Page 19 - ra_shirleyrubel20020402
P. 19

SL:    So  you  had  a  second  ranch  up  at  Healdsburg?


                SRL:.Yes,  this was        after  the  war.        This-was  when ...  Boo  and  I
                       went  with  Mother  and Eddie  to  look  at  land  up  there,  and  it
                       was  a  charming  ranch.         Healdsburg  is  north·of  Santa  Roa,
                       and  it's  a  lovely  town,  just  a  lovely  town.               Hidden  Valley
                       Ranch ...  they  built  a  house  there,  and  they  had  cattle  and
                       orchards.

                SL:    What-prompted  the  purchase?             I  should  think  this  place would
                       be  a  colossal  handful.


                SRL:  Well  it  was,  but  it was  also  a  get-away,  so  they  spent  quite
                       a  bit  of  time  up  there.        After  Dad  was  killed,  here  was
                       Mother.      She  went  on  bended  knee  to  her  sister's husband,
                       Harry  Forbes,  who  was  a  top-notch  citriculturist,  working
                     for      e Sespe, and   he had a     ve very nicecareer       the re.    H He gavea      up
                       a  lot  to  come  here  and  become  the  manager  of  this  ranch.
                              And  they  lived  here,  in  the-schoolhouse.

               SL:     What  year  would  that  have  been,  right after  your  father
                       di·ed?


               SRL:  Yes,  that      had  to  be  in '44      or  '45.     They  had  a  kitchenette;.
                       you  saw  the  pipes  in  the  wall  behind  that  round  \table over
                       there  on  the  other  side.          They  did  this  so  nicely.
                              This  was  a  big  living  room,  as  you  can  imagine,  with  a
                      dining  table  over  there,  and  the  master  bedroom- was  on  the
                      stage,  with  the  big  curtains  over·it.                They  had  a  son  and  a
                      daughter.        Jerry  had  this  bedroom,  and  Joanne had the  one
                      over  there,      and  it  worked  out  very  nicely.
                              Mother  promised  to·build  them  a  house,  as  soon  as  they
                      could  get the  materials,  so  that's  when  the  house  up  there
                      was  built.

               SL:    The  house on  the  hill  that  Ann's  in?
               450
               SRL:  Yes,  that  was  built  for  them,  and  they  lived  there  many
                      years.

               SL:    So  how  long  was  he  running  the  ranch?
                                I
              ·SRL:  Well  it  had  to  be,  from  about ...  what  did  I  say,  '45,  until
                      Eddie  had his  way,  and  got  rid  of  Harry  -             which  was  a
                      tragedy.       Oh,  I  don't  want  this  on  any  kind  of  tape.


               SL:    It  was  not  a  smooth  transition,  let's  say  that.



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