Keepsake vol Two: Growing Up on the Desert

Many people ask me as to why I live in this hot desert. It is not
always hot and there is beauty in the desert that many people can't
see. I was born here in Hodge. Though times have changed and so has
the desert, I still cling to the old memories of growing up here.

My brother was born in Santa Barbara but my two sisters and I were
born right here in Hodge. Though I can't remember most everything,
I do remember the good times and some of the bad.

My father had been farming alfalfa and in those days we didn't have
tractors or any modern equipment so we had two mules. Their names
were Pete and Barney. My sister, Mary, recalls the time when my Dad
took the team to help do some work for a neighbor. I saw him leave
and grabbed my purse and ran down the driveway after him. I may
have been about two or three.

My fondest memory was the times we used to visit Chris Beck near
Oro Grande. Chris had a big vineyard and lots of fruit trees, Chris
was German like my parents and they would exchange lots of stories.
Chris also made his own wine which he served freely when we came to
visit. While the grownups were visiting, my two sisters and I would
play outside. We would climb this huge Mulberry tree he had near
the house and eat and-eat. We played in his irrigation ditch while
he was irrigating his grapes. He was a wonderful person. Though he
was a bachelor, he loved us kids and we loved him.

There were times on the desert when life wasn't so great. We would
have terrible electric storms and there was one that really did a
lot of damage. The wind wound up like a tornado, lifted the bed of
our hay wagon from its axles and carried the bed over our garage.
It landed out in the field without further damage. That same storm
took our outhouse way down the field. There were lightning storms
that struck our trees and split them in half. We would get these
storms quite frequently during the summer months, especially in
August. The storms were not all damaging. We would get a cloudburst
in the hills behind our place and water would run in the washes.
After the storm we would go out and play in the water running in
these washes. In earlier years we would have a lot more rainfall
than now. The Mojave River ran most of the time, either above or
underground.

In the spring the desert was always so beautiful with an abundance
of wild flowers and blooming cactus. My sisters and I would often
go for long walks to the hills behind our home and bring back to
our mother beautiful bouquets of wild flowers. There was one high
hill behind our home that we would climb. from the top we could see
a11 over for miles. My sister, Clara, loved this hill and she said
that someday she would build her home here because of the view. She
now lives in Salmon, Idaho, and lives on a high hill near the
Salmon River.


We would take walks to the river and go swimming or wading. There
were many trees and greenery along the river in those days. When I
was little, going to the river reminded me of going into the
forest. My mother was from France and she would tell us about the
huge forests that were there. The river was not always a gentle
river. We had many floods and washouts in 1938, which was the worst
flood we had ever had, it washed every bridge there was and left
half of Barstow underwater. I was ten years old at that time and I
remember my brother's friend lived on the other side of the river
on the corner of what is now Fort Irwin Road and Hwy 58. Their
garage was completely underwater.

We didn't have electricity until the early 1940's. We were in our
glory when we were able to turn on the lights with a flick of a
switch and having a radio that ran by electricity and not battery.
There was no kerosene lamp to worry about blackened chimney or
mantels to darken. Before electricity, I remember I listened to the
battery operated radio. We would listen to our programs and my dad
would listen to his, like "The Lone Ranger" "Fibber McGee and
Molly" "Lum and Abner". Mom would listen to all of her daytime
soaps as she would crochet or knit.

We had an old icebox that would require trips to the ice house in
Barstow every week The chore of emptying the pan underneath was a
real pain. Then my father rigged a pipeline underneath and through
the cellar to carry the water out to the garden. Before the icebox,
we had a cooler outside that served as icebox that was covered with
wet gunny sacks. We always had to keep them wet but I barely
remember that.

We had an old model "A" or "T" Ford when I was young. We had that
until Dad bought a 1936 Hudson Terraplane in 1938. My brother Bob,
would drive to town and although I knew he wasn't breaking any
speed limit, it just seemed that all those dips were like a roller
coaster. My brother took the Terraplane up in Berkeley and kept it
for a long time. The old Ford was stripped down into a dune buggy
and we all learned how to drive on it.

We had a dirt reservoir behind our house that we used to irrigate
the fields. We also used that reservoir to have great times. There
were cottonwood trees surrounding the reservoir and there was a
pier at each end. The piers were built over the outlets that
brought the water in to fill and to empty. We had a homemade raft
and played in that. My sister Mary ran a rusty nail from the raft
through her foot. My mother just put some salve on it and bandaged
it up. One time, my brother was pulling her in a wagon and she fell
out and cut her forehead open. She fell out of the trees quite a
few times too.

Our first gas operated washing machine was a jewel. We got it
shortly after my mother had a bout pneumonia. I remember watching
my sister, Clara, washing Daddy's heavily soiled clothes on the
washboard and trying to get them clean. Then, the first thing I did
after we got the machine was to burn my foot on the hot exhaust
hose.

