CARLSBAD ---- Allan O. Kelly, Carlsbad pioneer and civic leader, died peacefully early Tuesday at an elder-care facility, friends said. He was 100.
Kelly had a number of heart episodes that preceded his death, longtime friend Reese Brown said Tuesday.
During his century on Earth, he saw Carlsbad change from an area of rural farmland to the city of 82,030 people it is today.
He was born in 1900 in a house surrounded by walnut and fig trees behind Rancho Carlsbad. At the time, the Kelly family owned the 13,000-acre Mexican land grant Rancho Agua Hedionda.
As a child, he rode horses, plowed meadows, and attended school with only 10 other students at the old Calavera schoolhouse on the east side of El Camino Real.
At one time, his family's ranch had 200 cattle roaming it. That land has since been sold off bit by bit, but Kelly retained 240 acres on the east side of El Camino Real as well as the 6 acres his hilltop home sits on west of El Camino Real.
As an adult, Kelly served as a director of the Costa Real Municipal Water District, was a representative of the San Diego County Water Authority, and was the president of the San Luis Rey Farm Bureau and Cattlemen's Organization. He also was a board member of the Oceanside-Carlsbad High School Board and the county Planning Commission.
Kelly also was active with his church, the Toastmasters, the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce, the Historical Society and the Carlsbad Rotary clubs.
His daughter Lucia Sippel said in December that her father also was an avid and popular letter-to-the-editor writer at one time.
"Dad had his own views on everything, and because of his wit, his letters made people laugh," said Sippel in December, when Kelly celebrated his 100th birthday.
He also wrote and published several books on geology.
"He wrote several books that were quite good and almost revolutionary," Brown said. "For a person who was not formally educated, he was one of the smartest men I knew."
Kelly's books focused on the theory that asteroids impacted the Earth and led to the extinction of dinosaurs, Brown said. Now, many scientists believe this theory, but at the time, his work was discounted and not recognized in the scientific community, he said.
Later, he began researching techniques for education, Brown said.
"He had a broad range of interests besides his beginnings as a farmer. He was just a delightful person to know," Brown said.
A memorial service for Kelly is set for 2 p.m. Saturday at the Christ Presbyterian Church of Rancho La Costa, 7807 Centella Way.
He is survived by his wife of 73 years, Katherine Kelly; Sippel and her husband, Marvin; his son W. Allan Kelly and his wife, Dede; and granddaughter Carol.
Kelly had a number of heart episodes that preceded his death, longtime friend Reese Brown said Tuesday.
During his century on Earth, he saw Carlsbad change from an area of rural farmland to the city of 82,030 people it is today.
He was born in 1900 in a house surrounded by walnut and fig trees behind Rancho Carlsbad. At the time, the Kelly family owned the 13,000-acre Mexican land grant Rancho Agua Hedionda.
As a child, he rode horses, plowed meadows, and attended school with only 10 other students at the old Calavera schoolhouse on the east side of El Camino Real.
At one time, his family's ranch had 200 cattle roaming it. That land has since been sold off bit by bit, but Kelly retained 240 acres on the east side of El Camino Real as well as the 6 acres his hilltop home sits on west of El Camino Real.
As an adult, Kelly served as a director of the Costa Real Municipal Water District, was a representative of the San Diego County Water Authority, and was the president of the San Luis Rey Farm Bureau and Cattlemen's Organization. He also was a board member of the Oceanside-Carlsbad High School Board and the county Planning Commission.
Kelly also was active with his church, the Toastmasters, the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce, the Historical Society and the Carlsbad Rotary clubs.
His daughter Lucia Sippel said in December that her father also was an avid and popular letter-to-the-editor writer at one time.
"Dad had his own views on everything, and because of his wit, his letters made people laugh," said Sippel in December, when Kelly celebrated his 100th birthday.
He also wrote and published several books on geology.
"He wrote several books that were quite good and almost revolutionary," Brown said. "For a person who was not formally educated, he was one of the smartest men I knew."
Kelly's books focused on the theory that asteroids impacted the Earth and led to the extinction of dinosaurs, Brown said. Now, many scientists believe this theory, but at the time, his work was discounted and not recognized in the scientific community, he said.
Later, he began researching techniques for education, Brown said.
"He had a broad range of interests besides his beginnings as a farmer. He was just a delightful person to know," Brown said.
A memorial service for Kelly is set for 2 p.m. Saturday at the Christ Presbyterian Church of Rancho La Costa, 7807 Centella Way.
He is survived by his wife of 73 years, Katherine Kelly; Sippel and her husband, Marvin; his son W. Allan Kelly and his wife, Dede; and granddaughter Carol.
