Family Histories

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Benedict, Sam

Samuel "Sam" Benedict, 93, of Casa Grande, a longtime area cattle feeder, died on April 18, 2015, at Oasis Pavilion Nursing & Rehabilitation Center. The celebration of life will be at 11 a.m. Saturday at J. Warren Funeral Services, Cole & Maud The Gardens Chapel, with Kenneth McBride officiating. Mr. Benedict was born on Aug. 30, 1921, in Camp Verde and was a son of Oliver A. and Getha Benedict. He was a member and past president of the Arizona Cattle Feeders Association and life member of the Arizona Cattlemen's Association. He received a lifetime achievement award from the agriculture college at the University of Arizona, where he was a founding member of the Aggie House. He was a former member of the Casa Grande City Council and Midway Flood Control District board. Proud of his work in cattle raising and horse breeding, he above all cherished his family and friends. Upon his retirement, he most enjoyed spending time with his wife of 63 years, Kay.

Bayless, Esta Minear 

Esta Minear was born in Athens, Ohio in 1894.  After studying nursing there, Esta became head of nursing at a hospital in Columbus. There she contracted blood poisoning. On advice of a physician that she move “…to a hot, dry climate to cheat the undertaker” Esta came to Casa Grande. In 1918 she and her uncle, H.M. Holland, opened the Sacaton Hotel on land for which her grandfather had traded a team of horses. 1918 was also the year of the Spanish Flu pandemic and Esta assisted Dr. E.J. Gungle as illness struck the town. Esta and Earl Bayless were married in 1921. He was the Chevrolet dealer in Casa Grande. When Esta was widowed in 1929 she became the first woman in Arizona to head an automobile dealership. She taught driving saying “…it is a good thing to know if you have a car.” She entered politics, running as a dark horse for county recorder. She held the job for 15 years. By 1949 Esta was president of the local chapter of Zonta, a women’s business club, was running the hotel, and was traveling the world. She was 70 in 1964 when she took her final journey.

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Cushman, Pauline

Harriet Wood was born in New York in 1833.  When she went to New York to act, she chose Pauline Cushman as her stage name. Her first show was “The New Orleans Varieties.” At 20 she married Charles C. Dickinson, a musician. For a while Pauline gave up acting to raise their children. She opened an ice cream shop next to the theater. When the Civil War broke out, Charles enlisted. After he died of dysentery Pauline left her children with an aunt and returned to the stage. During this time she was recruited by the Union to spy for the north. After the war, Pauline toured the country for several years speaking about her adventures. While in San Francisco she met and married Jere Fryer. He brought her home to Casa Grande in 1879. They opened a hotel and she was happy and involved with the community for a time. It was said she patched up more than one citizen after a gun or bar fight. But her tendency to exaggerate, and Jere’s wandering eye, ended the marriage. Pauline returned to San Francisco and her former life of touring and speaking but the public’s interest had faded. She stayed in a boarding house and survived by taking in sewing and scrubbing floors. She died at 60. Her tombstone simply reads: Pauline C. Fryer, Union Spy.

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Ford, William Henry 

Dr. Ford was an Army medic in England during World War II and met his wife, Regis (Gregg) while in the service. Ford attended Creighton University Medical School and did his residency at St. Mary's Hospital in Tucson. He was in family practice at Casa Grande Clinic from 1954 until 1993 and delivered the majority of the babies born in the area during that time. Ford lived in Arizona for 48 years. He served on the Casa Grande City Council for four years, on the governor's board for the aging, and on the developmental board for the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System. He served on the board and as chief of staff at Hoemako Hospital for several years and briefly on the board of its successor, Casa Grande Regional Medical Center. He was instrumental in the building of the new hospital. Along with his partners he operated a free medical clinic for migrant workers in Maricopa and traveled to give free polio vaccinations to all who desired them. For years he volunteered at the Arizona Training Program in Coolidge.

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Gorraiz, Jim

Jim Gorraiz was born in Tempe, Arizona in 1926 to Victor and Anne Marie Lauda Gorraiz. His father was born in Pamplona, Spain of Basque origins. The family originally moved to northern Arizona to herd sheep. Later moving to Phoenix were Victor, Sr. ran various businesses among them “Victor's Cafe" until 1980's. In high school Jim Gorraiz worked part time at the Photo Shop in Phoenix. While attending Arizona State College, he served as the campus photographer, where he solidified his love of photography. Upon deciding that photography was his vocation he enrolled in the Archer School of Photography in Los Angeles for two years of intensive study. Fred Archer, founder of the school, was a pioneer of advertising photography and cinema on the west coast. Here Gorraiz learned skills of the trade and developed his aesthetic. In Los Angeles he began to document through his toned photographic knowledge the local area. The large-format camera brought incredible detail to his photographs. Returning to Phoenix, he worked as a free-lance photographer in downtown Phoenix for several years, saving money for his future business. Jim moved to Casa Grande in 1949 and opened the Casa Grande Photo Shop in 1950, later to be named Casa Grande Photograph and Record Shop. Gorraiz also freelanced for the Casa Grande Dispatch and became a leader in the community, providing photography lessons to the public and sponsoring a photo club. In addition, Gorraiz was an avid traveler, hunter, and fisherman. He travelled extensively in Mexico and was fluent in English and Spanish. He was the driving force behind the creation of the annual O’odham Tash Celebration held in Casa Grande. Gorraiz's main work as a photographer was to provide advertising photographs for the local businesses. For over thirty years he photographed with his 4 x 5 camera, producing hundreds of high quality negatives. He, unknowingly, also created an encompassing portrait of the World War II post war boom of America.

