Frederick Frank Blachly was born in a barn in Western Colorado in 1880, the second oldest of eight boys. When he was barely 13 his father was shot and killed by bank robbers, leaving young Fred to provide for his family. With only 3rd grade education he worked as a handyman, camp cook, cowboy, and rancher, enduring heartbreaking losses until age 25 when he determined to pursue a real education. After catching a cattle train east, he put himself through his secondary and college education in 6 years, graduating from Oberlin College, then earning a PhD from Columbia University.