James Gregg Crosby [Parents] died Unknown. He married Mattie Collins.
Mattie Collins died Unknown. She married James Gregg Crosby.
Henry Rose died Unknown. He married Edith Crosby.
Edith Crosby [Parents] died Unknown. She married Henry Rose.
Mary Adeline Crosby [Parents] died .
She had the following children:
F i Sarah A. Murray.
Marvin Marshall Russell [Parents] [scrapbook] was born on Aug 28 1890 in Avery, Red River Co., TX. He died on Feb 24 1965 in Home, Plano, Collin County, TX. He was buried on Feb 26 1965 in Frankford Cemetery, Addison, TX. He married Lena Pearl Brownlee on Oct 7 1913.
MORE FROM JOHN YATES: Let me, for a minute, tell you my reasons for the love I had for Mamaw and Papaw. I never had any grandparents and they excepted me with out hesitation. Even though Barb and I had run off and got married. They were a family I never had.
WHAT ONCE WAS! by John Yates -- I was thinking the other day about when Barb’s Grandpa (Papaw) used to harvest his grain, wheat, mazes, or oats. No longer were they using a trashing machine but having the grain harvested by combine, which was hired. The smaller farmers could not see the expense of owning a combine.
As a rule those who were hiring out to do contract harvesting were the large farmers which could justify the expense of the combines and by doing work for the smaller farmer they were able to pay for the machines.
The biggest problem was the timing of the harvesting. The owner of the combine was going to be sure and get his harvest work in when it was to his advantage, and then he did the contract work.
Now John Williams had been farming for as long or longer than Papaw and had been around thrashing crews over those many years. After listening to John Tom and his helper talking about what to do, John gets up slowly walks up to John Tom, who has the side of combine open looking at the shakers. I did not understand what John Williams was explaining, but John Tom was sure paying attention. John Tom did what John Williams said and they started the combine up and made another around, with no lost grain.I can remember Papaw looking at the sky, no doubt praying, when his wheat was ready to harvest and he was waiting for (John Tom Brigham) to come and combine for him. You would combine late in to the night if the dew was light and on Sunday if the wheat was ready and the combine was there. John Tom also furnished trucks for hauling off the grain.
One time when John Tom had bought new combine and was starting Papaw’s wheat, the combine was loosing too much wheat out the waste chute. John Williams and I were sitting along the edge of the road, watching the combine making rounds of the field. They stopped after about the fourth round and John Tom and his helper were trying to figure out the problem.
John Williams and I were setting under the only tree around, trying to keep as cool as possible in the Texas sun. There was, no doubt, a slight breeze (as on the hill where we were it seemed to be a breeze any time). Now this was not a hill you could see but a slow rise and we happened to be on the top. Those who have been to North Central Texas know what I’m saying.
I would like to describe John Williams a little, no disrespect for him or to him, John chewed tobacco; juice would occasionally run down his chin; he did not shave every day; and in hot weather I believe he only wore his overalls with nothing but shoes. But John had a very likeable personality and his Father Jim was the same. They lived with John’s sister or Jim’s daughter. It was said if they liked you, they would do anything for you. This must have been true as one time when I was at their house Jim showed me the army colt his Father had brought with him to Texas after serving in the Civil War on the side of the Confederacy.
Lena Pearl Brownlee [Parents] [scrapbook] was born on Jan 15 1897 in Tishomingo, Indian Territory, OK. She died on Dec 13 1973 in Hospital, Richardson, TX. She was buried in Frankford Cemetery, Addison, TX. She married Marvin Marshall Russell on Oct 7 1913.
WHAT ONCE WAS! by John Yates: I am going to tell a story about a skunk or pole cat, and a Lady who in no way weighed a hundred pounds soaking wet but came out the winner. First, lets look at the times and the Lady herself. It is in the late fifties or early sixties in rural Black Land Texas. This Lady has made it through the depression and WWII, raising three daughters, loosing a son. She works hard and wastes not. She asks for nothing but her family, and when I say family I mean all, children, grandchildren and great grand children. Her brothers and sisters and all the children. This how she was. Her humor was picking on you.
