A few weeks ago, I wrote about the Buena Vista Bridge and mentioned a fascinating character about whom I needed to write – Gunnar Kjellberg.
In 1877, at the young age of 17, Gunnar immigrated from Sweden to the United States, settling in Galesburg, Illinois, where a Swedish enclave was already established. In Galesburg, he became acquainted with a group of people who planned to move to Riverside, California. Among them were S. H. Ferris and the Johnson brothers, O.T. and A. T., all of whom became prominent in early Riverside history. Arriving in Riverside in 1885 by the private train car of Ferris and Johnson, he took a job as a zanjero or ditch tender. He soon rose to the position of a superintendent on the irrigation systems of the Riverside Water Co.
In 1887, Kjellberg oversaw the project that brought water from the artesian wells in the San Bernardino basin to the city of Riverside. The Hotel Rubidoux Association carried this out. This association obtained a portion of the mountain and the surrounding area in exchange for this work. The plan was to subdivide lots below the mountain and construct an elaborate tourist hotel rivaling the Del Coronado in the area above Pepper (now Redwood) between Ninth and 11th streets.
In 1888, he made another significant move. The Chaffey brothers, George and William, carried out development projects in Riverside before establishing the colonies of Etiwanda and Ontario. Water played an essential role in all their developments. Following the establishment of Ontario, they were persuaded to go to Australia to develop irrigation systems. The Chaffey brothers needed someone to supervise the irrigation systems. They convinced Gunnar to move to Australia and assume the title of water master, overseeing the construction of the irrigation system designed by the brothers…