Robert Harold Skinner
Born: 1920 Jordan Valley OR
Married: Sara Morgan 1946 Roanoke VA
Children: Robert Morgan Skinner, b 1950 Ontario OR
Nancy Jane Skinner, b 1952 Ontario OR
Sally Skinner, b 1956 Ontario OR
Information:
This is a history provided by Robert (Bob) Harold Skinner in September 2004
HISTORY OF THE SKINNER RANCH AND IT'S PEOPLE
Silas Skinner was born in the Isle of Man, a small island located between England, Scotland and Ireland, in early 1834. According to his wife's obituary in the Ramsey Courier & Northern Advertiser, May 25, 1928, he had gone to sea at the tender age of nine. This may have been a custom of the area and also the times, as seafaring seemed to be one of the main occupations of the Manx people. At any rate he must have seen some of the world at a very young age and at least one of his ventures was to America where he visited Ashtabula, Ohio. It was there that a number of Manx citizens had settled. Whether by chance or by design, he either met or renewed an old acquaintance with one Annie Jane Callow, a girl from his home town in the Isle of Man. Granddad Skinner (Will) always told us the two families lived near each other, near Andreas, I.O.M. She had immigrated to the USA some years before the time of this meeting, and had become a seamstress by trade and was living with relatives. She had originally come to the US to be with her grandparents who had come to America for health reasons. Some relatives of the Callow family still live in the area of Ashtabula. I have corresponded with a Frank Callow who is really into genealogy and has much information on the family.
Ann (Annie) Jane Callow was born Jan. 25, 1846 at Balla Callum which was the ancestral home of her family. As Granddad told the story, and also was repeated in Ann Hampton's "My American Family", Silas, being a neighborhood youth, was sent for the mid-wife or doctor at the time of Annie's birth. She came to America with an uncle, a ship captain, at age eighteen on one of his voyages in 1865 and continued to live in Ohio for about 6 years before her marriage to Silas. The house at Balla Callum was partially standing in 1953 when my parents and my sister Joanne visited the island, however in 1983 when we were there, it was mostly a pile of rubble with berry bushes growing over it. Part of the stone fence was still standing. Not a lot has been written about Annie but, judging from her successful business enterprises, and the high esteem in which she was held by her peers, she was an outstanding person in her own right. After her husband’s early and untimely death, she managed her family and her businesses in a very professional manner. She accepted the challenges of the times while living in a raw undeveloped area, and not only survived, but lived to a ripe old age of eighty one.
It could have been on one of Silas' visits to Ohio, or perhaps it was earlier in the IOM that a romance started to bloom, but like most seamen he returned to his job which in l862 led him to Sacramento, California. More of the romance story will come later. The lure of gold, and the chance to "strike it rich", must have captured his interest and he decided to leave the ship and try his luck at something new and more challenging. California gold mines were booming and just recently gold had been discovered in Idaho. In the company of one other man, whose identity is lost in history, with two burros to carry their possessions, they set out for the Idaho country. It was late in the year, so they spent the winter in Carson City, Nevada. The next spring (1863) they continued their journey north, through Nevada, eastern Oregon, and southern Idaho, to Idaho City, Idaho, which at the time was a prosperous mining area.
Some time after his arrival in Idaho, a group of prospectors, came into the Owyhee Mountains searching for new gold mines, and of course the story of their find at Discovery Bar on what is now Jordan Creek on May 18, 1863 is well documented. Michael Jordan, the leader of this party of prospectors returned to Idaho City with the news, and when he returned to his new found claims he was accompanied by Silas Skinner. The two became close friends and business associates.
Michael Jordan’s diary has many entries mentioning trades, sales, purchases, trips etc. in which the two were involved. The diary is now in the Owyhee County Museum at Murphy, Idaho. Silas, or Sam as he was referred to by his associates of the time, had several mining claims, but soon saw the urgent need for a road into the quickly developing area. Silas, in partnership with James Jordan (Michael’s brother), and Peter Donnelly, applied to the State of Idaho for a franchise to build a road from Silver City to what was thought to be the state line at the Owyhee River.
