Audrey Rohrbough

Then and Now.....

Story by Lois Karel-barr

An afternoon with Audrey Rohrbough

One of our more pleasant and interesting afternoons was recently spent talking with Audrey Rohrbough, a long time Covelo resident—not to mention a proud wife, mother, rancher, and a real honest-to-goodness hometown cowgirl.

Audrey is a ruggedly attractive woman, easy to smile, quick of wit and gracious in manner.

She was born on the 4th of April in 1914, and though she uses a cane to steady herself when she walks, she is in good health and of keen mind. Audrey was a rancher all her life and her late husband, John Rohrbough, was a direct descendant of George White, an early explorer who laid claim to thousands of acres in and around Round Valley during the 1850s.

Audrey's late husband, John Rohrbough, as rendered by artist Amy Bowman

Audrey and John Rohrbough were married in 1940. "John was 40 years old and I was 26 years old when we married. We have four sons, Johnnie, Philo, Perry and Roger, five grandchildren and five great grandchildren."

"My husband, John, was into ranching, but not as involved early on as I was. John went to the University of California and graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. His father founded the Bank of Covelo and John was president of the bank for several years."

The Early Years at Island Mountain Ranch & Bell Springs Mountain Ranch
"I was born and raised on a mountain ranch and that's the life I know."--Audrey

Audrey's parents, Lola and Philo Short were both born and raised in Covelo.

They were married at Spy Rock when Lola was 19 years old, and she moved with Philo to a 9,000-acre cattle ranch at Island Mountain which belonged to a man named Ramsey. This was back when there were no roads and everything had to be packed in by horse and mule. It was very isolated.

There was no refrigeration, no running water, no electricity, no telephone. The Shorts lived at Island Mountain for eleven years and this is where Audrey got her start.

Audrey's parents, Lola and Philo Short, 1912,
with her brother and sister, Larry and Christine Short

When Audrey was about three years old, her father bought an interest in a large ranch and they moved to Bell Springs, to another wilderness mountain ranch. Audrey's older brother and sister, Larry & Christine, rode horseback to school. The school was in Spy Rock, which was about a nine-mile ride through the mountains. They would ride in on Monday mornings, stay the week with some folks in Spy Rock, and then ride home again on Friday evenings. Audrey was taught at home by her mother until she started the 3rd grade because it was too far for a young child to ride to school. When Audrey did start attending school at Spy Rock, she used to ride with a cousin that "Mom & Pop helped raise. His mother and father died. His mother was my mother's sister and he was an adopted boy. They also raised another boy who was an orphan." Audrey remembers those rides fondly and recalls mostly that "we had a lot of horse races on those trips."

Audrey on her horse, Andy, in 1931

Audrey was a real cowgirl. She rode horses, roped cows, branded them, hunted and trapped...."We always had good horses to ride and my Dad was always good and let us children have some of the best he had."

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