* Richard U. Underwood; 4th-Generation Farmer

Richard Urban Underwood, a fourth-generation Ventura County farmer, died of pneumonia New Year’s Eve at St. John’s Pleasant Valley Hospital in Camarillo. He was 83.

He was born July 8, 1916, in Santa Paula at his family’s former home, which is now included on tours by the Santa Paula Historic Society. Underwood attended UCLA and UC Davis.

He started farming grain around his small home on the present site of Moorpark High School. He gradually started growing vegetables in Oxnard, Ventura, Camarillo and Somis.

“At one time or another, he, his father and brother probably threshed beans on almost every acre on which they were grown in Ventura County,” said his son, Craig Underwood of Somis.

Many families now live on that former farmland.

Richard Underwood met his future wife Alice, whose family lived in the Saticoy area, and the couple married Jan. 28, 1941.

In 1951, he built a home in Las Posas Valley, where he grew lemons.

Underwood served as a trustee of Moorpark Grammar School, now Flory School. Later, he was a trustee at what is now Somis School, where he handed diplomas to each of his children.

He was a member of the Ventura County Grand Jury in 1969, carrying on a tradition begun by his great-grandfather, Jeremiah Sisson, who was a member of the county’s first grand jury.

Underwood was a founding member of Oxnard Frozen Foods Cooperative and a charter member of Ventura Pacific Lemon Cooperative. He was a member of the board of directors of Ventura Pacific Lemon Cooperative, Ventura County Farm Labor, and chairman of the board of Production Credit Assn. and Zone Mutual Water Co.

“He was a very nice person and very involved with anything pertaining to the Somis-Camarillo area, especially the schools,” said Jack Fulkerson, owner of Fulkerson Hardware in Somis and who grew up with Underwood.

Fulkerson said the family still tends a dozen acres on both sides of California 118 in Somis under the name Underwood Farms.

Richard and Alice Underwood traveled around the world, visiting France, South America, the Caribbean, Alaska and much of the United States. They celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary with their children and grandchildren in Hawaii and, on a recent anniversary, the entire family traveled to Mexico.

Underwood had a number of physical setbacks in the past few years, but continued to remain active on the ranch until two weeks ago.

Barbara Fulkerson, Jack Fulkerson’s wife, said one of the things she will miss is seeing him drive his red Chevy Blazer with the familiar license plate DIXDEAR.

In addition to his wife and son, Underwood is survived by daughters Suzanne Saw of Camarillo and Theodora Warner of Claremont, and six grandchildren.

A memorial service is scheduled at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at the United Methodist Church in Camarillo.

In lieu of flowers, donations in Underwood’s name may be made to the Ventura County Museum of History and Art in Ventura or to another charity.

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Ventura County obituaries are compiled by Linda Herron. They are published free of charge as a public service to readers, based on information provided by mortuaries.