Basil Lee Farmer was the youngest son of Oscar and Beulah Farmer. He was born on the family farm located between Martin and Dresden in Weakley County, Tennessee. He lived there with his parents and brother, Alton.
He went to grade school at Ralston Elementary School in Ralston, Tennessee. Ralston is a small community near Martin. Basil did not go to high school but elected to help his father on the farm.
Basil enjoyed sharing some of his boyhood antics with his children. When he was about ten or eleven years old, one of his jobs was to tend to the family garden. One time he was preoccupied with playing with his friends rather than working in the garden. But his father told he had to plant the beans first and then could play later. Basil reasoned that he could finish sooner if he dug one hole and dump the beans all at once. He could claim that he had finished the task and go on to play. He failed to reason that the beans would eventually sprout from the hole and reveal what he had done. When his father figured out what he had done, Basil was in trouble.
Another episode was when Basil was to collect the eggs from the hen house but elected to carry them in his pocket. As boys are prone to do, he jumped a fence with the eggs in his pocket. Basil learned a lesson when the eggs scrambled in his pocket.
Once Basil was cleaning his shot gun in the living room. The gun fired and blew a hole in a door facing. Fortunately, no one was hurt. Basil and I visited the old Farmer place, probably in about 1965. The repaired door facing was still there. They repaired the damage with sheet metal.
Oscar Farmer, having two sons, wanted to leave a farm to each son. So he mortgaged the family farm to buy a second farm. This was in the early 1920's. Unfortunately, he became Illinois and died in 1925. The bank foreclosed on the farm and it was lost. According to Alton Farmer, Thomas Harris Farmer, Oscar's cousin, was an officer with the bank that foreclosed on the farm. A gentleman by the name of Lee Garner took care of Beulah Farmer during this crisis.
Beulah soon married George Smith. Basil and George did not get along well together. Due to the instability of the fate that was dealt to the family, Basil decided to go to Chicago to find work. He was about 18 years old when he set out on this adventure. He worked there and lived with his aunt and uncle Ina (Richee) and Edward Sawyers. His uncle, Bob Richee, only a few years older than Basil lived with them. They lived at 1022 South Campbell, Chicago, Il.
In the mean time, his brother, Alton, had moved to St. Louis and secured a job with Fischer Body. Alton persuaded Basil to move to St. Louis, where he also secured a job with Fischer Body. Alton and his wife Edna were members of Calvary Baptist Church in the Walnut Park neighborhood of St. Louis. There was a young lady there they wanted Basil to meet. Mildred Rosalie Cox was the church pianist. When Basil first saw her she was playing the piano. Apparently they were attracted to each other at first sight. They dated for about 3 months and were married 12 October 1929.
Times were hard and Basil soon lost his job. His aunt and uncle, Bill and Lela (Sister) Medlock invited Basil and Mildred to join them in Gleason Tennessee to help them on their farm during the depression in 1930. Mildred and Basil always looked back on the year they lived there with fond memories. Basil worked on the potato farm and Mildred, a city girl, learned the ways of farm living.
About a year later, they moved back to St. Louis where Basil hoped to secure a job. He sold insurance for a short time. He hated it. Soon he secured a job with Curlee Clothing Company as a cutter. He later worked for the White Bakery Company as a route driver. In about 1937 or 38, he was hired as a street car driver for the Public Service Company in St. Louis. (Public Service was later sold to Bi-State Development Agency). Although he landed the job, he had to purchase his uniform and a pocket watch. The company had specific requirements which disqualified the watch he already owned. He barely scrapped enough money together to buy the necessary materials. He drove street cars in the early years and later converted to buses. He drove out of the North Broadway shed. He retired in 1970.
Basil was a deacon and was honored as deacon emeritus at the Northside Baptist Church in Florissant, Missouri. Prior to moving to Florissant, they were members of the West Florissant Baptist Church in North St. Louis, Missouri.
In about 1953 he had a heart attack. In those years, they treated heart ailments with much rest. This put him on sick leave for an extended period so Mildred went back to work. However, he recovered from this and never had any additional problems, although he did take a blood thinner for the rest of his life.
In 1978 he discovered he had colon cancer. They tried chemotherapy but within a year he died. Basil and Mildred were to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on 12 October 1979. Their children and grandchildren gave them a reception at the Northside Baptist Church in Florissant, Missouri. Basil held on to life long enough to attend the reception and greeted more than 250 friends and relatives. Two weeks later, he died on 26 October 1979.
