Trout Valley, the Hertz Estate, and Curtiss Farm

More about the book

Set against the backdrop of Trout Valley in the 1920s, the book explores John D. Hertz's lavish estate, Leona Farms, designed by renowned landscape architect Jens Jensen. It highlights Hertz's life of luxury, featuring racehorses, extravagant parties with celebrities, and notable guests like Eleanor Roosevelt. The narrative shifts in 1943 when Otto Schnering acquires the estate, transforming it into a vast farming operation, while memories of its glamorous past linger in the community, including the iconic six-pony hitch and trophy-winning cattle.