Construction of this road commenced in 1863. Work was done with pick and shovel, dynamite, ox teams and chains. While this road was under construction, Silas and another partner, H. C. Laughlin, purchased the road from Reynolds Creek to Silver City. Silas spent much of December 1865 at the Third Idaho Territorial Legislature seeking the franchise to operate both roads. Both franchises were granted on January 3,1866 and the roads were formally declared open for traffic. A toll station was first set up at Ruby city, which was about two miles below the present Silver City. The toll fee was set by the legislature. As I understand, after Silas and his partners purchased the road via Reynolds Creek to Silver City, they were granted a franchise for both roads at the same time and the toll station was then moved down Jordan Creek to the point where those two roads, one from Winnemucca and the other from Reynolds came together.
The following paragraph is a summation of information gathered from David L. Shirks book, "The Cattle Drives of David Shirk" published in 1956 by The Champoeg Press at Reed College, Portland, Oregon. During an Indian uprising in November 1867 Silas and a helper David L. Shirk were doing toll road maintenance work on a grade near what is now the community of Arock. They camped for the night in a stone cabin at the Sheep Ranch and were attacked by the indians. After a rather harrowing experience during the night, they spent the next day walking (their horses had been stolen) to the Bachelor Ranch (now part of the Skinner Ranch) and then on up to the Farnman Ranch, which is now owned by Forrest and Nancy Fretwell. There they found the bodies of Michael Jordan and his brother who had been killed by the Indians.
Note: As there seems to have been three different Michael Jordans, it is difficult and confusing to attempt a differentiation of their activities.
Now back to the romance. Dad (Kirt), always liked to tell this story with a mischievous smile on his face. It sounds like it could be right--you decide. Anyway, Silas had been busy with his travels and adventures while Annie was waiting back in Ashtabula. She had established quite a business with her sewing and some say, a millinery. She became quite impatient with her wandering paramour, and sent him a letter telling him that she wanted to know just what his intentions were, as she had another opportunity. Shortly thereafter, arrangements were made for a trip back to Andreas, Isle of Man, where they were married in Kirk Andreas Feb. 24, 1870. Ann Hampton(a granddaughter), in her writings said it was a very elaborate wedding and that Silas threw coins to the children on the sides of the street as their carriage, pulled by four horses, took them away from the church. At this date the church is still standing, is being used, and when we visited we were granted the privilege of sitting in the family pew.
After their marriage they returned to the US and made their way back across the continent to Winnemucca, Nevada, and probably then by stage coach to Ruby City, Idaho (two miles north of present day Silver City) where they made their first home. Their first son William Silas was born there on May 8, 1871. Silas busied himself with his toll road until 1878, having built a hotel or inn at the foot of Trout Creek grade east of Jordan Valley to accommodate travelers, freight teams etc. traveling the road to and from the Owyhee County mines. Three children, Carrie (March 31, 1873), Annabelle (February 18, 1875), and Thomas February 1877), were born while living at Trout Creek.
Most of the details of another story about the Skinners are probably lost forever now but we know that on one of his trips to the east he went via Kentucky and purchased some very fine Standardbred trotting horses. This could have been on his way home from the IOM after their marriage or at some later date. I seem to remember Granddad saying that there were seven head, some mares and at least one stallion. They were the beginning of a herd of horses that was very well known in harness horse racing circles in the west. Granddad spent lots of time in his very young years herding the horses on the open range during the day and returning home with his herd in the evening. There were very few fences to control their movement in those days. The colts were naturally very good trotters and their skills were honed by a man named Goldsmith. Silas, by that time, 1891, had leased the Goodrich Ranch (now known as the Acarregui or Potts ranch and is currently part of the Skinner Ranch) and a training track was made north of the house and corrals. Those young horses that showed promise were taken to California and raced with the best of them. The breeding from that herd reached down into the Skinner horses until about 1947 or 1948 when the last gelding with Standardbred blood, (Buck) was sold after a long and useful life as a ranch saddle horse. Famous names of some of the trotters were Alcona, Alcona Clay, Alcona Clay Jr., King Orrie and one Woodside who was sold to finance a trip back to the IOM. A filly whose name has slipped my memory set many records on the California tracks. In later years Dad (Kirt) sent an inquiry to the Western Livestock Journal regarding the line of breeding from which those horses came and received some information about them. They descended from one of the most famous thoroughbred sires of the time. He also received some information on some of the horses named above.
