George Nathan King
September 23, 1937 – January 30, 2024

George Nathan King was born in Gilroy on September 23, 1937. His parents were Harold O. King and Amy Ellen VanAuken. When George was five years of age his family moved to San Juan Bautista. He helped his father and grandfather in the Santa Cruz Mountains sawing logs by hand and split the timber into posts and 3x5 fence boards. When George was about seven years of age he fell out of a tree, crushing his elbow. The doctor wanted to amputate. His mother then found an army surgeon who repaired his arm with titanium bicycle parts. His mother was a nurse and passed away from cancer on May 10, 1952 when George was 14 years of age. George went to live with the King grandparents in the Santa Cruz Mountains. George’s sister LaBerta stayed with their father in Chula Vista, California. George gathered and picked fruits like pears, apricots, and prunes as a child. He attended Laurel Elementary School, then graduated from Los Gatos High School in 1955. George then went to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo when it was a male only college. The freshman dorms were army barracks from Camp Cook.

In February of 1956 George travelled to Modoc County with his friend Bill Joiner. Years 1959 to 1964 George worked at Aiden Lumber Mill in Modoc County pulling chain, loading the carrier, and loading the train cars for 12 to 16 hours a day. In 1959 George married Gloria Gould of Lookout. Their daughters Debra K. and Denise Joy were born in 1960 and 1962. When they separated George received total custody of his daughters. George and Bill Joiner operated a beef ranch feeding cattle, moving irrigation, and making hay.

On Thanksgiving day in 1965 George met Karin Wrigley at Albert and Lillian Joiners in Lookout. They married on June 12, 1966 in Eureka, but lived in Lookout in Modoc County for one year learning everything about beef cattle. After the year passed George and Karin got the opportunity to move to Ferndale to raise their children. In 1968 George and Karin bought a fixer upper farm house that was built around 1890 on the corner of Rose Avenue and Schley. The barn on one acre was built with square nails and was perfect for the 4-H project animals, sheep, and pony “Sparky”. Nathan was born in 1971 and Ted in 1977, both in Humboldt County.

George milked cows, made fence posts, then bid on forest service brush piling jobs. He also built logging roads. While using a caterpillar, George built fire lines along the Mad River District. He also did salvage logging for Schmidbaur Lumber Company. George then managed his own logging crew and equipment doing contract logging for forest and private industries. He worked in every watershed in Humboldt County. A typical day was ten to twelve hours long plus driving time for six days a week. It was usually hot and dusty. When his business first began he used Cats to skid the logs. Now, rubber tire skidders are used. Also, boom and line were used to load logs, nowadays, front end loaders are used and helicopters. There were once 100 lumber mills around Humboldt County. After fifty years in the business, the industry had changed with more mechanized and specialized equipment for various aspects of logging. Each tree is more utilized ad there is no waste. During the summer months Karin would bring their children to camp near the logging operation as there was usually a nice river for swimming nearby. During the winters the equipment was overhauled to be ready for the upcoming season. George was passionate about logging and had many stories to share once he retired.

George always had a positive attitude and tried to do anything he was able to do. In addition to wood working and mechanic work on small and large engines George was a gardener growing vegetables, berries, and fruit trees. Apples were shared with the community from trees that George and Karin grafted.

George and Karin had an adventurous life meeting people and travelling to many different places. They spent their winters like “snowbirds” at the Salton Sea in the Mojave Desert. They met many great friends and participated in activities they both enjoyed. They played bocceball, horseshoes, racquetball, did square dancing, and played cribbage card games. Over the years George enjoyed fellowships in various churches ending with Our Saviors Lutheran Church in Ferndale.

A succession of “Barney’s” were George’s loyal pickup dogs. In addition, to George’s hard work ethic, some fun was mixed in like hot spicy food competitions with his sons. Special memories were made with grandchildren, especially cribbage card games.

George is survived by his loving wife of 58 years, Karin King, daughters Debra K. Stottlemyer (Dale), and Denise Joy Warren (Matt), Sons George “Nathan” King (Jennifer) and Theodore Irving King (Kim), and eight grandchildren in which he adored. They are Gregory Stottlemyer (Valarie), Kaley Wennerholm (Lucas), Hobie Warren (Jamie), Victoria Warren, Alexis Warren, Nathan “Lane” King, Zachary King, and Danny King. George is also survived by his only sibling, his sister LaBerta Forys (David), and his nephew Tully. He is also survived by several cousins and many friends he made throughout his life.

George’s burial will take place at Lookout Cemetery in Lookout, Ca on June 1, 2024. A celebration of George’s life will take place on Sunday April 14, 2024 at Our Saviors Lutheran Church at 2 p.m. in Ferndale. You are welcome to join the family for the celebration. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to your favorite charity.