Around 1910 my father, H. F. "Dock" Charlton, was working at Russell's
Department store in Altus. J.B. Ellis came over and offered him a job at his store in Hollis. That is when my father came to Hollis. He worked for several years at the J.B. Ellis Dry Good Store. J.B. sent my dad to market in New York City to buy for the store. On one trip he bought a little brass baby bed for his first child, James. James was born in 1914. It was also my bed. I was born in 1918. I still have the little brass baby bed.
In 1915 "Dock" went into business for himself at Charlton Dry Goods Company on the north side of Broadway in the former Chedester Dry Goods Store. Dad sold out to Mr. Elmer Gardner before the depression and never got his money because Mr. Gardner took bankruptcy. The depression hurt a lot of business men.
Flauzy Guest, Dick Charlton and Mrs. Bolen Braswell worked for Dad. Mrs. Braswell got after me for mixing up the shoes. I was always wanting to try on shoes. She told me after I grew up that she wanted to spank me for mixing up the shoes! Guess I was no angel.
Dad was in the dry goods business until 1928. After he sold out the dry
goods business, he had the Charlton & Son Hatchery, and later put in a
grocery store in 1933 in the 100 block on East Broadway and a bakery which he operated in conjunction with the hatchery and grocery store.
"Dock" was instrumental in Harmon County getting the Red River Bridge, south of Hollis. He was a charter stockholder in the Harmon County Fair, and the Hollis Lake, east of town. He took a big part in the county and state fair each year and won many ribbons at the fair with his chickens and hogs. He took a big part in Boy Scouts and was a sponsor of the Boy Scouts of America with Flake Keys. He was a charter member of Kiwanis Club.
