James Griffin Boswell

Born in Penfield, Georgia, in 1882, J. G. Boswell was the son of Minnie Griffin and Joseph Osgood Boswell, both members of pioneer Georgia families. His father was elected as a Georgia State Representative. J. G. Boswell joined the Army in 1903 and left in 1920 due to back problems. He retired at the rank of brevet lieutenant colonel. He had married Alaine Buck (1886–1938) while still living in Georgia. After living in California for a time and his wife's death, he secondly married Ruth Chandler (1897–1987), daughter of Los Angeles Times publisher Harry Chandler and his second wife Emma Marian Otis, Secretary of the Times-Mirror Company. After building his company farm, Boswell was a major supporter of the California Institute of Technology, serving on the board of trustees in 1946. He also supported Claremont McKenna College, donating $85,000 for a new dormitory, which was named Boswell Hall in his honor. ==J. G. Boswell Company==

After leaving the army, Boswell started working in Greene County, Georgia, as a regional cotton broker. Learning about development in California, he migrated there and settled in Pasadena. He bought property in Corcoran, located on Tulare Lake, which used to be the largest body of fresh water in the state. He worked to drain the wetlands around the lake, using dykes, ditches, canals, and dams in order to farm its fertile bed. He established his company in 1921 and started cultivating cotton in California. He was joined by his brother William Whittier Boswell. They managed the processing of the cotton and its marketing, and gradually acquired more property. Tulare Lake is still home to some of the world's biggest cotton farmers. During the thirties, many of the farmers from the dustbowl, moved out west and worked on Boswell farms. ==See also==