THE E. R. MATTHEWS BIOGRAPHY PAGE

October 24, 1914 to September 12, 1980

Rex and "Lucky" in 1937.

Earl Rex Matthews was born on October 24, 1914 in Oakley, Idaho. He was the first of five children born to Thomas Earl Matthews and Agnes Martin Matthews.

Rex - 9 months old in July 1915.

Rex spent most of this growing-up years at the large Matthews Ranch at Willow Creek, just outside of Burley, Idaho. It was managed by his father and owned by his grandfather, H. R. Matthews, known as Bish.

Like all ranch children, Rex grew up doing any chores he was capable of doing, for his age. One day his father told him to guide him while he backed a trailer loaded with grain up to the grainery. The next thing he knew he was pinned between the trailer and the grainery wall while his father frantically tried to get the motor restarted. When he did he pulled away so fast that Rex was drowned in a cloud of gravel and dirt. But he was unhurt.

Rex's parents, Agnes and Thomas in 1944.

As children, Rex and his brother Max didn't like their sister Clara following them wherever they went. So one day they tied her to the dog and sent the dog home. The dog ran under the fence and tried to obey but Clara was caught in the fence and stood screaming. Their mother came running and they never did that again.

Rex met Ora Whitaker in 1933 at a dance at the Willow Creek Church and they were married on June 4th, 1936 at the LDS Temple in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Rex had been working for his Uncle Parley in Oakley, Idaho and Rex and Ora's first home was a two room apartment on the top floor of his grandfather's home in Oakley.

In November they moved to the ranch to work for his father, living in the small house owned by his uncle. They spent the next ten years there.

In the next two years Rex rented two other ranches. Then, in late 1948, he decided to see what it was like to be paid for his labor. He accepted a ranch job in Enumclaw, Washington, owned by a man named Johansen. Johansen owned a meat packing business.

He soon became unhappy with the job as it wasn't as it had been represented to him. He quit and went to work as a roustabout for the railroad.

During the late 40's rentals were hard to find, so they bought a small trailer home and moved it to a park next to a large one owned by Ray Colfax, the Pusher of an oil rig from California. He had been drilling a series of wells near Black Diamond.

Two days before his job with the railroad ended, Ray came over and signed him on with the drilling company.

This was an uneasy time for him as he had never even seen an oil rig before. Nor had he done shift work. However he left with the midnight crew and came home with the blackest eye he ever had. He had been hit with a wet spinning rope.

In spite of the painful beginning, the next twelve years turned out to be a memorable time in their lives. For the first time they had enough money for their needs and a chance to make their own decisions. They also had good friends and a chance to live in towns all over California. Ray and Maurita Colfax became lifelong friends that lasted until their deaths many years later.

1950 provided a surprise for them. After 14 years of early miscarriages, they had given up ever having a child. But after having followed the right doctor's advice they became the parents of a son they named Larry Rex, on January 29, 1951. Larry was a born traveler who fit right into the life.

Rex, Larry and Ora in January 1952.

In 1956 Larry began Kindergarten in Ventura and ended up the year five moves later in Bakersfield. After that, Rex decided it was time to settle down.

Rex at the rig at Castaic, California - 1957.

He decided to move to Gardena, California and go to National Schools to get a diploma in Auto Mechanics. He specialized in automatic transmissions. After he finished school he worked almost a year for Flamingo Trailer Manufacturers, while looking for a job in his field.

He began working for J. L. Automotive in 1958, for Joe Lenderskis.

In June of 1963, Joe bought some land in Oroville, California and they all moved north and began the process of building an auto shop there. Rex worked in that building for 17 years. For most of that time he worked for Joe, but in the later years the shop was owned by two other owners for a short time.

During that time he saw his son graduate from high school in 1969 and go into the Navy in 1970. Then he saw him, at age 19, enter a short lived marriage.

On August 31, 1974 he saw Larry married for a second time. Then on December 31, 1978 Rex became a grandfather when their son, Alan Lawrence, was born.

Rex, Alan and Ora in January 1979.

His Mother died in May, 1979 and his Father died on November 5th of that year.

In 1980, Rex began to look tired and thin. But he resisted any efforts to get him to a doctor. On August 12, he developed chest pains and had to give in and go to the doctor. They ran tests all day and several times during the next two weeks while he was off work. Then he was allowed to go back to work, with no heavy lifting.

He worked for the next two weeks. Then on Friday, September 12, 1980 he changed his clothes to get ready to come home. He walked out the door of the changing room and fell to the floor. The doctor said he was sure he died instantly of a massive coronary. He was almost 66 years old.

REMEMBRANCE

Rex was a cheerful, happy man. He had many friends and few, if any, enemies. He had a good sense of humor and enjoyment. He was also a very honest man. He was always anxious to earn what he was paid. He was never late and seldom absent. In one case he showed more devotion to a business than it's owner did.

He was equally devoted to his family.

Rex loved animals, mostly horses, dogs and cats. I asked him several times if he wouldn't like to get a dog, but he always said they belonged on a farm or a ranch. We did have cats, and he loved and enjoyed them.

Rex on "Buck" in 1947.

He was never fired from a job and had many offers from other garages and shops in Oroville. I was always being told that he was the best mechanic in town. He always said that he had helped build the auto shop and he would die there - which is exactly what he did.

He was a good man.

Ora Matthews, Widow.

REMEMBRANCE

When I was a kid I always thought of my Dad as a big man. Even though later I found out he was only 5 foot 6. I remember the basic things about Dad. He was always full of fun and had a great sense of humor and a wonderful laugh. He would become very animated when he laughed. We had many wonderful laughs together.

I have great pictures of him with me when I was a small child. He had a great look of affection for me in those pictures, and I for him.

I remember that he always worked hard - and a lot of hours. Sometimes the long hours did cause some stress on the family. But, overall, we were very happy. I remember some wonderful Sundays just being with him and my mother.

We were very close when I was a child. But, as a teenager we tended to not be so close. I was pretty idealistic during the Vietnam War and we did not always get along. That coupled with the normal teenage attitude that I knew everything!

But in the last 10 years of his life I know we were closer - and getting closer - than ever. I had become an adult and could understand just how much effort he had made to raise me and make me learn how life really was. When he died, when I was 29, it was a terribly traumatic event. He was too young and too much loved, at age 65, to die.

The last two pictures I ever took of him tell of his character, love and humor. One was of him riding a bicycle, just like a kid. The other is with him and his grandson, Alan, showing him how to play horseshoes. You can see the fun and love between them. As Alan was only 21 months old he doesn't remember him well. But he does know and cherish the stories he has heard about him.

Rex and Alan in June of 1980.

Truly, my Dad was a great giant of a man - even at only 5 foot 6!

Larry Matthews - Son