Horses had always played a big part, not only as a cash crop but as the power supply in the development of the Skinner Ranch. With four sons, all of whom loved horses, Granddad always had a crew to break all the colts that they needed on the ranch. They also provided many well-broke teams for travelers on the Idaho to California road, which passed through the ranch, and to a great many ranches in the area. The horses were well known for their excellent quality. The last big group of draft-type animals was sold, almost for a song, in late 1942 or early 1943. Tractors had taken over as the source of power by then and work horses were slowly being put out of business, even though we had a few teams until about 1960. The saddle stock mares were also sold sometime in the early 1950's. The Skinner Ranch had become strictly a cattle operation except for the saddle horses that have been purchased.
In 1878 Silas and E.H. Clinton, a partner he had taken into the business, traded their interest in the toll road and Trout Creek Station to C.D. Bachelor for a tract of land located on the bank of Jordan Creek in what is now one of the hay fields of the Skinner Ranch. Silas and Annie lived at that ranch, until 1880, having developed a herd of cattle and also horses. Their son Horatio, better known as Ray, was born there February 26, 1879. In 1880 they sold their interest in that place to his partner and neighbor E.H. Clinton, and moved to what became known as "the old Skinner place". This ranch, which Silas had purchased from a Mr. Stickland, is located about six miles east of the present headquarters and was on the toll road. A daughter, Sarah Ellen, was born here April 7, 1881 and died in 1882. Their youngest daughter Mona, was also born here April 9, 1883. It was while living here, 1881, that Silas leased the Goodrich ranch nearer to Jordan Valley and used it as a base for his Standardbred (trotting) horses he brought from Kentucky.
In 1884 Silas suffered a fall with his saddle horse near what is now the junction of Danner Loop Road and Hwy. 95, five miles west of Jordan Valley. His injury was serious enough that after some time the doctor recommended a more moderate climate and lower elevation.
They then purchased land on Big Ranch Road near Napa, California, and the family moved and made their home there, but retained ownership of the livestock in Oregon. Silas however remained active for some time and made several drives with herds of horses to Napa. Granddad wrote an account of one drive he made with his father, two other men, and his little brother Tom on the camp wagon with his father. The route followed the Skinner Toll Road to the Owyhee River, then probably along the old Military road to, or near Lakeview, then into northern California and on down to Napa. He mentioned places like Fort Bidwell, Alturas, Madeline Plains, Susanville, Paradise and others on the way down to Napa. Silas died in 1886 at 52 years of age from TB (consumption as of that date) which was at the time thought to be a result of his fall. To the last he remembered his old friend and associate Mike Jordan. His daughter, Annabelle Hampton in one of her letters to my parents said one of his last statements was "It’s alright Annie, Mike is beckoning over there for me, can’t you see him?"
Will, although a boy of only fifteen, assumed much of the responsibility for running the livestock operation in Oregon and Idaho. For some years he made an annual trip, except the first year, when he made the trip twice to California with the horses that were for sale. His last trip was in 1891, a short time before he was married. An important asset to the operation during this time was an employee named Tom McCain. He had worked with Silas for a long time and Granddad quoted him often, always giving him much credit when it came to the management and handling horses. Also, he must have been a great mentor for a young boy growing up. I have found very little written about McCain but he is buried in the Jordan Valley cemetery. The horses taken to California would be kept for a time at the Napa property and sold as coach horses etc. Many went to the city of San Francisco for use in pulling street cars and fire wagons. ,
Annie continued the management of the Napa Ranch and the raising of their family, which now consisted of six children. In some of her last letters she expressed a desire to locate and visit Sarah Ellen’s grave in Jordan Valley, but I don’t think that ever happened. It was located much later and is now marked with proper identification. Annie was known to be a shrewd and capable manager who was respected by her peers. The Napa Ranch was sold a few years later, about 1890 or 1891, and Annie moved to Berkeley where she had a home at 2332 Haste St. now part of the campus of the University of California. She maintained a strong connection to her Manx friends and was always recognized as one of the stalwart supporters of Manx culture. She made many trips back to visit her family and kept a financial interest in some of the livestock in Oregon until she was a very old lady. She died May 17, 1928 when she was 92 years old.
Will Skinner had been taking an active part in the total operation since his father’s death and had been working with E. H. Clinton who owned the north part of what is now the Skinner Ranch. Silas and Clinton had been friends and business associates since the time of the early discovery of gold in the Owyhee Mountains. They had been partners in the toll road and also the Bachelor property. Michael Jordan’s diary has many references to both of these men. This diary is now in the Owyhee County museum in Murphy, ID.
