Two Generations of Homegrown Family Life
We’ve all heard the name. John Billings attained widespread recognition as the founder and owner of Billings Ranch in Ashland, a housing community at the west end of town. At 97 years of age, Billings is one of the oldest AHS alumni still alive, yet this has no impact whatsoever on his cheery demeanor and delightful sense of humor, a fact I observed during a visit with fellow Rogue News members Sierra Kistler and Grace-Riley Adams to the old Billings homestead. Having lived in the same house since 1929, it’s been 80 years of farm life for Billings. A self-professed “bad person to interview,” he defies his own self-doubts and recalls much of his young life, with some help from his daughter Mary, retelling it to us in his quaint living room with a soft voice full of insight and merriment. Born in Gold Beach, Billings and his three brothers were adopted into different families when their parents died tragically in the flu epidemic of 1919. Being the oldest, at just seven years of age, Billings would later keep up regular reunions with his then five-year-old and three-year-old and six-month-old brothers. As a boy, Billings said he didn’t have much leisure time. Milking cows and his various other dairy farm duties encompassed the majority of his daylight hours. Still, though, he found time to enjoy the activities most young boys often do, such as fishing. None other than Ashland’s very own Bear Creek served as his main fishing hole, back when fishing was allowed anytime and anywhere. When high school came around, Billings found himself immersed in reading, writing, literature, and arithmetic classes. However, his favorite class was typing. Billings was something of a typing prodigy at AHS, winning an award for being the fastest typist in his class and forced Mary to take typing in college. As far as sports went, the only team he actually played on for the high school was the football team. Baseball was a favorite leisure activity, but, as he says with lighthearted chagrin, “I always had to get home to milk.” Besides being self-professed “tit-pullers,” as Billings described it, the family took care of their cows and planted beans by hand. There were even more relaxing pastimes entirely unrelated to farming. The Billings family frequented Mount Ashland during the winter for skiing and sledding excursions. As an active member of the First United Methodist Church, Billings also took constant trips up there with his youth group, and attended many parties there. An active Rotarian since 1943, Billings is also a longtime city council member. He’s held countless jobs at his church, took part in water and soil conservation efforts, and has 63 years of perfect attendance at Rotary Club meetings. And, because of his large role in the club as well as the district government, Billings has been on many trips to various places around the world to attend rotary conventions with his wife in town. As for his role as an AHS alumni, he has never missed an annual alumni association dinner, the longest-running alumni dinner in the nation. Mary believes her father is in fact the oldest surviving alumnus, but he may just be the oldest still attending the dinners. And, with the next one coming up in July, he asks his daughter, “Do you think I’ll find myself there?” For such a giving, endearing, and heartfelt man, one can only hope so.
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