Fresno's Well Known Indian - Mr. Cloud

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Lost Fresno
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Fresno's Well Known Indian - Mr. Cloud

Post by Lost Fresno » Mon Dec 19, 2011 10:06 am

This memory was submitted by our member: C2H5OH. The "INDIAN" was known to me as "Mr. Cloud". He and his brother owned the property from First Street to the "Rotary Park" flood control basin, and from Gettysburg to just short of Holland street/Avenue. His brother sold his half of the property by about 1978 or so.

There is no end to the rumors about Mr. Cloud. Most are nothing more than urban legends generated by preteen kids of the neighborhood. I grew up within 50 yards of the south-east entrance to Rotary Park. I lived there when it was still barren ground with a small pond where we would catch frogs. We generally feared Mr. Cloud and heard rumors about him shooting or threatening to shoot trespassers. But, I never actually saw him with a gun or anything else that suggested the rumors might be true. In later years, I got to know him a bit and seriously doubt that any rumors of violence or threats were true.

I did see Mr. Cloud many times working in his fig orchard and riding his bicycle to the grocery store (Can't recall the name) at the Northwest corner of First & Ashlan next door to Rudy's "dime store". I noticed that he would occasionally purchase a carton of ice cream and eat the whole thing out in front of the store before riding his bicycle back home. It was what we called a girls bike with a steel basket on the front handle bars. He carried groceries home in the basket. In later years he could no longer ride the bicycle but still walked and rode the bus. I think I recall him having some type of fall or accident on the bicycle that ended that mode of transport for him. Rumor had it that he did ride the bus downtown to the courthouse to watch trials for entertainment and I'm about 99% certain that he did in fact do that. My father was a local attorney. And, my high school employers (the Exxon gas station across the street) wife knew Mr. Cloud about as well as anyone. I think that one or both of them had confirmed that he was a frequent (but silent) spectator at the courthouse.

Mr. Cloud was rumored to have graduated from Berkeley and Law school. I'm not certain that was true but I know that he did write poetry and shared said poetry with my boss’s wife. He lived in the larger unpainted wood house on the very corner of First & Gettysburg until the City condemned it and forced him to move out. At that point he built the very small white wooden building that he remained in until he died (I Assume). It was a very simple square/rectangular building. It did have electricity but I'm not certain it had modern plumbing. In earlier years, he did not have a freezer (the reason he ate all of the ice cream at the grocery store and made frequent trips to the store). I'm not certain if he had any sort of refrigerator in the early or later years.

At some point, the original house was vandalized and the old fixtures stolen (valuable antiques by then). The house was literally within less than 3-4 feet of vehicle traffic (at least near the end). I remember walking past it near the corner and realizing there was nowhere near enough room for a sidewalk. I'm pretty sure the house actually fell down before it was torn down. It was damaged at least once by a car hitting it.

I heard that Mr. Cloud refused to wear store bought clothes and that a niece sewed all of his clothes for him. Appearances suggested that might have been true. He seemed to always wear what looked like long sleeved blue "work shirts". This was true even in the extreme summer heat. I've met local old timers who have confirmed that he had no real shortage of money and even loaned money to other local farmers in need. Apparently, he was respected by his peers. His name suggests that he may have been Native American Indian. But, I'd always heard that he was Armenian. Fresno had and has a large Armenian community (of great integrity and justifiable pride I might add). But, Armenians were sometimes referred to as "Fresno Indians". I perceived this to be a derogatory term so I say this with regret only to offer a possible explanation for his being known as "the Indian". I certainly learned to respect Armenians in general and Mr. Cloud in particular.

Mr. Cloud was rumored to have willed his land to a Church with the expressed desire that nothing ever be built there except a church. I don't know if that is true but I am certain that he did want the land to remain farm land. I was saddened when I learned that his wishes would not be respected. I think a plaque and a single fig tree remains on the property near the AutoZone store. Perhaps that lone tree and plaque are there to satisfy some legal requirement of his will????

Big J
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Re: Fresno's Well Known Indian - Mr. Cloud

Post by Big J » Wed Dec 21, 2011 8:45 am

Mr. Cloud. I remember him. When I was young I used to enjoy visiting anything old - my grandma was involved with the historical society so things like the old Sun Maid plant, etc, were great fun to me. I used to have a photo album (long gone) of these places. My grandmother took pictures for me sometimes, and at times I would myself. My grandma stopped at the Cloud property one day, to snap an innocuous picture from First street - Mr. Cloud was out and she asked if he minded. He told her in no uncertain terms to get off his property. She apologized, explained what it was for (my little photo album - I was maybe 6-7 years old) and he apologized for being rude and walked her around the whole house to take photos. It had been condemned for some time by this point but I remember in the photos you could see through a couple of the windows - light fixtures still there etc. I've never heard about a plaque there - I'll have to check it out. I do believe the fig tree had something to do with his will - he was there clear up until his death.

Interesting stuff. I recall my grandmother tried to photograph the old house once and was shooed away. I haven't seen a plaque, will have to look for that.

Aaron

Re: Fresno's Well Known Indian - Mr. Cloud

Post by Aaron » Sun Apr 15, 2012 4:50 am

I looked all around the Auto Zone parking lot area and couldn't find a plaque :(

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