After E. H. Clinton died in 1899, his brother George came up from Sacramento to take over the property. George managed it for several years until his death in 1904. Both Clintons were buried in Sacramento. Their holdings then became the property of their many heirs. Burgess, Polhemus, Spaulding and other names are mentioned in the settlement of the estate. Will managed the property for them until 1908 when he and a friend Willis G. Thompson (known as "Tompy" by family) purchased the property. We have several letters from a Frankie Spaulding regarding the transfer of ownership of the ranch. Will and Tompy first became friends when they both worked at a quicksilver mine near Napa.
While the Skinners lived in Napa, the family became well acquainted with other families in the community including the Sacketts, Imries, Garfields and others. As a result, Will and Ella Sackett were married in Napa, November 11, 1891. His friend Will Imrie married Margaret Sackett. I think Granddad never enjoyed anything more than to gather a group of his grandchildren around his knee and relate the stories of the parties, dances, picnics etc. that were held in the community. These families remained close friends until all of them were gone.
After Will and Ella were married, they came to Jordan Valley and moved into the old home, the "Old Skinner Place", where Silas and Annie had lived previously. Their two oldest sons Kirt, Nov.27, 1892 and Harold, Mar.6, 1894, were born there. Will always loved to tell about a flood that occurred several days after Harold’s birth. They had to put Ella and the two children in a row boat. Using saddle horses, they pulled them about a mile up to the stage station which was run by Henry Scott where they stayed until the flood water receded.
About the same time, Will was doing anything he could to make a living for his new family and one of his jobs was buying horses for the Mexican army. That took him all over eastern Oregon and he dealt with such notables as Pete French, John Devine, Shirks and anyone else who had horses for sale. This probably resulted in the sale of one of his fancy Standardbred stallions (Woodside) to John Devine, of Alvord Ranch fame, who was known as a fancier of good horses. He rode horseback, leading the stallion to the Alvord Ranch. A road off Big Ranch Road in Napa also bears the name Woodside. Will also spent time working in a livery barn in Caldwell, and during that time their first daughter Ruby was born February 4, 1896. Next we find them living in Napa where Will had a job in the near-by Etna quicksilver mine where he met "Tompy" who later become his partner for a time and also a friend for life. Second daughter Verna was born in Napa September 25, 1897.
By 1900 the family had moved back to the Clinton Ranch, (presently Ranch headquarters) living in what later became the bunkhouse. A small house nearby which had been moved from it’s location on the original site of Clintons homestead was occupied by Mr. Clinton, and after his death was used as a cook shack. The bunkhouse had become too small for a growing family. It consisted of one large room and two smaller rooms which were used as bedrooms. While living here, the family grew with the birth of Irma Oct.26, 1898, William C. Aug. 5, 1901, Ella Jan. 12, 1903, Beatrice Mar. 26, 1907 and Hugh Jan. 5, 1909. During this time they added two rooms, and later this house served for many years to house the ranch crews.
In 1909, the Skinner family leased the Ruby Ranch from Mrs. W. P. Beers and continued to run both places until the spring of 1916. It was while they were on the Ruby Ranch in 1913 that they hired a young lady from Scotland, as a teacher for their private school, who later became our mother. Johanna Murray and Dad were married Oct.16, 1917. Edith Jones, who hailed from Indiana was hired for the same job in 1914 and she later became the wife of Harold June 24, 1919.
During 1915 much progress had been made on the construction of a home on the part of the Skinner Ranch that Granddad owned. Most and probably all of the lumber was hauled in from Caldwell on wagons with six or eight horse teams. First occupied early in l916, it was a large spacious home that would accommodate the large crowds that would later spend time visiting the Skinner family. Moving into that big, new, beautiful home of their own must have been cause for great excitement and celebration. It also set the stage for an expansion movement that would lead to many unforeseen troubles.
It was during this time, 1922, that Dad and Mom built a small home of their own on a piece of property that they owned and called "The Homestead". It was our home most of the time from then until 1929 when we finally moved to the big ranch house for good. Members of our family who were born at the Homestead were Kirt, August 28, 1922, Christine, July 3, 1924, Dan, August 12, 1926, and John, April 10, 1929. Bill, the oldest was born in Boise, Oct. 25, 1917 and I was born in the "big house" June 26, 1920. Joanne was born November 22, 1932, after we moved back to the "big house".
