fruit Vale Estate, but also depict the abundance and resources of Fresno County and Fresno City with its businesses, schools, churches as a “modern” Victorian city – selling the California dream to investors and settlers. This collection has been gathered from donations of individual photographs and picture albums to pamphlets and print materials depicting the development of his agribusiness.
The following original photographs include images that appear as illustrations in Kearney’s book, Fresno County California and the Evolution of the Fruit Vale Estate (1903) and photos from his personal albums.
Learn more about M. Theo Kearney:
Visit “The Kearney Historic Site” on our website.
Books:
M. Theo Kearney: Prince of Fresno by Schyler Rehart and William K. Patterson (1988).
Fresno County California and the Evolution of the Fruit Vale Estate, Revised Edition, 1903.
Websites:
In this slideshow, images #7 ad #8 show views of the Paris World's Fair of 1900 from the photo albums Kearney purchased when he attended the Fair. These websites offer a visual tour of the Paris World’s Fair of 1900.
