Estacado is native soil for all the children of the Nat Fox family. Al of them were born at Estacado and all attended school there.Their father, Nat Fox (1879-1934) came to Estacado with his father, Albert A. Fox, from Oklahoma Territory in 1887. Their mother, Gussie Ellis (1879-1929), arrived with her parents, Steve and Jennie Ellis from Collin County in the same year.
Nat farmed, ranched, ran a general store, and later in life, did some wildcatting for oil. He was a gifted athlete and excelled at baseball, once being offered a scholarship at West Texas State College at Canyon. He played on and managed several amateur teams in the area. Most of his children inherited their father's love of sports and sons Dip and Clarence once played on the same team with their Dad.
Nat and Gussie had nine children.
Clarence (1901-1983) spent much of his life in the oil business at Albany. He married Jo Holloway and they had a son, Richard, also of Albany.
Leonard (1902-1967) had farming interests in the area and lived at Idalou for many years. He married Margaret Dodson. Their two daughters, Betty Owens of Tahoka and Bobbie Andrews of Brownfield, each have two children.
Jenny (1904-1956) married Fayette Merchant. They had two daughters, Angie Beth of Odessa and Gussie of Lubbock, each of whom also has two children.
Dollie Elizabeth "Tince", born 1906, has lived in Lubbock for more than 40 years. She married Bob Bowron and they had two children, Bobbie, now of Arlington, has two children; Les, who lives near Shallowater, has one child.
Charles "Dip", born 1907, farmed at Estacado for many years. He and his wife, the former Jennie Michael, now live in Lorenzo. Their daughter, Mickey Hargrove, has two children. Dip now spends much of his time on the golf course and also devotes many hours to maintaining the Estacado Cemetery.
Sam Ellis, born 1908, married Vere Kerr. Their son, Stanley, who lives in Dallas, has two children. Sam lives at Muleshoe, where he has been a Texaco distributor for many years.
Gladys (1910-1950) married Harry McDonald and they lived in Button Willow, California. They had one daughter, Natalie.
John Dillard "J.D." (1915-1985) was in the irrigation pump business at Petersburg for much of his life. He and his wife, the former Roxie Hildreth, had three children, Troy, Jim and Tylene.
Laird Hardin "Doc", born 1917, lives in Lubbock. He married Betty Alexander and they have a son, Steve. Doc was in the pump business with J.D. and his brother-in-law, Bob Bowron, for a number of years. He now is retired.
Submitted by Joe W. BrownEstacado Cradle of Culture and Civilization on the Staked Plains of Texas ©1986 by John Cooper Jenkins.
Gussie, daughter of Stephen R. and Jennie [Michael] Ellis, came to Estacado in 1887 and as a very small child, settled with them near the Quaker town. She received her limited education in the short-term school of the immediate vicinity. Gussie married Nat Fox, a young man of the community, and they settled in the village, where their nine children were born. They were the parents of six sons and three daughters. The sons are: Clarence, Leonard, Sam, Charlie, J.D., and Laird. The daughters are: Jennie, who is Mrs. Fayette Merchant; Dollie Elizabeth, Mrs. Bob Boren; Gladys, who married and moved to Bakersfield, CA.All of the sons and two daughters live near where they were born. Gussie was never found wanting when measured by the standards of goodness and righteousness and believed that in raising her children in the way they should go that they would not depart from it.
Gussie and Nat did not live to a ripe old age. However, they did see the fruits of their labors in the grand Christian character reflected in the lives of their children, and they were satisfied.
Source: Source: "Through the Years, A History of Crosby County, Texas" by Nellie Witt Spikes and Temple Ann Ellis ©1951; The Naylor Company, San Antonio, Texas
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