Thomas Carol “Tommy” Davies of Princeton died on his 84th birthday, Jan. 3, 2006, at the home he was born in on the family ranch.
Burial was Saturday at the Burns Cemetery.
Tom was born on Jan. 3, 1922, at Princeton to J.W. “Bill” and Catherine “Mae” Barnhart Davies. He was the youngest of four sons.
The boys attended grade school one mile from the ranch along with the neighbors’ children, some of whom became lifelong friends.
Tommy had many happy memories of helping herd the family sheep on Steens Mountain, of running wild horses and of helping family and neighbors as the country changed over to cattle.
Tom was a 1938 Crane High School graduate. He attended a war-time machinist school at Baker City where he learned skills to support the war effort. Returning to his lifelong home in Harney County, he said he rode some good horses in his lifetime, and his skill as a stockman was evident to all.
He married Carolyn Held, a young school teacher from Iowa. They had two children: a daughter, Mary; and a son, Duane.
Tom was a skilled carpenter and mechanic, and like his contemporaries, built things to last. He ranched all of his life in Harney County and was blessed to make his home on the ranch his family homesteaded. He was awarded the Grassman of the Year award in 1990.
Survivors include his son, Duane Davies, and his wife, Michele, and their children, Sarah, Baxter and Maureen, of Princeton; his daughter, Mary Kerns, and her husband, Wes, and their sons, John, Jeff and Mark of Baker City; his brother, Maurice Davies, and sister-in-law, Norma, and nephews, Lou and Martin, and their families of Princeton; his sister-in-law, Emma Davies of Ontario; and nieces, Cathy Miller of Crane, Joan Davies of Umatilla, Linda Gage of Jordan Valley, Susan Miller of Princeton, and their families.
He was preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Carolyn; and brothers, J.S. “Jack” Davies and Charles “Dick” Davies.
Memorial contributions may be made to Harney County Home Hospice through LaFollette’s Chapel at Burns.
Used with permission from: Baker City Herald, Baker City, Oregon, January 13, 2006
Transcribed by: Belva Ticknor
