My Grandfather Nobie (or Noble) John Keith whom I was raised to call "Dad", and Nora Jewel Jackson Keith, whom I was taught to call "Mama Jewel" were married when he as 26 and she was 14. Yep, 14!
I wasn't there at the time, but I think that was not unusual in those days. My Father came along a year after and then I appeared on the scene just 20 years later. Mama Jewel apparently thought she was too young (35) to be called Grannie. She and Dad were always real nice to me (i.e., spoiled me).
Since we lived only 14 miles apart I stayed with them quite a bit, saw them at least once every week usually spending weekends with them. Dad was one of the finest men I have ever known. He always seemed to be in a good mood and spent a lot of time with me.
He told me one time that when he was "young" they had come all the way from New Mexico to Dublin, Texas. Their transportation was horses and wagons. Also he told me that he had seen the old Apache Geronimo in New Mexico. To my everlasting regret I never did ask questions and get details about his life. The only thing I remember is that he said they pitched their camp at Midland, Texas on the way to Dublin.
Midland was just a small village at that time which was close to the end of the 19th century. (probably about 1892). The Keith clan in Dublin became pretty well off financially at one time but something happened that was forever after never talked about in my presence.
I do know however, that at one time 'Dad' owned an automobile dealership. Now this was in the days when people were converting from horses and buggies to cars. When someone decided to make the 'conversion' Dad had to first teach them how to drive.
Teaching consisted of having the customer, under supervision, drive around the block. If he made it successfully he passed. Period. End of driving school. On one occasion the customer made it around the block just fine. but pulled into the parking space in front of the dealership yelling "Whoa, dammit, whoa!" The automobile, not understanding the customer's command, went crashing into the plate glass window!
Dad later on, went to work as an engineer for a cotton compress company and in that capacity was transferred to Brenham, Texas. He invented a 'gadget' to solve the problem of cotton bales bursting. This gadget I believe is still being used to this day. The invention could have made him a wealthy man, but his employer took the patent as their own and I think he never really got much credit for it.
I heard Dad say a 'cuss word' only one time. When he was trying to teach me how to drive a car I was about to go off into a ditch and he said "turn the wheel dammit!". I turned the wheel.
Mama Jewel had another son, Bea Jackson Keith, who was born about eight years before me. He was a handsome dude who cut a big swath through all the beautiful single girls in Brenham. One day when I was about ten, I saw Jack catching some white leghorn chickens out in the back yard. After corralling four of them he took off.
I followed him to a grocery store and watched as he sold them. I thought, "boy that sure is an easy way to make some money!" and proceeded to follow in my Uncle Jacks's footsteps as a thief! I caught and sold two of those rascals, but in a few days Dad asked me if I knew anything about his missing chickens. I was never able to lie to him and proceeded to 'spill the beans'. Dad didn't say anything to me but he must have given Jack a pretty good lecture because I was very unpopular with Jack for a while.
Completely spoiled by his Mother, Jack had never had a permanent job in his life when he was drafted right before World War II began and was sent to Australia. While there he met and married an Australian gal, Thora. Before the war was over he had participated in the liberation of several islands including the Philippines. When he got back, at the age of 31, he went to a "Watchmakers" school and then moved to Dallas where he held the only permanent job he had had in his life and where he lived for the rest of his life. It took a world war, a wife and a daughtger to make a responsible citizen out of him!
"He who has the fastest golf cart never has a bad lie."
Doug