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As told by: Ken W. Roberts
I’ve been asked: Why was our little farm named Twin Oaks II, was there another Twin Oaks Farm before?
Answer: Yes, my Grandfather developed the original Twin Oaks Farm in the years following the Civil War, let me explain.
My grandfather George R.T. Roberts and his brother William traveled west by oxen team as Pioneer Settlers from the New Hampshire area in1865 to Brown County in N.E. Kansas. There was no railroad in Brown County and no Post Office in the nearby town of Morrill. They hired out for three years, George R.T. bought a quarter section of land on which he and his brother built a simple one room house for shelter.
| At a later date after the Homestead Act was enacted, George R.T. acquired an additional half-section of land making 460± acres total (it is unclear whether he homesteaded or purchased the additional land). This ¾ section of land was eventually named Twin Oaks Farm and those two oak trees stood side by side between the house and the barn. I remember them well. |  |
In 1869, George R.T. married Emily Ann Hawks. Together they had twelve children (three of whom died at birth). As the family grew and George R.T. prospered, the original one room house expanded. These two photos show the house in transition and as it finally existed from about 1900 until Twin Oaks Farm was sold out of the Roberts' family in the mid 1940's. The house continued to be occupied for over 20 years but eventually stood empty and neglected and was torn down in the 1980's.
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Through hard work and good management George R.T. prospered by entrepreneurship, farming, importing long horn cattle from Texas and sheep from Idaho. For twelve years he was president of the Farmers Bank of Morrill, which he helped establish. Together with a friend they founded the Morrill and James Bank of Hiawatha, the seat of Brown County. He was a director of the State Bank of Kansas from 1885 to 1889. He was head of the stock shipping firm of Roberts & S. R. Meyers, as soon as the railroad was built to Morrill. (Source foot note* )
 South View of the Barn |
At one time I understand he had 2700 sheep at Twin Oaks. There were still some of the sheep shearing and other related sheep tending tools in the barn when I was a kid. That barn was one of the largest, best planned barns in the country. It was 56 ft wide, 100 ft long and 3 stories high with feeding sheds on each end 50 and 65 feet long.
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The structural skeleton of the barn was made up of 14 x 16 inch timbers 40 feet long. These were floated down the Missouri River from Minnesota. Hundreds of tons of loose hay and hundreds of bushels of grain could be stored within the barn itself. Access for placing this feed into storage was via a large driveway running from end to end on the second floor. Feed was then distributed via the sheds on either end, or the basement. The barn was built on sloping ground so that the basement was accessible on the leeward side at ground level. When the barn was built in 1884, horses were the only power available for all farming operations and for local transportation. Autos and farm tractors were still 20 to 40 years in the future for general use. These are pictures of the barn, which is still in use.
 East View of the Barn |
 East View of the Barn |
Nearly 100 years later, with the acquisition of our new little farm in 1979, it seemed only natural to want to give it a name. Several names we considered were rejected outright, but one name considered more seriously for the first several years was Casa del Lago (Home by the Lake), but even that one didn't really elicit much support.
| When I bought the place, all that existed were the two mobile homes, the man-made lake with it’s bridge and of course the supporting infrastructure, a well, the septic systems, lots of young trees, shrubs, etc. While still living in the Los Angeles area improvement projects continued. |
 Aerial of Twin Oaks II in 1979 |
Each of the kids helped me when they could. In the spring of 1981 Doug, Scot and several of their friends joined me one long weekend while I was on vacation to install the drip watering systems for the orchard. I retired from Continental in the spring of 1982, married June Ellen and we moved to the farm that October. Mike helped me build the garage. Linda and Scot helped me lay the bricks in the front patio area and sidewalks.
 Aerial of Twin Oaks II in 2001 |
But the one who worked with me the most over the years was Scot. It was on one of these occasions when Scot and I were planting the first oak tree on the property near the front entrance that I made the remark "If we'd plant two of these we could call the place Twin Oaks". (Prior to this the only trees here were mainly eucalyptus and camphor.) |
The name Twin Oaks II clicked immediately! The choice would be partly a tribute to my Grandfather and partly in memory of my boyhood home for the first 18 years of my life until I came to Glendale, California in 1941 to attend the Curtiss-Wright Technical Institute of Aeronautics.
Truthfully, naming our little farm Twin Oaks II is like comparing a single drop of water to a whole bucketful! It’s just a sentimental thing.
* From “Genealogy of Daniel Hawks” compiled by Larry Hawkins Aug.1996
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