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m. 9 Nov 1912 Ellis, Texas, United States
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09 Nov 1912, in Ellis County, Texas, Estes and Hattie married. I'm not sure how they met, as Hattie lived in McLennan County at the time. The young couple lived for a while with Estes' mother, Elvina Jane (Wallis) Clements, in Italy, Ellis County, Texas. Sometime in the next year, the young couple migrated from Texas to Oklahoma. 24 Nov 1913, in Garvin County, Oklahoma, Estes leased an 80 acre property from W. B. Austin, who had himself leased it from Jim Meely, guardian of minor Fanny Meely, on 22 January 1913. The legal description of the property was: the North Half (N 1/2) of the North West Quarter (NW 1/4) of Section Thirty-Two (32), Township Three (3) North, Range One (1) West. The terms of the original lease between Austin and Meely were for a term of five years, ending 31 December 1917, for the sum of $300.00, to be paid at $60.00 per annum, of which $15.00 was cash, and $45.00 were the improvements in fencing and housing. The terms also included the placement and care of 50 fruit trees on the property. Jim Meely agreed to the transfer from Austin to Estes. W. R. Wallace, County Judge, approved the transfer. 23 Jan 1915, in Garvin County, Oklahoma, Estes bought 80 acres from John F. and Mary P. Myers for $2500.00, of which $750.00 was cash, $1150.00 was the assumption of two mortgages to the American Investment Company, and $600.00 was the assumption of a promissory note to Noah Foster. The legal description of the land was: the South Half (S 1/2) of the North West Quarter (NW 1/4) of Section Thirty-Two (32), Township Three (3) North and Range One (1) East. 25 or 26 November 1915, in Garvin County, Oklahoma, Estes and Hattie welcomed their first known child, Grace Varine, to their family. Grace wasn't sure of the date, but had been told she was born around Thanksgiving that year. 05 Oct 1916, in Garvin County, Oklahoma, Estes and Hattie mortgaged their property to the First State Bank of Pauls Valley for $1555.00. The note had a 10% interest rate and was due 5 October 1917. 24 Nov 1917, in Garvin County, Oklahoma, Estes and Hattie sold their 80 acre property to Dr. E. Sullivan for $2400.00, of which $1000.00 was the assumption of one mortgage to the American Investment Company. The Clements family migrated back to Texas between 24 Nov 1917 and 10 Jan 1920. Grace Varine (my grandmother) remembered crossing the Red River in an ox-drawn wagon and watching her pregnant mother help lead the oxen across the river. Estes began working as a teamster for the oil companies of north-central Texas, migrating with his family to the boomtowns that sprang up in Eastland, Wichita, and Stephens Counties. The family had a large tent on their ox-drawn wagon, using it as their home. Grace also remembered having at least one draft horse that was tied to the wagon, breed unknown, having "feet as large as a silver platter." ca Sep 1919, Estes and Hattie had their second known child, Freddie. It is unsure whether he was born in Oklahoma or Texas. 10 Jan 1920, in Wichita County, Texas, Estes and his family were enumerated on the census. They resided in Hardin Acreage, outside Burkburnett. Grace remembered this place as a shanty/tent city, housing the families of migrant oilfield workers. 14 Nov 1920, in Breckenridge, Stephens County, Texas, Estes and Hattie had their third known child, George Henry. He lived only three hours. He was buried in an unmarked grave in Breckenridge Cemetery. ca Nov 1922, Estes and Hattie welcomed their fourth known child, Dorothy May. Grace believed that her mother had several pregnancies that resulted in miscarriages or stillbirths. No record of these children has been located. 02 Apr 1923 (Easter Sunday that year) Hattie, along with an unborn baby girl, died in Breckenridge, Stephens County, Texas. She was buried in an unmarked grave in Breckenridge Cemetery. Grace believed that her father paid a monument-maker in Breckenridge to carve a headstone for her mother and brother, George, but the man ran off with the money without completing the work. Hattie's father, Isaac Rufus Bradbury, came to her funeral and took the children home to West, McLennan County, Texas, to live with his family. Grace remembered being treated as a servant by an aunt, standing on a freezing cold porch stirring a boiling cauldron of laundry, when her father's sister, Annie Julia (Clements) Overton, arrived in a car. Seeing Grace out in the cold, Julia snatched her and the other two children up, argued with her brother's in-laws, and drove off with the children, back to her home in Ellis County, Texas. For about two years, Grace, Freddie and Dorothy lived and worked on the farm with their widowed Aunt Julia and her two boys, while Estes worked in the oilfields. Julia had a difficult time financially, and finally decided to take Estes' children to an orphanage in Dallas ca. 1925. The children became residents at the Reynolds Presbyterian Orphanage, near the community of Vickery, in rural Dallas County, Texas. The children were separated: Grace living in the girls' dormitory, Freddie at the boys' dormitory, and baby Dorothy (who was sickly) at a home for babies closer to the hospitals in Dallas. Grace lived there until 1934, when she graduated high school. Freddie lived there for a few years, eventually his aunt allowed him to come live with her at her home near Tatum, Rusk County, Texas, where he finished school. Grace and Freddie rarely saw Dorothy. Dorothy suffered an accident as a toddler that caused her to leak fluid from her ears and be slow to learn -- she was placed in the care of the mental health authorities at a very young age, living in the state home at Mexia, Texas, for several years. Dorothy was in state care most of her life -- the last time the family saw her was in the mid-1970s, until we located her in 2007. Grace remembered that Dorothy was a smart little girl before her accident. Estes would come every once in a while to see the children, until he moved to California to find work. The children always hoped Estes would take them home with him, but he never did. Grace remembered having to line up every so often to be inspected by prospective parents. She was never chosen to be adopted. Years later, she discovered that her father had not terminated his parental rights, so the children could not be adopted. Grace would only see her father a handful of times before his death. 28 May 1963, Estes died in Los Angeles County, California. He was buried in Little Lake Cemetery, Los Angeles. References
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