Son of Lewis Miller Boyer and Lillie Belle Zora Rossiter
Married Cleo Leota Smith 15 August 1928. Oakdale, Stanislaus County, California.
Stephen was the fourth of ten children in his family. His parents had met and married in Linn, Washington County, Kansas, where their first two children, Ethel and Elsie, were born. Linn was the nexus of closely related families of Boyers, Shattos and Troups. In the early 1890's most of these families left Linn for the west coast, many of whom kept in contact over the years in California. Stephen's parents moved to Oklahoma, following Lillie's parents, Stephen their second child born in Watonga where his parents were farming. His parents migrated to Oregon in 1908, then Canada in 1909, back to Oregon in 1915, central California and ultimately to Humboldt County, California. Stephen mentions in his memoir that his father was often struck by "frontier fever".
Stephen worked as a ranch hand and as a young man as a sheep herder in Oregon. He also would return home to help his parents with planting and harvesting. He later worked in the timber industry in the woods as a logger and also in mills in California and Oregon. While working in mills in California he joined a union and supported a strike that was not successful - getting himself blacklisted with the large lumber companies, the reason he left northern California in the 1930's and settled in Ashland, Oregon.
His wife Cleo was a childhood friend and school mate in Oklahoma. When Stephen's parents were farming in Escalon, California, in 1927-28, Stephen joined them and discovered that Cleo was living close by, working as a teacher. The childhood friendship blossomed and they were married in Oakdale. They moved onto a rented farm. He bought some dairy cows and hoped to make this venture a success...but the beginning of the Depression intervened when agricultural prices dropped through the floor and they went broke.
Stephen, Cleo, his young son, his parents and two youngest siblings moved to Humboldt County where they are found in 1930, Stephen the sole income earner as a woodsman for a lumber company. Stephen also supported the family with ranch work and harvesting tan oak bark. After he and Cleo moved to Ashland, they opened a small grocery store that didn't do well and closed.
After retirement and the death of his wife he became interested in his family history and became a long correspondent with a distant cousin, Lucille Elaine Dampier Michie, who worked with him and encouraged him to write his memoirs, which he did, despite his trepidations that he was not highly educated. He wrote of his early childhood in Oklahoma: living at ease in a racially and culturally diverse environment with blacks and native Americans with observations on Jim Crow laws; moving to Oregon and Canada with his parents and then working on his own before marriage and afterward. His was a life of hard work, seeing his own immediate and wider family through tough economic times, finding his life rewarding despite the ups and downs, and in old age contentment with no regrets for what he was able to accomplish.
Very much a gentle and insightful soul.
Married Cleo Leota Smith 15 August 1928. Oakdale, Stanislaus County, California.
Stephen was the fourth of ten children in his family. His parents had met and married in Linn, Washington County, Kansas, where their first two children, Ethel and Elsie, were born. Linn was the nexus of closely related families of Boyers, Shattos and Troups. In the early 1890's most of these families left Linn for the west coast, many of whom kept in contact over the years in California. Stephen's parents moved to Oklahoma, following Lillie's parents, Stephen their second child born in Watonga where his parents were farming. His parents migrated to Oregon in 1908, then Canada in 1909, back to Oregon in 1915, central California and ultimately to Humboldt County, California. Stephen mentions in his memoir that his father was often struck by "frontier fever".
Stephen worked as a ranch hand and as a young man as a sheep herder in Oregon. He also would return home to help his parents with planting and harvesting. He later worked in the timber industry in the woods as a logger and also in mills in California and Oregon. While working in mills in California he joined a union and supported a strike that was not successful - getting himself blacklisted with the large lumber companies, the reason he left northern California in the 1930's and settled in Ashland, Oregon.
His wife Cleo was a childhood friend and school mate in Oklahoma. When Stephen's parents were farming in Escalon, California, in 1927-28, Stephen joined them and discovered that Cleo was living close by, working as a teacher. The childhood friendship blossomed and they were married in Oakdale. They moved onto a rented farm. He bought some dairy cows and hoped to make this venture a success...but the beginning of the Depression intervened when agricultural prices dropped through the floor and they went broke.
Stephen, Cleo, his young son, his parents and two youngest siblings moved to Humboldt County where they are found in 1930, Stephen the sole income earner as a woodsman for a lumber company. Stephen also supported the family with ranch work and harvesting tan oak bark. After he and Cleo moved to Ashland, they opened a small grocery store that didn't do well and closed.
After retirement and the death of his wife he became interested in his family history and became a long correspondent with a distant cousin, Lucille Elaine Dampier Michie, who worked with him and encouraged him to write his memoirs, which he did, despite his trepidations that he was not highly educated. He wrote of his early childhood in Oklahoma: living at ease in a racially and culturally diverse environment with blacks and native Americans with observations on Jim Crow laws; moving to Oregon and Canada with his parents and then working on his own before marriage and afterward. His was a life of hard work, seeing his own immediate and wider family through tough economic times, finding his life rewarding despite the ups and downs, and in old age contentment with no regrets for what he was able to accomplish.
Very much a gentle and insightful soul.
