Pricer Family - Family Histories - Coleman County, Texas

      The Pricers came originally from Germany in 1653, and settled in Pennsylvania. Our grandfather, John Martin Pricer and three brothers were orphans in North Carolina. Grandpa lost an arm in the Civil War. He married Mattie Gallman in Alabama and later migrated to Atlanta, Georgia, where our father, John Thomas Pricer, was born September 5, 1868. Papa, at 18 years, moved to Morgan County, Alabama, where he married Sally A. Childers, in her home. He was employed as a tax collector. They had two sons, William Edward (Bill), died September, 1980 in Fort Worth, and Leroy Alonzo (Lon) lives in Longview, and she died while Lon was very small. The grandparents raised the boys.

     John Thomas then married Lew Weathers, they had two girls, Pearl lives in Killeen, and Lillie Bell. Lew died young and left him with the little children. In 1906, John Thomas married our mother, Dollie Brothers of Boaz, Alabama. After a while, they came to Oklahoma for a short time and then on to Bell County, Texas. On Thanksgiving Day, 1926, our family loaded all our belongings on two trucks which Uncle Joe Pepper (see Brown-Pepper-Forehand) so graciously sent for us. We lived at Voss on Uncle loe's place for one year. We went to school at Voss with J. C. and Lilly Pepper (our cousins), and had a Ford car we called "Old 97" which J. C. drove and Fred Turner sometimes helped us up the hill, and took Bert, John, Nell and I to school. Sometimes we had to back up the hill as the low gear was burned out. Mary Owens (Mrs. Isaac Pate) was teaching at the time (1927). We lost our mother on May 25, 1925. Lillie helped Papa raise us. We always lived on the farm and times were not so good, but then we had plenty to eat and wear and a good honest Christian Daddy. What more could you ask? We worked all week in the field. I took off one day a week to help Lillie wash in the wash pot and rub board, and iron with the sad irons. There was Papa, five brothers, and three sisters and the bed linens were quite a job on the rub board.

     One of the highlights of our life was Papa, a very good reader, to read our paper that had the story of "Lucindy Rain Water' in it. At noon we would all lay down on the floor to rest and listen while he read to us. I never saw Papa lay down on the bed but one day, until he had a heart attack in 1948, and that only lasted a few days. We worked all week and were allowed to go to parties on Saturday night, to church and singings on Sundays and Sunday nights. We were raised Primitive Baptist. We could go to town on Saturday afternoons to get groceries and whatever we needed. We saw friends in town and heard where the parties and singings were to be. Just before Christmas 1927, we moved north of Coleman to the G. William Baker place. He had his room and lived there until his death five years later. We enjoyed Mr. Baker as he was a good Christian man. He said never discuss religion or politics, which is a good policy, I think. He always attended church, a member of the Church of Christ, and also had a good sense of humor, that is how Grady got interested in the Church of Christ going to church with him. We attended the Anderson school and walked across the T. J. Allen Ranch to get there. We often had church and singing at the school house on Sunday and meetings in the summers. The Pricer children:

     (1) Lillie Bell, July 10, 1900-May 10, 1966, was the greatest to stay home and take care of all of us with never a complaint, she was so sweet and unassuming, always busy. We are forever indebted to her.

     (2) Joe Bailey, May 30, 1907 in Keys Valley, Bell County, always enjoyed playing baseball and was good in sports. Joe as all the rest, stayed home and helped with the farming until he was grown and he also broke horses on the side. He married Ina Smith (see Josiah Juan Smith).

     (3) Henry Grady, January 9, 1909 at Keys Valley, married Eulala Estelle Anderson, April 7, 1934 at Fisk, the daughter of George W. and Mary Lizzie (Gregory) Anderson (see George W. Anderson). They made their home on the G. William Baker farm the first year. Grady being a gospel minister began preaching for Big Valley Church of Christ of Goldthwaite, in the fall of 1935. In the summer of 1938, he took pastorate of the Church of Christ of Tulia. He preached 35 years and lived in six states, preaching and teaching God's Word. Grady passed away June 17, 1971 at Anthony, buried in Cedar Hill Cemetery, Abilene. After his death, Eulala came back to Coleman to live. Their son, Grady Foy, June 25, 1947 at Littlefield, married Mary Elizabeth (Beth) Ferguson of Dallas, December 30, 1969. Two children: Crista DeLynn and Austin Lincoln, reside in San Antonio.

