Arthur Robert Brakebill, youngest son of George and Belle Brakebill, was born Mar. 5, 1906 near Sweetwater, Tenn. His older brothers and sisters were Mason, Annie,Charles, Samuel,Maude and Ben.Arthur´s early life was spent on his family´s large dairy farm near Sweetwater, TN. It was there that he developed a love and knowledge of horses and cattle.
Before Arthur was old enough to go to school, he would hitch his first horse, Kizzie, a half-Shetland mare, to a plow or sled. The cotton-headed boy would drive his horse to a sandy spot in the field. There he practiced driving his horse in circles for hours at a time. Horse, boy, and plow would also drive down the long rows of corn. His mother and father were amazed at the interest and ability with which the boy worked with horses. Arthur always had a horse to work with.
From the carefree days, driving Kizzie to the country schoolroom was a big step for a small boy. His first days in Oak Grove School included an unexpected education. None of his older brothers and sisters had told Arthur about the long switch kept by the teacher´s desk. After a trip to the outhouse, the first grade boy started to enter the schoolroom. Instead of seeing pupils working quietly at their desks, young Brakebill saw the teacher thrashing one of the students with the long switch. Since no one had told him that teachers only thrashed misbehaving pupils, Arthur assumed that he could be the next person to feel the bite of the switch. Not being one to dawdle in making decisions, the young boy turned away from the schoolhouse and ran as though the teacher was chasing him with the terrifying switch. He only stopped when he had reached the safety of his farm.
When he grew up and bought his first car, he decided to go to Chattanooga and go to work for Gulf Oil Co. He remained there until he came to Texas to visit his brother and his brother´s wife, Ben and Mabel Brakebill, who lived at Owens south of Ralls about 1931. He returned to buy a community store at Smith Ward.
While visiting Ben, Arthur met a pretty young schoolteacher named Hazel Cathey.
Arthur married Hazel Cathey Aug. 30, 1932 in Clovis, NM. An article in The Ralls Banner announcing the marriage said of Hazel, "She is a young woman of unusual ability and personality. One has to be, you know, to make ´the grade´ in a teaching capacity in the community where she was practically reared." Of Arthur The Banner stated, "Mr. Brakebill is a prominent young citizen of the south portion of the county."
After their marriage they operated a small grocery store at Smith Ward for five years before buying land just south of Crosbyton. In 1937 they moved to their farm where they lived for the next 20 years.
Two children were born to the couple - George and Cathey.
Because of his skill in land and cattle management. Arthur´s land holdings prospered. His keen ability to judge the market to know when to buy and sell further added to his esteem as a farmer, businessman, and cattleman. He leased his land to Boardman and Dwyer in 1971. Leasing the land gave him time to pursue his interest in horses. Working with Bobby Adams, foreman of the Bridwell Ranch, and the cowboys there. Arthur has been a working cowboy. Tanner Laine spotted Arthur working at Bridwells and featured him in his newspaper column, "Face of a Cowboy," and in his book, Cattle Call.
He was a director of Crosbyton Rodeo Association.
The Brakebills are members of First Baptist Church in Crosbyton.
They bought a home at 216 South Farmer in Crosbyton and have lived there since 1957.
Source: The Crosby County History Book 1876-1977
Services for Arthur Robert Brakebill, 86, of Crosbyton were held at 2 p.m. Saturday, May 9, 1992, in the Crosbyton First Baptist Church with Rev. Lester B. Griffin, pastor, and Rev. Wendell Horn, pastor of the Crosbyton First United Methodist Church officiating. Burial followed in the Crosbyton Cemetery under direction of Adams Funeral Home of Crosbyton.Mr. Brakebill died at 7:25 a.m. Friday, May 8, 1992, in the Crosbyton Clinic Hospital following a lengthy illness. He was born near Sweetwater, Tennessee on March 5, 1906 and married Hazel Cathey August 30, 1932, in Clovis, NM. He moved to Crosby County in 1931 from Tennessee. He was a farmer and a member of the Crosbyton First Baptist Church.
He is preceded in death by a daughter, Cathey Brakebill Roberts who died June 29, 1986.
Survivors include his wife Hazel Brakebill of Crosbyton; one son and daughter-in-law, George and Sammie Brakebill of Crosbyton; three grandsons, Mike Brakebill, Stephen Roberts and Blake Roberts; three great grandchildren.
Lubbock Avalanche Journal, June 15, 1992
Record provided by Crosby County Pioneer Memorial Museum
transcribed by Linda Fox Hughes
Services for Hazel Brakebill, 94, of Crosbyton were held at 10 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 6, 2003, at the First Baptist Church in Crosbyton with the Rev. Les Griffin officiating. Burial was in Crosbyton Cemetery under direction of Adams Funeral Home of Crosbyton.She died Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2003, at Covenant Medical Center in Lubbock. She was born Jan. 7, 1909, in Purves in Erath County to Cleveland and Elizabeth Caudle Cathey. On Aug. 30, 1932, she married Arthur Brakebill in Clovis, N.M. He preceded her in death May 8, 1992. She is also preceded in death by a daughter, Cathey Brakebill Roberts, who died June 29, 1986, and a great granddaughter, Madison Brakebill, who died Aug. 24, 1995, and a great grandson Joshua Brakebill, who died in 1984.
She was a member of the First Baptist Church in Crosbyton and the Ruth Sunday School Class. She was valedictorian of the Ralls senior class of 1927. She attended John Tarleton College in Stephenville and received her Bachelor of Science degree from Texas Tech. She began teaching for the Ralls school district in the community of Owens, she then taught for the Crosbyton school district in the Smith Ward community and then in Crosbyton where she taught for 34 years. She was a member of the Crosby County Teachers Association and the Texas State Teachers Association, and was a Red Raider football and basketball fan. She was honored by the Crosbyton Chamber of Commerce as Outstanding Citizen Through the Years in 1998.
Survivors include a son, George Brakebill and his wife Sammie of Crosbyton; a sister, Nona Taylor of Palm Springs, CA.; three grandsons, Michael Brakebill and his wife Kristin of Austin, Stephen Roberts and his wife Renay of Dripping Springs, and Blake Roberts and his wife Lena of Lubbock; and seven great- grandchildren.
The Crosbyton Review, Friday, December 12, 2003, page 3
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