Esaw S., born Sept. 3, 1851 (my grandfather)
Henry H., born Dec. 28, 1853
Luther Myers, born Feb. 13, 1856
Candis Adelias, born Feb. 14, 1859
John Vinson, born Sept. 10, 1860
William J. (Willie), born Jan. 3, 1863
John C.’s wife Margaret died Jan. 12, 1863 after living one year in Cook County, TX.John then married Vian, and to them was born a daughter, Tennessee.Vian also died.
John C. then married Jain Wilson, their children were Martelia and Lee W.
John and his brothers Camel and H. H., came to Texas in the early 1860’s.Through them West Texas received a great heritage.
Martha Elizabeth Bilberry married L.S. Bilberry
Esaw S. Bilberry married Susie Adeline Bilberry
Henry H. Bilberry married M. E. McKinzy
Luther M. Bilberry married S. J. Myers
John Vinson Bilberry married N.E. Bilberry
William J. (Willie) Bilberry married M. L. Brown
Lee W. Bilberry married Birda Butts
Tennessee Bilberry married Matthew Moore
Martelia Bilberry married Elijah Henderson
Pauline Ellen Bilberry (Aunt Pilly) married Tol Corder Sept. 8, 1879.
Lonnie George Bilberry married Minnie Corder ?
Robert Finis Bilberry married Irene Frances Craft in 1902.
My daddy was born Oct. 5, 1882 and died Oct. 22, 1939.
My mother was born Nov. 13, 1883 and died Aug. 29, 1933.
Honor Bilberry married ElikKidd
Olin Bilberry
Jocie Bilberry married Fait(sp?) Peacock
Elminer Bilberry marriedJohn Kidd
Sid Bilberry died when he was 17
Dollie Bilberry married Lenard King
As I think back about the many things that I would like to know, and wish I had found out while my grandparents and father and mother were alive, I will try to answer in this scrapbook questions that I think my children and grandchildren might want to know about our family tree.
My grandfather Esaw S. Bilberry was a Baptist missionary preacher.He married his cousin, Susie Adeline Bilberry.Grandma Susie played the organ and a was a good singer in the pioneer days.They had five girls and four boys.My father, Robert F. was born in Mason Co. and later moved to San Saba Co.
I can remember him telling us about the “mob” there.They didn’t want settlers moving in and if they caught them out, they would be murdered.My father had two uncles by marriage that was killed, one was hauling water and the other was cutting wood.Daddy would go with Grandpa Esaw to preach and they would wear their guns for protection.Grandpa would preach with his guns on.
They moved to Stonewall Co.Grandpa was a cotton gin man.Then they bought stock (cattle and goats) and moved to the mountains in New Mexico.They almost lost their shirt and moved back to the East side of New Mexico Territory and went into big ranching.He was one of the first to have a car and a chauffeur, but cattle hit bottom and it broke him in his old age.
My Grandma Susie was a fine person.I shall never forget the last time I saw her, she came to visit us and stayed a week.She went with us to church in the wagon.Grandma had the “shouting religion”.
My immediate family lived in Oriana, Texas, between Peacock and Jayton.My Grandpa Esaw used to preach at Brazos Valley and my father would go with him.That is where my father met my mother, Irene Craft.When they married, they lived on the banks of the Brazos river, northwest of Peacock in a half dugout.When my sisters and me were young, we almost burned up in that dugout.Mother had gone to milk and she looked back and saw my sister Adeline in the window and she was on fire.Mother always said the only thing that saved us was the wool clothing we had on.We had a lot of narrow escapes.
My father pulled wagons across the river for years.He has pulled them out when water would be going over the top.One time he lost a wheel off his new wagon that he never did find.I remember him telling about going in the river on a little pony he didn’t know.She couldn’t swim and he had to pull her out by the tail.One Sunday morning we were going to church and bogged down in the quicksand.One of the mules knew to lie down and she was okay but the other stood up until she fell and broke her leg.We have seen that river when it was really rolling.I remember watching the railroad bridge wash out one time.The men folk sent us home and then went back and roped the timber and pulled it out.
