The Haehls 1900-1910

At the turn of the twentieth century (1900) the McDonald Ranch was purchased by Ed Haehl. In the early 1900s, Mr. Haehl built the Victorian-style house that still stands today on the south side of the highway. (aerial photo #1)The tall timber frame construction barn to the west of the Victorian on the south side of the highway, (aerial photo #8), was used as a storage barn for farming equipment on the lower level, and hay was kept in the upper level.

The Hiatts 1910 to 1972

In 1910, Mr. Ed Haehl sold the ranch and house to Mr. E. Bowlen (EB) Hiatt, and his wife Mary. The funds that EB used to purchase the property were proceeds from the sale of the Yorkville Hotel after the death in 1909 of EB’s father Elijah Monroe Hiatt (EM) and mother Elizabeth.

(Historical reference: World War I was fought from 1914 to 1918)

EM Hiatt figures heavily in the story of the naming of Yorkville. There was a card game between EM and Mr. York for naming rights to the area. Obviously, Mr. York won the game, and EM never allowed card games to be played in his house again.

The Highlands portion of the Yorkville Highlands name derives from “Highrollers,” a term used by locals in the Boontling dialect. Men from the Yorkville Highlands area were called “high rollers.” Some informants relate that when these men came to Boonville they wore coveralls over their suits during the ride in and often neglected to roll their suit pants legs down after removing the coveralls. Others say they were “high rollers” in the American slang implications of drinking and gambling. The topography if the area is that of high, rolling hills. Perhaps all the accounts have a mutually reinforcing effect on the term. The building along the creek (aerial photo #10) was added for the Delco plant, a generator that provided light for the home. A laundry room with a stove to heat water, a washing machine, and two tubs for rinsing were also located in this building. The clothesline hung just outside.

GW Hiatt would rent out deer hunting rights on the property to various people, and they used the “skinning shed” (aerial photo #6). When the pond was built (after 1972) the shed was demolished and the present cottage was built. In front of one of the current cottages (aerial photo #4) stood a large redwood water tank that captured spring water for use on the property. It was demolished in 2012.

Upon the death of EB Hiatt on Nov. 10, 1929, the ranch was passed to his three children, Maxwell, George Washington (GW), and Gertrude Hiatt. GW’s mother, Mary Hiatt resided in the home as a life tenant until her death on Dec. 26, 1959 at the age of 87.

Upon his graduation from Cloverdale High School in 1923, GW set about building a gas station on the north side of Highway 128 opposite the Victorian house (aerial photo #1). GW built a small house attached to the rear of the gas station on the north side of Hwy 128 (aerial photo #11). Originally it consisted of a kitchen, bathroom, and sleeping porch. GW Hiatt added a front porch and office to the home in the 1940s. GW married Mabel and they raised two daughters, Marilyn and Mabel (Missy) in the house. Currently (2016) painted yellow and known as 39000 Hwy 128, Greg and Marti Lawrence now own the house.

“This was the Mountain House Service Station 8 miles out of Cloverdale on what was then Highway 101. The station closed when River Road was completed between Cloverdale and Hopland and the highway from Cloverdale to the Mountain House became what is now Highway 128. The road from the service station to Hopland has now become Mountain House Road and is a county road. This picture was taken before my parents were married in 1930. Dad ran the Service Station as well as the ranch at that time. “When I was about 5 years old in 1936 one of my first jobs was to pump gasoline into the gas pump.” –Marilyn Hiatt

Besides operating the service station, GW worked for the County using a horse-drawn grass cutter to cut the grass along the sides of the highway, and as a lineman for the County maintaining the rural (party) telephone lines. Neither of GW’s siblings had any children.

There was a large barn on the north side of the highway, to the west of the home built by George Washington Hiatt. This barn functioned as a horse’s stable and housed their hay, tack, and coaches. Marilyn Hiatt remembers this barn fondly as a play area. Behind the barn was a pasture for the horses. Wes Smoot took a picture of the barn in May 2011. The barn fell down only weeks later and barn wood from the barn was used by the Lawrence’s son in his bay area bar.

Historical reference: the Great Depression was from 1929 to 1933, and World War II was fought from 1939 to 1945)

Marilyn and Missy Hiatt attended Gaskill School in its original location. In 1944 Marilyn graduated from elementary school and continued her education at Cloverdale High School.

In 1936 a new stretch of Highway 101 was opened. The Cloverdale-to-Hopland bypass follows the Russian River. With traffic rerouted, business suffered and the Mountain House gas station was closed.

After the gas station was closed, EB’s son, GW Hiatt built a large garage with gasoline tanks in the back of the yard of the Victorian home. The foundation is all remains now. A shed to the west of the Victorian was used as the garage for Mary Hiatt’s car. (aerial photo #14) To the east of the Victorian house, Mary Hiatt had her vegetable garden.

During the years of WW II, one of the hired hands was drafted into the Army. Ed Haehl’s son, Eddie, who helped GW Hiatt around the ranch, went into the Air Force. It was during this time that Marilyn Hiatt stepped up and began driving teams of horses, milking the cows, and helping with general chores. Although she was able to drive a team of horses, Marilyn didn’t learn to drive a car until age 40.

In 1945 when Marilyn was just 13, she helped her father build two more bedrooms at the back (east side) of their home. Years later, after the Hiatt’s sold the property, the porch was enclosed.

At 18 years of age (1949), Marilyn Hiatt married and moved away from the property. Marilyn’s two children would come to visit their grandmother, Mary at the Victorian house, and on at least one occasion, stayed the summer.