Hysterical Journey To Historic Places

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J6 RANCH



John G. F. Speiden owned the J6 Ranch about 9 miles west of Benson, AZ. He was a Cornell educated banker who had to move to Arizona for the salubrious health benefits of an arid climate. In 1936 he needed an adobe office built on his ranch and needed a couple of stout Irish lads as hod carriers. Any Mexican could build a fine adobe, but Speiden was lonesome for some snooty company from back east. What better place would there be than Boston to find a couple of unemployed Irishmen during the Great Depression? He took out a help wanted ad in the Boston Globe. His ad came to the attention of a fellow named Joe who had a couple of teenage sons, Joe Jr and John, who were making him crazy. A summer spent on Mars was what Joe would have preferred, but Arizona was close enough. He accepted the job offer on behalf of his sons and sent them off on the train. As the train pulled out the old man must have uttered a huge sigh of relief. Under close supervision Joe Jr and John worked all summer on a job that should not have taken more than a couple of weeks. When the office finally was done the walls weren’t plumb, the doors would not close properly and the roof leaked, but they called a job well done and drew their pay. Being good Irish lads they took the proceeds from the entire summer down to Nogales and wisely spent it in a brothel. Their dad had to send them money to get home with, but it was money well spent all around. Joe had plenty of money. That summer spent working on the J6 Ranch about 9 miles west of Benson was the only honest labor that either of the sons ever did. Both of them went on to Harvard, the younger of those sons joined the Navy during WWII. He later became a Senator from Massachusetts and then President of the United States. His name was John Fitzgerald Kennedy. The photo shows J6 Ranch from the end of the paved road.

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Photos

J6 RANCH
Take I-10 west of Benson for about 9 miles to the Mescal Rd exit. Turn left, cross over the freeway and follow the paved road south for 2.5 miles to a locked gate. The adobe office is on private property. The locked gate is as close as you can get to it.