It’s said that Pomona pioneer Cyrus Burdick (1834-1905), known for his humility, refused a namesake street when the town was founded. So developers named Burdick Drive three years after his death. Born in Ohio and raised in Iowa, Burdick and his family wagoned out to San Gabriel in 1853; his father Thomas (1796-1877) was soon named that town’s postmaster, then joined the County Board of Supervisors. In 1859, Cyrus married Amanda Chapman (1844-1924) at the Mission, then dabbled in various businesses, from running a general store in San Gabriel to raising cattle in Chino. He finally decided on growing citrus and bought 40 acres of the Rancho San José from Francisco Palomares in 1870. He, Palomares, and P.C. Tonner would eventually amass some 3,000 acres from Louis Phillips, then sold three quarters of it to Pomona’s founders in 1875. The Burdicks’ first house was where Burdick Drive now lies; they built their permanent home at Holt and Garey around 1885.
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