DALE, GEORGE
THE STORY OF GEORGE ANGUS AND FRANCES JANE SIMMONS DALE
George and Frances (Fannie) were born only a few miles from each other in East Tennessee. There was only one year difference in their ages, but they never met in Tennessee. Both families moved from Tennessee to Collin County, Texas. I don't know when Fannie moved to Texas but George moved with his family in September, 1888 - he was six years old. Both families were farming in the area around Clear Lake and Culleoka.
They finally met in 1897 during a revival at the Baptist church. Fannie said, "And I'll tell you, I fell in love with him right away. He was that handsome. I believe he was the handsomest man I ever saw. He wanted to get married right away. “I knew I was too young - but he had a little money put away, and he said that if I would marry him, we could use that money to buy us some land, but if I didn't, he would spend it all.” There seemed to be some problem with her daddy also. He thought George was too rough and worldly for his daughter. On October 16, 1898 George and Fannie were married in the community school house (there was no church) by the Missionary Baptist preacher, M. L. Davis. She had turned 15 the day before, he was 16.
They farmed for a while, and started having babies in 1899. George had become a Christian when he was 13. He was converted in the old Bethany Church near Culleoka and was Baptized in August, 1894 by Rev. Clem Clarkson. According to Fannie, she was not a Christian until after they married. He had "heard the call" to become a preacher when he was 15 years old, but was trying to ignore and run away. He had become a deacon in the church in hopes that that would satisfy the "call", but that didn't work. In 1902 he surrendered to preach. When he announced his decision during a Saturday meeting at the church, "...well, it shocked me. I didn't marry a preacher. I hadn't had the call." On October 25, 1903 he was licensed to preach by the Clear Lake Missionary Baptist Church. His ordination credentials read as follows: "This is to certify that Brother G.A. Dale was ordained to the work of the Gospel Ministry by prayer and the laying on of hands of the presbytery on the 29th day of July, 1906. He was called to ordination by the Culleoka Baptist Church, which had ample opportunity to become acquainted with his piety and ministerial gifts. The Ordaining Counsel was composed of Elders E.G. Dunn, Pastor of the Culleoka Baptist Church, A. J. Fawcett and W.W. Harris, of the Farmersville Baptist Church, who after a deliberate and thorough examination of the candidate, cordially recommended him to the Church for ordination. Our beloved Brother, the bearer of this paper, has therefore, the entire approval of the ordaining Counsel in being publicly set apart to preach the Gospel and administer the ordinances of the Church of Christ. May he like Barnabas, be 'full of the Holy Spirit and of Faith and through him much people be added to the Lord.'" His mother and father, Jerry and Nancy Dale, were members of the church in Culleoka, and Nancy was asked to pray at that service. And thus was launched a career of ministry that would not end for another 70 years. But first, George needed to go back to school. Public school in those years was three to four months a year, and certainly did not prepare a person to be a preacher. George and Fannie moved their family of three children to Westminster, Texas, where George would attend Westminster College. The college had been built by the Methodists but had been sold to the Baptists and become a part of Baylor University in 1902. George would attend the college from 1905 through 1910. As he said, "The building was built after I started to school. It is built of concrete walls. I helped to pour the walls, then went to school inside them." The family survived by George working at manual labor jobs and Fannie taking in boarders. George also started preaching at churches in the area.
Interestingly enough, in 1909 George and Fannie bought 1/2 acre of land in Westminster for $60. I have no idea where they came up with $60, but the plot thickens. September 6, 1909, they contracted with the Conner Bros. Company to build a "four roomed, boxed and weatherboarded, shingled roofed dwelling house" on their half acre. They paid $179 upon delivery of materials and signed a note for $110. (The microfilm was very difficult to read, but I think that was the full price.) Imagine having four kids already and building a four room house. Then my father was born, probably before the house was completed. I'll bet Saturday night baths were fun! There were actually two 1/2 acre lots that George and Fannie bought in Westminster. One sold in 1912 to J.M. Kirby and one sold in 1915 to W.L. Barnes. I think the latter was the one with the house. The selling price for each of the properties was $550, so both may have had houses.
