In 1909, Henry J. Martens traveled throughout the Great Plains in the United States, claiming to own over 50,000 acres (20,000 ha) of land in California.

In reality, Martens only had arrangements to purchase 5,120 acres (2,070 ha) of land, which he exchanged for the abandoned farmland in the Great Plains.

[1] Beginning in June 1909, Martens began showing a tract of land near Lerdo in Kern County, California, to the traveling Mennonites.

After hearing a message from a local minister asking them to prohibit saloons from opening in the planned city, the colonists decided to name the settlement Martensdale in honor of Martens.

An article in the Bakersfield Morning Echo dated November 23, 1909, reported that a large well had been dug for the community, and that it had a grocer, furniture dealer, and shoe-seller.

[5] Reports trickled back to the Great Plains that Martens had provided money for the establishment of schools for Baptists, Mennonites, Adventists, and Lutherans, although the modern writers Leland Harder and Kevin Enns-Rempel state that there is no evidence to prove that either significant Baptist and Lutheran settlement or the claimed donations actually occurred.

[13] While this charge was withdrawn by the plaintiffs on January 31, three more individuals filed lawsuits against Martens in February, all for amounts in excess of $10,000.

[12] The houses already built at the site were moved by the settlers using wagons,[14] although several families were reported to have used log rollers for that purpose in March.