2020 Winter Spring Newsletter

Interview Ray Bendorf Another person to be interviewed was Ray Bendorf by Ethel Barnes of Louisburg in July 2001. It is very hard to give the highlights of this talk. In telling his story Ray would go off on many side stories and named many people in the Louisburg area, both relatives and neigh bors. Ray Dean Bendorf was born March 28, 1928 at the family farm northwest of Louisburg along with his twin sister Fay Ruth. She was born first and I came along 30 minutes later. I had a brother that was born Novem ber 5 1925, but he died of appendicitis peritonitis on Aug 13 1929. My father was Jacob Bendorf and mother Martha Jane Whitmore Bendorf. I have resided on the fam ily farm since I was born in the upstairs bedroom. My dad bought the farm from Fred Sponable in 1911 for $5,650.00. I went to Cole School, Dist 52 for 8 years just down the road. Eunice Duval was 1st grade teach er, then June Berley, then Dorothy Patterson, then Wyenema Ferguson, then Elma Breckenridge. After 8th grade I graduated at Paola High School. I started High School in Bucyrus in 1942. I took manual training and made a wagon box, the next year I made a hayr ack. The third year I helped Lloyd Stuteville on some projects. I played basketball and lettered 3 years. I drove a car to school but when muddy, sis rode a horse and I rode a mule. Some boys pulled the bridle off my mule and I had to walk home. I found out who did it and they never did it again. I stayed home and farmed till 1951 and the flood got my wheat so I went to driving a truck and worked for Charlie Dellinger and Olin Roberts, and later went with Jack Cooper Transport Co. hauling cars out of Kansas City. I went to work in 1953 and retired in 1986. I drove four million miles and never had a wreck. When I started I hauled 4 cars and finished hauling 10 cars.

In the service I was drafted in 1954 and took basic in El Paso, Tex. I ended up going to Germany and teaching guys to drive trucks. I spent 18 months overseas. I got in this country about March 25 and went to Ft.Ord California. I drove an old Ford car home on $29.00 worth of gasoline. Ray talked about his early years. He played baseball. softball, basketball and track. In the summer, to make extra money, he would take a team of mules and work in the big lake oil field. He could earn $10 a day with a team. I worked in the oll field till I was 18 years old. We always had plenty to eat. Had a big garden, butch ered a hog and a beef and raised chickens. We went to the Baptist church at Chiles. Ray named a lot of people in the area and their fam ilies. Ray married Betty in June 1975. He told stories of his pulling ponies and winning matches and driving the team in parades. Ray joined the Masonic Peace Lodge 243 in 1959 and then went into the Scottish Rite. In 1977 he went into Abdallah Shrine and rode with the Mounted Patrol. He was a Charter member of the Louisburg Shrine Club. We started raising Suf folk Draft horses and would take a team to the Pow ell Pumpkin Patch. We would give rides on the hay wagon around the pumpkin field. He would charge 1.00 a person and donated the money to the Shrine children Transportation Fund to help get kids to the Shrine Hospital in St. Louis. Rays grandfather was Albert Bendorf and great, great grandfather was Francis Hastings. They came to Miam County about 1865 and homesteaded. Ray likes to hunt and during deer season we have a number of friends and relatives come to the farm to hunt. Ray also likes to go fishing. In his interview he told many stories of neighbors and relatives and their families. Too much to put in this highlight.

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