In 1924, Dick Clifford moved with the family from Arkansas to California. He was 14 years old. The John Miller and Robert Miller families all went to California together, leaving from Southwest City, Missouri and traveling through Oklahoma, Kansas and eventually Oregon. They finally arrived nearby to Crescent City, Del Norte County, California and shortly thereafter moved to Ojai in Southern California.
After the death of Dick's father in 1933, Mimi and some of the children, Dick, Don, Maxine, Ruth and Jesse moved back to Benton County, Arkansas. Robert had told Mimi that if anything should happened to him, he wanted her to go back to Arkansas - and she did. She and the family are shown in the 1940 census to be living again in Ojai, although Dick stayed in Arkansas.
Dick married Carrie Lee Sullivan on 15 February 1935 in Centerton, Benton County, Arkansas. He was 24 at that time.
The 1940 census show that Dick as a clerk at a Feed Store.
The 1980 Miller Reunion Family Booklet says: Dick owned and operated a paint store in Bentonville, Ark. Carrie Lee was employed by the Daisy Aircraft Co.
Memories of Robert William Miller Jr.: "He was alright. Dick was the only family member who stayed in Arkansas. He and his wife, Carrie Lee combined their names and named their only child and daughter, Dixie Lee.
Dick died of a heart attack. He was in the bathroom getting ready to shave and was found dead after falling backwards into the bathtub. No water."
Dick died at the age of 61 on 12 February 1972 in Bentonville, Benton County, Arkansas. He is buried in the Centerton Cemetery in Benton County, Arkansas.
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OBITUARY - Dick Miller:
Siloam Springs - Dick C. Miller, 61, of Bentonville, died Saturday at his home. Born April 11, 1910 at Centerton, he formerly operated a paint and garden center in Bentonville. He was secretary of the Bentonville Masonic Lodge and was a Baptist.
Survivors are one daughter, Mrs. Dixie Holiday of Bentonville; his mother, Mrs. Dora Miller of Ojai, Calif., two brothers; Jerry H. of Siloam Springs and Robert W. of Chinchilla, Calif.; and three sisters Mrs. Margaret Catterlin of Ojai, Mrs. Maxine Mason of Redway, Calif. and Mrs. Ruth Case of Ventura, Calif.
Funeral services will be at 2 p.m. Tuesday at the Centerton Baptist Church with burial in Centerton Cemetery under direction of the Wasson Funeral Home.
(NorthWest Arkansas Times - 2/14/1972
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Dick Clifford Miller
1910 - Garland, Benton, AR
1920 - Garland, Benton, AR
1930 - Ojai, Ventura, CA
1935 - Benton, AR
1940 - Centerton, Benton, AR
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8 April 1910 census of Garland, Benton county, AR, found the Miller family living in dwelling #32. Robert and Dora said that they had been married 7 years and 4 of their 5 children were still living:
Robert W. Miller 30 IL IL IL Farmer
Dora N. 26 AR AR TN
Herbert J. 5 AR IL AR
Hershell J. 5 AR IL AR
Maggie C. 2 AR IL AR
Unnamed son 0/12 AR IL AR (Dick Clifford Miller)
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23 Jan 1920 census of Garland, Benton County, AR, found the Miller family living in dwelling #50 on Fourth Street:
R. W. Miller 40 IL IL IN Salesman - H.W.D.
Dora 36 AR AR TN
Hurbert 14 AR IL AR Twin
Herschell 14 AR IL AR Twin
Maggie 12 AR IL AR
Dick 9 AR IL AR
Donald 7 AR IL AR
Maxine 3 AR IL AR
Ruth 1 6/12 AR IL AR
Blanche Pitts 13 IL IL AR Niece
J. D. Miller 80 IL OH IL Father, Widowed
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Mildred Miller said that the John Miller and Robert Miller families all went to California together, leaving from Southwest City, MO, and traveling through Oklahoma, Kansas and eventually Oregon. They finally arrived in California in August of 1924. She said that Louoma's mother was a Callis, as was Robert Miller's wife.
