Chapter 7: Scogin-Shephard

Jeppie Harris Scogin, John and Mary's second son, was born on September 6, 1889 in Texas, probably in Garrison. He married Kate Beall Shepherd on August 24, 1914 in Nacogdoches, Texas. Kate Beall was born on January 11, 1898 in Garrison, Texas (SS# 449-32-3136). Her brothers had wanted her to go to college but instead she fell in love with Jeppie and got married at age sixteen. Jeppie was known to the family as "Pappy" and she was "Mama Beall". They had two children: Melton Shepherd Scogin (1916) and Olive Jean Scogin (1922). In 1919 they moved to Jacksonville, Texas, and in 1920 they bought a house at 512 North Bolton. The house had been built by a man with the last name Merritt who lived there until he sold it to them. Jeppie worked as a brakeman for Southern Pacific Railroad. He was laid off around 1928-1929, during the Great Depression. A relative, Edelle Parker (see Scogin), was able to get him a job with the Cotton Belt Railroad in Tyler, Texas. The family moved to Tyler for a short period (either to Chilton or Houston Street) but never sold their house in Jacksonville. Around 1930-1931, Jeppie got his job with Southern Pacific back and the family returned to Jacksonville. Kate Beall was a housewife for most of her life. She even made most of her children's clothes by hand. During the Great Depression and Jeppie's job transitions, she opened their home and served lunch to help earn money. She was locally famous for her biscuits. For about a year and half, they even rented their living room out to a boarder.

The 1920 census (misindexed as "Jeffie H."), shows Jeppie H. (30), Kate B. (21) and Shepherd (3 11/12). They were living on South Bolton in Jacksonville, Cherokee County, Texas (Precinct 3), apparently sharing (or splitting) the house with Frank Fuller, his wife and his baby daughter. Jeppie was a brakeman on the railroad. (So was Frank Fuller and the guy living next door to them, Archie Strother, and at least one either guy on their block.)

I am still looking for the family in the 1930 census.

Around 1936, as the family was exiting church on a Sunday morning, Jeppie was standing on the curb talking to friends. He lost his balance momentarily and stepped into the street. As he did, a teenager driving a car down the street hit him, sending Jeppie flying into the air. He landed against a parked car and hit his head on the large steel bumper, receiving a deep gash. He was in the hospital for several weeks, then off work recovering for several more. Finally, he was able to return to his work for the railroad. Years later, Jeppie would develop Parkinson's disease. It is said that his Parkinson's was a result of injury years before, though a modern doctor could probably say best if that's possible or just coincidental. When Jeppie retired from the railroad around 1945 due to his worsening illness, Kate Beall went to work to help pay the bills (their was no retirement plan or social security at the time, though one would be given to them later). She worked in the cutting room of the Marja Brassiere Factory, then for Lang's Jewelry and Summers' Jewelry. During this time Kate Beall also developed a heart condition that would grow more serious over the years. It was diagnosed as angina which is chest pain that occurs when your heart muscle does not get enough blood and which is a symptom of coronary artery disease, the most common type of heart disease. Her heart condition forced her to quit working too but by that time they had paid off the house loan and were receiving a small social security check for Kate Beall's earnings and a comfortable check from Jeppie's railroad retirement plan. In 1947, after her divorce, their daughter Jeanne and her two sons went to live with them. Jeanne worked to help pay the bills and took care of the many of the day-to-day tasks around the house. The backporch of the house was enclosed to make another bedroom for the growing family. As her parents health declined, Jeanne took care of them more and more.

Jeppie died on May 21, 1955 of pneumonia related to his battle with Parkinson's Disease. He had spent the last nine months of his life in a nursing home receiving full-time medical care. Kate Beall's heart condition continued to deteriorate until finally her doctor, Dr. John Scogin (a great nephew), told her that she should be in a nursing home. Her daughter Jeanne was working full-time and Kate Beall had gotten to the point where she needed constant medical attention. On February 10, 1968, Kate Beall died. She had been ill with the flu. Melton Shepherd drove down from Denton for a morning visit and while he was their, suddenly and unexpectedly, she stopped breathing. Both Jeppie and Kate Beall are buried in the family plot in the Jacksonville City Cemetery in Jacksonville, Texas. Their modest assets were diving between their two children; their house on North Bolton was deeded to their daughter, Jeanne.

Children of Jeppie Harris Scogin and Kate Beall Shepherd

Melton Shepherd Scogin was born on February 27, 1916 in Cushing/Sacul, Texas (SS# 459-09-1582). He was named after his mother's father. He was known as "Shep" and attended Jacksonville Public Schools. He was a Jacksonville Volunteer Fireman and a newspaper deliveryman for the Jacksonville Daily Progress. Shep married Margaret Powell in Jacksonville, Texas. They lived in a house on San Saba Street. Margaret had moved to Jacksonville to work as a representative of the Girls Scouts and her mother later moved too. They had three children: Alice Anne Scogin, James Shepherd Scogin, Sara Jeanne Scogin. I don't know dates but they were born close together and all in Jacksonville.

