John H. Shary (March 2, 1872 – 1945) was an American

farmer A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer mig ...

and entrepreneur.

Early life

Shary's parents were

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen, see Austrian nationality law * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ...

immigrants who came to America and became

pioneer Pioneer commonly refers to a settler who migrates to previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited land. In the United States pioneer commonly refers to an American pioneer, a person in American history who migrated west to join in settling and dev ...

farmers. John Shary grew up and went to school in

Crete, Nebraska Crete is a city in Saline County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 7,099 at the 2020 census. History The railroad was extended to the area in 1870, bringing settlers. In 1871, two rival towns merged to form a new town, which was name ...

. By the age of eighteen he had worked his way through college to become one of the youngest men certified as a

pharmacist A pharmacist, also known as a chemist (Commonwealth English) or a druggist (North American and, archaically, Commonwealth English), is a healthcare professional who prepares, controls and distributes medicines and provides advice and instructi ...

in that state. When he was twenty-two, he accepted a job as a traveling salesman for a California drug company. His travels took him throughout the United States and Canada. While in Texas, he took notice of the great potential for land development. He first purchased 30,000 acres (120 km²) of land between Corpus Christi and

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= U.S. state, State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , s ...

. The sale of this property earned him much profit and inspired him to enter the land development business.

Life in Texas

In 1912, Shary made his way to the

Rio Grande Valley The Lower Rio Grande Valley ( es, Valle del Río Grande), commonly known as the Rio Grande Valley or locally as the Valley or RGV, is a region spanning the border of Texas and Mexico located in a floodplain of the Rio Grande near its mouth. The ...

and realized the possibilities of this lush area. At the time it was largely brush and

cactus A cactus (, or less commonly, cactus) is a member of the plant family Cactaceae, a family comprising about 127 genera with some 1750 known species of the order Caryophyllales. The word ''cactus'' derives, through Latin, from the Ancient Greek ...

, but Shary was impressed with

citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering plant, flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as Orange (fruit), oranges, Lemon, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and lim ...

crops that were being grown by early citrus experimenters and felt that citrus was the crop of the future for Texas. Citrus crops needed irrigation and in 1914 Shary purchased the

First Lift Station The First Lift Station is a pump station in Mission, Texas, that once provided water for irrigating the crops of the early Rio Grande Valley. In 1907 John J. Conway and James W. Hoit began the Mission Canal Co. Irrigation system, which was instru ...

which pumped life giving water from the Rio Grande to irrigate 15,000 acres (61 km²) of surrounding crops. The chimney from the lift station has been designated a Texas historical landmark and is still standing at the site of
Chimney Park
in Mission, Texas. That following year Shary planted the first commercial citrus orchard. His first crops were seeded

white grapefruit The grapefruit (''Citrus'' × ''paradisi'') is a subtropical citrus tree known for its relatively large, sour to semi-sweet, somewhat bitter fruit. The interior flesh is segmented and varies in color from pale yellow to dark pink. Grapefruit is ...

. His citrus empire would eventually grow to almost 15,000 acres (60 km²) of groves. The first commercial shipments of citrus, packed in onion crates, were shipped from the lower Rio Grande Valley in 1920. By 1922 much of the land had been transformed into citrus groves, and

cotton Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus ''Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor perce ...

onion An onion (''Allium cepa'' L., from Latin ''cepa'' meaning "onion"), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus ''Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion ...

, and vegetable fields. Shary took the lead in organizing and building the United Irrigation Company, in order to assure water supplies for future developments.

Legacy

Because of his significant role in the development of the area, Shary was named to the Texas Business Hall of Fame and is remembered as the "Father of the Texas Citrus Industry". He greatly assisted in the establishment of citrus as a productive commercial crop in the Rio Grande Valley. Since 1932, th
Texas Citrus Fiesta
has been held to commemorate the abundant harvest of the Texas citrus industry. To this day, this area is known for producing some of the sweetest and best quality citrus in the world. He purchased 36,000 acres (150 km²) of land near Mission. This area would later become known as " Sharyland." Also, the south end of Shary's estate, also formally known as "Shary Farms", was bought b
Hunt Realty Corporation
and developed into a suburban community by the name o
Sharyland Plantation
A landmark that still stands today is the Sharyland school, which he had built to educate the children of the many families who made their home in the area. Shary was President of the Board of Trustees for Sharyland ISD. He served from its formation in 1922 until he retired in 1939.

References

Shary, John Harry article
fro

from th
University of Texas-Pan American Library ArchivesJohn H. Shary Collection
from th
University of Texas-Pan American Library Archives

External links

Photographs from the John H. Shary Collection
from th
University of Texas-Pan American Library Archives
hosted by th
Portal to Texas HistoryPhotographs of Sharyland Excursions
from th
University of Texas-Pan American Library Archives
hosted by th
Portal to Texas HistoryGoogle Map of Lands Owned by John H. Shary
from the University of Texas-Pan American Library Archives hosted b
Google Maps
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shary, John 1872 births 1945 deaths Citrus farmers Farmers from Texas People from Hidalgo County, Texas People from Wilber, Nebraska