Tuly Singh Johl
- Tuly Singh Johl
- Sutter County
- UNITED STATES, 1905
Tuly Singh Johl as told by Robert Coats
Tuly Singh Johl and other Punjabi men came from Canada in 1905 and helped build the railroad through the Feather River Canyon. Tuly came to Sutter County and worked as a farm laborer. I first met him in 1936 when I had a summer job working on the Frank Poole ranch. Tuly was foreman at that time, and I saw him occasionally over the next few years. Our real friendship began when I returned from World War II in 1946, married Frank Poole’s daughter, and became a partner in the farming operation. Frank Poole taught me the business of farming, but Tuly Singh taught me how to farm. He taught details about pruning, thinning, harvesting, irrigating and other things.
Tuly Singh was foreman for Bill Eager before Frank Poole bought the ranch from Eager. Tuly continued to be foreman until he retired in the early 1960s. He was not a labor contractor. We paid the men directly and we worked with him in the supervision of the crew. He selected the crew. There were about 20 who worked year around and another 20 who worked in July and August. Many of these temporary workers were college students.
In addition to his ordinary duties, Tuly kept the peace in his area so well that deputy sheriffs would come to him for advice on matters concerning conflicts among others in the East Indian community.
Prior to World War II, East Indians had great difficulty becoming citizens. As soon as possible, Tuly applied for U.S. citizenship. I went to Sacramento with him in 1947 when he became an American citizen. Shortly thereafter he brought his wife and two youngest children, Kartar and Gulzar, to Sutter County. When the U.S. government started selling war bonds during WWII, Tuly was among the first to buy. He was at the post office before it opened on the day the bonds were first sold.
Tuly’s grandson, Malkit, now lives on Eager Road on some of the first land purchased by Tuly and his friends, including Balwant Singh who became an American citizen after serving in World War II. They bought property at prices that most people considered to be too high at the time. The first sales were financed by sellers because they had confidence in Tuly. He was a community leader respected by the East Indian community and by others in the Sutter County area. He was a patriotic American citizen and influenced others to become citizens. The children, grandchildren, and great-granchildren of Tuly and the members of his crew have entered mainstream American as substantial citizens. The names of his crew members are well represented among the prominent people of Sutter County: Heir, Teja, Gewal or Gravel, Gill, Purewal, Brar, Siddhu, and Johl.
At his funeral, people were standing on the sidewalk outside the chapel because the chapel was full.