He went to grade school at Ralston Elementary School in Ralston, Tennessee. Ralston is a small community near Martin. Basil did not go to high school but elected to help his father on the farm.
Basil enjoyed sharing some of his boyhood antics with his children. When he was about ten or eleven years old, one of his jobs was to tend to the family garden. One time he was preoccupied with playing with his friends rather than working in the garden. But his father told he had to plant the beans first and then could play later. Basil reasoned that he could finish sooner if he dug one hole and dump the beans all at once. He could claim that he had finished the task and go on to play. He failed to reason that the beans would eventually sprout from the hole and reveal what he had done. When his father figured out what he had done, Basil was in trouble.
Another episode was when Basil was to collect the eggs from the hen house but elected to carry them in his pocket. As boys are prone to do, he jumped a fence with the eggs in his pocket. Basil learned a lesson when the eggs scrambled in his pocket.
Once Basil was cleaning his shot gun in the living room. The gun fired and blew a hole in a door facing. Fortunately, no one was hurt. Basil and I visited the old Farmer place, probably in about 1965. The repaired door facing was still there. They repaired the damage with sheet metal.
Oscar Farmer, having two sons, wanted to leave a farm to each son. So he mortgaged the family farm to buy a second farm. This was in the early 1920's. Unfortunately, he became Illinois and died in 1925. The bank foreclosed on the farm and it was lost. According to Alton Farmer, Thomas Harris Farmer, Oscar's cousin, was an officer with the bank that foreclosed on the farm. A gentleman by the name of Lee Garner took care of Beulah Farmer during this crisis.
Beulah soon married George Smith. Basil and George did not get along well together. Due to the instability of the fate that was dealt to the family, Basil decided to go to Chicago to find work. He was about 18 years old when he set out on this adventure. He worked there and lived with his aunt and uncle Ina (Richee) and Edward Sawyers. His uncle, Bob Richee, only a few years older than Basil lived with them. They lived at 1022 South Campbell, Chicago, Il.
In the mean time, his brother, Alton, had moved to St. Louis and secured a job with Fischer Body. Alton persuaded Basil to move to St. Louis, where he also secured a job with Fischer Body. Alton and his wife Edna were members of Calvary Baptist Church in the Walnut Park neighborhood of St. Louis. There was a young lady there they wanted Basil to meet. Mildred Rosalie Cox was the church pianist. When Basil first saw her she was playing the piano. Apparently they were attracted to each other at first sight. They dated for about 3 months and were married 12 October 1929.
Times were hard and Basil soon lost his job. His aunt and uncle, Bill and Lela (Sister) Medlock invited Basil and Mildred to join them in Gleason Tennessee to help them on their farm during the depression in 1930. Mildred and Basil always looked back on the year they lived there with fond memories. Basil worked on the potato farm and Mildred, a city girl, learned the ways of farm living.
About a year later, they moved back to St. Louis where Basil hoped to secure a job. He sold insurance for a short time. He hated it. Soon he secured a job with Curlee Clothing Company as a cutter. He later worked for the White Bakery Company as a route driver. In about 1937 or 38, he was hired as a street car driver for the Public Service Company in St. Louis. (Public Service was later sold to Bi-State Development Agency). Although he landed the job, he had to purchase his uniform and a pocket watch. The company had specific requirements which disqualified the watch he already owned. He barely scrapped enough money together to buy the necessary materials. He drove street cars in the early years and later converted to buses. He drove out of the North Broadway shed. He retired in 1970.
Basil was a deacon and was honored as deacon emeritus at the Northside Baptist Church in Florissant, Missouri. Prior to moving to Florissant, they were members of the West Florissant Baptist Church in North St. Louis, Missouri.
In about 1953 he had a heart attack. In those years, they treated heart ailments with much rest. This put him on sick leave for an extended period so Mildred went back to work. However, he recovered from this and never had any additional problems, although he did take a blood thinner for the rest of his life.
In 1978 he discovered he had colon cancer. They tried chemotherapy but within a year he died. Basil and Mildred were to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on 12 October 1979. Their children and grandchildren gave them a reception at the Northside Baptist Church in Florissant, Missouri. Basil held on to life long enough to attend the reception and greeted more than 250 friends and relatives. Two weeks later, he died on 26 October 1979.
