Winton History

Early Winton Days

Winton, California, a small community in Merced County has a colorful history. The land was dry, desert-like with loose sandy soil. Before 1910 Crocker Huffman Land and Water Company owned a large tract of land, which was called the "Winn Ranch". It consisted of grain fields and grazing lands. The land was subdivided into lots under the names of Merced Colony No. 2 and Merced Colony No. 3 and put on the market in 1910. A total of 5,500 acres made up the two colonies.

In 1911 the Townsite was laid out and at first named Winfield for the Winn Ranch. It was later changed to Winton at the request of the railroad people. There was already a town called Winfield on the Santa Fe. This town was located in Arizona, but the railroad would not stand for another. The signs had already been made and so to economize, they changed the name from Winfield to Winton. Some sources say it was named after G. E. Winton of Merced who surveyed it. The Winton Townsite Map was recorded April 4, 1912.

A book, titled, "Memories of Winton 1911-1950" was published in 2004.
A Limited number of books have been printed for the 3rd and final printing. They are available now. They are the same as the first printing,530 pages with 750 pictures of town, school class pictures, family pictures and information in a hardback with nice binding. Historical information came from local newspapers of that time period.

The cost is the same. $35.00 per book or $40.00 if mailed within the U.S. Contact LR441@aol.com for more information.

Winton History

Early Winton Days

The Next Winton Book

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