Luther Calvin Tibbetts was born in South Berwick, Maine, in 1820. In 1863 he married Eliza Lovell and the couple moved to Fredericksburg, Virginia, where they were persecuted for supporting the Union in the Civil War. In 1870 Tibbets acquired land in Riverside, California, where Eliza planted Brazilian orange trees from Washington, D.C. Grafts from these trees supplemented many of Southern California's orange groves. The Tibbetts were known for their eccentric personalities, and Luther Tibbetts had a penchant for taking his neighbors to court. A series of failed law suits and business ventures eventually left him penniless. He died in Riverside in 1902.
From the description of Biographical sketch of Luther C. Tibbetts, after 1872. (Huntington Library, Art Collections & Botanical Gardens). WorldCat record id: 635577716