Basil Lee Farmer was the youngest son of Oscar and Beulah Farmer. He was born on the family farm located between Martin and Dresden in Weakley County, Tennessee. He lived there with his parents and brother, Alton.
He went to grade school at Ralston Elementary School in Ralston, Tennessee. Ralston is a small community near Martin. Basil did not go to high school but elected to help his father on the farm.
Basil enjoyed sharing some of his boyhood antics with his children. When he was about ten or eleven years old, one of his jobs was to tend to the family garden. One time he was preoccupied with playing with his friends rather than working in the garden. But his father told he had to plant the beans first and then could play later. Basil reasoned that he could finish sooner if he dug one hole and dump the beans all at once. He could claim that he had finished the task and go on to play. He failed to reason that the beans would eventually sprout from the hole and reveal what he had done. When his father figured out what he had done, Basil was in trouble.
Another episode was when Basil was to collect the eggs from the hen house but elected to carry them in his pocket. As boys are prone to do, he jumped a fence with the eggs in his pocket. Basil learned a lesson when the eggs scrambled in his pocket.
Once Basil was cleaning his shot gun in the living room. The gun fired and blew a hole in a door facing. Fortunately, no one was hurt. Basil and I visited the old Farmer place, probably in about 1965. The repaired door facing was still there. They repaired the damage with sheet metal.
Oscar Farmer, having two sons, wanted to leave a farm to each son. So he mortgaged the family farm to buy a second farm. This was in the early 1920's. Unfortunately, he became Illinois and died in 1925. The bank foreclosed on the farm and it was lost. According to Alton Farmer, Thomas Harris Farmer, Oscar's cousin, was an officer with the bank that foreclosed on the farm. A gentleman by the name of Lee Garner took care of Beulah Farmer during this crisis.
Beulah soon married George Smith. Basil and George did not get along well together. Due to the instability of the fate that was dealt to the family, Basil decided to go to Chicago to find work. He was about 18 years old when he set out on this adventure. He worked there and lived with his aunt and uncle Ina (Richee) and Edward Sawyers. His uncle, Bob Richee, only a few years older than Basil lived with them. They lived at 1022 South Campbell, Chicago, Il.
In the mean time, his brother, Alton, had moved to St. Louis and secured a job with Fischer Body. Alton persuaded Basil to move to St. Louis, where he also secured a job with Fischer Body. Alton and his wife Edna were members of Calvary Baptist Church in the Walnut Park neighborhood of St. Louis. There was a young lady there they wanted Basil to meet. Mildred Rosalie Cox was the church pianist. When Basil first saw her she was playing the piano. Apparently they were attracted to each other at first sight. They dated for about 3 months and were married 12 October 1929.
Times were hard and Basil soon lost his job. His aunt and uncle, Bill and Lela (Sister) Medlock invited Basil and Mildred to join them in Gleason Tennessee to help them on their farm during the depression in 1930. Mildred and Basil always looked back on the year they lived there with fond memories. Basil worked on the potato farm and Mildred, a city girl, learned the ways of farm living.
About a year later, they moved back to St. Louis where Basil hoped to secure a job. He sold insurance for a short time. He hated it. Soon he secured a job with Curlee Clothing Company as a cutter. He later worked for the White Bakery Company as a route driver. In about 1937 or 38, he was hired as a street car driver for the Public Service Company in St. Louis. (Public Service was later sold to Bi-State Development Agency). Although he landed the job, he had to purchase his uniform and a pocket watch. The company had specific requirements which disqualified the watch he already owned. He barely scrapped enough money together to buy the necessary materials. He drove street cars in the early years and later converted to buses. He drove out of the North Broadway shed. He retired in 1970.
Basil was a deacon and was honored as deacon emeritus at the Northside Baptist Church in Florissant, Missouri. Prior to moving to Florissant, they were members of the West Florissant Baptist Church in North St. Louis, Missouri.
In about 1953 he had a heart attack. In those years, they treated heart ailments with much rest. This put him on sick leave for an extended period so Mildred went back to work. However, he recovered from this and never had any additional problems, although he did take a blood thinner for the rest of his life.
In 1978 he discovered he had colon cancer. They tried chemotherapy but within a year he died. Basil and Mildred were to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on 12 October 1979. Their children and grandchildren gave them a reception at the Northside Baptist Church in Florissant, Missouri. Basil held on to life long enough to attend the reception and greeted more than 250 friends and relatives. Two weeks later, he died on 26 October 1979.
