by Jim Bulls
Recently Channel 30 News aired a special on the unsafe school buses on our valley roads. I was surprised to see that the school transportation department featured in the newscast was Reedley’s Kings Canyon Unified. However, I wasn’t so surprised that the only problem cited was exhaust emissions. Many people are unaware that the school bus is the safest mode of transportation known to man. I am an advocate for clean air and I am aware of the emission problems all internal combustion engines have, but before everyone gasps for air and holds their nose when they are around a school bus, let’s explore how safe that school bus actually is.
by Jim Bulls
The start of the 1920s finds Drake Manufacturing moving to their new location at East and South Avenues (now Dinuba Ave.). Having perfected the Jadson Motor Valve, Drake closed the garage and Buick agency to devote all their efforts toward the valve business. The Drake Family still finds time for racing and a new hobby: barnstorming. In fact, on the roof of the new building “Jadson Motor Valve Company” is painted for anyone passing or flying by to see. 1920 was bittersweet for the Drake Family however, as family patriarch John Alexander passes away.
by Jim Bulls
It’s a challenge not to be repetitious while writing for Kings River Life–in many of the stories I have written before, it is inevitable that Reedley’s history will come up. It is also astonishing to realize that the lifetime I have spent in Reedley spans over half of the City’s existence! That’s right, not just the centennial, not even the incorporation, but since the very inception of a town named Reedley (by one year) in 1888.