Between 1906 and 1934, George was pastor of 16 different churches and had served as County Missionary on three different occasions. The breakdown is as follows: 1906 - 1908 Honey Creek Church (1/4 time - $50 per year), 1906 - Snow Hill Church (1/4 time), 1907 - Shiloh Church (1/4 time), 1907 - 1912 Verona Church (1/2 time), 1909 - 1912 Altoga Church (1/2 time), 1908 Culleoka Church (1/4 time), 1912 - 1913 Blue Ridge Church (1/2 time), 1913 - 1915 Princeton Church (1/2 time), 1912 - 1915 Merit Church (1/2 time) 1915 - 1918 Collin County Missionary, 1918 Josephine Church, 1919 Park Street Church in Greenville, 1919 Hunt County Missionary, 1923 White Rock Church (1/2 time), 1923 Greenville Church (1/2 time), 1924 Princeton Church, 1925 - 1928 Royse City Church, 1928 Hunt County Missionary, 1929 - 1934 First Baptist Church, Madill Oklahoma.
During this period they raised six children and as George said, "I was permitted to baptize each one myself." In 1934 he and Fannie moved to Tahoka, Texas where he was pastor of the First Baptist Church until he retired in 1943. He was actually forced to retire due to a massive heart attack which he suffered in 1942. When he retired, they moved to Lubbock, Texas. "Retired" is not exactly the term I would use to describe what George did for the rest of his life. For the next 25 years he served as interim pastor for about 35 or 40 churches, one as far away as Casper, Wyoming. He helped organize one church in Lubbock that was named Parkdale in honor of him.
In his personal journal, diaries, and amongst his belongings are many references to people and places, letters from friends, newspaper clippings which chronicle events in their lives, all too numerous to include here. But one such document I cannot resist including. This was sent to him in a letter from Mrs. A. Adamcik, and I believe she thought of him when she read it: "O Lawd, give thy servant this mornin' de eyes of de eagle and de wisdom of de owl; connect his soul with de Gospel telephone in de central skies; 'luminate his brow with de sun o' heaben; pizen his mind with love fer de people; turpentine his 'magination; grease his lips with 'possum oil; loosen his tongue with the sledge hammer of Thy power; 'lectrify his brain with de lightnin' of Thy Word; put 'petual motion in his ahms; fill him plum full of de dynamite of Thy glory; 'noint him all over with de kerosene oil of Thy salvation, and set him on fire. Amen." And that's the way I remember him preaching well into his eighties. He could make the hair on the back of your neck stand out.
On November 9, 1979 George Angus Dale died. The following obituary was printed in the Lubbock Avalanche- Journal: Services for the Rev. George A. Dale, 98, of Bender Terrace Nursing Home will be at 10:30 a.m. Monday at the First Baptist Church with Dr. Melvin Rathael of Sun City, Ariz., the Rev. I.D. Walker, interim pastor, the Rev. J.T. Bolding, retired pastor of First Baptist Church, and Dr. J. Ralph Grant, pastor emeritus, officiating. Burial will be in Resthaven Memorial Park under direction of Sanders Funeral Home." Then it goes on to tell all the things I have already told, and concludes, "One son, Everette, died in 1977. Survivors include his widow; three sons, George of Lubbock, Troy of Nashville, Tenn., and Paul of Plano; two daughters, Mrs. G.R. Kennedy and Mrs. James C. Edwards, both of Lubbock; 10 grandchildren; and 22 great-grandchildren." We called him Big Dad. He was trully a remarkable man and servant of God.
