He was born to Clinton Alfred and Myrtle Bell Bailey on a cold, the 2nd of November in 1932. The family resided in Kelsey, a small community just outside of Gilmer in the piney woods of East Texas. Alfred paid the midwife with 2 jars of molasses and wrapped their new son in his sheepskin work coat. His mother called him "Sonny Boy" – always her pet name for him. Sonny Boy grew into a skinny little kid with a shock of blonde curly hair, freckles, and blue-green eyes. His love of 4 footed creatures surfaced early, as his favorite toys were the "mule sticks" his father carved for him out of pine tree limbs. While the rest of the family picked cotton (including his 2 older sisters, Dorothy and Polly), Sonny boy would be found galloping up and down the cotton rows with a mule stick in each hand, stomping and pawing the ground, nickering like a horse!
The name Sonny boy turned into "Junior Bailey" as Clinton grew up. A few years later the family moved to Freeport, Texas and his father saw his way clear to buy Junior his first horse. He made a good cow hand and he was a natural with young horses. His teen years were spent working cattle for area ranchers and he had a waiting list of folks who wanted him to ride for them. He recalled how he and other cowboys would swim herds of cattle across the intercostal canal with baby calves riding on their mothers' backs, and tales of salt grass and rattlesnakes.
He always loved his rodeo – competing in calf roping, bull riding, and steer dogging events. When he hauled to rodeos on Bolivar Peninsula, he'd often have to spend the night on the dock when the rodeo ran late and the ferry shut down at midnight. He learned the blacksmith trade during these years as did his grandfather Hartman before him – a trade he would rely on for most of his life. He had a list of folks that he shod for on a regular basis in his younger years, and he put shoes on all our ponies as long as his health permitted.
He graduated from Brazosport High School in 1950, and enlisted in the Air Force on January 8, 1951. He served in Korean and receiving an Honorable Discharge on January 7, 1955. He went to work for Dow Chemical Co. in Freeport, Texas and was a shift foreman when he left the company in 1974.
For years, he rode with every trail ride that fit in with his work schedule at Dow – Brazoria, Saltgrass, Brackettville, Chisholm and the Texas Trail Riders Association out of Altair. It was on the Altair ride in 1972 that he met Cynthia Halamicek Goolsby. They were married the following September 1, in Ardmore, Oklahoma. The family lived in the Lake Jackson and Angleton area, and he joined the Presbyterian Church in Angleton, the same Sunday his baby daughter Noelle was christened. Clinton's first born, Clinton Lee resided with the family for several years – and was in his senior year at Angleton High School. Every Friday afternoon, Clinton Lee brought his teammates by our house for a meal of pinto beans, cracked rice, and fried chicken. The menu never varied – Clinton had stocked our freezer with 3 cases of chicken he'd brought on "special". Noelle was a baby and Bruen was 2 years older. Clinton Lee would babysit while we rode nights when Clinton came home from the evening shift at Dow.
He worked hard and played hard. Throughout his life, he worked with horses and kids and enjoyed hauling to rodeos. Clinton instilled confidence and that can-do attitude in our kids. He then helped Bruen and his friends get down on countless steers, bulls, bareback horses, and saddle broncs. He hazed for Bruen in steer dogging and any other kid in need of help. He pulled many a wet saddle blanket off of Noelle's horses, switching saddles and horses for different events. He supported all our kids in anything they wanted to do.
It was later in life when Cade came along; Noelle said it best when she said, "Momma and Daddy have been having babies for generations." By then, we were trail riding again. Weekends we'd ride the lake road and when it was too hot in the summer we'd ride half the night when the moon was full – a horse-thief moon! When Cade became interested in karate, it was Clinton who signed him up for lessons and took us to competitions. Later in high school when Cade participated in track meets, we knew were the oldest parents in the bleachers, and we' d laugh when someone mistook Cade for our grandson.
