It has been a while since I posted on this blog, so it is my promise and my goal to continue to do so very soon. Check back for more stories about The Ville, and if you have memories of your own you would like me to post, please email them to jubykay@sbcglobal.net.
For more personal stories about my life in Erath County, please see my other blog at www.jkhart.blogspot.com. I would enjoy feedback on either or both blogs if you enjoy them. Feel free to share with others and comment on Facebook or Twitter.

The Story of John Tarleton's Body

This quote from a Tarleton State University webpage gives the background for the story I am about to relate. Originally buried in Patillo, John Tarleton’s body was removed from its first resting place in April 1926 and taken to the college campus, where it remained for two years. In April, 1928, an expanding campus required that Tarleton’s body be moved again. The subsequent construction of an auditorium made it necessary to move the body to its final resting place at the southwest edge of the campus in a triangular park. A granite marker in the park’s center is inscribed simply “John Tarleton.” My Great-Uncle Johnny Lockhart was born in Stephenville, Texas and was able to attend John Tarleton Agricultural College due to a work-scholarship. One of his jobs on campus included driving the dump truck part-time. After college he moved to Clifton, Texas where he was a highly respected Ag Teacher at the high school for his entire career and was so active in that community that he was given a parade in his honor upon his retirement. Uncle Johnny spent the last 10 years of his life in a nursing home in Clifton. I had known Uncle Johnny all of my life and heard many stories about him from my father Kenneth Lockhart but this story came directly from Uncle Johnny to me. I do not recall the exact year but I think it was around 1982. Our family went to Mexia, Texas to a family Thanksgiving dinner, and on the way, we stopped by Clifton and picked up my Uncle Johnny who was at least 85 years olds. I may later do research as to a more specific date, however the date has little to do with the information. This is a paraphrased version of what he told us that Thanksgiving Day. Uncle Johnny's father's name was John Thomas Lockhart. He came to Texas when he was a very young man after having served in The Civil War as a teenager. One of our Lockhart relatives retains the medal he got from fighting in that war. In Erath County John T. Lockhart was a successful businessman and the third mayor of Stephenville. His business was that of a dray service which is analgous to today's Fedex or UPS. He hauled materials by horse and wagon for a living. The family home was a fine one on Jones Street but the depression hit the family as it did others. According to Uncle Johnny, his father John T. Lockhart was hired to move John Tarleton's body from its first resting place to the campus. In 1928 as stated above, the body was moved again to the current site in the triangle at the corner of Lillian and Washington. There are two unusual parts to this story that the general public does not know, and I only know it because I heard it from the only living man who could tell it. First, is just as his father had moved Tarleton's body the first time with his horses and wagon, Uncle Johnny moved the body the second time by dump truck. Uncle Johnny and another Tarleton student/employee were asked to carry it in the back of the truck at midnight. The officials supervising the move did not want the general public to come out of curiosity when they exhumed the coffin so they moved it secretly. I was fascinated and shocked when he gave us the following information. Uncle Johnny said that he and the other boy were sent off alone with the coffin toward the new resting location a few blocks away. They both discussed how curious they were about what it looked like inside the coffin, and finally they decided they must open it to sneak a peek. When they lifted the lid of the coffin and looked inside, there was nothing in there. Nothing at all. No bones, no skull, nothing! Later when he went home, he told his father about their discovery, and then he got an answer to the mystery of the empty coffin. John T, the drayman, said there had been a cholera outbreak at the time John Tarleton's coffin was exhumed the first time, so they had to sprinkle lime all over the body before it could be transferred to another town. The lime obviously did its job and completely disintegrated the body. My uncle was an honest and upstanding man so I never doubted his tale. I related this story to Tarleton's President Trogdon, and he was fascinated by it. A few years later, Dr. Trogdon sent me a manila envelope with the following words: "Judy, this is a horseshoe found in the time capsule we dug up today at the Home Economics building. I'm giving it to you because I thought it might have belonged to your great-grandfather." History is cool, huh?
(After I wrote the above post, I decided to do a google search on "John Tarleton's Body". Who knows the truth? I related the story as Uncle Johnny told me. After all, he was there. The local historian Richard King has a slightly different version, but WHO KNOWS, neither Uncle Johnny or any of the other participants are still around to give us more details.)

Square/Dancin'

My first teacher in life was Mrs. Smith who had a dance studio on the second floor of the building on the east corner of the square. For a four year old, the steep dark stairs were a scairy climb, but at the top of this wooden stairway was a big room with nothing but full length mirrors on two walls and a row of windows opening to the street.

Mrs. Smith drove weekly from a nearby small town to bring her "fine arts" to our little county seat town. Parents could choose lessons for their children from acrobatics, ballet, tap dancing, or in some cases, all three for their future performers.

