Rock Ledge Ranch is one of the only living history museums in the country where most of the buildings haven’t been moved or recreated. The site has many stories to tell of generations of those who have lived on the land before.
One of the tenants of Rock Ledge House was Doris Dilly and her family (1946-1953). Married to her cowboy husband Donald for more than 60 years, they raised their two children, Connie and Meldon.
Doris and Donald have an epic story of survival between them, starting with tragic beginnings, and continued with many obstacles before settling into life at the Ranch. Doris published her story in book titled “Rock Ledge Ranch (As I knew it) The White House Years”. It tells a compelling story of being raised for a period of time in the Myron Stratton Home, surviving the Depression, Dust Bowl, a plague of grasshoppers and ultimately overcoming great obstacles.
We are grateful for her story, and its lasting impact on Ranch history. Doris Louise Battin Dillie (Dorie Lou), died March 31, 2021 at her home in Colorado Springs.
