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 (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

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

''.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 Sept. 2, 1980 merger of the ''Victoria Daily Times'', established in 1884, and the ''British Colonist'' (later the ''Daily C ...

'', January 6, 1998.

Biography

Born in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, 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 , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (cloc ...

. Hobson attended Stanford University before moving to

Wyoming Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to the s ...

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

'' 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, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. 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 Canadian memoirists 20th-century Canadian non-fiction writers 20th-century Canadian male writers Writers from British Columbia 20th-century memoirists {{Canada-writer-stub