HONORARY ROTARIAN, BOB ROCKWELL
PART I: THE FIRST FIFTY YEARS
By Richard Pope
As our own Bob Rockwell approaches his
100th birthday in 2011, consider, if you will,
the fascinating life of this remarkable man.
Bob’s grandfather, L.W. Rockwell, was born
in 1855 and eventually went into the
department store business in Hornell. Bob’s
father, Robert Fay Rockwell, was born in
1886. He attended Princeton for one year
before an accident with a horse cut short his college career. He
married Aileen Miller in Bradford, Pennsylvania, in 1908, two
years after he bought a cattle ranch in Gunnison County,
Colorado. Before long the couple settled there. Aileen returned
to Bradford from the Colorado ranch to have Wilson in 1909 and
again in 1911 to have Bob on November 8, about five months
before the Titanic went down. The reason for these long
journeys was that the hospital nearest to the ranch was a 50mile rough ride in a horse and buggy. When Bob was only a
month old, his mother took him back to the Colorado ranch.
At the tender age of six Bob became a collector. He was
fascinated with insects and began a large collection, including
moths and butterflies. Soon afterwards he began collecting
arrowheads and the skulls of every mammal in Western
Colorado including mountain lions, bears and coyotes. His
patient and supportive mother let him boil off the meat right on
the kitchen stove!
As Bob grew up he admired the five framed Charles
Russell prints hanging in the ranch house. Little did he know at
that time how memories of those prints would inspire him in later
years.
During Bob’s youth his father was elected as a Republican
to serve as a state representative and later as a state senator.
In 1922, he was elected lieutenant governor of Colorado. For
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the family this meant many winters in Denver when the
legislature was in session.
The Colorado ranch was a “working
ranch” with 500 cows, 30 horses and five
Texas longhorns (the only ones in the
state). One thousand head of cattle would
winter over on this 5,500-acre spread.
There were five homes for the families of
the workers as well as the Rockwell family
home.
While in high school in Paonia, Bob
had a pet coyote and a pet eagle. He
managed the football team and was
elected president of the student body. Later, both Wilson and
Bob went to Whittier College in California. During his college
years, Bob became friends with underclassman Richard M.
Nixon, future President of the United States. Both of them spent
a lot of time together as “benchwarmers” on the football team.
This friendship would endure for over 50 years. While at
Whittier, Bob developed a life-long
interest in golf and became captain of
the team. He also became friends with
the American Indian football coach,
Chief Newman, former All-American at
Stanford. After transferring to Stanford
Bob often played golf with baseball
great Ty Cobb and got to know the
beloved football coach “Pop” Warner.
While at Stanford Bob joined Delta Tau
Delta fraternity and also became friends
with Lawrence See, the son of the
founder of famous See's Chocolates (now owned by Warren
Buffett's Berkshire-Hathaway) and David Packard, future cofounder of Hewlett Packard. At holiday times Bob would go with
Larry to his home in Beverly Hills. He has fond memories of
Mary See, whose picture still appears on the distinctive white
boxes of See’s chocolates. Bob was now majoring in economics
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even though he thought he might like to have a career in the
museum field someday. At graduation, when he received his
B.A., ex-President Herbert Hoover was there on the stage and
Bob remembers shaking hands with him.
In 1934, Bob went “back east” to work for his 79-year old
grandfather in his Corning department store starting at a salary
of $13 for a 57-hour workweek. Fellow Market Street retailer,
Morris Davidson, sponsored Bob as a new Corning Rotarian in
1936.
One day in 1937 he met a lovely
young bookkeeper, Hertha Godley, who
had just begun work at the Corning
store. Four years later he and Hertha
would marry, but not before Bob’s
mother passed away suddenly in 1938.
Bob’s grandfather died in 1940 and
Bob became “Top Man”. By 1942 his
salary had increased to $3,500 a year. A
year earlier, his father had been elected
to the U.S. Congress as a Colorado
Representative. He would go on to serve seven years.
At about that time, Bob raised many local eyebrows by
having Olympic hero Jim Thorpe come as a guest speaker at
the Corning Rotary Club. During his college years, Bob had
become friends with Thorpe, a friend of the football coaches at
both Whittier and Stanford. In 1906 Thorpe won the gold medal
in the decathlon.
As Bob was building the business he became friends and
golf partners with Dr. Eugene Sullivan, famed Corning scientist,
and Frederick Carder, founder of Corning Rotary Club and the
creative force behind Steuben Glass. Other golf partners were
Ed Smith and George MacBeth. The “nineteenth hole” was at
Dr. Sullivan’s house at 5:00 pm every Saturday during golf
season. Bob’s other friends at this weekly social were Amory
Houghton, Ingersoll-Rand Controller Fred Parsons, Corning
Glass Works President Glenn Cole, and Judge John Wheeler. It
wasn’t too long after the attack on Pearl Harbor that Bob,
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despite having significant business
responsibilities, decided to enlist in the
Navy. In June 1942, he received orders to
report for officer’s training at Harvard. Over
the next year he was stationed in Rhode
Island and Virginia flying with naval aviators
practicing dive bombing and winning a
medal for his marksmanship with a rifle.
In May 1943, Bob completed a
transatlantic voyage from Norfolk to North Africa in an LST.
Visiting Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia, he was now serving as a
supply depot officer with the 79th Naval Construction Battalion.
He has vivid memories of hearing about the first European
landings in nearby Sicily.
Later he was transferred to Oakland, California, and his
devoted wife, Hertha, accompanied him. He was now head of all
enlisted personnel. Discharge followed in November 1945, just
six months after the
birth of Sandra, their
first child. Before long
the three of them set
out on a driving trip
back to Corning. This
was followed by a
move into their home
at 248 Wall Street. He was anxious to resume his managerial
duties at The Rockwell Co. and return to Rotary Club meetings.
In 1948, son Bobby was born. The next year saw Bob assume
the presidency of both the Chamber of Commerce and the
Corning Rotary Club.
At the relatively young age of 64, Bob’s father died
suddenly in 1950. Soon after, Bob acquired the Colorado ranch.
During the 1950’s, Bob began to collect antique toys,
trains, music boxes, and doll carriages in a meaningful way.
These prized acquisitions would be put on display at the
Rockwell department store and would intrigue customers from
near and far. Bob would notice new customers coming in and
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remarking how they were
told not to miss the
exhibits. Certainly this
helped increase
business.
Bob’s uncle, Harry
Miller, died in 1955, and
Bob now had to run his
100-year old lumber
business in addition to
the department store
and the ranch. These responsibilities made for a full life.
In 1958, Bob heard Alaska calling and embarked on a
lengthy road trip with his Colorado ranch foreman. He brought
back numerous artifacts and specimens to be shown in the
store.
By 1960, The Rockwell Co. was widely known for its
collections, and yet there were no paintings of the American
West nor any examples of Frederick Carder Steuben Glass on
display. But Bob heard about an “original” Frederic Remington
printing for sale in Elmira. He went to the shop immediately and
purchased “The Pinto Pony” for $500. Excitement about his
acquisition would soon turn to regret. But that story will have to
wait until Part II in next year’s directory.
N.B.: A well-written and comprehensive biography of Bob was
published in 2002 by local author, Dr. Mary Elizabeth “Betty” Wahlig.
For Real – Bob Rockwell: The Man and His Collection is available
through Amazon.com or directly from the publisher, Xlibris Corporation,
by phone at (888) 795-4274 or from their website at
https://www2.xlibris.com/bookstore/bookdisplay.asp?bookid=14921.
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