This is the scene on October 17, 1903 before nearly 600,000 of indebtedness went up in smoke. This dramatic moment marked the beginning of Tulare's real growth.
Tulareans hauled a hugh redwood stump to serve as a speaker platform as people flocked from miles to hear the president speak. President Harrison said this was the first stump speech he had ever given.
From this enlarged version of the Pacific Hotel, D.W. Madden started the waterworks which eventually serviced much of the city of Tulare. [See water tower behind the hotel]. After the hotel burned in 1886, Madden started the water works for the city…