The culmination of a year's instruction came in the form of a recital proudly choreographed by Mrs. Smith. It was held in the "huge" auditorium at the local junior college.

Mothers and/or hired local seamstresses created elaborate costumes for the little stars. Make-up consisted of lipstick and a bit of powder. We didn't know what mascara or eye-liner was at that time.

Shirley Temple had been a popular American icon the decade before with her cutesy song and dance routines. A statement often repeated to me by my proud and biased uncle most likely led my mother to believe I would be the next Shirley Temple. Uncle Charles was sure I was destined for Hollywood.



My dance partner and I were made up to look like dancing twins. We practiced long hours to produce perfectly synchronized routines. Pictures of that time are proof that even in the 1950's litle girls were made up to look like mini-showgirls. Recently, there was a controversy about dressing little girls to look like Beyonce. That didn't seem unusual to me since, after all, our Beaver/Cleaver Moms did that to us, too.

One year our recital theme was Wedding of the Painted Doll. Our dance group which included a couple of reluctant boys were dressed in tap-dancing wedding attire.

There were two "older girls" who were Mrs. Smith's star students. At the time I adored and worshipped them because they were "big" but years later I found out one of the two was actually just 3 years older than I. We became friends and played in the same bridge club for twenty years, but strange as it may seem, we rarely, if ever discussed our dance studio days.

One more memory of the square....tap, ballet, and acrobatics but never square-dancing.

The Drag

Two cemeteries at opposite ends of town provided the final resting places for people who knew each other for many years. Teenagers with the thrill of driving their parents' cars made the run between the cemetery on the West End to the Dairy Queen on the East End. This 2 mile run was known as The Drag.

Responses from my "square" friends

Wow, Carroll and Sherry bring up stores I had forgotten about. Thanks for adding these to our list.

Today, Carroll wrote this:

September 7, 2010 at 5:37pm

Subject: The Ville

I appreciate the time and effort that you are putting in on the blog. I guess that because we’re getting older, the memories are so precious to us. I’ll share a few of my memories of downtown and the 50’s.
Among the stores I remember are J.T. Mayes, Minter’s, Cawyer Drug Store, Burl Lawrence’s Record Shop, Cross Drug Store, Scott’s Cleaners, Barnes 5 and 10, Zero Lock Box and the Ice House. I remember the barber shops; Majestic by the theatre, City Barber Shop, Earl Cole’s Barber Shop located where City Hall is now, and Blackwood’s Shop on Virginia Street.
I also recall the Saturdays on the courthouse square. David’s and my Mother and Daddy usually parked on the square and I think we walked around visiting with the people. I remember one of the policemen, Cecil Smithy, used to buy ice cream cones for David and me. Remember, they didn’t even take their keys out of the cars back then!
One of my memories takes me back to when Daddy sold milk at the Triangle Cheese Plant and Mother bought feed at the Triangle Feed Store. Miles Bradley was one of the store employees. Mother made David and me shirts from the feed sacks.
I hope we can find some photos from that era and times.

Sherry wrote:
"Your blog brought back a lot of memories. I remember how I loved the smell when you walked in Cox's. One of my favorite things to do was to walk from Barham's Feed & Supply, where my Daddy & Aunt Helen worked, to the Rexall Drug Store to get a 5 cent cherry coke. On the way to the drug store, I would always stop, open the door of Cox's and stick my head in and smell the aroma."

PEOPLE I HEARD FROM ON FACEBOOK ADDED THIS ABOUT THE SQUARE;
Debby wrote:
"OK yall got me....I don't remember Novitts!!!!!!! Where was it located? I would SO love to see some pics of downtown in the 50's. I don't have any. One of the things I remember so much is being in the Tarleton Parade when in Jr. Hi and HS...the day was usually so golden fall was in the air. It was close to Halloween so the stores were all decorated. The streets were just lined with people. I remember Mr. Lumsden, Mrs Zimmerman, Mr. Latham., the Holleys at Majestic Barber Shop, Mr Swindle, Bill Riddick, all the kids that worked at Rexall, Mr. Harding at Western Auto, Baxleys, Mr. Miller, Mr. Gifford, Jo Johnson's Beauty Shop....just a few of the people I remember. AND of course, my mom, Ruth Ewers worked at Penney's. "

David wrote:
"Judy, You have a real talent for spinning a story, really enjoyed the "Hanging on the Square." Been there, done that in my youth. Would really, really be nice if someone posted some pictures of the square in the early 50's. I can still remember the smell of the pile of unwashed denim jeans that Mother bought for our school clothes at Novitt's Dept. Store. "

Memories of The Ville

Your contributions are welcomed. Please share them with us. No matter what the form or style of writing, please email your stories to jubykay@sbcglobal.net
Picture and videos are encourgaged, too.