The Story Of Robert Duke Hale    This story is about my maternal
grandfather, Robert Duke Hale, known as "Duke."  Duke built the
historic Hale Ranch in 1910. Since then five generations of
Hales have created successful brands, including XZ Bar, DUK, R
Triangle and the Hashknife.   Robert Duke Hale was born in Texas
in 1880, but migrated to Arizona in 1910, establishing the Hale
Ranch in Gisela, where he lived most of his life.  But the Hale
Ranch is just one part of a long and colorful history of one of
Rim country's pioneer families.  Duke was born July 7, 1880 in
Ranger, Eastland County, Texas, the fifth of seven children born
to John Johnston Hale and Rebecca Ann Thomas. He lived most of
his life in Gisela where he established the Hale Ranch. The
history of his father, his sister Eunice Hale Lovelady, his
brother-in-law James Lovelady, and his brother Forest Hale must
be included in this story because their lives were so entwined.
Duke's father, John Johnston Hale of Virginia, was a Civil War
veteran. In