My great grandfather, John Guidinger, 1851-1941, purchased ranch in 1910
My grandfather, Cecil Howe Moran,1883-1932, died of appendicitis at age 49
Original Deed to the ranch for John Guidinger, 1910
My father Douglas Otha Moran 1908
My Mother Hazel Snow with her brother 1917
My grandfather Cecil Howe Moran and grandmother Lillie Helen Moran with my father Douglas Otha Moran and his sister Violet. Circa 1920
My father Douglas (top row left) with his 8th grade graduation class, June 14, 1923
Douglas and sister Violet Moran circa 1924
In 1920 Cecil sold the west side of the ranch to William and Mary Paullus . William died in 1925. Mary managed the ranch until 1937. When she could no longer pay the mortgage the west section returned to Lillie Moran. Mary died 2 weeks after signing the papers.
Paullus children on front porch of original house. The house burned down in 1925 and Mary Paullus built the house that remains today. This is the only known photo of the old house. Louise, the little girl in the picture, drew the sketch of the floor plan of the original house in the adjacent photo in 2017. She is still alive and well in 2021 at the age of 102
The placement of the house agrees with what my dad told me
My mother, Hazel Snow, at 14 yrs old, met my dad when her family came to work in the apricot harvest. The Snow family lived in Upland CA
Circa 1935 Hazel and Doug lived in a house on the east side of the ranch. Around 1943 they moved to the current house on the west side of the ranch.
View of front of house 1942. The tank house in the background burned down in 1943 The fire started from a defective kerosene stove my mother was using to heat wash water.
I was born in 1943. Playing in yard at 21 months
Doug discing the orchard with the old iron wheeled tractor, circa 1948
Doug at apricot harvest time
Gary helping dad (Doug) wash trays, getting ready for apricot harvest
Doug and Hazel circa 1940
My kindergarten class 1948. I am top row, 3rd from left. I actually remember some of the kids names!
Riding pony circa 1950 – Workers cutting apricots in cutting shed. I learned to drive in that 1929 Chevrolet truck in the background.
“Scraping Trays”
After cutting the apricots the trays were placed in a sulphur house overnight. The next day they were set out in the “dry yard” for about a week. Finally, the dried apricots were scraped off the trays and dumped into the boxes
View of ranch circa 1950 when apricot and prune orchards were still in production