During the 1920’s, times were good and, in addition, the economic climate appeared to favor a larger outfit. Both the Ruby Ranch, and the Dave Somerville property were leased with an option to purchase. The Somerville property, included the Reservoir Ranch (now called "Grassy") and the Star Ranch on Juniper Mountain. A large herd of both horses and cattle along with equipment was purchased in the deal. Large crews were hired to care for the stock and operate the ranches. Both Kirt and Harold assumed much responsibility in the management and operation, as did Verna with management of the kitchen as well as the bookkeeping. Every one chipped in with the work, as time and other things allowed. Hugh managed a band of sheep for a time in the twenties. He was the third Skinner son to marry a teacher of the local school when he wed Merle Boswell of Vale. Bill had already married Edna Mae Matheson, Ruby married Evan Gheen and Verna married Elvin Van Matre. Irma married Cecil Palmer and Ella married another school teacher Clifford Carlsen, both weddings being held in the in the living room of the big house, and Beatrice married Norman Owings. I will leave the telling of their stories and history to members of their families.
Along with the growth of the operation came the inevitable. Times were good and, to them, the future looked bright but expenses began to mount. A $125,000.00 loan was applied for and granted in the form of bonds, from Lumberman’s Trust Bank of Portland, Oregon. That was a large sum, in days when wages were one dollar a day. At this date it is not known how many of those bonds were sold but the amount was considerable.
Perhaps the first indication of trouble was when the bank sent a representative, George Dickson, to live, work and aid in the management of the ranch. He involved the ranch in a huge cattle feeding operation in Wilder and Homedale, Idaho. This involved housing and feeding large crews, 75 miles from the home ranch. It was also a five hour trip over bad roads by automobile and at least a four or five day trip while driving cattle.
The ranching operation continued to grow with the purchase of more cattle along with the pasture and feed necessary to maintain them. It was a complicated operation when the crash of 1929 struck. The ranch found itself in the same situation as most every other business in the nation. In the fall of that year the ranch went into foreclosure and the cattle and machinery were sold. Everything went from good times to the worst of times in a hurry. The sky had fallen. The bottom had dropped out.
All signs pointed to a complete move for the whole family. They were threatened with eviction and no one knew what to do. Grandmother suffered a stroke and was partially paralyzed. Perhaps Granddad thought getting her away from all the trouble would be of help to her so he took her down to Berkeley, CA to stay a while with the Gheen (Ruby) family. It was only a short time until she suffered another severe stroke which left her completely paralyzed with no speech or body control. Just before that stroke she wrote the most pitiful letter I have ever seen to Mom, asking her to please get all of her things out of the house before they had to move. She gave very explicit directions about what to do with each one of her treasures. We still have the letter that tells this very sad story.
Through all of this Kirt and Johanna were able to lease the place from the stockholders or whoever had possession at the time and, "by hook or by crook", they were able to stay and get a new start. Harold and Hugh both worked here on the ranch at different times, however, by this time they were both living in Caldwell.
Much of what happened during the next few years is not all clear to me, although I remember well the consternation and worry that took place with all of the family. Many trips to Portland were made in an effort to straighten things out and get the ranch back. We have many letters Dad wrote to Mom while he was in Portland and they all painted a very dim and heartbreaking picture.
I think the situation was something like this: After the foreclosure, the ranch was sold on the courthouse steps at Vale, and the bondholders who had purchased bonds bought it in an attempt to recoup some of their investment. At first the dealings with the bondholders committee did not go well. After a time, and mainly through the efforts of their chairman Mr. M. G. Gunderson from Silverton, OR, they began to see that the best deal they could get was to sell the ranch back to the Skinners. In 1938 Dad and Mom were able to complete a deal with the bondholders, and purchased the ranch for approximately $40,000.00.
Mom and Dad were able to put the ranch back on solid footing and were beginning to enjoy the benefits of their efforts and sacrifices, when their oldest son Bill was killed March 30, 1942 in a plane crash in Boise. As a flight instructor, he was giving a student pilot a flying lesson. While practicing landings, a close encounter with a large military plane created too much turbulence and their small plane crashed. Bill’s death took an enormous toll on Mom and Dad. I don’t think they ever fully recovered.
