His Kindness Shines Through
By Katie Bokenkamp
Ralph C. Hicken
February 1, 1894- June 30, 1965
WWI, Ralph seated in center
Ralph C. Hicken was born on February 1, 1894 in Washington, Missouri to Sarah Elizabeth Thompson Hicken and Benjamin Franklin Hicken.[1] Ralph was the oldest living son his mother bore; she had two boys before him, but they died very soon after their birth. As for his surviving siblings, Ralph had an older half-sister, Mayme, who was his mother’s daughter from a previous marriage. Ralph also had three younger brothers William Ray, Orville Glen, and Benjamin Franklin. In 1896 Ralph’s Aunt Mary, Sarah Elizabeth’s sister, died and left behind ten children. Ralph’s parents took in all ten children and they are all listed as adopted children on the 1900 census. Benjamin Franklin worked as either a switchman or a brakeman for the Missouri Pacific Railroad in St. Louis, Missouri and was killed in a railyard accident on August 25, 1903. His death left Sarah Elizabeth with her own five children and her sister’s ten.
Around 1904, Sarah Elizabeth brought her five children with her to Colorado in an attempt to cure her tuberculosis. The trip proved unsuccessful, as Sarah’s condition did not improve. At the end of 1905 or beginning of 1906, she decided to take her children back to Belle, Missouri to be with their family. Ralph’s mother died on February 19, 1906 from tuberculosis. The family was put through this whole ordeal once more when Mayme (Ralph’s half-sister) contracted tuberculosis as well. Mayme brought the four boys back to Denver to try to cure her own tuberculosis. She got a job working for the phone company whilst she was attempting to juggle taking care of her four younger brothers and fighting her illness. This all proved too much for Mayme to handle and she had to put Ralph and his three brothers in the Colorado State Home orphanage on April 10, 1906. Ralph was the oldest of the boys at ten years old. Mayme visited her brothers as often as she could, but, like her mother, she too succumbed to tuberculosis and died on December 16, 1908 at 20 years old.
Ralph remained in the home for about a year and a half; in 1907, when he was 11, the Colorado State Home placed Ralph on trial for indenture at a ranch in Calhan, CO with J.H. Fitzgerald. In this case, ‘indentured’ means that Fitzgerald took Ralph under his care and in exchange, Ralph worked on the ranch for a set period. He was transferred to another ranch on August 20, 1907 under the command of Horace Meloy. When Ralph’s brother William Ray came of age (roughly 12 years old) he too was indentured to ranchers south of Denver. In 1910, the federal census lists both boys in El Paso County, CO.
Between the years of 1910 and 1917, Ralph and William Ray decided to go to California. The boys only made it to Meeker, CO and decided the town was good enough for the two of them to make a life. They both got jobs on ranches in the area and when their ranchers found out they had two brothers remaining at the home in Denver, they offered to take in the two younger brothers, Orville and Frank. Thus, all four Hicken boys ended up together in Meeker, CO.
Ralph registered for the Civilian Draft on June 5, 1917. He began his service on August 5, 1917. Ralph served as a farrier and cavalryman in General Pershing’s Headquarters Troop of the 1st army corps. He was stationed in France and wrote a letter to his brother Ray on May 5 1918, which was then published in the local paper. This letter provides insight into Ralph’s daily duties, his perceptions of France, and gives the reader a sense of his personality. As a rancher, he was able to take care of horses during the war and this provided him with a sense of normalcy. His intrigued and almost mystified perceptions of France echo those of many other soldiers, especially in the comment that the French would have anything pull a wagon, even dogs, a thought extremely foreign to Americans at this time. Additionally, Ralph’s sense of humor peeks through in his comment, “We are kept pretty busy taking care of the horses and drilling, but that beats hiking 12 to 15 miles a day with a heavy pack.” He made light of his situation, demonstrating humor in a particularly challenging time. One of the qualities Ralph’s granddaughter Sue Hicken remembers most fiercely about her grandfather was his kindness; this kindness shines through in Ralph’s desire to help his brother with the cattle at home, yet he recognizes he has important duties to attend to in France. As a member of Gen. Pershing’s 1st army corps, Ralph would have participated in Champagne-Marne defensive (July 15-18, 1918), Aisne-Marne offensive (July 15-August 6, 1918), St. Mihiel offensive (September 12-16, 1918), and the Meuse-Argonne offensive (September 26-November 11, 1918). As a 6’3” man, Ralph towered above his fellow soldiers and friends, as can be seen in the photos. Ralph was transported back to the US on April 19, 1919 on the ship Pretoria; they arrived in Boston on April 28, 1919.
