Jim Askins was born in Missouri in 1860. He came to Dickens County in 1888 with his father, J. A. Askins and settled on land where the town of Dickens is situated. He helped organize Dickens County and was among the first to buy lots in Dickens city in 1892 when the town lots went on sale Feb. 16, 1892.He worked on the courthouse when it was built, and worked on ranches nearby.
Flora McCarty was born in Shackelford County in 1876; came to Dickens County in 1881. Her family first settled in the Duck Creek community and lived there two years and moved to the Afton community and then moved to Dickens 1898 and lived the rest of her life in Dickens which was 64 years. Jim lived 60 years in Dickens.
They had two children.
Source: Fred Arrington, A History of Dickens County: Ranches and Rolling Plains (Quanah, Texas: Nortex, 1971
Short note from Lon Henderson:Shortly before Flora [McCarty Askins] died, she had a rare lucid moment while we were visiting. I was about 8 years old, but this is a story I never forgot. She told me about when she was a small child living in the family dugout. Some "good" Indians would visit from time to time. They were good Indians because they had "papers" from the government saying so. As she told the story, presenting the papers would get them a cup of coffee. So, her mother invited them into the dugout (3 or 4 "braves"). As they sat at the table, one of Flora's kittens came walking by. One of the Indians, picked it up, dunked its head in his coffee, put it back down, and proceeded to drink the coffee.
Funeral services for James Madison (Uncle Jim) Askin, age 88, pioneer Dickens resident, who died last Friday, were conducted at 3 p.m. Sunday afternoon in the First Baptist Church at Dickens, with Rec. C.F. Stonecipher of Dickens and Rev. Hill of Abilene officiating.
Burial was in the Dickens Cemetery under the direction of Chandler Funeral Home.
Mr. Askin was born in Crawford County, Missouri, on August 3, 1860, and came to Texas in 1881, settling in Dickens. He was married to the former Flora McCarty in 1898.
Active pallbearers were S.H. Collins, Hubert Collins, Jay Selma, Paul Bennett, Frank Murphy and Gene Carroll.
Survivors include his wife, one daughter, Mrs. G.A. Turselley of Welch; two brothers, Thomason Askin, Post and Bud Askin, California.
©The Texas Spur, September 23, 1948
Transcribed June 4, 2005, By Dickens County Historical Commission members.
Funeral services were held Saturday at 4 p.m. in the Dickens Baptist Church for Mrs. Flora Askins, 86. She died Friday in Lamesa in the Cottonwood Acres Rest Home.
Born in Shackelford County in 1876, Mrs. Askins first came to Dickens County with her family in 1881. It is reported that her family first lived in a dugout east of Dickens and was one of the first families to settle in Dickens County.
She married J. M. Askins in 1898. She was a member of the Baptist Church. Rev. Don Borrow, pastor of the Dickens Baptist Church, officiated. He was assisted by Rev. Robert Field, Ft. Worth, formerly pastor at Dickens.
She is survived by one daughter, Mrs. G. A. Purselley, Welch, and four grandchildren and nine great grandchildren. Interment was in Dickens Cemetery.
©The Texas Spur, August 16, 1962
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