In November, 1981 Francis Jane Simmons Dale died. Her Obituary in the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal read: "Services for Mrs. George A. (Frances) Dale, 99 of Lubbock, will be at 4 p.m. Friday in Ford Memorial Chapel of the First Baptist Church here. Officiating will be Dr. D.L. Lowrie, pastor, Rev. John Ballard, minister and Rev. J. T. Bolding, former pastor. Burial will be in Resthaven Memorial Park...Survivors include two daughters, Mrs. G. R. Kennedy and Mrs. James C. Edwards, both of Lubbock, three sons, George T. of Lubbock, Paul of Plano, and Troy of Dallas, 10 grandchildren, 22 great-grandchildren and two great-great- grandchildren. We called her Big Mother. She had the greatest lap to sit on that I ever experienced.
Before they died, they had been married for 81 years. Paul Harvey mentioned their anniversary on his national radio program for many years. On their 80th anniversary there was this article in the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal :"The Rev. and Mrs. George Dale, who celebrated their 80th wedding anniversary October 18, have received messages of congratulations from all over the country. Among them was a letter received this week from President and Mrs. Carter. Dated October 18, the letter from the President and first lady read: 'We are pleased to join your family in sending you our warmest congratulations on your wedding anniversary. May love and devotion continue to bless your marriage.'" I'm not sure why they missed the date by two days - they were actually married on October 16 - but it was a nice gesture. And they say that people who marry young won't stay together. I guess they really were in love!
On December 25, 1955 Big Dad gave Big Mother a new Bible. The poem he wrote says everything about their love:
Out of deep gratitude and everlasting love do I present this Bible to one who has shared my trials and walked beside me through the years.
We have traveled together you and I to the loneliest part of the road,
In going down hill we wonder still how we managed to carry the load.
We concluded there was someone strengthening us,
And we simply obeyed His will.
Day after day, He showed us the way to climb up the rugged hill.
Now we have come to that part of the road where we miss the old friends we knew,
We rest at the bend as memories blend, in long retrospective review.
We cannot be far from the journey's end, not many more years to roam,
But oh such thrilling going down hill to know we together are nearing home.
With All My Love
Phillipians 1:3 "I thank my God upon every remembrance of you..."
George and Frances (Fannie) were born only a few miles from each other in East Tennessee. There was only one year difference in their ages, but they never met in Tennessee. Both families moved from Tennessee to Collin County, Texas. I don't know when Fannie moved to Texas but George moved with his family in September, 1888 - he was six years old. Both families were farming in the area around Clear Lake and Culleoka.
They finally met in 1897 during a revival at the Baptist church. Fannie said, "And I'll tell you, I fell in love with him right away. He was that handsome. I believe he was the handsomest man I ever saw. He wanted to get married right away. “I knew I was too young - but he had a little money put away, and he said that if I would marry him, we could use that money to buy us some land, but if I didn't, he would spend it all.” There seemed to be some problem with her daddy also. He thought George was too rough and worldly for his daughter. On October 16, 1898 George and Fannie were married in the community school house (there was no church) by the Missionary Baptist preacher, M. L. Davis. She had turned 15 the day before, he was 16.