WWI, Ralph in center
WWI, Ralph on the left
Ralph met his future wife, Pearl, when he returned from the war. He worked on a farm next door to Pearl’s family farm. Pearl was still married to her first husband, Charles Shivers, at this point, but she is listed on the 1920 census as living with her parents and 3-year-old son (also named Charles) on the farm, without her husband. Pearl and Charles divorced in 1920. Shortly after, Pearl married Ralph on August 3, 1920. Ralph raised young Charles as his own with Pearl and they had one son together, Gearld, born in a log cabin in 1924. The family lived in Meeker, Colorado until 1930 and then they were forced to leave Meeker because the Great Depression closed down the timber companies. Ralph’s profession was as a timberman, so the closing of the timber companies profoundly impacted him and his family.
The Hickens lived in Fairplay, CO in 1935 while Ralph worked for timber companies. Also in 1935, Ralph’s stepson Charles died tragically from drowning in the Dolores River, south of Grand Junction, CO. After that, Ralph, Pearl and Gearld moved to Denver in 1936. In 1939 Ralph had Pearl and Gearld stay in Denver, while he went and worked in Wyoming so that Gearld could be educated at the schools in Denver. Gearld graduated from East High School and earned a scholarship to the University of Denver where he majored in business. While still attending DU, Gearld married Lillian Brolien in 1944. After he graduated in 1948, he moved to Wyoming to be with his parents. At this point, Ralph and Pearl worked in tie camps where timbermen would cut down trees for railroad ties. Pearl did the cooking for the camps and Ralph was a timberman. When Pearl’s father died, Gearld and Lillian returned to Denver; Ralph and Pearl followed suit in 1955 to be near Gearld and his family.
Ralph and Pearl at Gearld's DU graduation, 1942-43
Pearl, Gearld, and Ralph
Ralph and Pearl in Wyoming, 1944
During these final years, Ralph owned two different service stations, each one of them going under due to what Sue deemed as one of Ralph’s least attractive qualities: his money handling habits. The other instance Sue mentioned in regards to Ralph’s less flattering characteristics was that at the beginning of Ralph and Pearl’s marriage, Ralph drank. Pearl, however, told him that if he didn’t stop drinking, she would leave him. That made Ralph come to his senses and he stopped drinking. So, that instance was much in Ralph’s past and he changed himself for the better.
Sue Hicken had nothing but wonderful things to say about her grandfather. She said that her favorite memory of her grandad was when she was in high school. On her way home from school she would walk over to his house and he would drive her the final six blocks home in his 1957 Chevy. Both Sue and Ralph enjoyed the time they spent together during their car ride ritual. Sue cited Ralph’s most prominent good qualities as kindness and caring. She also said that Ralph was extremely hardworking and that she does not remember a time when he was not working.
Pearl died nine months before Ralph and she was buried in Fort Logan cemetery. On June 29, 1965 Ralph suffered a stroke and the following day, June 30, 1965, he died and was then buried with Pearl at Fort Logan.
Footnotes ↓
[1] Interview with Sue Hicken, granddaughter of Ralph Hicken, by Katie Bokenkamp, 2018, DU VLP.
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