My brother was eight years older than me but I remember a lot of
things that he did. He would trap chipmunks and turtles. He made
boxes for the chipmunks and would sell them. He sold the turtles
and had quite a business. In those days the desert turtles were
plentiful and there was no law against selling them. We had several
pet turtles and one that I remernber was a huge male that we called
Tony. When I was smaller, I remember riding that turtle. When Bob
left to go to Berkeley, where he still lives now, he took Tony and
some other turtles with him.

There were a few tragedies while growing up. One such tragedy was
when the Lazy K burned down. The Lazy K was a big guest or dude
ranch. There were tennis courts, riding stables, guest rooms, and
a huge swimming pool that served to irrigate lush alfalfa fields
that surrounded the building. This ranch was just about two miles
south of our home. One morning, while we were waiting for the
school bus, huge billows of thick black smoke appeared. The Lazy K
burned down. This happened in the early 1940's. The fireplaces
stood there for many years thereafter.

During the long lazy days of summer, Delores Van Rhyn, my neighbor
and close friend, and I would go over to Gilbert Hodge's home. Here
he had a great model layout in his garage. When we came, he would
operate the train. He made it go forward and backward. I believe he
enjoyed this as much as we did. He also had a player piano.
Delores, who was an accomplished pianist, would pretend to play it.
We enjoyed our times and visits with Mr. Hodge. He was all alone
since his wife passed away.

My father's brother and his wife lived across the road from us.
They had a large chicken ranch. They had no children but my sisters
and I would go over and visit them frequently. My Aunt would cook
chicken and dumplings and would serve it at Jay's place that was
just across the road. My Aunt's name was also Josephine, same as my
mothers. So there were two Josephine Hecklys. I remember the good
times we had at our neighbors the Jays. They had a dance floor,
like a patio, there was lots of dancing and good times. They also
had a gas station which they operated for a long time.

Our school, as Fred Gibson stated in his article, served as a
meeting and social place. We had Christmas parties, Halloween fun
and games, and put on a lot of plays. One fond memory was the food
and getting served hot cocoa on the cold nights. There were a lot
of potluck dinners where everyone brought a lot of food. We also
had a lot of wiener roasts by the river. Many of the roasts were
down from the bridge on the Hinkley Cut Off (Hinkley Road). There
were a lot of trees back then and these outings were very
enjoyable. The children would play hide and seek or dig in the sand
and get water. I remember my mother always brought homemade ice
cream which was usually maple nut.

Barbara Hayes, who later became secretary to the Barstow Grammar
School principal, was sent out of class for some reason. She went
down to a neigllboring pool and went swimming. Randall's owned a
little country store and gas station. They also had a big cement
pool in the back of their place near the school. When they called
Barbara back to class, she was all wet.

Then there was the time when someone laid a dead snake over the
piano keys and closed the lid. When we went down to have our music
part of the day the teacher screamed and almost fainted. I can't
remember who did it or if the teacher ever found out.

It was fun to take a basketball and play Annie Over the teacherage.
Until one day, the ball didn't quite make it over and broke a
window. Then we had to play something else. That was the same
teacherage which was moved and still sets as part of a private
home. It sets a little ways from the school, near old Highway 66 or
now National Trails Highway.

The Santa Fe section workers lived by the railroad tracks. It was
a short distance from the school so the kids that lived there went
home for lunch. I remember Mary and I went down with them and would
exchange our sandwiches for tortillas, tacos, etc.

There was an old 19th century home right across the road from the
section houses. A little white haired lady named Mrs. Emerson lived
there. We would go visit her often. We loved looking at her home
with high ceilings and a huge cellar. In the early 1950's the
owners tore the home down.

Our Post Office stood along Highway 66, in front if the school. It
was small but served it purpose. In later years this was torn down
also.

Before they closed The Hodge school, there were only about ten
students left. My sister, Mary was an eight grader. She was the
last and only graduate of the Hodge School. The rest moved away and
I went to Barstow Grammar school. This was about 1941.

Hodge, where I was born, was called Paliser and Cottonwood before
changing to Hodge. There were up to 24 to 30 children in school. We
had a bustling little community where everyone bent over backwards
to help everyone else.

Though times have changed the desert and most of the people are
gone, I still have my memories that I often share with my brother
and sisters. They all moved away but I live now just a few miles
from where I was born and where I went to school. From my home near
the river, I have quail, dove, and all kinds of birds. There is
always a beautiful sunrises and sunset that I enjoy without
obstructing homes or buildings.

I will always cherish the desert no matter how it changes.
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California Historic Route 66 Association

Preservation, Promotion and Enjoyment of Route 66

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