We were eating super, The Lady, Papaw, Dot, Aunt Bet, Jerry, Barb and I. (I’m not sure if Jerry and Linda were married) It was warm weather and the windows and doors were open and the sounds from outside were very prevalent. The fussing in the chicken coup kept getting louder and louder, The Lady getting up and leaving the table went out the back door to see what was causing her chickens to be making such a fuss. She came running back in needing help, “a pole cat is in the hen house”. Papaw, Jerry and I got up from the table, Papaw and Jerry going in after the guns, one a twenty-two rifle and the other shotgun. They were both fumbling for shells and hurrying out the back door. I was all ready out the door a head of them. Jerry, with the twenty-two rifle and Papaw not finding any shells for the shotgun. Some how the shell got jammed in the twenty-two rifle and would not fire.
At this moment it was looking good for the health of the pole cat, right? Well not so, as pole cat came out the door of hen house The Lady had picked up a three prone pitch fork and hurl’d it at the pole cat and pinning the pole cat to the ground killing it. It was so quick and clean a kill that the pole cat never had time to spray it’s scent.
It was back to super as if nothing had happened.Jerry and I hauled the pole cat off after super, it did not smell until we threw it off the back of Papaw’s pickup.
(Separate note for those of you who haven't figured out who "The Lady" is, it was Grandma Lena Russell).REPLY TO ABOVE STORY BY CHUCK ROARK (Lena's Nephew): Enjoyed the story about Aunt Lena. Sounds just like her. The part about Uncle Marvin not being able to find the shotgun shells is a little hard to believe since that gun was the only weapon on the place for years. It was Grandpa Russell's that was brought all the way from Alabama. The only other one I ever saw in the house was a 20 gauge one that I think they bought & may well have been the one they were talking about. Grandpa's gun was 12 gauge that had a kick that would knock you down if it were not held tight to the shoulder. Back in the late 40's or early 50's he was shooting at either a skunk or a fox in the chicken yard & when he fired the barrel release was driven back into his hand & had to be sewn up. Grandpa was a tall (for us) slender man with hardly any fat on him & it drove the thing deep into the area between the thumb & first finger. The .22 rifle was what Uncle Marvin used to shoot the hogs at hog killing time & probably wasn't shot more than 30 or so times over the years. He would get fairly close to the old sow (5-10 ft.) & shoot point blank. An old sow can be very dangerous at that time because they don't like to be messed with & the pain from the shot would rile them up even though it would go directly into the brain for an almost immediate kill. She would sometimes have enough life left to charge whatever was near. As soon as the shot was fired someone would have to run up from the side & cut her throat so that the blood would get out of the body before souring the meat. Some of the people would push a glass up under her throat & get it full & drink it. Had to be very careful so as not to get bit.
ADDITIONAL REPLY FROM JOHN YATES: It was the twenty gauge shot gun that Papaw had and was trying to put a twelve gauge shell in it. This was around 1958 or 59. What got me started on this was the drinking of the hog’s blood. Here in McGregor, when I was young and before; there was a butcher named Fritz Hoffman, a damn good butcher, as most Germans. Well one of the things Fritz liked was to have a fresh drink of hog’s blood and he kept a cup in the slaughterhouse to get him a drink when killing hogs. Fritz didn't shoot them; he would just crowd them against the wall, cut their throat and jump back for a minute to get out of their way. He used to make a blood sausage also.
They had the following children:
M i Thomas Wytte Russell was born on Jul 5 1915 in Renner, Collin Co., TX. He died on Jul 20 1915. He was buried in Frankford Cemetery, Addison, TX. F ii Darrace Lenora Russell was born on Aug 4 1921. F iii Joy Jean Russell was born on Dec 15 1927. She died on Jun 5 1996. F iv Bettie Joe Russell was born on Nov 12 1931.
Robert Newton Brownlee died . He married Mary Jane Bartlett.
Mary Jane Bartlett died . She married Robert Newton Brownlee.
They had the following children:
F i Lena Pearl Brownlee was born on Jan 15 1897. She died on Dec 13 1973.
