Bill and Laurie Wilson: February 2011

Fred Junior Wilson
Born: February 2, 1929 Miami, Gila, Arizona
Death: January 22, 2011 Haxtun, Colorado

Fred and his family owned the Jimana Inn in the bottom of the Salt River Canyon in Arizona. The family lived about 12 miles south at Seneca Creek where Fred Robert Wilson cooked at the restaurant. The family owned and operated the Inn and the kids helped with the gardening and taking care of the animals. They loved to hunt and fish and sometimes this could get them into trouble. They grew up with the indians and sometimes thought they were so hunting out of season didn't mean much to them and the local authorities kept threatening the boys on their poaching. They loved to ride horses and search for arrow heads with their mother. Fred loved the rodeo and rode broncs until one had stomped on him and sent him to the hospital.

The first born son of Fred R. Wilson (1906-1974) and Mable Lambert (1909-present) (older sister Billie Louise in front)
Fred was the 2nd child of four, Billie Louise 13 Mar 1927, Fred Jr., Norman Edward 10 Feb 1932, and George Lambert 12 Jan 1943.

Norman, Fred Jr. and Billie Louise

Norman and Fred Jr. with friends

back: George, father Fred R., mother Mable
front: Bob and Dave Pearson

Fred attended the Mew Mexico Military Academy. There are rumors on why he joined the academy, some say it was a choice given him by local authorities. He enjoyed it and excelled in his studies.

Fred with friends from the Academy

Fred Jr. joined the U.S. Navy and served during the Korean Conflict. He had plenty of stories to tell of the ports they would stop at and had several tattoos on his body to back these stories up. He had the ship he served on on his chest and a woman on his arm and a snake which wrapped his other arm. I don't remember the significance of why these items were chosen. His younger brother Norman joined the Navy and was able to serve on the same ship as Fred.

Fred Jr. holding Paul (?), Fred R., Mable, George

Norman, George, Mable, Fred Jr.

Fred worked several jobs during his life. He owned a car dealership in California and while there told us stories on how he was a mechanic for the movie Herbie the Love Bug and how he worked the race circuit with Mario Andrete and AJ Foyt. He later moved to New Mexico and worked at the Black Mesa coal mine as a mechanic where he had an accident and lost his right hand. He had to learn how to shoot his guns all over again but said the hook he designed made his bow hunting better.