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Obituary : Robert Bruce Montgomery |
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 Robert Bruce Montgomery 1920 - 2009 Robert Bruce (Bob) Montgomery, local
businessman and founder of Montgomery Drilling Co., died Saturday, October 31,
2009, in the presence of his family after a short illness. He was 89. Raised in
Bakersfield from birth, Bob spent his youth playing sports, hunting, fishing,
riding horses and re-building his own Model A. He attended Kern Union High
School and Bakersfield Junior College, transferring to Stanford University in
1939, where he was for a time a member of the team that went on to win the 1941
Rose Bowl. He and fellow Bakersfield native Don Hopper joined the Navy together
just before the outbreak of World War II in 1941, hoping to be assigned to a
warship. However, with his engineering background, Bob became the Lieutenant
Commander of the Naval Repair Base in San Diego. In this capacity, he
coordinated the maintenance and repairs of amphibious vehicles and their crews
for expeditious return to battle in the Pacific arena. When the war ended, he
returned to Stanford, where he graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Industrial
Engineering in 1947. He met Ruth Ann Greene while at Stanford, and kept in touch
with her during the war. In 1950, they were married in Calabasas, California in
the house used for the movie "Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House". Immediately
after graduation he began his career in the oil business in the Los Angeles
basin, first with Atlantic Richfield, then with Howard Nelson Company and Pike
Drilling. In 1954, he returned to Bakersfield and co-founded Casey and
Montgomery Drilling Inc. with one drilling rig. He bought his partner out three
years later, and over the next two decades built Montgomery Drilling Co. into
the largest privately owned deep-well drilling company west of the Mississippi,
with 26 rigs drilling wells from California to the Alaskan North Slope, Canada,
Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, and Nevada. One of his rigs broke the record for the
deepest well ever drilled offshore California. For a short time he drilled in
the North Sea. The success of the drilling business allowed him to help others
along the way, and he was instrumental in the success of other Bakersfield
entities such as Cates Trucking and B & B Surplus. He also helped further
the career of horse trainer Greg Ward, with whom he partnered in a training
operation south of Porterville. He had a passion for ranching and farming, and
he became a significant citrus farmer and cattle rancher in Tulare County. An
excellent golfer, he purchased and renovated River Island Country Club located
between Porterville and Springville, selling it to members after making it one
of the premier courses in the central San Joaquin Valley. An avid hunter, he
built a duck club in the Buttonwillow area. When the drilling industry all but
disappeared in the late 1980's, he turned to real estate development near the
golf course, and he and a partner formed Montgomery Ranch, a planned community
of one-acre home sites. He assumed control of the local Wendy's restaurant
franchise, Four Corners, Inc., and partnered with his son to make it a success.
It still operates four Wendy's restaurants in Santa Clarita, California. He is a
former director of both Stockdale and Bakersfield country clubs, past president
of the latter and a member of Valley and Birnam Wood Country Clubs in Montecito.
He was a founding director of San Joaquin Bank and served a year on the Grand
Jury. Other affiliations include the Jonathan Club, Balboa Bay Club, Rancheros
Visitadores, Petroleum Clubs of Los Angeles and Bakersfield, the Century Club,
the Stanford Buck Club and the Downtown Rotary Club. Along with his wife, Bob
was a generous supporter of many organizations, most notably the Assistance
League of Bakersfield, which his wife founded. He was a loyal Stanford alum and
created an endowed scholarship fund for undergraduates. The Montgomery home was
the venue for many fundraisers, the most memorable being for President Reagan
when he ran for his first presidential term. He will be remembered for his quick
wit, his business acumen, his integrity, and his passion to help those who have
the will to succeed. He lived his entire life according to a personal philosophy
of hard work, competence and perseverance, and shared this philosophy with his
children. He will be greatly missed. Preceding him in death was his brother
Wayne. He is survived by his wife, Ruth Ann, his sister Irene and three
children: daughter Melinda and husband Kurt Thomas, daughter Marilee and husband
Joe Green, son Robert Jr. and wife Rhonda. He took great pride in his nine
grandchildren and two great grandchildren: Nicholas, Kelley, Natalie, Jessica,
Michael, Amber, Thomas, Jess, Lisa, Audrey, Sarah and Michelle. The family is
grateful to Rachael Peralta, his driver, caregiver and friend; to Susan
Freilino, for her on-call medical help; to longtime bookkeeper Carol Holloway;
and to housekeeper Marty Barron. Heartfelt thanks to Tammy, Jessica, all the
caregivers at Interim Healthcare and Mercy Hospice, and a special thanks to
Monsignor Craig Harrison. A memorial service will be held on Friday, November 6,
at 11:00 AM at St. Francis Church, 900 H St., Bakersfield. A private internment
will take place at the Bakersfield National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers,
donations in his name may be made to the Stanford Fund, giving.stanford.edu., "Bakersfield Waterman
Foundation", The Rotary Club of Bakersfield- Downtown: PO Box 1628, Bakersfield,
CA 93302 and the Bakersfield Assistance League: 1924 Q St., Bakersfield, CA
93301-4814. Doughty-Calhoun-O'Meara
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