Jim:
That is just Ran's supposition on the subject, and we all would assume that. For all we know, he was there all the time. But as far as true concrete evidence (i.e. drawings, newspaper articles referencing him just once, a quote from him about SPCC), there is nothing.
In writing my book, I have been through everything in this county and have found nothing. One thing Ran thought was that SPCC was the only Sandhills project Ross was associated with that the Tufts family wasn't and so maybe it was intentional that he kept his name out of any references to SPCC as it was a major conflict of interest.
That certainly makes sense. By the way, still looking for someone. Jeff?