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Hammer, Angela Hutchinson

Angela Hutchinson was born in Arizona in 1871.  She grew up in the tough mining towns of the West where her father was a steam engineer.  She became a teacher in Wickenburg, Arizona.  There she met Joseph Hammer.  They married, had three boys, and were divorced. Angela returned to Wickenburg to help her ailing father.  Needing an income to support her children, she purchased “The Wickenburg Miner” for $250.  Thus began her career as a newspaper editor. After eight successful years in the business, she moved her press and her family to Phoenix.  There she met Ted Healey who convinced her that Casa Grande needed a newspaper.  As partners they began publishing “The Bulletin” in Casa Grande. Ted and Angela had opposing views on many of the current issues. He demanded she not print her opinions in the paper.  In the dark of night she and the boys packed up her press and moved it to Gordon McMurray’s corral.  Angela started her own newspaper “The Casa Grande Valley Dispatch” which is still in business today. After her death in 1952 Angela was elected to the Arizona Newspaper Hall of Fame and the Arizona Women’s Hall of Fame.

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Larkin, William

William Larkin aka Billy Stiles, was an American outlaw in the Old West who, with partner Burt Alvord, led a small gang of train robbers while serving as a deputy sheriff in Arizona Territory. Born in Casa Grande, Arizona, Stiles worked as a prospector and ranch hand in the Superstition Mountains. He later became a lawman working under Jeff Milton and John Slaughter, having a reputation as an expert tracker. Eventually meeting Willcox marshal Burt Alvord, the two formed a partnership and were very successful robbing trains in southern Arizona. Under the guise of deputy sheriffs, they were able to interfere with investigations by local authorities. In 1899, they were apprehended attempting to rob the Southern Pacific Railroad. Alvord soon broke him out of jail however, tying up the jailer and freeing Stiles from his cell with the keys, and the two disappeared from the area. In 1902, Alvord and Stiles assisted the Arizona Ranger Burton C. Mossman with the capture of the Mexican bandit Augustine Chacon. After that, Stiles surrendered to Mossman and briefly served in the Arizona Rangers. The roster of Arizona Rangers shows that Stiles was thirty-two when he enlisted. He did, however, turn back to banditry soon after. Back in Mexico, Alvord and Stiles attempted to fake their own deaths by sending two coffins with their supposed bodies to Tombstone. The ruse was quickly uncovered though and in late 1903 a group of Arizona Rangers entered Mexico to find the two bandits. While successfully capturing Alvord, Stiles was able to escape the country making his way to the Orient, spending considerable time in China and the Philippines. Stiles eventually returned, and became a deputy sheriff in Humboldt County, Nevada under the name William Larkin. On December 5, 1908, he was killed when trying to deliver a court summons. The suspect had opened fire on Stiles as he approached the suspects barn, hitting him three times. The suspect was arrested, but for unknown reasons was acquitted during the trial.

Lehmberg, Harry Ben

Dr. Lehmberg earned his medical degree at the University of Texas in Austin. After graduation, he joined the Navy during World War I and completed his internship at the hospital in Honolulu. He later became Executive Officer there. After leaving the Navy, he practiced medicine in Los Angeles for seven years. He moved to Casa Grande in 1927 and opened the first hospital on the site near the corner of 6th and Cameron St. At one time there were two hospitals in Casa Grande prior to the opening of Hoemako Hospital in 1952. He opened the Casa Grande Clinic at its original location on Second St. In recognition of his devoted service to the community, the City of Casa Grande named a street Lehmberg  Avenue, in his honor. In addition to his Medical Association affiliations, he was a member of the Elks Lodge in Los Angeles, a charter member of the Casa Grande Valley Elks Lodge No. 1957, past president and member of the Casa Grande Rotary Club and a member of the Old Pueblo Club in Tucson. 

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O'Neil, James T.