     (4) Mamie Edna, January 23, 1910 near Belton in a snow storm. The doctor came on horseback. I have not done anything very noteworthy in my life time; have tried to live a clean Christian life as we were taught to do. My mother taught me to sew very young, and I have done that since I was 10 years old. My older sister and I both had major surgery in 1937, which cost $150.00 each. Very little money now, but it was a cotton crop then. We lived at Novice at the time. I came to town (Coleman) and worked for Mrs. Ora West, who was County Clerk at the time. Then in August, 1939, Mrs. Tom Stevens came out to the house looking for some one to live in as a companion. I thought I would try it and stayed 28 years and three months, until she passed away October 11, 1967. She was a lovely person and had a ranch and farms, as well as partner in J. E. Stevens Company and the Funeral Home. As long as she was able, we went to the ranch every week. She left me some land which I sold and bought my home. We had a lot of good times. After Mrs. Stevens' death, I went to work at Ray Don's Man's Shop, doing alterations, and worked until the store sold. Since then I have been doing alterations at home.

     (5) Bert, September 18, 1914 near Belton, stayed home and took care of Papa and Lillie, working for Santa Fe for years. Then he went to work at Martin Brick Plant and stayed 20 years. After Papa died in June 1948, he and Lillie stayed on at the farm until her death. Bert lived out there alone, until Mrs. Stevens death, then he came to live with me. We had 12 enjoyable years and on September 10, 1980, at church, he had a heart attack and died there.

     (6) Johnie A., July 25, 1916 near Belton, graduated from Coleman High School. In 1938, during hard times for us, John went to 3 C's for a time to help out. In 1940, he was drafted into the 36 Division stationed at Camp Bowie, until they shipped out for Camp Blanding, Florida. They made the Invasion on the Salerno Beach bead. After his medical discharge, he farmed. Later went to work for Mercer's Boot Shop in San Angelo. While working there, he and Jewell Teague of Brownwood were married, April 27, 1949. They left there in a year, and went to Dallas where he worked at the Post Office, as a letter carrier, for 23 years. Jewell worked at First National Bank until she had to quit on account of having multiple sclerosis. They came back home and Jewell passed away in July, 1981. On Easter Sunday, April 11, 1982, John and Marie Wills were married. She retired from working for civil service in San Antonio.

     (7) Nellie Mae, September 13, 1918, married October 8, 1939 Haden Benjamen Hart (see Haden Hart).

     (8) Luke, December 4, 1920, graduated from Novice High School as valedictorian May 5, 1939. He enlisted in the U.S. Air Force, March 21, 1941 at Dallas. He was stationed at Brooks Air Force Base in San Antonio for four months and was assigned to Nellis Air Force Base at Las Vegas, Nevada, until December 1943, and reassigned to the European Theater Operation 8th Air Force until July 4, 1945. He was discharged as a T/Sgt. October 22, 1945. He was engaged in farming from 1946 until 1956, three miles northwest of Coleman. On March 27, 1948 he married Glynda Myrl Gober of Santa Anna (see J. L. Gober). Luke has been employed at the U.S. Post Office in Abilene since August 1956, and Glynda has a beauty shop in her home. They have two sons:

       (1) Randell Dean, September 7, 1951 in Coleman, graduated from Abilene High in 1970, married Cindy Marcia Shoff in June, 1979, one son, Scott Lee, February 27, 1970 in Plano. They live in Abilene where Randell and Gaylon own a Car Shine Shop and Randell manages it.

       (2) Gaylon Lee, January 30, 1954 in Coleman, has been employed by the Post Office at night since high school graduation in 1972. He attended McMurry and Hardin Simmons for three years.

(Images to be added)

Back row: Joe, Grady, Mamie, Bert, John and Nell;
Front row: Grady's wife, Eulala, Lillie, John Thomas Pricer, and Luke-1938