They farmed for a while, and started having babies in 1899. George had become a Christian when he was 13. He was converted in the old Bethany Church near Culleoka and was Baptized in August, 1894 by Rev. Clem Clarkson. According to Fannie, she was not a Christian until after they married. He had "heard the call" to become a preacher when he was 15 years old, but was trying to ignore and run away. He had become a deacon in the church in hopes that that would satisfy the "call", but that didn't work. In 1902 he surrendered to preach. When he announced his decision during a Saturday meeting at the church, "...well, it shocked me. I didn't marry a preacher. I hadn't had the call." On October 25, 1903 he was licensed to preach by the Clear Lake Missionary Baptist Church. His ordination credentials read as follows: "This is to certify that Brother G.A. Dale was ordained to the work of the Gospel Ministry by prayer and the laying on of hands of the presbytery on the 29th day of July, 1906. He was called to ordination by the Culleoka Baptist Church, which had ample opportunity to become acquainted with his piety and ministerial gifts. The Ordaining Counsel was composed of Elders E.G. Dunn, Pastor of the Culleoka Baptist Church, A. J. Fawcett and W.W. Harris, of the Farmersville Baptist Church, who after a deliberate and thorough examination of the candidate, cordially recommended him to the Church for ordination. Our beloved Brother, the bearer of this paper, has therefore, the entire approval of the ordaining Counsel in being publicly set apart to preach the Gospel and administer the ordinances of the Church of Christ. May he like Barnabas, be 'full of the Holy Spirit and of Faith and through him much people be added to the Lord.'" His mother and father, Jerry and Nancy Dale, were members of the church in Culleoka, and Nancy was asked to pray at that service. And thus was launched a career of ministry that would not end for another 70 years. But first, George needed to go back to school. Public school in those years was three to four months a year, and certainly did not prepare a person to be a preacher. George and Fannie moved their family of three children to Westminster, Texas, where George would attend Westminster College. The college had been built by the Methodists but had been sold to the Baptists and become a part of Baylor University in 1902. George would attend the college from 1905 through 1910. As he said, "The building was built after I started to school. It is built of concrete walls. I helped to pour the walls, then went to school inside them." The family survived by George working at manual labor jobs and Fannie taking in boarders. George also started preaching at churches in the area.
Interestingly enough, in 1909 George and Fannie bought 1/2 acre of land in Westminster for $60. I have no idea where they came up with $60, but the plot thickens. September 6, 1909, they contracted with the Conner Bros. Company to build a "four roomed, boxed and weatherboarded, shingled roofed dwelling house" on their half acre. They paid $179 upon delivery of materials and signed a note for $110. (The microfilm was very difficult to read, but I think that was the full price.) Imagine having four kids already and building a four room house. Then my father was born, probably before the house was completed. I'll bet Saturday night baths were fun! There were actually two 1/2 acre lots that George and Fannie bought in Westminster. One sold in 1912 to J.M. Kirby and one sold in 1915 to W.L. Barnes. I think the latter was the one with the house. The selling price for each of the properties was $550, so both may have had houses.
Between 1906 and 1934, George was pastor of 16 different churches and had served as County Missionary on three different occasions. The breakdown is as follows: 1906 - 1908 Honey Creek Church (1/4 time - $50 per year), 1906 - Snow Hill Church (1/4 time), 1907 - Shiloh Church (1/4 time), 1907 - 1912 Verona Church (1/2 time), 1909 - 1912 Altoga Church (1/2 time), 1908 Culleoka Church (1/4 time), 1912 - 1913 Blue Ridge Church (1/2 time), 1913 - 1915 Princeton Church (1/2 time), 1912 - 1915 Merit Church (1/2 time) 1915 - 1918 Collin County Missionary, 1918 Josephine Church, 1919 Park Street Church in Greenville, 1919 Hunt County Missionary, 1923 White Rock Church (1/2 time), 1923 Greenville Church (1/2 time), 1924 Princeton Church, 1925 - 1928 Royse City Church, 1928 Hunt County Missionary, 1929 - 1934 First Baptist Church, Madill Oklahoma.
During this period they raised six children and as George said, "I was permitted to baptize each one myself." In 1934 he and Fannie moved to Tahoka, Texas where he was pastor of the First Baptist Church until he retired in 1943. He was actually forced to retire due to a massive heart attack which he suffered in 1942. When he retired, they moved to Lubbock, Texas. "Retired" is not exactly the term I would use to describe what George did for the rest of his life. For the next 25 years he served as interim pastor for about 35 or 40 churches, one as far away as Casper, Wyoming. He helped organize one church in Lubbock that was named Parkdale in honor of him.
