Some Family History

So when the boss goes on vacation, we go on vacation. Well, we're at least off of work, vacation maybe not. Two weeks ago, my mom and I met my grandparents at the lake. We ate breakfast at McClain's. This restaurant has been there for as long as I can remember. There is a club/bar in the back (or there used to be, I haven't seen it in a long time) but you can eat dinner back there. The lights are always kept low. There are license plates, kind of like a border, around the top of the room. Also, there is a train track with a train that runs around the top of the room.

Our next stop was the town of Elkhart, Tx. In this little town about an hour and 30 minutes from Tool. From the scrapbook we gave Granny for Mother's Day in 1998, "Granny on the next page talks about a pilgrim church at Elkhart, Tx. That was the 1st Protestant church in Texas. When the Parker clan came to Texas. Texas was still part of Mexico. Daniel Parker got permission from the Mexican government to start this church. Cynthia Ann Parker, Daniel's sister, was kidnapped by the Indians. We are not related to the Parkers, but this is the church that Ira Dell and Neel (Poppie) both preached in and the church Maridelle grew up in." Poppie was a member of the Union Primitive Baptist Association. It was believed that you were born with a life path already planned. Someone once told Poppie he was meant to spread the word of God. He never believed it and finally he joined Primitive Baptist Association. He was later kicked out of the Association for joining the Masons. Here are some pictures taken at the Pilgrim Church in Elkhart, Tx.

It always seems that older churches always have a cemetary near by. There was a lot of Parker's buried here, as well as some war veterans.

The brick church on the right is the church that Murr C went to service at. Poppie said, "They hired a black man to lay the brick, but I don't know how much they paid him." The little church on the left is a replica of the original that was built in 1997.

Outside to the right of the church, there are cement tables and a small fire pit. After service they serve snacks and refreshments. Murr C. said that if you brought a guest to the church and you wanted them to join you would invite them to eat with you today. Another part of this association is to wash feet. If your guest was accepted by the church, you would ask them if you could wash their feet today. That was only done once a month.

Murr C and Poppa outside the Pilgrim Church.

Murr C told the story behind the dogwood tree. Long ago during the days that Jesus was here on earth in the form of a man, there were many dogwood trees. Then, the dogwood was comparable in size to the oak tree. Because of its firmness and strength it was selected as the timber for the cross for crucification. Jesus saw to it that the dogwood would never again grow as strong or large enough to be used for a cross. Now, the dogwood is slender and bent with the blossoms resembling a cross. In the center of the outer edge of each petal there is nail prints, brown with rust and stained red. In the center of the flower will be a crown of thorns.

And two "artistic" shots from the day.

We also talked a lot about family history and random stories. I'll just list them:

• Murr C and Poppa owned 4 washeterias in Austin (I think in the 60's)
• Granny and Poppie met at church. Back then, church was all day. You were allowed (but not encouraged) to leave the church to take a break. Charolette and Granny stepped out and were sitting in the car. Poppie walked across the church yard and Granny turned to her sister and said, "There goes my husband, even if I don't get to marry him."
• Poppie was in Hawaii was 2 years in WWII. The letters he wrote and sent home were sensored and read by someone in the Navy. They were not allowed to reveal where they were. Although he wrote in code to Granny so she had some sense of where he was. He got a job at a Gentlemans' club in Hawaii.
• Once Poppie was back, he took flying lessons at the White Rock Airport. It was a GI Benefit. Uncle Charles, Poppie and Mr. Stark (Poppie and Mr. Stark met in the Navy and later learned they both were from Pleasant Grove) all took lessons and then went in together and bought a Piper Cub 2-seater plane. They later sold it for a 3-seater because Poppie wanted to be able to fly with Granny and Murr C, even though Granny didn't like to fly. They would often fly to Mabank (from White Rock, they lived in Pleasant Grove) to visit Momma Mc (Shan). They would "buzz" the house (do a fly over). It would notify them that they would need a ride from the cotton field they used to land.

I had a great time and I love learning about our family history. It has taken me a while to post these pictures, I wasn't very happy with the way they turned out. I used a wide angle lens adapter and it made the pictures look a little funny on the outside.

Link to more Information on the Pilgrim Church.