ALBERT ORLANDO FRAZIER

Memories of my Grandpa Albert are sketchy at best; Uncle Harvey filled in some intriquing details, though. “The Captain,” apparently, was quite a rogue. Born on the family’s ranch in Woodruff, Utah, Grandpa Albert Orlando spent many years as a traveling salesmen. Harvey said he sold life insurance to the Basque shepherds in Nevada. He’d provision the family with canned food, then drive his specially-designed car out into the western desert for six months. He’d sleep in the back and there were drawers under his bed to store food and whatever else he needed. Then there was the little remark Harvey made in disgust: “It was a well-known fact that he had a Basque mistress in Ely.” Good ole Grampa. Meanwhile, his wife and kids were starving back in Salt Lake. After many years of this lifestyle, Grandpa’s company, to whom he was devoted, either went out of business or let him go, taking his pension savings with them. He was devastated, betrayed. For the rest of his life, he malingered around, abusing his wife and telling big stories with big promises he never intended to keep. During one visit to see him where he lived in a motel, he told me he was writing a book and lived there because he kept disturbing Grandma with his typing. Then he gave me a postcard of a palomino horse, telling me that he would buy me a horse just like that one. I was so excited and hopeful, I couldn’t believe that he wouldn’t. But Grandpa was a master storyteller and salesman with little talent for delivering the goods. Afterall, he sold insurance, right? Promises. From what Harvey told me, Grandpa was the first one-- probably the only one -- in his family to join the Mormon Church. He met a sweet young thing at a church dance somewhere near his home in Woodruff and joined the church so he could marry her in the temple. While his daughters were quite devout and faithful, his behavior probably didn’t change much and maybe contributed to Dad’s half-hearted attitude toward the Church. Of course, Dad had his own bad experiences dealing with the zealous “leadership” teachings of the church. At least Dad didn’t follow in his father’s ways regarding his marriage vows. Dad was faithful to Mom even beyond her death. My only memory of Woodruff and “the ranch” is of Sunday drives with Dad and Mom. Delapidated buildings were all that remained as Dad pointed out the ranch up on the hill. He looked around and said, “Yeah, you can’t throw a rock without hitting a relative up here.” Harvey told me that Ken Sugden, my cousin, and some other cousins have purchased the ranch and are rebuilding it. Uploaded by scauhape2002 to Ancestry 16 February 2010

Memories of my Grandpa Albert are sketchy at best; Uncle Harvey filled in some intriquing details, though. “The Captain,” apparently, was quite a rogue. Born on the family’s ranch in Woodruff, Utah, Grandpa Albert Orlando spent many years as a traveling salesmen. Harvey said he sold life insurance to the Basque shepherds in Nevada. He’d provision the family with canned food, then drive his specially-designed car out into the western desert for six months. He’d sleep in the back and there were drawers under his bed to store food and whatever else he needed. Then there was the little remark Harvey made in disgust: “It was a well-known fact that he had a Basque mistress in Ely.” Good ole Grampa. Meanwhile, his wife and kids were starving back in Salt Lake. After many years of this lifestyle, Grandpa’s company, to whom he was devoted, either went out of business or let him go, taking his pension savings with them. He was devastated, betrayed. For the rest of his life, he malingered around, abusing his wife and telling big stories with big promises he never intended to keep. During one visit to see him where he lived in a motel, he told me he was writing a book and lived there because he kept disturbing Grandma with his typing. Then he gave me a postcard of a palomino horse, telling me that he would buy me a horse just like that one. I was so excited and hopeful, I couldn’t believe that he wouldn’t. But Grandpa was a master storyteller and salesman with little talent for delivering the goods. Afterall, he sold insurance, right? Promises. From what Harvey told me, Grandpa was the first one-- probably the only one -- in his family to join the Mormon Church. He met a sweet young thing at a church dance somewhere near his home in Woodruff and joined the church so he could marry her in the temple. While his daughters were quite devout and faithful, his behavior probably didn’t change much and maybe contributed to Dad’s half-hearted attitude toward the Church. Of course, Dad had his own bad experiences dealing with the zealous “leadership” teachings of the church. At least Dad didn’t follow in his father’s ways regarding his marriage vows. Dad was faithful to Mom even beyond her death. My only memory of Woodruff and “the ranch” is of Sunday drives with Dad and Mom. Delapidated buildings were all that remained as Dad pointed out the ranch up on the hill. He looked around and said, “Yeah, you can’t throw a rock without hitting a relative up here.” Harvey told me that Ken Sugden, my cousin, and some other cousins have purchased the ranch and are rebuilding it. Uploaded by scauhape2002 to Ancestry 16 February 2010