The Mortimer stories are based on life at the Leslie C. Koontz farm in southwestern Kansas during the years 1943 to 1957 as seen through the eyes of Carl, one of the Koontz grandchildren.

From approximately 1910 to 1930, the Koontz's had 10 children: Iris, Elva, Cleland, Clarice, Muriel, Paul, Aileen, Ruth, Alta Lee, and Loren. The story teller, Carl, is the son of Elva and Maynard.

Farm life was not easy, but work was shared among the family members as appropriately and fairly as possible. As the children grew up and left home to attend college and get married, they formed their own families, but they always returned to the farm for reunions and important occasions.

The offspring of these new families were exposed to both city life and farm life, living in the city most of the year, but traveling to Kansas for family reunions and for summer vacations. Because of this, they viewed farm life as special. Thus, many of the experiences gained seemed bigger than life itself, and the adventures these young people experienced went far beyond the escapades of most city-slickers.

In 1943, Carl was five years old when he first met the farm dog Mortimer as a puppy. Highly intelligent, Mortimer was thought to be part Collie, part Wolf, and part German Shepherd.  As told to my own grandchildren, these are the adventures Mortimer and Carl experienced¹.

 
Copyright (c) 1943-2011
Carl M. Fox