In 1906, at the age of 14, he began interviewing people and gathering research regarding early pioneer life and farming in California.
[1] When not teaching, Latta was traveling in the San Joaquin Valley, interviewing European-American pioneers and Native Americans, gathering artifacts and articles, or writing at home.
Latta's first work to focus on Native Americans in the San Joaquin Valley was California Indian Folklore (1936).
He described the route and history of El Camino Viejo, the old Spanish road and the settlements along it on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley, from Los Angeles to what is now Oakland.
Born near where that road crossed Orestimba Creek, Latta had traced the route on his trips through the valley; he had also taken photos of many of its features and landmarks.
In 1956 Latta moved to Santa Cruz, purchasing the Gazos Ranch in southern San Mateo County.
He also intended to develop an 80-acre picnic and camping area, which would extend for a mile along the coast between Ano Nuevo Island and Pigeon Point.
[4] After going through official county procedures, Latta thought he was ready to begin this larger project, but it was delayed in the late 1950s.
[citation needed] Late in his life, Latta published a series of books dealing with historic outlaws and other items.
Tailholt Tales, an expanded version of Mayfield's memoir, was also published in that year., decades after his first efforts at correcting, commenting upon and filling out the original slim volume[5] in the 1920s.