California, Here we Come

This is my 8th grade picture, and the one with Bill and Jerry

was taken in Petaluma, after our Oklahoma trip.

My last blog left off when we were leaving

Oklahoma and you will remember my

father stayed behind to finish up the job

at the bomber plant. We hired a private

operator with a 1940 Chevrolet. 1,700 miles non stop - took about 32 to 38 hours, and at times my mother took over the driving. We arrived at Uncle Lee and Aunt Luella's house in Petaluma safe and 'almost sound'! That was a long trip.

Uncle Lee only had one arm. He had lost his arm back in the 20's while working on the bridge in Ripley, Oklahoma. My father was working with him. They had a two-story rented house, and we were given the four upstairs rooms.

Mom and Hazel (age 14 at the time) got work at the local Laundry. Bill (13) went to work in a creamery and I (at 11) was the babysitter after school. I also worked hand-setting pins at the local bowling alley. I received 8cents a line, which translated into about 64 cents for approx. 1-1/2 hours work. Pretty good wages in those war years. Later that summer I mowed lawns for 35 cents/hour and every Saturday worked for Mrs. Bank President Isaacs mowing their lawn and mopping floors, etc.

Dad rejoined us the spring of 1943 and we moved into our own quarters, an apartment over a closed down saloon and dance hall. Mom and Hazel were able to quit work, but Bill and I continued to contribute to the family. That summer, the whole family worked in the Napa Valley fields picking pears and prunes. 60 cents an hour - WOW. We were able to rent a nicer home - not fancy, just nicer. Dad took a job as a driller in the shipyards at Vallejo, Calif. This was about 50 miles away and with the gas rationing (4 gals/week), Dad had to board there, so was gone most of the time. He hated this job so he pulled up stakes again and returned to the Delano area working tractor driving. While he was there he met a Mr. Orfino, a NY millionaire who wanted to own a lot of vineyards and build a winery. He hired Dad to do this for him, with good pay and lots of big promises. The goal was to clear, level and plant 1,000 acres of grapes that spring. It was December at that time.

The family moved to a farm about 10 miles NE of Delano - into an old, and NOT modern house. Louise, Jerry and I enrolled in the Richgrove school (Bill and Hazel were in H.S. by now). Richgrove had three grades per room. Dad was able to plant almost 980 acres, but as often happens with employers and their 'promises', Mr. Orfino's memory was short - so once again we were on the move. This time back to Delano and the Mosier place, where Dad leased some land and we were in the farming business for ourselves. So I am back in the Cecil Ave school, a good year for me and I graduated from the 8th grade. The War in Europe ended that June, and Japan surrendered in August. We were at Peace.

Sept. 1, I started high school at Delano High School. But things didn't work our well with the farm lease, we made and harvested the crop but Mr. Mosier got the funds and withheld $2,000 with a note to be paid later. This made it very difficult for us to manage, so Dad used the note as a downpayment on an old abandoned 40 acre farm located on Blythe Ave, between Kamm and Conejo, so February 15th 1946 I started attending Caruthers High School...