Joseph P. Massey settled in Barber County for good in 1883 after having
     worked on river boats on the Mississippi, and railroads to the Pacific.
     He homesteaded on the Marty ranch southwest of Sun City in 1883, later
     buying the old Massey home place northwest of Sun City. He married Artha
     Lee VanHorn in 1889. She came from Virginia via Pawnee County. By the
     time of his death in 1908 his farm had increased to 1728 acres, much
     livestock and five children.
       Mrs. Massey lived in Sun City until she passed away in 1948. Ralph
     married Blanche Campbell and they had three sons whom they reared on the
     ranch. The ranched was increased to 5000 acres of grass and farmland. John
     R., dentis in Lenexa, Kansas; Nathan, a design engineer with many patents,
     of Pratt; and David, deputy director of KSIR are the sons.
       Ray married Gail Meaders and they had five children; Joe, veterinarian -
     Clovis, California; Miriam of Coats; Hope, college professor in California;
     Lee, real estate and grape grower - Clovis, California; Kent, farmer and
     teacher - Florrisant, Missouri.
       Edith is a writer in Edmund, Oklahoma. Ruth married Marion McLain and
     they had three children; Marjori; Max, rancher of Medicine Lodge and Lake
     City; and Mark, a large farmer in Haskell County.
       Ruby married Tom Murphy of Connecticut and had a long career with the
     immigration department in Washington. After Tom's death, she married Lyle
     Bullock.
       Robert married Annette Allen and was with Swift and Co. for many years.
     They had three children: Charlotte of Pheonix, Arizona; Bob, manager of
     Marriotts in New York; and Tom, expert on Chinese - with the State Department.
       Without a doubt, the happiest time of all the family's life centered
     around the ranch and our community. It was so easy to laugh and have a
     good time around the family. Ralph and Ray and their families farmed the
     place until their early deaths. They got their first registered Hereford
     in 1922 after their father had been a Shorthorn man! They ran around 300
     cows most of the time. They started irrigating in 1934 and continued
     throughout their lives.
       We all enjoyed the activities around Sun City, which was very action
     oriented. The excellent church - all the good school basketball and
     baseball teams - the big community picnics - the excitement of Marion's
     rodeo, with the people it attracted - the gypsum mines and all the activities
     it generated, the oil field workers - the bootleggers with their mistique - 
     the dance halls - the ranchers, each his won special character, and very
     importantly, the old timers who were such good story tellers, all made up
     the activities.
       The three generations of us who lived in Barber County, consider it the
     best place in the world, beautiful with its hills and streams, and the
     greatest character builder in the country.
       All of the J.P. Massey grandsons and great-grandsons served in at least
     one war, and several of them in two wars.   
                
     Source:Chosen Land - Barber County, Kansas, pg. 318 
     Submitted by: J.R. Massey