When we arrived in Oklahoma from Arkansas in September 1919, we spent about three days with Uncle Deck (Mae Lawson's brother). We found a house across the road and a little east of the Dotson family home, south of Haskell, Oklahoma. Dad worked for Mr. Dotson for about three months until we could get the Owens farm. I don't know why John told he got a farm ready for us to move to because he didn't. In fact, he had nothing to do with Dad getting the Owens farm.

The Owens farm was located one mile north of Cole Pool store. Mr. Owens lived in Tulsa and would occassionally ride the bus to Haskell and come out to the farm by wagon.

From there we moved to a place north of Haskell and lived there abopuut two years. Vernon Jr., was born while we lived there with Dad and Mother. Sister Eva Frances lived in Haskell and just before Vernon Jr. was born, we went to her house so we would be3 close to Doctor Kuppka. He delivered Vernon Jr. at Eva's house. In 1983 we wwent to visit Eva in Arkansas and she still had the bed Jr. was born in. While we were there, we took pictures of Jr. laying on that bed aand he has the pictures.

After Jr. was born we moved to a place south of Haskell; on the creek. It was a little to the north and east of the first bridge you come to now as you go south from Haskell. There was two houses there and Mother and Dad lived in one and your Mother and I lived in the other one. I farmed with Dad and in my spare time I worked in William Osborn's shop in town. Billy Ray was born while we lived in this little house.

While farming with Dad, I worked for fifty cents a day and that was usually at least ten hours. We started when the sun came up and worked until we couldn't see at night. The fifty cents a day was used to buy our clothes, food and things we needed. Once Dad said he had to hire someone to help me chop cotton. I made a deal with him to chop it all myself and he would pay me what he would have paid someone else. I chopped forty-five acres by myself. I later bought the farm equipment and Dad and Mother moved into town.

Later your mother and I moved a mile east of Cole Pool store on the creek. The house was a very small two room place that sat near the creek. The outhouse sat on the creek bank. While there Lois (Lela's sister)and her four children came to stay with us. You (Carol Sue Lawson Johnsoon) was born while we lived in this little house.

Virgil (Vernon's brother) and Verbie (his wife) had also lived in that little house on the creek at one time. At that time Opal and husband Virgil Dotson (Lela's sister and husband) lived just west on the now McDaniel homeplace. (At this point, Aunt Opal reported having planted her garden in front of the house which sat on a hill a little back north of the road. She said she would stand on the front porch and shoot rabbits eating her garden).

After asking how much schooling Daddy had attended he answered,"I completed the 8th grade. I started the 9th grade but quit before the year was over. I never got to go to school until about December, after the crops were gathered." (Later he told writer,..."I started 9th grade but found out pretty quick that I was ahead of the teachers so I quit!).

One of the many stories told by my Dad is that he can remember when he was born !! Now, as much as I admire him, I even have trouble believing that one !!

Another favorite story told by Dad is when they lived in Newton County, Arkansas near Hasty. Someone had brought a steam engine to Hasty and Grandpa Lawson (Thomas) took some of the kids to see it. Vernon relates that Thomas carried Virgil all the way. He remembers it as being a hugh thing and when they blew the whistle,..."it scared the water out of me!!!!.

1986 by Vernon Lawson

Dad (Thomas A.) was working in the fields when he was approximately 14 years old. A man came to the field and ask if he had seen his dog. He told Thomas the dog had gone mad and if he saw it to stay away from it and not to let the dog bite him. The man left and Thomas coontinued to work until after dark. The field was quite a way from the Lawson home and as he left the field he had to jump a creek.

After crossing the creek Thomas heard a snapping sound. He stopped, but in the darkness couldn't see anything. He started running and the snapping sound continued. He was certain the mad dog was behind him, snapping at his heels.

As he neared home he thought about the pig pen that was a little way from the house. He decided to jump in among the pigs, thinking the dog would go past. As he stood in the pen he listened and looked but couldn't see or hear anything. He waited a few minutes, jumped the fence and ranfor the house. The snapping noise had started again as he ran to the house.

Once inside he found the sole of his shoe was loose. As he walked, the flapping of the sole against his shoe made the snapping sound, not the dog he had imagined !!!.

Dad (Thomas A.) said he remembered going to the fields with his mother (Nancy Ann Busby) and walking home after dark. There was panthers along the road home and they would jump from one side to the other. His mother would keep putting him from one side to the other keping him away from them. He indicated he was a very small child when this happened.

In Newton County, Arkansas there was a big grove of trees about two miles from the house. The black birds would come in at night to the grove. They (Thomas,John and Bill) would take lights at night and go to the grove and kill black birds for them to eat.

Dad(Thomas A.)would go possum hunting. He would sometimes get home late so he would hang a bag of possums on the side of the porch. John and Bill were supposed to clean them the next morning. Seems there was always cats around the house, so John and Billwouldtie a cxat tail to a possum tail and throw them across the clothesline and watch them fight until they either got loose or the possum killed the cat.