We loved celebrating Christmas at our house. We looked forward to have as many friends and family as could come. We'd have in-laws, outlaws, and anyone in between! Everyone would be crammed into our kitchen, talking at once, asking each other questions with no one listening for answers! Some years we decorated the balcony with red, white, and blue rodeo banners and the American flag centered above the front door. We would find "the" mesquite tree in the pasture and made a production of getting it into the house. We'd decorate with white lights, curly ribbon and Christmas horses and the den would be dancing with lights. The stairway and the beams in the kitchen were laced with chile pepper lights and Christmas was a fine time for us all! Christmas day would find Clinton in rare form on the back porch frying chicken to go with the ham, turkey, and all the good food folks brought with them. After dinner, we'd have a card game out on the front lawn and that's when all the news and family gossip would fly!
Clinton knew how to get things done. He could (and did) build anything – be it a house, barn, roping arena, or bucking chute. He had a garden as long as his health permitted, and the man knew his way around the kitchen – he was a great cook! We thought he was a master plumber ad electrician. "I'm just a jack of all trades, master of none," he'd say.
He was one of a kind and larger than life to us. He was blessed with a sense of humor that was legend and he had the ability to laugh at himself. He was a well-spring misinformation – "I've taught you everything I know, and you still don't know anything," he'd say.
Clinton loved the color red, red roses and cactus flowers. He loved family, old friends, horses, cattle, campfires, a good storm, the changing of the seasons, old dogs, hunting trips, and fishing in the gulf. Four years ago, he was adopted by a cat. His tender heart betrayed his bluster – as he took his turn bottle feeding motherless calves and fawns we brought to the house, orphaned kittens, and any helpless creature we took on "to mother." As a boy he raised a pair of flying squirrels that fell from their nest during a storm; and took them to school with him in his pocket. He kept a ladder on our front porch and was forever putting baby swallows back in their nests when they were learning to fly.
He put us ahead of himself. He'd say, "Aw, I've gotten so old that my wants don't hurt me." We never thought of him as hold – he was always in the thick of things, interested in any project we were working on, and he was the one who would come up with the solution to any problem that might arise.
His mother would shake her head and say, "When it comes to his family, Junior is like a hen with one chicken." We, in turn, were blessed with his laughter and the pleasure of his company. He was the most fun we ever had; the best father, husband, and fried, I could have asked for.
He was preceded in death by his parents, his sister Dorothy Colene Perry, and his grandson Clinton Lee "Tiger" Bailey, Jr.
Pallbearers included Clinton Lee Bailey, Sr., Cadence Bailey, Bruen Goolsby, Eddie Halamicek, Cody Stowers, and Dean White.
The name Sonny boy turned into "Junior Bailey" as Clinton grew up. A few years later the family moved to Freeport, Texas and his father saw his way clear to buy Junior his first horse. He made a good cow hand and he was a natural with young horses. His teen years were spent working cattle for area ranchers and he had a waiting list of folks who wanted him to ride for them. He recalled how he and other cowboys would swim herds of cattle across the intercostal canal with baby calves riding on their mothers' backs, and tales of salt grass and rattlesnakes.
He always loved his rodeo – competing in calf roping, bull riding, and steer dogging events. When he hauled to rodeos on Bolivar Peninsula, he'd often have to spend the night on the dock when the rodeo ran late and the ferry shut down at midnight. He learned the blacksmith trade during these years as did his grandfather Hartman before him – a trade he would rely on for most of his life. He had a list of folks that he shod for on a regular basis in his younger years, and he put shoes on all our ponies as long as his health permitted.
He graduated from Brazosport High School in 1950, and enlisted in the Air Force on January 8, 1951. He served in Korean and receiving an Honorable Discharge on January 7, 1955. He went to work for Dow Chemical Co. in Freeport, Texas and was a shift foreman when he left the company in 1974.
For years, he rode with every trail ride that fit in with his work schedule at Dow – Brazoria, Saltgrass, Brackettville, Chisholm and the Texas Trail Riders Association out of Altair. It was on the Altair ride in 1972 that he met Cynthia Halamicek Goolsby. They were married the following September 1, in Ardmore, Oklahoma. The family lived in the Lake Jackson and Angleton area, and he joined the Presbyterian Church in Angleton, the same Sunday his baby daughter Noelle was christened. Clinton's first born, Clinton Lee resided with the family for several years – and was in his senior year at Angleton High School. Every Friday afternoon, Clinton Lee brought his teammates by our house for a meal of pinto beans, cracked rice, and fried chicken. The menu never varied – Clinton had stocked our freezer with 3 cases of chicken he'd brought on "special". Noelle was a baby and Bruen was 2 years older. Clinton Lee would babysit while we rode nights when Clinton came home from the evening shift at Dow.
