Tulare County
Biographies
NATHANIEL OLIVER BRADLEY
For more than half a century Nathaniel Oliver Bradley practiced law in Visalia, California, and at the time of his death on October 13, 1922, he was generally recognized as the nestor of the Tulare County bar. Born in the state of New York, he was educated and admitted to the bar in his native state in 1866, soon after reaching his majority. Deciding that the west offered better opportunities for the young lawyer, he crossed the continent and in 1867 began the active practice of his profession in Visalia.
The life history of Mr. Bradley is practically the history of Tulare county. When he alighted from the stage at Visalia in the fall of 1867 he was in a new land- a region which had been for less than twenty years under the American flag. His eyes wandered over broad plains, almost uninhabited and uncultivated; over streams that were alternately flooding the adjacent lands and drying up to mere rivulets; over the largest fresh water lake west of the Rocky mountains. Upon the bosom of that lake his first partner in California, A. J. Atwell, operated a steamboat for a few years, but the bed of the lake is now a great grain field. Then Visalia was the only town in a county which extended across the valley from summit to summit of the opposite mountain ranges. The few homes he saw in this valley were the primitive cabins of the pioneer, devoid of all modern conveniences and lighted by tallow candles or crude oil lamps. Supplies for the few inhabitants were brought from Stockton by mule or ox teams, over roads which at times were almost impassable. Hills and plains alike were dotted with herds of cattle, for at that time Tulare county was the cowman’s paradise.
Probably many persons would have been utterly discouraged by such a prospect. But Mr. Bradley, with prophetic vision, saw a brilliant future for this fertile valley and went cheerfully to work to realize the fulfillment of his dream. With interest and enthusiasm he watched the coming of the first railroad in 1872; the enactment of the “no fence law” two years later; the introduction and development of the great irrigating system, which transformed the valley from a barren waste to one of the greatest agricultural districts of the nation. He lived to see the herds of cattle give way to orchards, vineyards, alfalfa fields; he saw cities and towns spring up almost as if by magic, bringing thousands of intelligent, industrious citizens; he witnessed the harnessing of the streams and the establishment of hydro-electric plants, which give light and power to these cities and towns; the building of electric railways and improved highways, upon which automobiles and motor trucks have taken the place of the mule and ox teams which constituted the best known means of transportation at the time he arrived in Visalia. He also saw the passing of the pioneer schoolhouse and the introduction of a modern system which has brought to every boy and girl in the land the best of opportunities to acquire an education. From the slow methods of communication in vogue when he first came to California, he saw the introduction of the telephone, placing all the inhabitants of the county in immediate touch with each other. All these, as well as many other changes, were made during the brief period of one man’s active life. And of this progress Mr. Bradley could have said: “All of which I saw, and part of which I was.”
Whether practicing his profession alone, or as a member of the firms of Atwell & Bradley, Bradley & Farnsworth, or Bradley & Bradley, in which his two sons were associated with him, he always occupied a commanding and influential position at the bar and participated in much of the important litigation. As an attorney he realized and appreciated the importance of the California code system of laws enacted in 1872. He was deeply interested in the adoption of the state constitution in 1879; saw the establishment of the superior court in the place of the district and county courts; was particularly interested in the enactment of the laws providing for the formation of irrigating districts, the primary election law, and the act by which Tulare county was divided in 1893. In his private practice he was guided by the principle that it is the attorney’s duty to protect his client’s interest by keeping him out of litigation under certain conditions. This policy aided in winning for him the reputation of a wise counselor, as well as that of a skillful advocate. To his clients he gave his best in care and legal skill and his cases in court were always fought on a high plane. It is because of the example of Mr. Bradley and some of his colleagues of the earlier days that the Tulare County bar won the rank it has since maintained of being amongst the highest in the state for faithful and efficient service on the part of its members, and their fairness and courtesy in the practice of law. As an evidence of the esteem in which he was held by his legal associates, the Tulare County Bar Association created the office of honorary president especially that it might be filled by him, and this position he held at the time of his death.
In 1878 Mr. Bradley was united in marriage with Miss Virginia J. Bequette, a daughter of one of Tulare county’s prominent pioneers. They established a home where happiness and culture reigned and reared a family of which any parents might be proud. Six children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Bradley: Elizabeth B., the wife of Colonel J. R. Slattery, of New York, who is now in the employ of the city of New York as chief engineer of subway construction; Louise B., the wife of Edward M. Watson, an attorney at law of Honolulu; Nathaniel F.; Clarence L.; Christiana S., the wife of Carl E. Adams, superintendent of a sugar factory in Preston, Idaho; Jenevieve M., deputy tax collector, who is at home with her mother. In his latter years Mr. Bradley was often heard to remark that much of his success was due to his wife’s sympathy and influence. She survives her husband, and his two sons, associated with him during the closing years of his life, are still engaged in the practice of law under the old firm name of Bradley & Bradley. Mention of these sons is made elsewhere in this work. The family are members of the Catholic church.
Mr. Bradley’s political activities were with the democratic party, in which he was a prominent and from the beginning he was active as a worker but never would accept office. At most of the early conventions he acted as chairman and for many years served on the school board. He also assisted in organizing the original fire department.
History of Tulare County and Kings County, California – Kathleen Edwards Small & J. Larry Smith, Vol. I, Chicago, The S.J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1926, Page 170
Transcribed by Jeannie Miyama