Note:  Click on the photos below to see a larger picture of the thumbnails on this page.

Photographic contributions (especially digitized) are welcomed.  Some of the photographs below are copies of copies of copies.  Well, you get the idea.  Their resolution is poor.

Picture below:  Young county, Texas; Birthplace of Rodney Sparkman Sr.  It is northwest of Ft. Worth Texas.  See the links below for more information of Olney, Texas.  I think you'll get a kick out of what you see and read: 

http://www.lone-star.net/mall/txtrails/olney.htm ;

Excerpts from Memoirs of Rodney Sparkman Jr.

"My father would have had very little time to play, but when he did I'm sure that he played with gusto games that children of his day played.  I'm sure he flicked a few marbles at those of his friends testing his skill of accuracy.  He might have even made some out of clay and baked them in an oven.  Games like Pitt[1], Hide-And-Go-Seek, Kick-The-Can, Mother-May-I, No-Bears-Tonight, Hop-Scotch would have been staples.[2]  Jumping into his "old swimming hole", running barefoot, and squishing mud through his toes would have delighted him and brought much relief from a humid East Texas summer.  Fishing with a homemade hickory pole and hook probably rounded out a day at the river or lake."

Picture below:  Rodney Sparkman, circa 1920 (about one year of age).

        "Since money was scarce, clothes were usually hand-made and simple.  Cloth would have been bought through the Sears and Roebuck catalog and hand-sewn.  The saying "Wear it out or do without" would have been a common expression used by my grandparents.  Thus, he probably got a lot of "hand-me-downs" from his older brothers.  I believe that he, like most children, thumbed through the catalog dreaming of what it would be like to have this or that toy or article of machine-made clothing.  I'm sure that my dad daydreamed about owning his own car or tractor someday.  I know he realized that dream by owning his own car dealership.  Dreams, as in any age, gave people in desperate conditions hope for a better life."

 Picture below:  Rodney Sparkman  - with brother George and sister Katie 1923

"The foods he ate were most likely any fresh produce that his family grew on the farm.  Chicken and beef, while rare at the dinner table, would have been a welcomed change of pace from biscuits and gravy.  Dad loved homemade ice cream.  He would have used a hand-cranked ice cream maker to prepare this delicacy and this too would have been a special treat on the farm.  Candy would usually be purchased at the country store using an egg to barter with.  Cotton and corn grown on the farm would have been a cash crop to pay taxes with."

Picture below:  Rodney Sparkman on the Brazos River bridge circa 1935.

"Dad loved to go fishing.  On those rare occasions when we did go together as a family, he just relished having a fish on his hook. More importantly, he savored eating them especially catfish fried in a thick, buttermilk batter.  He had a passion for barbecuing chicken and hot links.  He loved cream potatoes, grits, black-eyed peas, and chicken and dumplings.  His favorite dessert was pecan pie a-la-mode.  If my Dad had any vices, it would be his coffee and chewing tobacco.  When I would go with him to the shop in the morning, he would say that his day could not get started until he "had-a-cup" meaning a cup of coffee.  He would proceed to the restaurant and drink several cups to get him going.  He made Wayne and me swear never to "tell your mother".  Our reward for silence was a donut or pastry and a cup of hot chocolate." 

Picture below:  Rodney Sparkman about 17 years of age (circa 1935). Notice the pistol he has in his pants.  He was a real cowboy!

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