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History in
a Pecan Shell
Named after the
daughter of pioneer David B. Pritchett, the town was formed in 1870
and when the community applied for a post office in 1885, Pritchett,
as postmaster insured the the name was made official.
From an 1890 population of 30, it increased to 50 by 1910 even though
the post office had closed in 1906. Thereafter mail was routed to
nearby DeKalb.
From 1920 through the mid 1980s the number of residents stood at 58.
The 1990 census showed 109 residents, the same number given in 2000.
Photographer's Note:
"Lydia is another one of the small, quiet northeast Texas towns that
I really like. It is well-suited for the easy going, undemanding traveler.
Not recommended for the traveler expecting excitement, bright lights
and tourist-type stuff because they ain’t there." - Gerald
Massey |
Former store-gas
station
Photo
courtesy Gerald
Massey, August 2010 |
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Subject:
The William H. Baker Family of Lydia, Texas
I am sending stories told by my Aunt Leta Baker Pritchard and information
by Neal Baker, Jr, about living in Lydia. Texas. Aunt Leta lived in
Lydia until she was ten years old and Neal grew up there. Neal's grandfather,
Neill Archie Baker and my grandfather, William Calvin Baker were brothers.
- Ema Fielder, February 24, 2015:
The William H. Baker Family of Lydia, Texas
In 1879 William H. Baker, a widower age 64, left North Carolina
and moved to Texas. He came with his nine unmarried children: Barbara,
Malcolm, Neill Archie, Margaret, Duncan, Murphy, Henry, Mary Ann,
and William Calvin. William H. Baker settled a little distance from
the Sulphur River on sandy land, just barely in Bowie
County. His son, Murphy had land near the river, and possibly
his oldest son, Malcolm.
As the Bakers moved to the Lydia area, they decided to form a Presbyterian
church. They did much of the construction of the building themselves.
The church had two doors in front. The women would go in one door
and sit on one side of the church, and the men entered through the
other door and sat on the other side. The women took the children
along with them. If the children got sleepy, they just put a quilt
down in the aisle for them to lie on. My aunt said, "Some of the best
sleeping I ever did was 'piled down' on the floor of the church".
The church was in Lydia until the time of World
War II. The families moved away and the church went under. The
building was sold and later demolished.
(This account was told by my Aunt Leta):
When Papa (William Calvin Baker) came to Texas, he was 19 years
old. The general merchandise store at Lydia was owned by Mr.
Pritchett, a man with long white whiskers. He wanted a young man
to help run the store, so he hired Papa. Several years later Pr. Pritchett's
health failed and Papa bought him out. Papa was in business there
18 years. He handled an assortment of goods such as groceries, dry
goods, and guns. (They made their own shells.) The store also served
as the Post Office. The mail came to DeKalb,
and once a week the mail carrier brought mail to Lydia. When a customer
wanted to buy sugar, it was scooped out of a barrel, put into a paper
sack and weighed. The meat came from St. Louis.
A young lady, Martha Bell Mann, was living in the home of her half
brother, Dr. J. H. Mann. She and Papa started going out together and
were married in 1889. Papa's father (William H. Baker) stayed with
them a good while. He liked to go to the store. He would sit on an
old nail keg on the front porch. (All the stores had a front porch
to them). I was just pulling up and walking around a chair when my
grandfather died in 1891.
Later on, I remember when they built our house across the road from
the store. Lydia was just a little country community. There was a
cotton gin, a gristmill, the school house, a Baptist church and a
Presbyterian church.
Aunt Barbara was about 40 when she married William Weaver. He had
three girls from a previous marriage. They were Mary, Julie, and Dovie.
Lacy was their own son and, of course, the idol of the home. Two of
Barbara's step daughters married two of Papa's brothers. Uncle Duncan
married Julie Weaver and Uncle Murphy married Mary Weaver.
(Information from Neal Archie, Jr.) :
Malcolm Baker died in 1884 and is buried at Dalby
Springs (Bowie County).
His father, William H. Baker was buried near Malcolm in Dalby
Springs. My Grandpa, Neill Archie Baker, died in 1886. He was
buried in the Woodmen Cemetery in DeKalb,
but his grave was lost. He had thphoid fever. He died about a month
before my father was born. In those days, women in Grandma's condition
did not appear in public, so she did not go to the funeral. Apparently
there was a typhoid epidemic at the time, and when Grandma went to
the cemetery after my father was born, there were so many new graves
that no one could tell her which one was his.
Henry Baker lived on some of the property adjacent to the church property
in Lydia. He had a child who died and was buried in New Hope Cemetery.
The grave was lost. Henry swore that it would not happen again, so
he started his own private cemetery on his land. He and members of
his family are the only ones buried there.
William Calvin and Bell Baker had a baby girl, Ila Reed, who died
in 1894. She was buried in the Lydia Cemetery. They put an iron fence
around her grave. Also in Lydia are the graves of five of William
H. Baker's children: Barbara Weaver, Margaret Watson, Murphy Baker,
Mary Ann Murphy, and Duncan Baker.
In January 1901 W. C. Baker moved his family to west Texas. He had
bought 160 acres of land just outside the city limits of Anson
where he spent the rest of his life, and where he and Bell and their
five children are buried.
- Ema Fielder |
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William Calvin Baker & wife - Martha Bell Mann
Photo courtesy Emabel Baker Fielder
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Their
three chidren in 1896: Leta, Roy and Willie D.
Photo courtesy Emabel Baker Fielder
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Duncan
Baker Family, 1890
Photo courtesy Emabel Baker Fielder
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Henry
Baker Family, circa 1892
Photo courtesy Emabel Baker Fielder
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Murphy Baker Family, 1894 or 1895
Photo courtesy Emabel Baker Fielder
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Lydia, Texas
Forum
Subject:
Lydia Texas
In 1947-48 I lived with my family about five miles from Lydia. Dad
would some time go there to buy a few groceries or maybe some gas.
There was two pumps in front of the store at Lydia. One of the pumps
had regular gas, and the other pump had kerosene in it. At that time.
Dad drove a 1929 Chevrolet 2 door car. I went with him one day to
get some groceries and some gas for his car. He didn't look when he
stooped to buy gas. He stooped in front of the kerosene pump. He filled
his car with kerosene, thinking it was gas. He had some gas in the
car, I don't remember just how much. When we left Lydia. The car didn't
go far down the road before it started missing and smoking real bad.
As soon as it started acting up. Dad knew what he had done. He went
ahead and drove the car on the kerosene and gas mixture. I ran pretty
good, still smoked and missed. Dad was glad when he got most of it
burnt out. So he could put some more gas in it. The kerosene that
we bough then was a lot better grade of fuel than what we can buy
now. I doubt if a car would run on it now. Even a lawn mower. The
building that is still in Lydia was the store-gas station then. -
Jesse Suttles, May 9, 2012 |
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