He went to grade school at Ralston Elementary School in Ralston, Tennessee. Ralston is a small community near Martin. Basil did not go to high school but elected to help his father on the farm.
Basil enjoyed sharing some of his boyhood antics with his children. When he was about ten or eleven years old, one of his jobs was to tend to the family garden. One time he was preoccupied with playing with his friends rather than working in the garden. But his father told he had to plant the beans first and then could play later. Basil reasoned that he could finish sooner if he dug one hole and dump the beans all at once. He could claim that he had finished the task and go on to play. He failed to reason that the beans would eventually sprout from the hole and reveal what he had done. When his father figured out what he had done, Basil was in trouble.
Another episode was when Basil was to collect the eggs from the hen house but elected to carry them in his pocket. As boys are prone to do, he jumped a fence with the eggs in his pocket. Basil learned a lesson when the eggs scrambled in his pocket.
Once Basil was cleaning his shot gun in the living room. The gun fired and blew a hole in a door facing. Fortunately, no one was hurt. Basil and I visited the old Farmer place, probably in about 1965. The repaired door facing was still there. They repaired the damage with sheet metal.
Oscar Farmer, having two sons, wanted to leave a farm to each son. So he mortgaged the family farm to buy a second farm. This was in the early 1920's. Unfortunately, he became Illinois and died in 1925. The bank foreclosed on the farm and it was lost. According to Alton Farmer, Thomas Harris Farmer, Oscar's cousin, was an officer with the bank that foreclosed on the farm. A gentleman by the name of Lee Garner took care of Beulah Farmer during this crisis.
Beulah soon married George Smith. Basil and George did not get along well together. Due to the instability of the fate that was dealt to the family, Basil decided to go to Chicago to find work. He was about 18 years old when he set out on this adventure. He worked there and lived with his aunt and uncle Ina (Richee) and Edward Sawyers. His uncle, Bob Richee, only a few years older than Basil lived with them. They lived at 1022 South Campbell, Chicago, Il.
In the mean time, his brother, Alton, had moved to St. Louis and secured a job with Fischer Body. Alton persuaded Basil to move to St. Louis, where he also secured a job with Fischer Body. Alton and his wife Edna were members of Calvary Baptist Church in the Walnut Park neighborhood of St. Louis. There was a young lady there they wanted Basil to meet. Mildred Rosalie Cox was the church pianist. When Basil first saw her she was playing the piano. Apparently they were attracted to each other at first sight. They dated for about 3 months and were married 12 October 1929.
Times were hard and Basil soon lost his job. His aunt and uncle, Bill and Lela (Sister) Medlock invited Basil and Mildred to join them in Gleason Tennessee to help them on their farm during the depression in 1930. Mildred and Basil always looked back on the year they lived there with fond memories. Basil worked on the potato farm and Mildred, a city girl, learned the ways of farm living.
About a year later, they moved back to St. Louis where Basil hoped to secure a job. He sold insurance for a short time. He hated it. Soon he secured a job with Curlee Clothing Company as a cutter. He later worked for the White Bakery Company as a route driver. In about 1937 or 38, he was hired as a street car driver for the Public Service Company in St. Louis. (Public Service was later sold to Bi-State Development Agency). Although he landed the job, he had to purchase his uniform and a pocket watch. The company had specific requirements which disqualified the watch he already owned. He barely scrapped enough money together to buy the necessary materials. He drove street cars in the early years and later converted to buses. He drove out of the North Broadway shed. He retired in 1970.
Basil was a deacon and was honored as deacon emeritus at the Northside Baptist Church in Florissant, Missouri. Prior to moving to Florissant, they were members of the West Florissant Baptist Church in North St. Louis, Missouri.
In about 1953 he had a heart attack. In those years, they treated heart ailments with much rest. This put him on sick leave for an extended period so Mildred went back to work. However, he recovered from this and never had any additional problems, although he did take a blood thinner for the rest of his life.
In 1978 he discovered he had colon cancer. They tried chemotherapy but within a year he died. Basil and Mildred were to celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary on 12 October 1979. Their children and grandchildren gave them a reception at the Northside Baptist Church in Florissant, Missouri. Basil held on to life long enough to attend the reception and greeted more than 250 friends and relatives. Two weeks later, he died on 26 October 1979.
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