In his personal journal, diaries, and amongst his belongings are many references to people and places, letters from friends, newspaper clippings which chronicle events in their lives, all too numerous to include here. But one such document I cannot resist including. This was sent to him in a letter from Mrs. A. Adamcik, and I believe she thought of him when she read it: "O Lawd, give thy servant this mornin' de eyes of de eagle and de wisdom of de owl; connect his soul with de Gospel telephone in de central skies; 'luminate his brow with de sun o' heaben; pizen his mind with love fer de people; turpentine his 'magination; grease his lips with 'possum oil; loosen his tongue with the sledge hammer of Thy power; 'lectrify his brain with de lightnin' of Thy Word; put 'petual motion in his ahms; fill him plum full of de dynamite of Thy glory; 'noint him all over with de kerosene oil of Thy salvation, and set him on fire. Amen." And that's the way I remember him preaching well into his eighties. He could make the hair on the back of your neck stand out.
On November 9, 1979 George Angus Dale died. The following obituary was printed in the Lubbock Avalanche- Journal: Services for the Rev. George A. Dale, 98, of Bender Terrace Nursing Home will be at 10:30 a.m. Monday at the First Baptist Church with Dr. Melvin Rathael of Sun City, Ariz., the Rev. I.D. Walker, interim pastor, the Rev. J.T. Bolding, retired pastor of First Baptist Church, and Dr. J. Ralph Grant, pastor emeritus, officiating. Burial will be in Resthaven Memorial Park under direction of Sanders Funeral Home." Then it goes on to tell all the things I have already told, and concludes, "One son, Everette, died in 1977. Survivors include his widow; three sons, George of Lubbock, Troy of Nashville, Tenn., and Paul of Plano; two daughters, Mrs. G.R. Kennedy and Mrs. James C. Edwards, both of Lubbock; 10 grandchildren; and 22 great-grandchildren." We called him Big Dad. He was trully a remarkable man and servant of God.
In November, 1981 Francis Jane Simmons Dale died. Her Obituary in the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal read: "Services for Mrs. George A. (Frances) Dale, 99 of Lubbock, will be at 4 p.m. Friday in Ford Memorial Chapel of the First Baptist Church here. Officiating will be Dr. D.L. Lowrie, pastor, Rev. John Ballard, minister and Rev. J. T. Bolding, former pastor. Burial will be in Resthaven Memorial Park...Survivors include two daughters, Mrs. G. R. Kennedy and Mrs. James C. Edwards, both of Lubbock, three sons, George T. of Lubbock, Paul of Plano, and Troy of Dallas, 10 grandchildren, 22 great-grandchildren and two great-great- grandchildren. We called her Big Mother. She had the greatest lap to sit on that I ever experienced.
Before they died, they had been married for 81 years. Paul Harvey mentioned their anniversary on his national radio program for many years. On their 80th anniversary there was this article in the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal :"The Rev. and Mrs. George Dale, who celebrated their 80th wedding anniversary October 18, have received messages of congratulations from all over the country. Among them was a letter received this week from President and Mrs. Carter. Dated October 18, the letter from the President and first lady read: 'We are pleased to join your family in sending you our warmest congratulations on your wedding anniversary. May love and devotion continue to bless your marriage.'" I'm not sure why they missed the date by two days - they were actually married on October 16 - but it was a nice gesture. And they say that people who marry young won't stay together. I guess they really were in love!
On December 25, 1955 Big Dad gave Big Mother a new Bible. The poem he wrote says everything about their love:
Out of deep gratitude and everlasting love do I present this Bible to one who has shared my trials and walked beside me through the years.
We have traveled together you and I to the loneliest part of the road,
In going down hill we wonder still how we managed to carry the load.
We concluded there was someone strengthening us,
And we simply obeyed His will.
Day after day, He showed us the way to climb up the rugged hill.
Now we have come to that part of the road where we miss the old friends we knew,
We rest at the bend as memories blend, in long retrospective review.
We cannot be far from the journey's end, not many more years to roam,
But oh such thrilling going down hill to know we together are nearing home.
With All My Love
Phillipians 1:3 "I thank my God upon every remembrance of you..."
