Also in 1949, Latta published his book Black Gold In The Joaquin, the story of the oil industry in the San Joaquin Valley in California, from the Indian usage of the oil, to the discoveries and the development of the extraction technology from the mid - 19th century to 1900.
In 1956 Latta moved to Santa Cruz, purchasing the Gazos Ranch in southern San Mateo County, formerly the Steele Ranch, south of Pescadero, California near Gazos Creek.