CARLSBAD ---- Allan O. Kelly, Carlsbad pioneer and civic leader, died peacefully early Tuesday at an elder-care facility, friends said. He was 100.
Kelly had a number of heart episodes that preceded his death, longtime friend Reese Brown said Tuesday.
During his century on Earth, he saw Carlsbad change from an area of rural farmland to the city of 82,030 people it is today.
He was born in 1900 in a house surrounded by walnut and fig trees behind Rancho Carlsbad. At the time, the Kelly family owned the 13,000-acre Mexican land grant Rancho Agua Hedionda.
As a child, he rode horses, plowed meadows, and attended school with only 10 other students at the old Calavera schoolhouse on the east side of El Camino Real.
At one time, his family's ranch had 200 cattle roaming it. That land has since been sold off bit by bit, but Kelly retained 240 acres on the east side of El Camino Real as well as the 6 acres his hilltop home sits on west of El Camino Real.
As an adult, Kelly served as a director of the Costa Real Municipal Water District, was a representative of the San Diego County Water Authority, and was the president of the San Luis Rey Farm Bureau and Cattlemen's Organization. He also was a board member of the Oceanside-Carlsbad High School Board and the county Planning Commission.
Kelly also was active with his church, the Toastmasters, the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce, the Historical Society and the Carlsbad Rotary clubs.
His daughter Lucia Sippel said in December that her father also was an avid and popular letter-to-the-editor writer at one time.
"Dad had his own views on everything, and because of his wit, his letters made people laugh," said Sippel in December, when Kelly celebrated his 100th birthday.
He also wrote and published several books on geology.
"He wrote several books that were quite good and almost revolutionary," Brown said. "For a person who was not formally educated, he was one of the smartest men I knew."
Kelly's books focused on the theory that asteroids impacted the Earth and led to the extinction of dinosaurs, Brown said. Now, many scientists believe this theory, but at the time, his work was discounted and not recognized in the scientific community, he said.
Later, he began researching techniques for education, Brown said.
"He had a broad range of interests besides his beginnings as a farmer. He was just a delightful person to know," Brown said.
A memorial service for Kelly is set for 2 p.m. Saturday at the Christ Presbyterian Church of Rancho La Costa, 7807 Centella Way.
He is survived by his wife of 73 years, Katherine Kelly; Sippel and her husband, Marvin; his son W. Allan Kelly and his wife, Dede; and granddaughter Carol.
Kelly had a number of heart episodes that preceded his death, longtime friend Reese Brown said Tuesday.
During his century on Earth, he saw Carlsbad change from an area of rural farmland to the city of 82,030 people it is today.
He was born in 1900 in a house surrounded by walnut and fig trees behind Rancho Carlsbad. At the time, the Kelly family owned the 13,000-acre Mexican land grant Rancho Agua Hedionda.
As a child, he rode horses, plowed meadows, and attended school with only 10 other students at the old Calavera schoolhouse on the east side of El Camino Real.
At one time, his family's ranch had 200 cattle roaming it. That land has since been sold off bit by bit, but Kelly retained 240 acres on the east side of El Camino Real as well as the 6 acres his hilltop home sits on west of El Camino Real.
As an adult, Kelly served as a director of the Costa Real Municipal Water District, was a representative of the San Diego County Water Authority, and was the president of the San Luis Rey Farm Bureau and Cattlemen's Organization. He also was a board member of the Oceanside-Carlsbad High School Board and the county Planning Commission.
Kelly also was active with his church, the Toastmasters, the Carlsbad Chamber of Commerce, the Historical Society and the Carlsbad Rotary clubs.
His daughter Lucia Sippel said in December that her father also was an avid and popular letter-to-the-editor writer at one time.
"Dad had his own views on everything, and because of his wit, his letters made people laugh," said Sippel in December, when Kelly celebrated his 100th birthday.
He also wrote and published several books on geology.
"He wrote several books that were quite good and almost revolutionary," Brown said. "For a person who was not formally educated, he was one of the smartest men I knew."
Kelly's books focused on the theory that asteroids impacted the Earth and led to the extinction of dinosaurs, Brown said. Now, many scientists believe this theory, but at the time, his work was discounted and not recognized in the scientific community, he said.
Later, he began researching techniques for education, Brown said.
"He had a broad range of interests besides his beginnings as a farmer. He was just a delightful person to know," Brown said.
A memorial service for Kelly is set for 2 p.m. Saturday at the Christ Presbyterian Church of Rancho La Costa, 7807 Centella Way.
He is survived by his wife of 73 years, Katherine Kelly; Sippel and her husband, Marvin; his son W. Allan Kelly and his wife, Dede; and granddaughter Carol.
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