While conducting research for a client on a residential property once owned by members of Petaluma’s Hill and Fairbanks families, I recalled an article I wrote in 2008 about Belle Fairbanks for the Argus Courier. Belle was a fascinating woman, as were her four sisters, each in their own unique way. I once considered writing a book about the Fairbanks women, but while that project hasn’t materialized, I’m delighted to learn that Rachel Collins of the Petalumans of Yesteryear has adopted the persona of Belle’s sister, Harriet “Hattie” Fairbanks.
Hattie was A.B. Hill’s first wife and mother to their three sons: Raymond, Dolph B., and Alexander. The couple married in 1887 and divorced in 1903, after which A.B. Hill married Hattie’s sister, Elizabeth “Ada” in 1904. There is much more to this intriguing family story, but I’ll leave the rest for Rachel to tell. In the meantime, I’ve updated my 2008 article about Belle to share here.
In 1859, six-year-old Belle Fairbanks, with her distinctive red hair, journeyed by covered wagon from Iowa to California with her parents, Lucinda and Hiram[1], and three siblings. The family settled on D Street in Petaluma. During their westward journey, Belle often entertained her family and fellow travelers with songs around the evening campfire, beginning what would become a lifelong devotion to music.
At 16, Belle enrolled at Wesleyan Female College in Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1874, she married childhood friend James (also known as Anderson James) Ranard. The couple had three children: Rofa (born 1875), Lena (born 1877), and Arthur (born 1879).
In 1880, Belle attended the Boston Conservatory of Music while her husband stayed at the Brooklyn Hotel on Washington Street, and their children lived with James’ parents on Keller Street.
Throughout her marriage, Belle taught music and performed professionally as a soloist. After James died of tuberculosis in September 1881, Belle continued her musical career, becoming highly sought-after for performances and met Carl Hinrichs, a talented German musician who played piano and violin and led a German glee club. They married in 1884, and their daughter Frieda was born in 1887. Tragically, within seven months of Frieda’s birth, Carl was diagnosed with dementia praecox (schizophrenia) and died at the Napa State Asylum for the Insane on December 4, 1887.
Twice widowed, Belle persevered with her teaching and performances, often traveling to San Francisco and throughout Northern California for concerts, church benefits, and funerals. She would cross the bay on Saturday nights and return Monday mornings, her talents in demand across the region.
In 1890, Belle’s oldest daughter, Rofa, contracted tuberculosis. On a former music teacher’s advice, Belle took Rofa to Colorado, hoping the climate would improve her condition. When Rofa worsened, they returned to Petaluma, where she died in October 1895.
A year later, Lena married Newton Ackerman, a well-known competitive bicyclist and eldest son of O.B. Ackerman, a Petaluma contractor. The ceremony took place at Belle’s home at E Street (most likely what is now addressed as 630 E Street).
At 42, Belle lost her voice—a devastating blow for a professional singer. She moved to Colorado and attended dental school. She practiced dentistry in Denver for several years, living in a house on Welton Street with her then 13-year-old daughter Frieda and three boarders.
Lena also lived in Colorado during this period. Her son Arthur Ackerman, Belle’s grandson, was born in Cripple Creek in 1899. Lena and Newton divorced before 1906, the year Newton married Ivy Monette in Eureka, California. Lena remarried in 1909.
In 1903, Frieda married Leslie Elmer Hubbard, who later became Colorado’s state attorney general in 1917. Their marriage eventually ended in divorce.
Suffering from rheumatism, Belle visited Pagosa Springs, Colorado, in 1906. The hot springs cured her condition, prompting her to stay and resume her dental practice. There, she met and married her third husband, Edward Walter Lacy, in 1909. Mr. Lacy had two young sons from a previous marriage. In 1912, the Lacy family moved to Bayfield in La Plata County, where Dr. Belle Lacy became the town’s first dentist.
Marriage, stepchildren, and her dental practice did not slow Belle’s ambitions. She later ran for mayor of Bayfield and purchased a 60-acre ranch in Cedarvale, where she grew wheat.
In 1941, Belle compiled a book of poems she had written throughout her life. This 33-page collection, which I obtained from the Pine River Public Library, provides valuable biographical information and insight into this remarkable woman.
Belle died on September 12, 1943, just one month after her husband. She and Walter, along with Frieda and Lena, are buried at Bayfield Cemetery, Colorado.
A special thank you goes out to Joanne H. McCoy of Pine River Valley Heritage Society, Bayfield, Colorado who assisted me with my research. Also, I’m greatly appreciative to Bill Rinehart for being my faithful research companion and driver while we toured Durango, Pagosa Springs and Bayfield to follow in the steps of Belle in 2012.
[1] Hiram Fairbanks achieved considerable wealth through his early efforts as a miner, followed by success as a merchant, stockbroker, banker, and mill owner. The house initially occupied by the Fairbanks family on D Street was demolished in 1890 and replaced by the grand home now addressed as 758 D Street, designed by San Francisco architects William Curtlett & Walter Cuthbertson.
Take Aways from the 2024 California Main Street Conference, Eureka
Thanks for this information, my daughter married into the Hill family and my grandchildren are Isabelle (Izzy) Jane and Marshall Dylan Hill. Growing up in Petaluma and will someday will want this family history.