Truett Ellis Arbuckle (1927 - 1981)

Born 6 Oct 1927 in Texas

Ancestors

Died 9 Mar 1981 at age 53 in Pasadena, Harris, Texas

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Biography

Truett Ellis Arbuckle was born Oct. 6, 1927 to Ellis Arbuckle and Lizzie Urden (Morgan) Arbuckle.

He married Dora M. Richardson on 17 June 17, 1945 in Coke Co., Texas.^[1]

Truett passed away March 9, 1981 in Pasadena, Harris Co., Texas and was buried with his parents at Sanco Cemetery in Sanco, Coke Co., Texas.

Sources

1. ↑ Texas, County Marriage Records, 1837-1977

See also:

• 1930 US Federal Census for Justice Precinct 6, Coke, Texas - with mother & sister.
• 1940 US Federal Census for Precinct 6, Coke, Texas - with parents & sister.

Transcriptions

Marilyn told us you had said you wanted to know something about Truett. I realized you really didn't know him. He was an outdoor person. He would get out when he could and roam up and down the creeks and woods. He liked hunting and fishing. And to garden, grow vegetables. He worked doing different types of work, a lot of carpenter work. He had a good supply of carpenter tools. He worked in the oil field some and in a factory at Freeport, Texas in 1950's (that factory is not there anymore). He took our mother to live with him while there and she had cancer surgery in MD Anderson while living there. They lived at Clute, Texas, 50 miles from Houston. I went down there and stayed about 2 weeks with her at that time, during and after surgery. Truett did lots of reading on all things and kept up with world news on tv and in the newspapers - and was knowledgable about most everything. About 1960 he married Geneva (I can't recall her last name-- Roberts, maybe) in San Angelo, Texas. She died suddenly of a heart attack about two years into their marriage. There were no children, she had none. I can't recall Geneva's last name. Her older sister was married to a Kirksey. Later he and Wilma Guess were married. Her first husband died. She had a married daughter and two sons. One was still a teenager but didn't live with his mother but with an uncle. Wilma was really good to Mama. After Mama's health deteriated she and Truett took her to live with them near Burnet, Texas until Mama's death in a Burnet Clinic May 18, 1968. Later Truett and Wilma went to Houston to live where Truett had work. Their marriage began to deteriate and they separated but didn't divorce. When they lived near Burnet they lived where a garden could be irrigated and Truett had a big garden with a variety of veggies. Wilma canned tomatoes and also chow chow made from green tomatoes, peppers, onion, cabbage, vinegar, sugar, and spices. After they separated Wilma came back to San Angelo. Truett stayed in Houston. In the process of time he met Carole Wilbanks. She had a family of four or five children she supported and raised after he husband left her for the church secretary. She had a good influence on Truett, helped him to not do so much drinking. He was an alcoholic. He would go months without a beer, then go on a splurge, just beer would set him off. They couldn't marry because he was never divorced from Wilma. In the meantime he came to us. He said he wanted to do something for me. He helped Harvey with tearing down houses in San Angelo to get lumber to build a house. He planned the design. I was too depressed to care, just so we got a house. He did most of the building. We didn't realize it then, but now I can see that age and dementia was beginning to work on Harvey (it later got a lot worse). Truett also did the farming for Harvey one year and made a garden. He picked veggies at the perfect eating stage and took some to other people. Carole and some of her family came several times to visit. A daughter-in-law had relatives in Sweetwater and would go on to visit them. In March of 1980 he went back to Houston with them, and Carole took care of him the last year of his life until he died of cancer March 9, 1981 in the VA hospital. I didn't know he had cancer when he went back to Houston with them. They knew, I think. He liked music and most always had a guitar and a mandolin and could play Sweet Hour of Prayer on the piano. He was baptised when he was 7 years old in Yellow Wolf Creek along with several girls at Sanco. His birthday was Oct. 6, 1927.

From a letter written by his sister Zoeline to Anne in 2007