My Grandad Joe J. Craft (my mother Irene’s Dad) was also a cotton gin man and a well to do farmer.He had a lot of machinery.We had so much fun playing on it.Grandad Craft always had a fine orchard.My Grandmother’s name was Rosie Adeline Bryant.She was a small person, probably didn’t weight a hundred pounds, and always wore her bonnet.Sometime she would have the colored women cook; there was always a bunch there.Outside of Grandad and Grandmother, we didn’t know much about Mother’s family.She had five sisters and four brothers.
We made so many trips to New Mexico territory.Daddy filed a claim and as we would joke about, we kept the path “hot”.In our covered wagon, we were always glad when the weather was good so we could tie the sheet up and look around.But one time there was a terrible snowstorm.My mother, father, two sisters and little brother and myself were traveling in our wagon.I don’t remember how many wagons there were in the train as I was pretty small but I do remember others that went with us.
We stayed all night at the Whiteface camp.It was a line camp on the Slaughter ranch about eighty miles from Lubbock, Texas, which was just a small place in the road then.The camp was called a half dugout, part was underground, and the upstairs was on top.It was a typical home for many settlers in that day.The people were nice and friendly as they seldom saw anyone.
When we started out the next morning, it was cloudy and it wasn’t long until it began to snow.The men got together to decide if they should go on.Father and mother, having that pioneer spirit, decided to go on.The rest turned back.
They had us children snug in a bed in the wagon.When the snow got so bad and deep they couldn’t see the road, they closed the front of the wagon and put their trust in God and those faithful horses.
After hours of wondering where they were, they looked out and saw a bulk of trees and ranch houses.I know that was certainly a welcome site.It wasn’t long before the cowboys came from the Ranch and helped carry us kiddos in and took care of the horses.
I can remember my mother couldn’t find my long stockings.The nice lady at the ranch got me a pair of hers. They didn’t fit, but I didn’t know it because they were so warm.
When the sun came out we went on ahead.We certainly counted our blessings that day and never forgot those kind people and our faithful horses.
It was a lonely life.We would go for days when we wouldn’t see a soul, but enjoyed it for it was all we knew.In those days, it didn’t take much to make a person happy.They were thankful for the least little things.
Father, Mother, my two sisters, baby brother and myself, each had our jobs to do.I think my little Mother must have had the biggest job of all.She was so small, it would crowd her to weight one hundred pounds, but when it came to doing things, she stood tall.She did just about everything there was to do.Drove a team, picked up baby calves that had given up, she was a real cowgirl.I guess her biggest job was cooking and dishwashing.I do remember one time it was waterboy.We were going cross country with our herd, the little water keg on the side of the wagon was getting empty all too soon.It was in the summertime and it was really hot.All realized that the water situation was getting serious.We could always count on our little Mother coming up with something.She called out that she saw an old gray horse come out of a canyon and that she just bet there was water.She got on her horse and rode over. Sure enough there was water, a spring of nice cool water, we felt our prayers had been answered.We were all learning fast.Daddy was a good instructor.He was quite a cowboy.He didn’t mind giving us responsibility, standing guard at night.We were always glad when we could find a place t o hold the cows so we wouldn’t have to stand guard.We would say, “boy, we stepped in a pud.”We had a lot of fun along with the hardships, like the time my sister’s horse slipped and fell in the water hole with her.We all laughed but it could have been really serious.
We were coming through Lubbock, Texas one time, then it was just a wide place in the road.Daddy left us to hold the cows while he went to buy supplies.We were down by the railroad tracks.The cows got scared at the engines switching tracks and started running.Daddy had trained us well, so we put it to practice calling to the cows and heading the lead cow.It wasn’t long until we had the situation well in hand.
When Daddy got back and found out what had happened
he was real proud of his cowgirls he had trained.I
guess a cowboy’s life was intended to be a lonely life for we were always
glad to get away from civilization with those cows and it was always good
to reach New Mexico.