Harold Compton Shelton died on Feb 23 1991. He married Darrace Lenora Russell on May 28 1938.
Darrace Lenora Russell [Parents] [scrapbook] was born on Aug 4 1921 in Renner, Collin Co., TX. She married Harold Compton Shelton on May 28 1938.
Other marriages:McDonald, O. B.
She was married to Mr. Shelton three different times.
They had the following children:
F i Barbara Jean Shelton. M ii Jerry Harold Shelton.
O. B. McDonald "Mac" died on Apr 22 1984. He married Darrace Lenora Russell.
CHIGGERS By John Yates
I was thinking this morning of one of the most important things I learned when I ventured south of the Iowa’s boarder; Chiggers.
After arriving in Arkansas, on this one afternoon I was going to enter a field full of grass and weeds which had not been mowed that year and the grass and weeds were about waist high. The person I was with stopped me and proceeded to inform me that if I should continue I would wish I had not done so.
Looking at him with a dumb expression he explained how I would acquire little red bumps in places which are hard to explain. They would itch like ____ and not stop itching for sometime. He went on to explain what all could be used to keep such bumps from taking over my body parts, sulfur powder being the best, clear figure nail polish or even better, do not go where the chiggers are. Using the sulfur you also need to wear long sleeve shirt and long pants, you tie the cuffs of the shirt and pants tight around your arms and legs after putting sulfur on your skin. You put the sulfur down your socks and in your shoes.
There is a story which I will have to give, as Ma (Darrace-Dot Russell Shelton) would not tell, but which I believe the family will enjoy, even at her expense which I am sure she will forgive me for telling. It seems Mac, Ma’s husband (O. B. McDonald) had acquired a few of these chiggers and had heard that “Lysol” if applied to the bite would ease the pain, OK, Mac had quite a few bites and it was decided that if he got into the bathtub and filled it with water and “Lysol,” this would be the way to go. It was the way to go alright. There are certain parts of the human anatomy that should not be immersed in “Lysol” and water.
Darrace Lenora Russell [Parents] [scrapbook] was born on Aug 4 1921 in Renner, Collin Co., TX. She married O. B. McDonald.
Other marriages:Shelton, Harold Compton
She was married to Mr. Shelton three different times.
Audry Carl Wilson "Bud" died on May 9 1993. He married Joy Jean Russell on Jul 15 1949.
Joy Jean Russell [Parents] [scrapbook] was born on Dec 15 1927 in Renner, Collin Co., TX. She died on Jun 5 1996. The cause of death was Cancer. She married Audry Carl Wilson on Jul 15 1949.
They had the following children:
M i Frank Edward Wilson.
Earl Duane Lobb [Parents] was born on Dec 17 1930. He died on Mar 17 1966 in Dallas Hospital, Dallas, TX. He was buried in Odd Fellows Cemetary, Plano, Collin Co., TX. He married Bettie Joe Russell on Jan 15 1951 in Plano, Collin Co., TX.
Bettie Joe Russell [Parents] [scrapbook] "Bettie Boop" was born on Nov 12 1931 in Plano, Collin Co., TX. She married Earl Duane Lobb on Jan 15 1951 in Plano, Collin Co., TX.
Other marriages:Cole, Henry Grady Jr.
Betty Boop was the name of an old cartoon character & I guess she just picked the nickname up as a "Ha-Ha".
They had the following children:
M i Timothy Duane Lobb was born on Nov 10 1954. M ii Marques Keith Lobb was born on Nov 10 1957.
Henry Grady Cole Jr. [Parents] was born on Nov 24 1928 in Cobb Co., Atlanta, GA.. He married Bettie Joe Russell on Jun 16 1972.
Bettie Joe Russell [Parents] [scrapbook] "Bettie Boop" was born on Nov 12 1931 in Plano, Collin Co., TX. She married Henry Grady Cole Jr. on Jun 16 1972.
Other marriages:Lobb, Earl Duane
Betty Boop was the name of an old cartoon character & I guess she just picked the nickname up as a "Ha-Ha".