Pine Valley, Oregon
Ella Bell Huff Tarter, 95, a lifetime Pine Valley resident, died Sept. 11, 2006.
Her funeral was Friday at the Pine Valley Presbyterian Church in Halfway. Leonard Hill officiated. Ella was buried beside her husband, Walt, at Pine Haven Cemetery in Halfway. Friends joined the family after the service for a reception and luncheon at the Pine Valley Presbyterian Fellowship Hall.
Ella was born to Bert and Gladys Oliver Huff on Nov. 6, 1910, in Pine Valley. Like her mother before her, she rode horseback or walked to all of her years of school. Ella’s grandparents were the ninth family to settle in Pine Valley in 1880. Like her pioneer ancestors, Ella spent her entire life working the land.
Ella and her late husband, Walt, were married the summer of 1933 and spent their honeymoon in a Forest Service Lookout in Idaho. They purchased their ranch on Sunnydell Lane in 1944 and remained on this ranch for the rest of their lives.
Ella was an avid gardener and homemaker. She worked side by side with Walt in all aspects of ranching. Although she and Walt had no children of their own, they helped raise all of Ella’s nieces and nephews.
Survivors include one sister, Billee Howard; and six nieces and seven nephews.
Memorial contributions may be made to the charity of one’s choice through Tami’s Pine Valley Funeral Home, P.O. Box 543 Halfway, OR 97834.
Used with permission from: Baker City Herald, Baker City, Oregon, September 18, 2006
Transcribed by: Belva Ticknor