Son of Lewis Miller Boyer and Lillie Belle Zora Rossiter
Married Cleo Leota Smith 15 August 1928. Oakdale, Stanislaus County, California.
Stephen was the fourth of ten children in his family. His parents had met and married in Linn, Washington County, Kansas, where their first two children, Ethel and Elsie, were born. Linn was the nexus of closely related families of Boyers, Shattos and Troups. In the early 1890's most of these families left Linn for the west coast, many of whom kept in contact over the years in California. Stephen's parents moved to Oklahoma, following Lillie's parents, Stephen their second child born in Watonga where his parents were farming. His parents migrated to Oregon in 1908, then Canada in 1909, back to Oregon in 1915, central California and ultimately to Humboldt County, California. Stephen mentions in his memoir that his father was often struck by "frontier fever".
Stephen worked as a ranch hand and as a young man as a sheep herder in Oregon. He also would return home to help his parents with planting and harvesting. He later worked in the timber industry in the woods as a logger and also in mills in California and Oregon. While working in mills in California he joined a union and supported a strike that was not successful - getting himself blacklisted with the large lumber companies, the reason he left northern California in the 1930's and settled in Ashland, Oregon.
His wife Cleo was a childhood friend and school mate in Oklahoma. When Stephen's parents were farming in Escalon, California, in 1927-28, Stephen joined them and discovered that Cleo was living close by, working as a teacher. The childhood friendship blossomed and they were married in Oakdale. They moved onto a rented farm. He bought some dairy cows and hoped to make this venture a success...but the beginning of the Depression intervened when agricultural prices dropped through the floor and they went broke.
Stephen, Cleo, his young son, his parents and two youngest siblings moved to Humboldt County where they are found in 1930, Stephen the sole income earner as a woodsman for a lumber company. Stephen also supported the family with ranch work and harvesting tan oak bark. After he and Cleo moved to Ashland, they opened a small grocery store that didn't do well and closed.
After retirement and the death of his wife he became interested in his family history and became a long correspondent with a distant cousin, Lucille Elaine Dampier Michie, who worked with him and encouraged him to write his memoirs, which he did, despite his trepidations that he was not highly educated. He wrote of his early childhood in Oklahoma: living at ease in a racially and culturally diverse environment with blacks and native Americans with observations on Jim Crow laws; moving to Oregon and Canada with his parents and then working on his own before marriage and afterward. His was a life of hard work, seeing his own immediate and wider family through tough economic times, finding his life rewarding despite the ups and downs, and in old age contentment with no regrets for what he was able to accomplish.
Very much a gentle and insightful soul.
Married Cleo Leota Smith 15 August 1928. Oakdale, Stanislaus County, California.
Stephen was the fourth of ten children in his family. His parents had met and married in Linn, Washington County, Kansas, where their first two children, Ethel and Elsie, were born. Linn was the nexus of closely related families of Boyers, Shattos and Troups. In the early 1890's most of these families left Linn for the west coast, many of whom kept in contact over the years in California. Stephen's parents moved to Oklahoma, following Lillie's parents, Stephen their second child born in Watonga where his parents were farming. His parents migrated to Oregon in 1908, then Canada in 1909, back to Oregon in 1915, central California and ultimately to Humboldt County, California. Stephen mentions in his memoir that his father was often struck by "frontier fever".
Stephen worked as a ranch hand and as a young man as a sheep herder in Oregon. He also would return home to help his parents with planting and harvesting. He later worked in the timber industry in the woods as a logger and also in mills in California and Oregon. While working in mills in California he joined a union and supported a strike that was not successful - getting himself blacklisted with the large lumber companies, the reason he left northern California in the 1930's and settled in Ashland, Oregon.
His wife Cleo was a childhood friend and school mate in Oklahoma. When Stephen's parents were farming in Escalon, California, in 1927-28, Stephen joined them and discovered that Cleo was living close by, working as a teacher. The childhood friendship blossomed and they were married in Oakdale. They moved onto a rented farm. He bought some dairy cows and hoped to make this venture a success...but the beginning of the Depression intervened when agricultural prices dropped through the floor and they went broke.
Stephen, Cleo, his young son, his parents and two youngest siblings moved to Humboldt County where they are found in 1930, Stephen the sole income earner as a woodsman for a lumber company. Stephen also supported the family with ranch work and harvesting tan oak bark. After he and Cleo moved to Ashland, they opened a small grocery store that didn't do well and closed.
After retirement and the death of his wife he became interested in his family history and became a long correspondent with a distant cousin, Lucille Elaine Dampier Michie, who worked with him and encouraged him to write his memoirs, which he did, despite his trepidations that he was not highly educated. He wrote of his early childhood in Oklahoma: living at ease in a racially and culturally diverse environment with blacks and native Americans with observations on Jim Crow laws; moving to Oregon and Canada with his parents and then working on his own before marriage and afterward. His was a life of hard work, seeing his own immediate and wider family through tough economic times, finding his life rewarding despite the ups and downs, and in old age contentment with no regrets for what he was able to accomplish.
Very much a gentle and insightful soul.
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