JOSEPH FRANKLIN MONTGOMERY
(1903-1987)
Joseph Franklin Montgomery was the "baby" of the family --
the
last of 5 children born to LPC and Suzie (Key) Montgomery. He also had 4 step brothers and sisters from LPC's first marriage to Sarah Lynn.
He was born in 1903 in Foss, Custer County, Oklahoma, at or near his grandmother Elizabeth's farm.
His older sister, Alice, wrote that, "Our family lived in a half dugout until 1899, when my father
went to Weatherford, which is a long journey, since the only transportation was by wagon, and brought
back lumber and built a two-room house." Based on this narrative, we believe that Joseph was born
in that 2-room house.
When Joe was only 3 years old, his grandmother (Elizabeth Montgomery) died, and after her death, his father became
dissatisfied and traded the 160 acres at Foss for a 35-acre apple orchard in West Fork, Arkansas.
In 1912, LPC traded his land in Arkansas for 160 acres about five miles northwest of Sayre, Oklahoma
where he took his family and raised cattle and broom corn. He later ran the "KY Wagon Yard" in Sayre, Oklahoma,
and eventually traded the wagon yard for 320 acres northwest of Rankin, Oklahoma, which was south
of where Reydon is now located.
In 1922, Joe was a young barber in Elk City, Oklahoma when he met and married Opal June
Elliott. They were married for over 60 years, and produced eight children:
Geneva June Montgomery (Thompson) (1924-1969)
Monte Joe Montgomery (1926-living)
Samuel Stephenson Montgomery (1930-living)
Jack Neal Montgomery (1933-1983)
George Sterling Montgomery (1939-living)
Jimmy Lee Montgomery (1941-living)
Kenneth Dale Montgomery (1943-2000)
Donna Suzanne Montgomery (1947-living)
When Joe and Opal married in July of 1922, Opal was still in high school. When she graduated in
1923, they moved to Drumright, Oklahoma where Joe opened his own barber shop. He must have been
very proud, for he had several barbers working for him in the shop, plus a shoeshine man! But when
the Great Depression hit in 1932, Joe lost his wonderful shop. Afterward, Joe moved his family to Cushing,
Oklahoma to take over the shop of a man who had been imprisoned after killing another man in a fight.
Joe ran the shop until the owner was released from prison.
After another move -- this time to Reydon, Oklahoma on the western edge of the state in around
1936 -- Joe opened a one-man barber shop. In late 1938 or 1939, he moved his family south near the
towns of Sayre and Elk City, Oklahoma. In nearby Doxey, Joe became the Custodian and Bus Driver for
the Doxey school. He held that position until 1943, when he secured a government loan and began
farming. The following year, Joe moved his family back to the Cushing area, and started a dairy
farm near a little town called Agra.
Oklahoma, c. 1959
By the early 1960s, nearly all of their eight children had moved from Oklahoma to California,
so in 1964, Joe and Opal sold the dairy and moved to Visalia, California to be closer to their
children and grandchildren. Not one to sit around, Joe initially found a "ranchette" outside of
Visalia in a small community called Farmersville, where he and Opal tended their own gardens and
fruit trees. Later, they moved into Visalia to take on the arduous job of managing a group of apartments. He'd
been a life-long baseball fan, and was delighted to rent several of his apartments to players on
the minor league team in town. After a few years, he retired, and he and Opal settled in a small
home in Visalia, where they lived out their remaining years.
At their 60th wedding anniversary in 1982, Joe and Opal
celebrated with their seven surviving children.
In 1984, Opal passed away.
Heartbroken, Joe's health began to deteriorate shortly after.
By 1987, he was suffering from leukemia and was hospitalized.
In September, he passed away peacefully in his sleep.
Top photo scanned from the original in 2001 by Marilyn Montgomery
Second photo scanned from page 405 of the book Prairie Fire published by the
Western Oklahoma Historical Society of Elk City, OK (date of publication unknown)
All other photos scanned or taken by Marilyn Montgomery in 1998 and 2001
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