In 1956 or 1957, as Shep was riding on the back of a firetruck, the truck was hit by a train in downtown Jacksonville, and Shep was thrown from the back and landed underneath the truck. His hip and leg was broken in several places and he had some internal injuries. He was taken to Nan Travis Hospital where he stayed in traction for two and half months. At one point they thought they might have to amputate his leg, though luckily he recovered most of the use of it. Margaret was pregnant with Sara Jeanne at the time of the accident. Since Shep had no source of income during this time (the family didn't even have a car), it put a severe strain on the family and on his marriage. Shep and Margaret would divorce soon after. Margaret remarried someone with the last name Rachel and moved to Texarkana. (I found a Margaret P Rachel, born Sept 28, 1928, died April 1, 1999, in Texarkana, SS# 453-32-9538.) Eventually Shep lost touch with his three children and regretted it for the rest of his life.

Shep remarried Joyce Pike in Cherokee County, Texas sometime around 1962-1964. Joyce's maiden name was Mixon and her first husband's name had been Pike. She already had one daughter, Susan Pike, from her previous marriage. Shep got a job as a traveling salesman for Hillencamp Electric (an electrical supply company) in Jacksonville. Shep and Joyce had a son, James Melton, who was born in Jacksonville, Texas within a year of their marriage. Before too long Hillencamp Electric relocated them to Lufkin, Texas. In the late 1960s, Shep went to work for Buffalo Electric as a salesman and since the center of his sales territory was Denton, Texas, Shep and Joyce relocated again. By the time Shep changed jobs again to Maverick Electric in Dallas, Joyce had gotten a good job with the Texas State Goverment in Denton, so they continued to live in Denton and Shep commmuted to Dallas. After moving to Denton, Shep was also a reserve policeman for many years. He died in Denton on September 18, 1997 and is buried in ????.

Their son James Melton Scogin met a woman in Dallas, married, and moved to Clamath Falls, Oregon to be close to her family. They had two sons, Daniel Scogin and Jonathan Scogin, and are now divorced. As of 2004, Melton, his former wife and children are all still alive. Joyce is also still alive and living in Argyle, Texas near her daughter, Susan Pike.

Olive Jean Scogin was born on July 21, 1922 in Jacksonville, Texas. Dr. Frank A. Fuller was the doctor who delivered her. Dr. Fuller was one of the founders of the Cherokee Sanitarium (opened July 1, 1919) which was the forerunner of the Nan Travis Hospital, so it is likely that this is where she was born. When she was born she was supposed to have been named Elizabeth Jean after both her grandmothers but Aunt Olive (her Uncle Walter Shepherd's second wife) was very ill and asked to have her named after her. Aunt Olive didn't die but Jeanne was stuck with the name Olive anyway. She always hated the name because she was teased and called "Olive Oyl" like the cartoon character in Popeye. She had gone by Jean and started spelling her name "Jeanne" after friends gave her the book "Little Jeanne of France" as a birthday gift in 1931. When she got married she changed her name to Jeanne Scogin Skoglund, changing the spelling of "Jean" legally and dropping "Olive" forever. But everyone, including her own children and grandchildren always called her "Honey".

Jeanne grew up in the house on North Bolton Street in Jacksonville, Texas. She was baptised at age eight at a revival at Central Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Texas. She had a chronic sinus infection that persisted for most of her second grade year and which finally caused her to move to San Antonio to live with her Uncle Walter Shepherd for about two months while she underwent tests and treatment. In high school, Jeanne was on the pep squard and played saxophone in the marching band. She was popular, had a close group of female friends and many boyfriends. She worked as a sales clerk at Duke & Ayres (a local five and dime store) and then as a car-hop at Tucker's Eat Shop (later named Sadler's) to earn spending money.

After graduation in 1940, along with most of her highschool classmates, Jeanne went to Lon Morris Junior College. Because she was local girl who already knew most of her class she continued to be popular. She was part of a campus sorority and her and most of her friends were class officers. During December of her second year, the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor and America joined World War II. Overnight, her fun-spirited college days changed tone as almost all of her male classmates left school to volunteer for the United Services.

Jeanne's parents didn't have the money to attend a four-year college and she had always liked accounting and though of becoming a secretary, so after Lon Morris, Jeanne decided to moved to San Antonio, live with her uncle (Walter Shepherd) and attend Draughton's Business College. She progressed quickly and in only a matter of months was assigned to a job at the Base Hospital at Randolph Air Field in San Antonio, Texas. She was selected for the position as Secretary to the Commanding General at the hospital and as Receptionist. Eventually she earned enough money to move out of her uncle's house and into an apartment (close to Brakenridge Park and Zoo) with a Jacksonville friend and another friend from the hospital.

One day when all of the newly assigned Second Lieutenants from Flying School came into her office to register, Jeanne met Maylan Manley Skoglund. She married into the Skoglund family and the rest of her story can be found in Chapter 4: Skoglund-Ogren.

Chapter 8: Moore