I never saw a man that could pinch you like your grandpa (Thomas). He would take his two fingers and pinch with his knuckles. He has pinched me onthe stomach so hard he actually took a piece out of my tee shirt.

Once after Lela and I were married we drove up to Dad's (Thomas)house and found him laying on the front porch asleep. He had on overalls and was barefoot. He didn't wake up when we drove up so I got out of the car and walked upon the porch and straddled his legs, grabbed his feetand started tickling him. Dad laughed untiltearsrolled down his cheeks. He just couldn't stand anyone to tickle his feet.

Dad (Thomas) never missed a Saturday in town. We would take the wagon to the wagon yard and leave it and the team and walk up town. He would purchase needed supplies and spend the entire day standing or walking the streets talking to people. At this point Lela said that was the hardest thing she ever had to do. She didn't like staying in town all day with nothing to do but stand around.

In the early days there was six cotton gins in Haskell, Oklahoma. We (Thomas and Vernon) would take our cotton in a wagon into town. We would go to all six gins and the man at the gin would come out and look at the cotton and make an offer. Dad would take the highest bid.

After the first of every year the farmer would figure out what he needed to live on until his crops came in and would go to the bank and take out a loan for that amount. H4 would put up his team, wagon or anything else he owned for security. As his crops were harvested he would take all money earned to the bank until the loan was paid in full.

The road from Boynton, Oklahoma north to the Muskogee"Y" was made of brick. The brick was made at a brick plant in Boynton and laid by hand. While working on the road the brick was hauled out and stacked beside the road for the workers to use. Once John and Vernon Lawson was traveling on the road and John said he would like to have some of those brick to make flower beds at his home near Bald Hill. Later he and Vernon went back and took a load of them to John's house.

Almost everything the family ate was either grown by the family or treaded for. They would grow corn and take it to the mill and trade it for corn meal. They raised their own chickens and hogs. Vernontells of rendering out hogs for the lard and meat. When ask about the smokehouse and how they kept the meat from spoiling, he said they would take the hams and rub them in salt. Then they would let them cure. They then were hung in the smokehouse until needed. I ask about smoking them and he said Dad would build a fire inthe smokehouse but there were no flames, only smoke, usually out of hickory wood. The door would then be shut and you would see smoke coming out of the cracks in the walls. The smoke did nothing to preserve the meat, only flavor it, which Vernon said he could never tell the difference. When ask about beef Vernon said they didn't have any usually. OOccassionally some man would butcher a cow,wrap the meat, put it in his wagon and come around selling it. If the families had any money and wanted some beefthey would buy a "mess". (A mess being enough for one meal.) The remainder of the time, they ate vegetables and pork or chicken.

1985 by Anna Lawson Agee to Barbara Lawson Wills...

James A. and Anna Lawson

When she was a small girl growing up in Newton County, Arkansas in the early 1900's Annie tells a story about her half brothetr that she loved dearly and called Jim A.

Anna said she and Jim A. were playing together one day away from the strict ear of her mother Mae, when Jim A. said,"Annie, want to know something?" To which Anna replied,"Yes, Jimmie, I want to know, tell me, tell me."

Jim A. told her "I'm never going to plant my peas next to my potatoes anymore." To wwhich his sister said "Why, Jimmie, why?"

Jim A. answered her, "Because everytime I plant my peas next to my potatoes, the pears pee in my potatoes eyes!!!"

Anna laughed happily recalling this episode when she related it to her miece Barbara.

1986 by Effie Lawson Baughman to Barbara Lawson Wills

When the two Lawson sisters were dating the two Baughman brothers and their sister Anna was dating the Agee boy, it was very hard for the Lawson firls to get their strict father's permission to go anywhere. So, the girls would sneak out and date the boys on the sly. Now this was unheard of in 1908/10 in Newton County, Arkansas.

One evening when the girls had been out with their boy friends (whom all three later married) and they came sneaking in the house rather late that night, their father Thomas was waiting up for them and they were in for it. He sat them all down, gave them a stern lecture and made them promise never to try such a thing again and never to date those rough boys again.

Now Effie says she absolutely refused to promise never to see Orphus again, but Anna and Alice promisednot to see Bulas and Wise again... just anything to get their father off their back about it, and they never expected to keep their promise.. but Effie, straight-laced then as she is now, would not make a promise that she had absolutely no intention of keeping.

After Effie married Orphus they built their first home near her parents on Baughman land on the banks of the Big Buffalo River and lived quite awhile there before moving to Oklahoma. Effie became a good shot with a rifle and could knock a squirrel out of a tree standing on her front porch, to which made her father-in-law say, "Don't ever go over to see Orphus without giving some kind of a whistle or sign to let Effie know who youare, because it you aren't careful, she'll shoot youreyes out at ahundred yards !!!!."