ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 



The Olema Valley is a gem. Its possesses a gentle beauty that speaks of 

 a good life. It is a quiet valley of rolling pastures lined with oak trees, dramatic 

 forests, and a handful of small farms with their barns, sheds and houses 

 sometimes hidden in glens and only noticed by sharp eyes. While most of the 

 valley and the surrounding area appears to be left over from the 19th century, 

 it is in fact part of our 20th century national park system. 



Despite its status as a National Recreation Area, virtually all of the 

 Olema Valley retains its historic rural ranching character. The former dairy 

 ranches, many with pioneer structures intact, continue to thrive under the 

 stewardship of families who have been here for generations. Since creation of 

 the park in 1972, most of the resident families remain, and to them I give my 

 heartfelt thanks. Rarely does one find such old-fashioned hospitality and 

 sincere interest in a subject; all were happy to open their homes and dust off 

 their memories for me, which is most appreciated as this book couldn't have 

 been written without them. My family was fortunate to live on on an active 

 Olema Valley ranch for many years and to get a taste of the true life of the 

 valley. For the positive influences on my children and the warm acceptance 

 which we were given by his family, I dedicate this book to the memory of 

 Armin Truttman, a well-loved and highly admired member of the Olema and 

 California dairy ranching community. 



People with Olema Valley roots have been found all over California; they 

 generously and enthusiastically shared then: knowledge with this stranger, 

 usually with only a phone call as an introduction. Also, I thank the people 

 loaned photographs to the project, especially Roy Farrington Jones who 

 generously loaned the excellent pictures of the ranches taken by his father. 



Libraries and archives, local and regional, played a large part in research 

 for this report. The archivists and librarians in the many institutions that I 

 visited in quest of Olema Valley facts are too many to mention, but I thank 

 them all. Alice Lake of the Marin County Recorders Office, now retired, was 

 always helpful at finding obscure information in that office. The archive that 

 acted as the foundation of this research was the Jack Mason Museum 

 Collection, from which many photographs and much information has been 

 culled over the years. Local historians added to the project as well, including 



