Richmond Pearson Hobson Jr. (November 27, 1907 – August 9, 1966) was an American-Canadian author who wrote memoirs of his life as a rancher in

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

. His books, ''Grass Beyond the Mountains'', ''Nothing Too Good for a Cowboy'' and ''The Rancher Takes a Wife'', inspired the

CBC CBC may refer to: Media * Cadena Baja California or Grupo Cadena, a radio and television broadcaster in Mexico * Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Canada's radio and television public broadcaster ** CBC Television ** CBC Radio One ** CBC Music ** ...

drama series ''

Nothing Too Good for a Cowboy ''Nothing Too Good for a Cowboy'' is a Canadian television drama series, which aired on CBC from 1998 to 2000. The series, which is set in the 1940s, was based on the memoirs of author and rancher Richmond P. Hobson, Jr. and set on a ranch in rur ...

''.John McKay, "CBC ropes cowboy adventure". ''

Victoria Times-Colonist The ''Times Colonist'' is an English-language daily newspaper in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. It was formed by the September 2, 1980 merger of the ''Victoria Daily Times'', established in 1884, and the ''British Colonist'' (later the ' ...

'', January 6, 1998.

Biography

Born in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, in 1907, he was the son of Grizelda Houston Hull Hobson and Richmond Pearson Hobson. His father was a congressman, a U.S. Navy admiral and a decorated veteran of the

Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...

. Hobson attended

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

before moving to

Wyoming Wyoming ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States, Western United States. It borders Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho t ...

and forming a partnership with Panhandle "Pan" Phillips. The pair traveled north to British Columbia in the early 1930s, formed the Frontier Cattle Company and established Home Ranch north of

Anahim Lake :''The subject of this article should not be confused with Anaham, which is a different community located nine kilometres east of Alexis Creek, British Columbia, which is in the same area.'' Anahim Lake is a small community in British Columbia. ...

in the Chilcotin. When his partnership with Phillips ended in the 1940s, Hobson moved to the Vanderhoof area and continued ranching. He and his wife Gloria (1921–1986) lived on River Ranch, south of Vanderhoof. He died there in 1966. Hobson's first book, ''Grass Beyond the Mountains'' (1951), recalled his early years in British Columbia and the hardships he and Phillips endured in establishing their ranch. It was first published in serial form by ''

Maclean's ''Maclean's'' is a Canadian magazine founded in 1905 which reports on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, trends and current events. Its founder, publisher John Bayne Maclean, established the magazine to provide a uniquely Canadian ...

'' magazine. The next volume, ''Nothing Too Good for a Cowboy'' (1955), covered the difficulties of maintaining the ranch during the shortages caused by

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. His final book, ''The Rancher Takes a Wife'' (1961), detailed his life as a married rancher in Vanderhoof. He died August 8, 1966, from a coronary attack.

References

1907 births 1966 deaths Writers from Washington, D.C. Stanford University alumni American emigrants to Canada People from the Regional District of Bulkley-Nechako Canadian ranchers American expatriate writers in Canada 20th-century Canadian memoirists 20th-century Canadian non-fiction writers 20th-century Canadian male writers Writers from British Columbia 20th-century American memoirists {{Canada-writer-stub