A regal beauty, and the toughest woman to ever live.

Winifred was born on July 18, 1948 to William “Bill” and Angelica Beal. To say she was proud of her roots would be an understatement. A fifth generation Ferndale native, with her father coming from the Russ family, a long line of cattle and sheep ranchers and pioneers of Ferndale, and her mother coming from a family of nobility in Russia, having successfully escaped after the Bolshevik Revolution. Winifred had many fond memories and stories to tell of her picturesque childhood, and tell them, she did!

Winnie grew up on Main Street, Ferndale, alongside her sisters, Jimmie Fay and Rebecca, too many cousins to count, and many, many lifelong best friends made along the way. Many childhood weekends were spent at Fern Cottage for family gatherings, always donning their Sunday best. She was raised with the elegance and etiquette of that expected of a young lady with her prestigious lineage, however Winifred’s slightly mischievous smile told you everything you needed to know: she would rather be in her jeans and cowgirl boots.

A true cowgirl, through and through, Winnie was strong, stubborn, and a bit sarcastic. She had a smile and sparkle in her eye that was truly unmatched. Joining her Daddy to go to work any chance she could, he made sure she was every bit of capable as she was pretty. She learned the ins and outs of working the family ranch lands along Bear River Ridge and down into Bear River Valley. She could run with the best of them, and quickly became a well respected horseman in the community. 

Even as a cowgirl, that mischievous smile was still very much a part of her. In her adolescent years, she “let loose” and rebelled a bit, and fancied herself a real Humboldt hippie! She found a deep love for tie-dye and ‘60s music, which both turned out to never be “just a phase.” One of her favorite memories and stories to tell was when she went to the Monterey International Pop Festival in 1967 with her best friend, Jane Dupret. A story we never grew tired of hearing, and also the reason her family brought her home a tie-dye souvenir wherever they visited. 

In 1968, she married Gary Mangrum, and later that year welcomed a son, Mickey Mangrum. They raised Mickey together on Berding Street in Ferndale, while Winnie continued to cowgirl while also being a mother. The two divorced, and later she went on to remarry in 1978, to Steve Baker.

The two moved to Williams Creek, in the outskirts of Ferndale, where they operated a western training and breeding facility, Iron Foot Ranch, specializing in cutting and reining horses. At times they had upwards of 40 horses under their care. It was at Iron Foot Ranch one sunny afternoon in May of 1980, Winnie was training a young filly, the horse tripped and went down, and Winifred hit the ground along with the horse. She suffered many severe injuries, including a traumatic brain injury, which left her in a coma for three months. She was then transferred to R.K. Davies, San Francisco (now California Pacific Medical Center) for recovery and rehabilitation. She was there for another three months, relearning how to walk, talk, eat, etc. before returning home. Once home, life returned to as normal as possible, but Winifred lived the rest of her life with an immense amount of pain. In 1981 Winnie and Steve welcomed a son, Cody Baker. They later divorced.

Winifred remained in Ferndale through 2020, where she was a permanent fixture in the community. You could find her in the early morning hours at Poppa Joe’s, and in the evenings at The Ivanhoe. In between she was either picking up the mail at the post office, or socializing in any number of places along Main Street. In August, you could be sure to find her at the horse races. She absolutely loved being at the track, where she would reunite with her friend, Jane, every year, and take donuts to the Ferndale Jockey Club every morning.

In January 2020, she moved to Fortuna with her son, Mickey, and grandson, Kaden, when she was no longer able to live independently, where she stayed until she was finally free of pain.

She was an amazing painter, though she always denied how talented she was. Her paintings consisted of landscapes of her favorite place on Earth, Bear River Valley. Otherwise it was a painting of a cowboy scene straight from a day of working cattle. And if it was neither of those, one of her favorite horses became her subject. 

No amount of butter was ever enough for Winifred, granting her the nickname of “Butterfred,” and dark chocolate was its own form of medicine. 

We will always remember her in the smell of the pepperwood leaves and buckeye blossoms. 

She is survived by her sons, Mickey Mangrum (Tevyn Fisher) and Cody Baker; grandchildren, Kaden Mangrum, and Kennedy and Lane Herrera; sisters, Jimmie Fay Beal Mattila (Charlie Mattila) & Rebecca Beal Scales; nieces and nephew, Alexsis Davie, William Davie, and Shannon and Sadie Scales; great nieces and nephew, Winnie Jo and Charlotte Beyea, and Juliette, Abigail and Archer Davie. She is preceded in death by her father, William A. Beal, and mother, Angelica de Liztin Beal, affectionately known as “Mama and Bo”, and her brother-in-law, Don Scales. 

The family would like to thank Hospice of Humboldt for their loving care and support system provided for the last 11 months, as well as her sweet caregiver, Lenore Weber. 

A celebration of life will be held on May 30 at 1 p.m., at her favorite place, amongst the Pepperwood trees at Camp Idylwilde in the Bear River Valley, 4779 Upper Bear River Road, Ferndale. If you are needing directions, please contact Mickey Mangrum, 707-616-4689.

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The obituary above was submitted on behalf of Winifred Beal’s family. The Lost Coast Outpost runs obituaries of Humboldt County residents at no charge. See guidelines here. Email news@lostcoastoutpost.com.