Dr O’Neil graduated from University of Arizona with honors. From there he went to the medical school in Chicago. He began medical practice in Chicago, specializing in surgery. In 1940 he returned to Arizona with his wife and began practice in Hayden, Arizona. He later practiced in Coolidge for three months until World War II broke out. He joined the Army and was discharged honorably in 1946 as a major and returned to Coolidge. He began a joint practice with Dr. H.B. Lehmberg in Casa Grande, known simply as the Casa Grande Clinic. O'Neil was instrumental in the establishment of Casa Grande's first community hospital.  He was a director of the Chamber of Commerce, member of the Casa Grande Valley Historical Society, Casa Grande Rotary Club, a director of the Arizona Medical Association, the American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars. He frequently donated land to improve the city. Contributions assured the building of the National Guard Armory on Cottonwood Lane, public parks and facilities, now known as O'Neil Park. He led the establishment of Central Arizona College. Today, the administration building on CAC's campus is named for him.

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Redbird, Ida

Ida Redbird is probably the most famous of all Maricopa potters. She produced throughout most of the first half of the 20th Century. On August 10, 1971, she went outside to escape the sweltering heat of the night. She fell asleep under a tree. During the night a storm arose, lightning struck the tree, and it fell on her and took her life. Ida Redbird is in the Arizona Woman's Hall of Fame, she was part of the 1937-1940 Maricopa Pottery Revival and the first president of the Maricopa Pottery Makers Association. Ida was the translator and informant to Leslie Spier who wrote "Yuma Tribes of the Gila River". Ida was taught pottery making skills by her mother. Ida Redbird is mother to Malinda Redbird; Mother-in-law to Anita Redbird; Cousin to Mabel Sunn and Mary Juan. (Adobe Gallery)

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Schoen, Roland Francis 

Dr. Schoen practiced in Beaver Dam from 1939 until he volunteered for Army service in 1953. He practiced medicine in Casa Grande from 1955 until his death in 1973. Doctor Schoen was not only a very fine and caring physician but also active in community service and a part-time journalist. He wrote a regular column for the Casa Grande Dispatch about his weekend explorations in the desert that he had come to love. To quote Betty Rose, a close friend of Dr. Schoen’s daughter, “These articles contained carefully researched facts, impressions of their discoveries, hand-drawn maps and human stories, if one existed.” Dr. Schoen  daughter, Peggy Schoen Bennett said “Many patients could not afford to pay my father for the office calls or house calls, so they often paid with produce from their gardens or farms...Another time my father was paid with live chickens.”

Stiles, Billy

Billy Stiles or William Larkin, was an American outlaw in the Old West who, with partner Burt Alvord, led a small gang of train robbers while serving as a deputy sheriff in Arizona Territory. Born in Casa Grande, Arizona, Stiles worked as a prospector and ranch hand in the Superstition Mountains. He later became a lawman working under Jeff Milton and John Slaughter, having a reputation as an expert tracker. Eventually meeting Willcox marshal Burt Alvord, the two formed a partnership and were very successful robbing trains in southern Arizona. Under the guise of deputy sheriffs, they were able to interfere with investigations by local authorities. In 1899, they were apprehended attempting to rob the Southern Pacific Railroad. Alvord soon broke him out of jail however, tying up the jailer and freeing Stiles from his cell with the keys, and the two disappeared from the area. In 1902, Alvord and Stiles assisted the Arizona Ranger Burton C. Mossman with the capture of the Mexican bandit Augustine Chacon. After that, Stiles surrendered to Mossman and briefly served in the Arizona Rangers. The roster of Arizona Rangers shows that Stiles was thirty-two when he enlisted. He did, however, turn back to banditry soon after. Back in Mexico, Alvord and Stiles attempted to fake their own deaths by sending two coffins with their supposed bodies to Tombstone. The ruse was quickly uncovered though and in late 1903 a group of Arizona Rangers entered Mexico to find the two bandits. While successfully capturing Alvord, Stiles was able to escape the country making his way to the Orient, spending considerable time in China and the Philippines. Stiles eventually returned, and became a deputy sheriff in Humboldt County, Nevada under the name William Larkin. On December 5, 1908, he was killed when trying to deliver a court summons. The suspect had opened fire on Stiles as he approached the suspects barn, hitting him three times. The suspect was arrested, but for unknown reasons was acquitted during the trial.

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Thode, Earl

Earl Thode, admittedly the best of the early-day saddle bronc riders who used the fore-and-aft, full-stroke spurring style now required by saddle bronc riding rules, may well prove to be the event’s best ever.  He won the first ever world saddle bronc riding title in 1929. Born Dec. 7, 1900, he grew up on a ranch in South Dakota and entered his first rodeo at White River when he was 20 years old. He competed in local rodeos on weekends for seven more years before switching to the professional circuit as a saddle bronc rider and steer wrestler. In 1927, he won his first saddle bronc riding championship at Cheyenne Frontier Days and went on to win three more, a record at the time. At age 37, he won the saddle bronc riding title at the Calgary Stampede and then retired. He drowned on May 18, 1964, when his boat overturned while he was fishing on a lake in Arizona. (ProRodeo Hall of Fame)

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