Historical Society Hears the Vierra Family History in August Meeting
History of Hughson, California: The People, the Places, the Traditions of a Small Town
The August 2023 meeting of the Hughson Historical Society welcomed Vernon and Lawrence “Bud” Vierra as the day's presenters to share the history of their family in Hughson. The Vierra and Carranza Families were honored by the Hughson Historical Society at its annual fundraising dinner in August 2023.
Vernon and Lawrence “Bud” Vierra shared the family's known history with humor and nostalgia, painting a portrait of the heart and strength of their success, especially from their mother, Eathel. The family legend shares that Frank Oliver's father immigrated from the Azores as a stowaway in a boart. "By the time he got here, he was captain of the ship," they said. The family ended up purchasing land on Clinton Road, though how they arrived in Hughson, the brothers could not say.
Their maternal grandmother lived in the Midwest with her husband and five children. He sent her and their children to Humboldt County and told his wife, "I will follow you in two weeks," Bud said. "They never heard from him again."
From Fortuna to Patterson, the family moved and settled until Eathel met Frank and convinced him to sell the ranch and settle on 6th Street. Vernon was born in 1938, and Bud in 1940. Bud's actual name is Lawrence, but he earned the nickname Buddy when Vernon could not pronounce "brother," so he stayed until he shortened Buddy to Bud in college.
Camagna asked the brothers if specific teachers inspired them to become pharmacists. Bud responded emphatically, "No teachers inspired me," before relaying several stories of his experience at Hughson High School.
"Who inspired you?" Camagna persisted.
"It was Eathel," Vernon said.
The brothers shared that after the owner of Hughson Pharmacy would not allow their mother to purchase a prescription on credit, she determined her two sons would become pharmacists.
Describing life and mischief in Hughson, Bud said, "We knew everybody, and everybody knew us." Those connections down the line impacted their family and the town for generations. In college, Vernon roomed with Ronny Clements, who planned to open a pharmacy. After graduating from UOP, Vernon bought a share of Ceres Drugstore and used the money from Ceres Drug to open Vierra Pharmacy in 1968. Seven years after making his first offer, he purchased Hughson Pharmacy. The Vierras hired Jose Carranza and employed his siblings after he left for college. Carranza would later open Carranza Pharmacy, which still operates in Hughson today.
As the pharmacy landscape changed and health insurance companies heavily impacted the ability of independent pharmacies to earn a profit, the brothers decided to sell the pharmacy and work for larger chains until retirement. They closed the pharmacy in 1992. Bud worked until he turned 80. Vernon worked for twenty years in north Modesto.
Originally published in the Hughson Chronicle & Denair Dispatch on August 4, 2023. The Hughson Chronicle & Denair Dispatch is part of MidValley Publications - committed to the power of the positive press. Reprinted with Permission.
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