Jamie Wilson (Grass Valley) is a leather worker and rancher. Wilson got her first horse at age five, and learned to ranch from her father. After high school, Wilson attended saddlery school. Today, she typically works with leather during the winter months on the ranch. She makes chinks (half length chaps) chaps, horse tack, and other functional items.
Bio
Jamie Wilson is a rancher and leatherworker who grew up in Grass Valley on a few acres where the family kept horses, chickens, and other animals. Her mother was from a long line of ranchers. Her father, originally from Michigan, spent his younger years near Antelope, where he worked for local ranchers and wheat farmers until eventually he bought his own ranches. Wilson got her first horse when she was five years old; as a young girl, she started working cattle with her father. On a high ridge facing Mt. Hood and Mt. Jefferson, Wilson worked hard, learning the range of skills it takes to run the ranch that she and Cathy Brown now work. Besides ranching, Wilson is a skilled leatherworker. After high school, Wilson thought seriously about becoming a saddle maker and attended a three-month course at Sierra Saddlery School in Bishop, California. Although she completed two full saddles, she couldn’t find a master saddle maker to apprentice with back home. Wilson continued to develop her skills by repairing saddles and making rodeo queen chaps. Today, she spends much of the winter making chinks, chaps, horse tack, and other custom-ordered items.
