Frank Latta, a historian and self-published author, who said he had interviewed 17,000 pioneers and collected 800 tons of memorabilia, including books, photos and other stuff, purchased the 725-acre Gazos Ranch, south of Pescadero in the 1950s. It was a beautiful ranch, formerly owned by the locally famous Steele family, the land stretching from the Pacific eastward toward the mountains.
Frank and wife Jean intended to retire there. They were in their 60s, and to make their dream possible, the Lattas intended to turn the ranch into a historical museum, adding a few touches of the more commercially-oriented Knotts Berry Farm in southern California.
In the late 1950s, after going through the official county procedures, Latta thought he was on his way, and even made a public announcement saying so—but then was stopped cold in his tracks.
…to be continued…