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William Welles Hollister: The Ohio Drover Who Moved Sheep to California

He drove thousands of Ohio sheep across the continent and built ranches in San Benito and Santa Barbara counties.

Who Was William Welles Hollister?

William Welles Hollister was an Ohio farmer and merchant who became one of early California's major sheep ranchers and a financier of Santa Barbara. The Wikipedia biography says he was born January 12, 1818, near Hanover, Ohio, and died August 8, 1886, in Santa Barbara at age 68.

He attended Kenyon College as a teenager but left without graduating after his father died and his eyesight began to fail. He returned to farming and merchandising in Ohio, the business that funded his first western trip.

The Overland Sheep Drive to California

In 1852 he sold his Ohio farm and goods, bought a few hundred cattle and drove them to California, where he sold the herd and went home to plan a second trip. In 1854 he led what Wikipedia calls the first large transcontinental sheep drive, with his brother Joseph, his sister Lucy Brown, about 50 men and four women. The goal was meat for gold miners.

Counts differ by source. Wikipedia says roughly 10,000 merino sheep left Hanover, Ohio, while a San Benito history article says 6,000 sheep reached Santa Barbara. The party took a southern route from Salt Lake City through New Mexico and Arizona to avoid Sierra Nevada snow. Only about 1,000 sheep survived, per Wikipedia, but wool prices rose sharply during the Civil War.

Rancho San Justo and the City of Hollister

In 1855 Flint, Bixby and Hollister bought the 34,620-acre Rancho San Justo from Francisco Perez Pacheco, with Hollister paying half the price, according to the San Benito article. By 1859 the California Farmer estimated about 20,000 sheep on the ranch and wool output of 100,000 pounds a year.

The partnership dissolved in 1861 after a dispute. Hollister kept the land west of the San Benito River. In 1868 he sold 20,773 acres to the San Justo Homestead Association, which divided it into 50 parcels. The town of Hollister was formed in 1872, and in 1874 it became the seat of the new San Benito County.

Glen Annie Ranch and Santa Barbara

Hollister moved to Santa Barbara County to raise sheep. In 1862 he bought the eastern part of Rancho Dos Pueblos from the estate of Nicolas Den and renamed it Glen Annie Ranch for his wife, Annie Hannah James, whom he married June 18, 1862, in San Francisco.

With Thomas and Albert Dibblee he acquired several other land grants in the county. When that partnership ended in the 1870s, Hollister kept Rancho Canada de Salsipuedes, Rancho Las Cruces and Rancho Nuestra Senora del Refugio. In the 1870s he also helped finance the Arlington Hotel, the Santa Barbara News-Press, Stearns Wharf and the Lobero Theatre.

The Key to Hollister's Success

Hollister's record shows a pattern of using partners, timing and market demand. He supplied a booming market and later a wartime wool market, and then converted land into civic assets.

The record also shows costs. The first drive lost most of its animals, and his partnerships ended in disputes or dissolution.

  • He drove livestock to where demand was high, supplying meat to gold miners.
  • He chose a southern route through New Mexico and Arizona to avoid winter snow in the Sierra Nevada.
  • He shared risk and capital through partners such as Flint, Bixby & Company and the Dibblee brothers.
  • He held merino sheep for wool, which gained value during the Civil War.
  • He sold ranch land in parcels, as in the 1868 San Justo sale, and helped finance Santa Barbara businesses.
  • Limits: only about 1,000 sheep survived the first drive by one account, and the Flint partnership ended in a dispute in 1861.

Death, Family and Honors

Hollister and his wife had six children, and his grandson John J. Hollister Jr. became an agriculturalist, biologist and California state senator. Hollister Avenue, the main street of Goleta, is named for him. The land it crosses was once part of Glen Annie Ranch.

The Hall of Great Westerners inducted him in 1959. For more on sheep and range history, see the ranching section of farm.FM, and a farm.FM story about California ranching history for another angle. A local Q&A in the Santa Barbara Independent explains the avenue's name.

Timeline

  1. 1818Born January 12 near Hanover, Ohio
  2. 1852Drives a cattle herd to California, sells it and returns to Ohio
  3. 1854Leads a large overland sheep drive from Ohio to California
  4. 1855Flint, Bixby and Hollister buy Rancho San Justo
  5. 1861San Justo partnership dissolves
  6. 1862Buys eastern Rancho Dos Pueblos, renames it Glen Annie; marries Annie Hannah James
  7. 1868Sells 20,773 acres to the San Justo Homestead Association
  8. 1886Dies August 8 in Santa Barbara
  9. 1959Inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners

Frequently asked questions

Who was William Welles Hollister?

William Welles Hollister (1818-1886) was an Ohio-born rancher who led a large overland sheep drive to California in 1854, then owned ranches in San Benito and Santa Barbara counties and helped finance Santa Barbara businesses.

When did Hollister drive sheep to California?

He led the drive in 1854, according to Wikipedia and a San Benito history article. Some accounts give different years or flock sizes, ranging from 6,000 to about 10,000 sheep.

Is the city of Hollister named for him?

The city of Hollister stands on the Rancho San Justo land he owned in San Benito County. Hollister Avenue in Goleta, California, is also named for him.

What is Glen Annie Ranch?

It was the eastern part of Rancho Dos Pueblos, which Hollister bought in 1862 from the estate of Nicolas Den and renamed for his wife Annie. It lay in Santa Barbara County.

Sources and further reading

Profiles are compiled from public sources and reviewed against them. See our editorial policy to suggest a correction.

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