Some quick facts about Lodi

By News-Sentinel staff

Quick:

What popular (non-alcoholic) beverage was created in Lodi?

What crop flourished in Lodi before grapes became king?

And what Lodian became a national figure in the struggle for women’s rights?

If you are a visitor to Lodi, you probably know the city is a premium wine capital. And you may have a distant recollection of the Credence Clearwater Revival hit, “Lodi.”

But there is much you may not know about our fair city. Herewith is a random compendium of notes and facts about Lodi:

• Lodi is the home of A&W root beer. The frothy soft drink was first served during a Fourth of July Parade on Pine Street in 1919.

• Now known as a zinfandel wine grape center, Lodi was once a watermelon hub. The sandy loam of the area has brought forth an amazing array of crops through the years, from wheat to almonds.

• Lodi is city of wine grapes, but it also a city of arches. The “new” arch was built at Lodi Avenue and School Streets in 1997. It was the pièce de résistance of a downtown rejuvenation project. The original arch was built for the 1907 Tokay Carnival, a precursor to today’s Lodi Grape Festival. It later was adorned by a replica of a grizzly bear. Early in 2001, the bear was removed to be refurbished. It should be back atop the arch in late spring or summer.

• Laura DeForce Gordon of Lodi was instrumental in pushing for the women’s right to vote in California. She was a fascinating and brilliant woman who was also a newspaper editor, author, lawyer, orator and spiritualist. At age 40, she and friend Clara Foltz became the first two women admitted to practice law in California. Early in her career, she met Susan B. Anthony, the famed suffrage crusader, and found her cold and unlikable.

• The town was named after either a race horse or the scene of a Napoleonic battle in Italy. No one knows for sure.

• On Aug. 10, 2000, then-presidential candidate George W. Bush was cheered at a whistle-stop rally at the Lodi Station that drew more than 11,000. It was the largest crowd to welcome Bush during his rail tour of several California cities. Through the years, Lodi has been visited by several other notable political figures, including Ronald Reagan, Richard Nixon, Herbert Hoover and William Jennings Bryan. Former Vice President Dan Quayle visited Lodi in 1992, speaking to a large crowd on the lawn next to Hutchins Street Square. Robert F. Kennedy spoke in Lodi in 1968, less than a week before he was assassinated.

• Lodi’s annual rainfall average is 16.62.

• The popular and nostalgic game of electric football was invented in Lodi in 1942 by John Conley.

• According to the 2000 census, Lodi’s population stands at 56,999, up from 51,874 in 1990. Lodi’s growth is modulated by a growth measure adopted by voters that limits expansion to no more than 2 percent per year.

• The city owns and operates its own electric utility. The city’s utility chief made nationwide headlines early in 2001 by refusing to impose blackouts, saying the city would not suffer for the poor decisions of state and utility officials elsewhere.

• That sweet smell tantalizing your nose may be the aroma of cereal and cake mix being made. General Mills opened a plant here in 1946. Cheerios and nearly 200 other products are produced at the Turner Road plant, which employs 550 people year-round.