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W. F. Godrey came to Spur from Paducah in October, 1909, 10 days or so before the opening of the town.
"A bunch of us were camped on the Spade draw, 1/2 mile south of town," Godfrey recalls. "One night there was a big rain and we were flooded out. Water of half knee deep in our tents. We dressed hastily, rolled up our pants, and walked into town."
The Mahons, who had come here from back east to put in a hotel, had a small temporary building located somewhere near the railroad. Jack moved in with them and slept and ate there for a while.
One the day of the opening, the sale of lots were brisk, and averaged a lot a minute.
"I bought the lot where Bell´s Cafe is now located, and put up a frame, 25x60 ft. building there." Godrey states.
The building was divided into three partitions, one for a barber shop rented to a Mr. Tidwell; one to a real estate office; and the other for an insurance office and sleeping quarters.
On the same day, Godfrey sold the building to Charles Hamilton of Austin, Texas, clearing a profit of $2,800.
"My introduction to Spur society came a little later," Godfrey says.
Mr. and Mrs. Blackwell, land manager for he Swenson Land and Cattle Co., invited all the unmarried eligibles to their home, Godfrey remarks, about 40 attended.
The occasion was an open house and dinner. Mrs. Blackwell did the introductions, by saying: "Gentlemen, here are the ladies, ladies here are the gentlemen, pick your partners and be seated at the table.
No one hesitated, and it was a big feast and merry get together.
In 1913, Dr. Bachelor, a dentist, who came along at the opening and had practiced here, secured the Ford Agency for Kent, King, and Dickens Counties. One of the first sales was made to a Mr. McLaughlin, of McAdoo.
Dr. Bachelor prided himself on being a sharp horse trader, so he was to handle that end of the deals. After several transactions, the firm ended up with several blind and lame horses.
"To get him off of the stock pen fence and home, his wife talked it over with me," Jack smiles, "and we slipped off one night and left the gate open."
Doc sold his interest to J.D. Powell a year or so later, and moved on to greener pastures.
J.D. refused to sign a contract with Ford Motor Co., calling for a 40 car quota, so he was cancelled out as the Ford Dealer.
"The first Model-T sold by the agency was ought by White Moore of Guthrie," Godfrey says. He was the sheriff of King County and the car was sold with the agreement that a driver would be furnished with a mechanic until the Sheriff could learn to operate.
Babe Becry, the mechanic, stayed with the Sheriff for several days, and reports many experiences.
"The first sedan I sold was to Mr. Garner, the father of Will Garner, who now resides at Spur," Godfrey surmises. ":I was more than happy to let him hae it at a bargain, for I considered it a white elephant, and saw no future for sedans in the car business." Godfrey concludes.
A summary of Mr. Godfrey´s early days in the business follows:
Obtained the first and only For franchise for Spur, Texas and Dickens County on October 13, 1913. The firm was known as Bachelor & Godfrey - Mr. Bachelor was a local dentist who had rather trade than pull teeth.
They sold cars to the ranchers and farmers of the Spur trade territory and taught them to drive on the flat open pasture where East Ward school is now.
Running into the barn, the house, a fence, or a gate was just as common in those days as bumping a fender now.
He used to get the Model-T dissembled in a box car. The customers wouldn´t wait for them to get the car completely assembled, but would tell them to put the fenders into the back seat and they would put them on later.
Firm name was changed to Godfrey & Smart. Mr.V.C. Smart was a partner for over 25 years.
They used to race the train in the Model-T and see which T could climb Dickens Hill the fastest.
Pioneered the tourist travel into New Mexico, Colorado, Utah and in a Model-T complete with tent, bed rolls, and coking gear. Many was the time that they had to unload and Model-T up the hill and carry the equipment up. The great day was when the model-A came along and it would climb the hills without unloading.
When the first all enclosed body came out people wouldn´t buy it because they were afraid that they would be trapped inside. They liked the cloth top or preferable no top at all.
Demountable rims and electric starter, were the greatest advancements of the day.
In 1952 on the death of V.C. Smart the firm became Godfrey Motor Company, a partnership of W.F. Godfrey and J. Fike Godfrey.
©The Texas Spur, July 30, 1953 Jubilee Edition
Kate Boykin Godfrey came to Spur in the last of August, 1913 to teach in the Spur Public School. We had a faculty of seven teachers and a 7 month term with 1 month paid tuition by parents who could afford it. About 50% of them did. Icame on the train leaving Fort Worth at 8:00 p.m. - or about, changing cars in Abilene and Stamford, arriving in Spur at 1 or 2 p.m.
Uncle Bill Hyatt met all trains, (passenger) with hack-drawn by a livery stable team. I was taken to th Western Hotel, the same building as on Burlington Ave. today, then run by Mrs. Mahon, Kate, Nell, and Jimmie.
Mr. Moce, superintendent of schools had reserved a room for me. There I stayed for several days before school opened. I ventured out one night to a Baptist meeting that was in progress in a tent pitched in about the vicinity of Leon´s Ice House. I could hardly make my way there because of the pallets spread around edge of the tents occupied with sleeping babies and small children.
The president of the School Board had they given recognition to the parents with the most children present, could, I think, he claimed the honor. A few weeks later I was located along with another teacher in the home of Dr. and Mrs. Morris, the same location, same house including several remodelings since that time that W.F. and I live in today.
