Chronicler:    
Interviewer:    
Location:        
Date:  
Segundo Totoricagüena
Mikel and Daniel Chertudi
Boise, Idaho
8
August 2001

Segundo carved messages into the tree behind him when he was a young sheepherder

Segundo was born on 5 August 1914 in Bruneau, Idaho to José Francisco Totoricagüena and Leandra Erquiaga.  His father owned the Totorica Sheep Company, a large sheep ranch in Grandview, Idaho.  When Segundo was 2 years old, his father left the ranch with an associate and the family moved to Guernica, where they lived until Segundo turned 16.  By then, he was old enough to return to Idaho and help his father and brothers, who had come back earlier, with the ranch.

After several years at the family's ranch and other sheep outfits in Idaho and Oregon, Segundo and his brothers bought the ranch from their father.  Segundo had been investing on his own, building up his personal finances.  Eventually, he was in a position to buy the ranch from his brothers.  He took the opportunity, becoming the sole owner of the Totorica Sheep Company in 1967.  He sold the business in 1975.

Segundo and his wife, Serafina, raised their 7 children with a love for the Basque language and culture.  They have taken an active role in the Boise Basque community and enjoy the Basque Center's dinners and picnics.

Segundo Totoricagüena (1994) Read the interview summary

Buying the Totorica Sheep Company (1:09)

Investing (:42)

                                                    

Segundo's birthplace (1994)

The Totorica Sheep Company (1935)

Segundo's tree carvings in the Juniper Mountains (1994)

Interior of a Totorica sheep wagon (2001)

Segundo and Serafina (2001)
 


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