Neighbour Ricky Vinyard still remembers the day the Turpins moved into the house at the end of his dirt road some 50 miles south of Fort Worth in 2000.
Even on that day, he knew they were “mysterious people” who didn’t talk to their neighbours or try to socialise.
The family rarely left the four-bedroom home and frequently kept their lights on at all hours, with blinds drawn all the time.
And the children rarely emerged – apart from one occasion just weeks after the family first arrived, when one of the older girls tried to run away but was later returned by a local resident.
Mr Vinyard, a tree cutter, said he and his wife frequently considered reporting the couple to Rio Vista authorities.
But he told the LA Times they thought better of the idea, knowing Mr Turpin owned a gun and was recently seen outside the property shooting at cans.
He added: “We discussed it and we didn’t want to have the repercussions with them.”
His daughter Barbara Vinyard, 19, and her sister tried to play with the children on a few occasions but the pale-skinned siblings would refuse to tell them their names.
She said: “I knew they were really strange, but I was willing to get over the strangeness to be friends.”
After having the door closed in her face by one of the older girls another time she tried to coax them out to play, she said she gave up on making friends.
But she says she feels guilty for not finding more out about the mysterious Turpin family.
She said: “For the most part, when you live out in the country, you keep to yourself. Hearing about this makes me think I didn’t do my part as a person.”
Her father also wishes his family had reported their neighbours earlier to officials in Texas, saying: “I feel really guilty we didn’t.”
The victims, ages 2 to 29, were severely malnourished, suffering from muscle wasting and stunted growth when they were discovered in their current home in Perris, California last week.
The children were denied food, basic hygiene and medical care and were punished for perceived infractions such as washing their hands above the wrist.
David Turpin, 57, and Louise Anna, 49, face 94 years to life in prison if convicted on more than two dozen charges including torture, child abuse and false imprisonment.
The father, is also accused of sexually abusing one of his young daughters.
The couple, who were married in 1984, pleaded not guilty to all the charges when they appeared in court on Thursday.
The children, including seven adults, are being cared for at local hospitals after being rescued by police.
A criminal complaint has revealed that all 13 of their children have names starting with the letter J, with three named by a childhood friend as Jennifer, Jessica and Josh.