It seems tome we had much rain in those day. Every one in town walked to school, there was no paving. It was muddy on rain days. We taught straight through without intermissions and a thirty minute period for lunch - walking to and from Harrington Hotel where I had my meals. I taught the 5th and 6th grades, 4 divisions.
Even on that kind of schedule, the best we could do was to get as many of the classes in as possible and hope to get the rest of them in the next day. It wasn´t altogether a picnic. I think I must haven´t born 40 years too soon as school teacher. It certainly was all bad.
The attitude of the parents was something to be thankful for. The "thank you" from past pupils in a way compensates for the inconveniences, low salaries and other seemingly draw backs. Ican´t say I was ever lonesome or longed for the big town from which I came, rather liked the life. One was not fenced in her to years ago.
Sunday afternoons, the younger set could be found upon the hill. It was the location of the beginning a romance that ended in matrimony. When we had a strong urge for adventure for travel, we, some two or more couples would leave Spur early Sunday morning, drive to Matador and back in a day, to Dickens or McAdoo. If we had no car trouble, we could even make it to Crosbyton and home by bedtime in one day. Non the worse for wear and tear. We use to drive upon the caprock on Sunday afternoons and Dr. Morris would run into a bunch of antelopes. We had antelope meat to eat.
Mr. Godfrey and I would go to Guthrie on a car selling trip, we would put a wash tub in the turtle of a new roadster and never leave the car or road to shoot and come home with a tub of quail, no limit, no law against it. This had to be in weather cold enough to keep the birds.
©The Texas Spur, July 30, 1953, Jubilee Edition
W.F. (Jack) Godfrey, 73, a resident and booster of Spur since October, 1909, the year the town was founded, died at 10:30 a.m. Christmas Eve morning in a Lubbock Hospital following a brief illness.
Funeral services were held Saturday in the First Baptist Church, Rev. Riley Fugitt officiating. Rev. Franklin Swanner of Plainview delivered the eulogy. Interment was in Spur Cemetery.
William Fike Godfrey was born April 29, 1806 in Linestone County, TX. He moved to Cottle County at the age of 12, and came to Spur from Paducah in October 1909.
Spur town lots went on sale on Nov. 1, 1909, and Godfrey recalled that they sold at an average of a lot per minute. At that time Spur was a mere tent city.
In 1913, along with a dentist, Dr. Bachelor, Godfrey helped establish a Ford Automobile dealership for Dickens, Kent and King Counties. The firm was known as Bachelor and Godfrey. It currently is the oldest Ford dealership in the state.
After Dr. Bachelor sold his interest in the dealership, the firm was known as Godfrey and Smart, when V.C. Smart bought an interest. This name was maintained for 25 years, until Mr. Smart's death in 1952, at which time Godfrey's son, J.Fike Godfrey was made a partner. The firm has since been known as Godfrey Motor Company.
Jack Godfrey married the former Catherine Boykin in September, 1916. They have two children.
Godfrey was a charter member of the Rotary club, City Commissioner, a deacon and charter member of the Baptist Church; director of the Spur Security Bank; and active in FFA and 4H Club work. He was also a former president of the Chamber of Comerce.
Survivors include his wife and a daughter, Jane Godfrey and a son, J.Fike Godfrey; two brothers, Flows Godfrey, S.D.; P.E. Godfrey, Paducah; and three sisters, Mrs. Anna Baldwin, Albuquerque, NM; Mrs. D.E. Jordan, Wichita Falls, and Mrs. Aline Haney, Independence, MO. Two grandchildren survive.
Pallbearers included Finis Butler, Jimmy Rainbolt, Jack Lewis, J.Austin, Jesse Morrison, Everett Martin, Thedford Fry and Jack Rector.
Honorary pallbearers were deacons of the First Baptist Church.
©The Texas Spur, December 31, 1959
From the records of Lillian Grace Nay, Spur Museum, transcribed by Becky Hodges, August 2004
Funeral services were held Tuesday at 2 p.m. in the First Baptist Church for Katherine Gertrude (Boykin) Godfrey, 96. She died May 11 about 3 a.m. in Methodist Hospital, Lubbock, following a lengthy illness.
Rev. Norris Taylor, Stinnett, a former pastor here, and Rev. Darwin Cox, present church pastor, officiated.
Born in Leon County, Texas on April 1, 1889, she married W.F.(Jack) Godfrey in September of 1916 in Fort Worth. She was a retired teacher and housewife. She taught school in Round Rock, Robert Lee and Rock Springs before coming to Spur to teach in 1913.
She was active in her church as she was past president of the WMU, taught mission books and a Sunday School class. She was also active in numerous community affairs for over 72 years. She was a member of the 1918 Study Club and the Spur Senior Citizens. She was a member of the Baptist Church.
Survivors include one daughter, Jane Godfrey, Lubbock; one son, J. Fike Godfrey, Fort Worth; a sister, Jane Coody, Breckenridge and two grandchildren and five great grandchildren.
Burial was in Spur Memorial Cemetery with Campbell Funeral Home in charge of arrangements.
©The Texas Spur, May 1985
From the scrapbook of Thelma Kimmel Scott
© Dickens County Historical Commission 1997-2022
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