Editing Colton, California (section)

===American settlement===
The original owner of the property was George Cooley of [[Kent]], England who had moved to Colton in 1853 and who purchased 200 acres at $3.50 an acre along the [[Santa Ana River]] the next year.<ref name=Colton /> Cooley was chairman of the San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors in [[San Bernardino County]].<ref name=Colton /> By 1873, the property had mushroomed into a 400-acre property. Eventually, when property taxes had increased, the property was sold to Villelli Enterprises of [[La Habra, California|La Habra]].<ref name=Colton />  The city was named after [[David Douty Colton]], who had been a [[brigadier general]] of the [[California State Militia]] in 1855, prior to the [[American Civil War|Civil War]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oac.cdlib.org/findaid/ark:/13030/kt5d5nf3cs/|title=Finding aid of the Gen. David Douty Colton Papers – C057959|website=www.oac.cdlib.org|access-date=March 23, 2018}}</ref>  He was later the vice president of the [[Southern Pacific Railroad]] Company.<ref name=Colton />

Colton was created in its modern form when the [[Southern Pacific Transportation Company|Southern Pacific Railway]] was built heading east from [[Los Angeles]] in 1875.<ref name=Colton /> It was founded in 1875 and [[municipal corporation|incorporated]] in 1887. Colton was the site of conflict between the [[Southern Pacific Transportation Company]] and the [[Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway]] at [[Colton Crossing]] when both railroads wanted to cross through the town.

[[Virgil Earp]] lived in Colton at 528 West "H" Street<ref>San Bernardino County Register of Deeds Book (entry dated July 7, 1888)</ref> where he was the town's first marshal.<ref>Colton City News, November 2, 2006</ref> He resided in Colton from 1883 to 1889. [[Morgan Earp]] is buried at Hermosa Cemetery.