Editor’s note: Manteca was incorporated as a city on May 28, 1918. In the year leading up to Manteca’s centennial, the Bulletin will periodically publish stories about the city’s history and the people who built the community. Wheat — and not almonds, pumpkins or even grapes — is what attracted farmers to the Manteca region after the Gold Rush in a bid to make a living.The crop started appearing in the area in 1850.