Also our country’s involvement in World War II began about that time and Kirt and I were called to the army. Help was almost impossible to get, and times were not good again for a few years. Dan and John were pressed into service as ranch hands at an early age, as were a number of other boys who were too young to be in the military. Several men almost too old to do ranch work were hired during that time. It was a time when every one did their best to aid the country in the war effort as every able bodied person was in the military. Consequently, most of the horses and cattle were sold to keep the ranch solvent. Dan and John both served later—Dan during the Korean conflict and John, the only one to serve overseas, spent a year in the South Pacific during the A and H bomb tests.
Sara Morgan and I were married November 9, 1946. We had met while I was serving in the army at the Richmond Army Service Forces Depot, Richmond, VA. She had been working at the Depot as a civilian. We decided to come back to the ranch and give it a try even though she had been a city girl all of her life and this would entail a drastic change of lifestyle for her. Life on a ranch in the eastern Oregon desert was an abrupt change from the verdant hills surrounding her home in Roanoke, Virginia. She still wants to stand and salute when she hears "Carry Me Back to Old Virginny".
Our three children, Bob, Nancy and Sally have also always been very supportive and now Bob is the active manager aided by his wife Karen,(another teacher) son Silas and his family, and son Mike. Their older daughter, Robbin, is married to a local rancher, Mike Eiguren and the other daughter, Kimberly, is married to Morgan Johnsrud and teaches in Meridian, ID. Bob and Karen’s grand children represent the seventh generation of of Skinners to live and work on the Skinner Ranch. Our daughters, Nancy and Sally both entered the education field and have been very successful in their choice of endeavor. Nancy and Ray now live in Rocklin, CA and have two sons, Jeff who works with his dad and Adam, a senior at St. Mary’s College. Ray is involved in Real Estate while Nancy is curriculum coordinator for the Loomis School District. Sally lives in Boise and is now principal in the Highland School, Boise, ID. She has a son, Christopher, who is about the thirtieth Skinner family member to attend Albertson’s (College of Idaho to us older folks)and a daughter Sara Jo, a senior at Centenial High school. Bob, Nancy and Sally are all graduates of The College of Idaho.
Dan and I formed a partnership with Dad, back when a postage stamp cost only five cents, and entered the business that we called S. K. Skinner and Sons. In 1953, Dan and I leased the real estate and made a deal for the cattle and machinery, then purchased the ranch in 1966. This arrangement lasted until we incorporated in 1979 when son Bob was taken into the business and we changed the name to Skinner Ranches Inc. In March, 1991 The Acarregui Ranch (the same ranch where Silas trained his trotting horses) near the town of Jordan Valley, was purchased from Laz Mendieta and Ted and Dorothy Payne. That added about another 300 head capacity to our operation.
Dan also joined a long list of Skinner men who married teachers when he and Cathy Ross were married June 2, 1973. As age was creeping up on Dan and me, we reached an agreement in June 2001 that if all goes as planned, Dan and Cathy’s interest will be purchased a few years down the road.
As of this writing, the year 2004 makes the 126th year that the Skinner family has run a ranching operation either from this ranch or the "Old Skinner Place". The latter place was sold about 1917. There have been two breaks in ownership of the real estate since the time that Silas and Annie traded the Trout Creek Station for part of what is now the home place. One time was when Silas sold his interest in the Skinner-Clinton holdings to his partner Clinton, and once again when the ranch went through foreclosure. During both breaks Skinners stayed in business and continued to run cattle and horses, (sometimes sheep) using this and other property as a base.
Ranching was a much different "ballgame" in those early days than it is now. Livestock ran on the open range 12 months out of the year and required only superficial management compared to the closely managed program necessitated by the change in times and ways of modernized ranching. Now cattle spend at least seven months on the ranch and less than five on public range.
What the future holds will depend on many uncertainties. I would hope, that as long as there is a descendent who would like to continue, that the ranch can go on in the family. By the same token, I do not wish to place a burden on anyone not fully committed to, or happy with this type of work. Ranching has become more technical and involves so many facets of the business world. It requires a lot of dedication, commitment, determination and hard work.
It is my sincere belief, that it is a wonderful place to raise a family, to live and enjoy a good life, to appreciate the outdoors, and care for and work with animals. Values that come with the freedom of operating your own business and working with and seeing new life in plants and animals, accepting the storms with the pleasant weather, experiencing the changing seasons, watching the sun come up in a blaze of glory as the day begins and enjoying the serenity and gorgeous sunsets at days end, are only a few amenities that create the quality of life that, in my view, are unexcelled when you make your living on a ranch.
THAT’S WHY WE STAY.
RHS 9/04