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26 April 1930 census of District 19, Ojai, Ventura County, CA, found the Miller family living in dwelling #344. Robert and Dora said that they were first married at ages 23 and 19 respectively. Living nearby were Dora's father, John H. Callis (76) and brothers Claude (40) and George (45) and their families:
Robert W. Miller 50 IL IL IN Operator - Service station
Dora 46 AR AR TN
Herbert 26 AR IL AR Rancher - Fruit ranch
Dick 20 AR IL AR Rancher - Fruit ranch
Donald 18 AR Il AR Gardener - Private home
Maxine 14 AR Il AR
Ruth 12 AR IL AR
R. W. 9 AR IL AR
J. K. 5 AR IL AR
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4 April 1940 census of Centerton, Benton County, AR, found the Miller family living in dwelling #17. They said that they all lived in Benton County, AR, on 1 April 1935:
Clifford Miller 29 AR - Completed 2 years of high school education, Clerk - Feed store
Carrie L. Miller 28 AR - Completed 4 years of high school education
Dixie L. Miller 4 AR
Carrie L. Sullivan 52 MS - Mother-in-law, Widow
Charles R. Sumner 66 MS - Lodger, Miller - Grain
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THE TRIP TO CALIFORNIA (as remembered by Maxine Miller Mason and written by Margot Mason Stockstill)
On August 1, 1924, the family left Benton County, Arkansas, and headed for a ranch near Crescent City in Northern California that Robert's uncle and namesake, Robert William Miller, had given him. Mimi had only been out of Benton County once and then only a few miles into Oklahoma.
There were 24 people and a collie named Socrates in the moving party packed into a new Maxwell, a Ford, a Buick and a Ford Truck. They were: Mimi and Robert, Herbert and Hershel, Blanche, Margaret, Don, Dick, Maxine, Ruth, Bill, JK (just 7 weeks old), Uncle John Miller (Robert's brother) and his wife Aunt Dove and their 5 girls, Mimi's brother Uncle Claude Callis, Aunt Arthula and their son Louis, Mimi's father John Hamilton Callis, who was 64 years old, and Cora Nichols, Mimi's twin.
The first stop was Grove, Oklahoma, at Mimi's brother Uncle Clark's home. Aunt Cora only went that far. Uncle Clark had a big going away party for the family. Each night while traveling they stayed in campgrounds. The women would wash clothes and the men would work on the cars and truck.
In Colorado there was an inspection stop for boll weevils so the family had to empty all their boxes. the Rocky Mountains were too big for Robert so his sons Herbert and Hershel drove. The family drove down through Oregon and reached Crescent City on Don's birthday, August 30th. The trip had taken 30 days. When they first saw the Pacific Ocean Mimi said,"I think we've come too far."
On their new ranch they lived in tents. The children had fun playing in the river but Socrates, the collie, got ahold of a dead salmon and died. They wouldn't let Grandad (John Hamilton) Callis play his fiddle for fear it would attract bears and Indians.
In September it was time for school so the family moved into town. Uncle John Miller took his family to Smith River. That winter Uncle John's youngest girl died, their house and car burned, but they stayed on in Smith River. There was a hurricane which ruined part of Crescent City. Mimi was sick all winter because the damp weather caused her to have rheumatism. Uncle Claude and Aunt Arthula left Crescent City and moved to Ojai, writing back about the warm and beautiful valley.
As soon as school was out in 1925 the Millers headed south, stopped in Suisun and leased a ranch with apricots and peaches. Mimi always said that that was one of the happiest years of her life. Robert took Hershel and Margaret to Ojai and liked it so well they decided to move down in the Fall of 1926.
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SOURCESRefer to www.millerinfo.net/genealogy, 1980 Miller Family Reunion booklet compiled by Margot Mason Stockstill, family records and research.
Find A Grave Memorial
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