Report of the Quilting Women: Day, Vestal, Thetford, Hester - Coke Co., TX Contributed by Jo Collier 20 January 2004 Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/tx/txfiles.htm *********************************************************************** The Observer/Enterprise, Robert Lee, Coke County, TX, October 17,2003 Report of the "Quilting Women" by Ava Lou Davis Listed below are some more of the stories and letters concerning some of the original "quilting women" of the Robert Lee United Methodist Church. After I wrote about Hattie Day, several asked if she had a daughter. Wilson Bryan told me she had a daughter, and she married a Denman. Jamie Boren confirmed that information. Hattie had a daughter named Lorene, and she married Jimmie Denman. Martha Iva Vestal was born August 15, 1901 in Robert Lee, Texas. Her parents were Stephen and Fannie Parker. Iva Parker met Delbert Lee Vestal and later they married on April 14, 1925 in Tom Green County, Texas. They repeated their marriage vows before a Justice of Peace in San Angelo. Iva and Delbert had one daughter, Joan Elaine, born January 19, 1934. Delbert Vestal had a blacksmith shop for several years in Robert Lee. Iva Vestal was active in church activites in the Methodist Church. She was a member of the WSCS (UMW) for 50 years. She was a Sunday School teacher in the Primary Department for seven years. She was also chairman of the Food Committee several years. Delbert, Iva and Joan moved to Ballinger, Texas, April 1945. Iva was active in quilting with her friends. She served in the Methodist churches of Robert Lee and Ballinger. (Written by Ava Davis with information submitted by Joan Vestal Koller.) Odessa Thetford was the wife of J. T. Thetford. They lived in the Edith community. Odessa and J. T. operated the Edith Store on Hwy 158. Their store was close to the Pecan Baptist Church. As I remember it was on a hill, and when you drove up in front of the store, there was a curved driveway. I remember Odessa came to Sunday School and church at the Methodist Church in Robert Lee. I am not sure how many children they had. I know they had two sons. Odessa was a beautiful woman and always had a smile on her face. I remember stopping at their store several times. It was a treat to see J. T. and Odessa, they were such a friendly couple. Theirs was the only store on the highway that far out, besides the Sanco store. Later there was a store at Silver. J. T.'s family came to Coke County in 1920 and settled on the A. C. Gardner place between Robert Lee and Sterling City. J. T.'s father bought the old Edith Store from Jim Sparks. It also had the Edith Post Office inside. Kids that attended grade school at Green Mountain rode the bus. They had to change buses at th Edith Store and Post Office when Odessa and J. T. operated it. J. T. had one brother, Walter W. (Bud) Thetford and four sisters, Ollie Mae, Opal, Christine, and Virginia. According to Elmer Hurley, a nephew, Odessa's maiden name was Harmon, and she was from Graceland, Texas. I always thought Odessa was one of the prettiest ladies I had ever seen, and she had a beautiful disposition to go with it. Odessa passed away a few years ago and is buried in the Paint Creek Cemetery. The family asked me to sing a solo at her funeral. I was honored to do it for her. (Some of the information is from Coke County Historical Book, the rest is what I remember about her. Submitted by Ava Lou Davis.) "Granny Lizzy" Phoebe Elizabeth Perry Davis Hester - 2nd wife of Joseph Franklin Hester, submitted by Madelle Moore Smith - granddaughter. Dear Ava Lou, Thanks so much for calling me about the quilt. It's exciting to learn that bit of history was found and in good enough shape that it could be quilted. I'm surprised that my mother did not have a block in it, for she always did a lot of quilting when I was very young. I remember the quilting frames always hanging from the ceiling at our house. Mother's name was Eva Peane Hester Moore. After I talked with you I started checking through my pictures and family history records and found some information about our Granny Lizzie who was a very loving and caring "Grandmother" to all of the Hester children. The following is the information I found: Phoebe Elizabeth (Lizzie) Perry Davis Hester - I couldn't find her birth date. She was married to a Mr. Davis, who passed away, and had two children, Brian and Dora Davis. Dora was 8 years old when she and my grandfather married on November 5, 1922. She had lived in New Mexico prior to coming to Robert Lee. I loved to go to Granny Lizzie's when I was small, because she always let me help her with the cooking and cleaning, making a fun game of it. The daughter, Dora, married Miller Montgomery at the Hester home in Robert Lee. I was her flower girl in 1930. "Granny Lizzie", as she was called by the Hester descendant grandchildren and great-grandchildren, died in June 1952. Her burial was in Rotan, Texas, where she resided with her daughter at the time of her death. Sincerely, Madelle Moore Smith Permission granted by The Observer/Enterprise for publication in the Coke County TXGenWeb Archives.