Ralph Rambo
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Ralph Rambo (1894 - 1990) was a San Jose (California) Historian. He wrote 14 books about life in the Santa Clara Valley in California. He was born in San Jose, California on May 16, 1894 and died in Palo Alto, California on May 19, 1990.
His books were extremely colorful and according to the author, loosely recounted his experiences growing up during the pioneer days in the area. Ralph Rambo's profession was a graphic artist. He was the Art Director for Muirson Label Company for almost fifty years. His illustrations are quite vivid, often hand-lettered in an entertaining or comics fashion. He merged humor with history in order to convey historical value of his stories.
A self-proclaimed "nostalgician," he could be compared with other social historians such as Herb Caen in San Francisco , California and "Petaluma Peopleologist," Bill Soberanes.
[edit] Favorite Topics
- Outhouses (one and two-holers)
- Alviso Garbage Dumps
- Reasons for Names of Cities in the Santa Clara Valley
- The 1906 Earhtquake
- Aspects of Pioneering
- Fishing in rivers around Santa Clara Valley
- Schoolhouses now gone and buried under freeways
- The allure of Winchester Rifles and Sarah Winchester
- Obsolete jargon of the 19th century
- A discussion of the infamous Mexican bandit, Tiburcio Vasquez
A short article about Ralph Rambo may be found here:
[edit] Publications
1. Looking Backward 1900, pub. 1959 [apparently a manuscript in the San Jose Library]
2. Plant Life: A Rambling Treatise on the rearing and early culture of a common indoor plan, 1963 [apparently a manuscript in the San Jose Library]
3. Almost Forgotten: cartoon pen and linkings of the old Santa Clara Valley, pub. 1964
4. Remember When. A Boy's-Eye View of an Old Valley, pub. 1965
5. Me and Cy and a "reitrement colony" in the Alviso garbage dumps, 1966
6. Lady of Mystery (Sarah Winchester), pub. 1967
7. "Lo, the Poor Indian" of the Santa Clara Valley, pub. 1967
8. Trailing the California Bandit, Tiburcio Vaquez, 1835-1875, pub. 1968
9. The Little House, by a Pioneer Occupant (dedicated to outhouses), pub. 1969
10. Adventure Valley: Pioneer Adventures in the Santa Clara Valley, pub. 1970
11. Sierra Santa, pub. 1971
12. Pioneer Blue Book fo the old Santa Clara Valley, pub. 1973
13. Pen and Inklings, pub. 1984 (compilation of previous books with new material)
14. E-day 1906: Witness to an Earthquake, pub. 1987
and perhaps others.
[edit] Miscellaneous
- Santa Clara Valley is sometimes referred to as the Silicon Valley.
- Did you know that there is a "one-holer" behind the Los Altos Library in Los Altos, CA? Los Altos Library
- Many of these very impressive books are available for viewing at libraries in Los Altos, Cupertino and San Jose, California.
