Person:Robert Bills (1)

A history of the state of Oklahoma, Volume 1 By Luther B. Hill

Dr. Robert C. Bills, well known as an educated and skillful physician and surg.eon practicing at Soper, has been a citizen of Oklahoma thirteen years. He first cast his lot in the Choctaw Nation in 1895, then a young doctor, and established himself on Crowder's Prairie, in what is now Choctaw county. He practiced there four years and at Jackson, Oklahoma, another four years, and then located permanently at Soper, where he has since resided and continued in his medical practice. He is now one of the oldest representatives of the regular school of medicine within the county.

Dr. Bills was born in Lamar county, Texas, September 12, 1863, on his father's farm. The vears of his life from childhood to manhood were spent chiefly midst urban surroundings, as his father, G. C. Bills, opened a store at Sylvan, Lamar county, at an early day and became a merchant also in Lockhart, Texas, in after years and where he finally retired from business and now resides. G. C. Bills was born in Lewisburg, Tennessee, in 1839, and obtained a fair literary education and migrated to Texas, while yet unmarried. He married in Lamar county, Texas, Nannie Patton, daughter of William Patton, a farmer who settled there from Alabama. Mrs. Bills died in 1893, the mother of John H., of Caldwell county, Texas; Annie, wife of Mr. McClellen, of Galveston; Dr. Robert C., of this memoir; Luther, of Seward, Alaska ; Delia, who married Jo. Collins, of Greenville, Texas; and Sallie: who married James Lay, of Lock- hart, Texas.

It may be said' in passing to the personal sketch of Dr. Bills that according, to tradition this family of Bills started from the remnant of a family who while crossing the waters of the Atlantic ocean to American shores all perished save one small boy, who had a large nose, and the surviving passengers dubbed him "Bill," in honor of his prominent feature. The most remote descendant of this family founder is John Bills, who was born in Tennessee about 1794, married and became the father of five daughters and four sons. He went to Texas as the head of his family and established himself in Lamar county, where he owned slaves during the final days of that epoch, and died as a farmer in 1878. All is tradition as to how the family originated —yet it is believed to be the true source of the name.

Dr. Robert C. Bills abandoned farming at the age of twenty-two years, and he had attended the public schools before that time. When thirty years of age he decided to study the science of medicine in the office of a relative, Dr. J. W. Patton, of Patton- ville. He took his first course of lectures in the Hospital Medical College at Memphis, Tennessee, with two additional courses in the University of Tennessee, at Nashville. As soon as competent he began practice, and really had many years of successful practice before he finally took his professional degrees, at the Gates City Medical College, Texarkana, in 1907. He is now an honored member of the Choctaw County Medico-Clinical Society.

Fraternally Dr. Bills is a Mason, having joined the order at Bennington, Oklahoma, in Lodge No. 19. He transferred his membership to Soper lodge, No. 345, and was elected senior warden, and has held that office ever since. He also belongs to the Woodmen of the World and to the Modern Order of Praetorians, being medical examiner of both orders, and also examiner for the Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company.

On May 28, 1899, he was happily married to Miss Sarah Le Flore, daughter of William Le Flore, a citizen of the Choctaw Nation. Mrs. Bills was born in Oklahoma, was educated here and is descended from one of the prominent Indian families of the Nation. Dr. and Mrs. Bills have no issue.

http://books.google.com/books?pg=PA560&lpg=PA560&dq=%22nannie%20patton%22%20lamar&sig=wdDpeRGZC_vbiF_EUSJk3lWlz2A&ei=LoulSvuYCISltgfjz5HTDw&ct=result&id=XTwVAAAAYAAJ&ots=yt8YE1SaMe&output=text