He worked hard and played hard. Throughout his life, he worked with horses and kids and enjoyed hauling to rodeos. Clinton instilled confidence and that can-do attitude in our kids. He then helped Bruen and his friends get down on countless steers, bulls, bareback horses, and saddle broncs. He hazed for Bruen in steer dogging and any other kid in need of help. He pulled many a wet saddle blanket off of Noelle's horses, switching saddles and horses for different events. He supported all our kids in anything they wanted to do.
It was later in life when Cade came along; Noelle said it best when she said, "Momma and Daddy have been having babies for generations." By then, we were trail riding again. Weekends we'd ride the lake road and when it was too hot in the summer we'd ride half the night when the moon was full – a horse-thief moon! When Cade became interested in karate, it was Clinton who signed him up for lessons and took us to competitions. Later in high school when Cade participated in track meets, we knew were the oldest parents in the bleachers, and we' d laugh when someone mistook Cade for our grandson.
We loved celebrating Christmas at our house. We looked forward to have as many friends and family as could come. We'd have in-laws, outlaws, and anyone in between! Everyone would be crammed into our kitchen, talking at once, asking each other questions with no one listening for answers! Some years we decorated the balcony with red, white, and blue rodeo banners and the American flag centered above the front door. We would find "the" mesquite tree in the pasture and made a production of getting it into the house. We'd decorate with white lights, curly ribbon and Christmas horses and the den would be dancing with lights. The stairway and the beams in the kitchen were laced with chile pepper lights and Christmas was a fine time for us all! Christmas day would find Clinton in rare form on the back porch frying chicken to go with the ham, turkey, and all the good food folks brought with them. After dinner, we'd have a card game out on the front lawn and that's when all the news and family gossip would fly!
Clinton knew how to get things done. He could (and did) build anything – be it a house, barn, roping arena, or bucking chute. He had a garden as long as his health permitted, and the man knew his way around the kitchen – he was a great cook! We thought he was a master plumber ad electrician. "I'm just a jack of all trades, master of none," he'd say.
He was one of a kind and larger than life to us. He was blessed with a sense of humor that was legend and he had the ability to laugh at himself. He was a well-spring misinformation – "I've taught you everything I know, and you still don't know anything," he'd say.
Clinton loved the color red, red roses and cactus flowers. He loved family, old friends, horses, cattle, campfires, a good storm, the changing of the seasons, old dogs, hunting trips, and fishing in the gulf. Four years ago, he was adopted by a cat. His tender heart betrayed his bluster – as he took his turn bottle feeding motherless calves and fawns we brought to the house, orphaned kittens, and any helpless creature we took on "to mother." As a boy he raised a pair of flying squirrels that fell from their nest during a storm; and took them to school with him in his pocket. He kept a ladder on our front porch and was forever putting baby swallows back in their nests when they were learning to fly.
He put us ahead of himself. He'd say, "Aw, I've gotten so old that my wants don't hurt me." We never thought of him as hold – he was always in the thick of things, interested in any project we were working on, and he was the one who would come up with the solution to any problem that might arise.
His mother would shake her head and say, "When it comes to his family, Junior is like a hen with one chicken." We, in turn, were blessed with his laughter and the pleasure of his company. He was the most fun we ever had; the best father, husband, and fried, I could have asked for.
He was preceded in death by his parents, his sister Dorothy Colene Perry, and his grandson Clinton Lee "Tiger" Bailey, Jr.
Pallbearers included Clinton Lee Bailey, Sr., Cadence Bailey, Bruen Goolsby, Eddie Halamicek, Cody Stowers, and Dean White.
He was born to Clinton Alfred and Myrtle Bell Bailey on a cold, the 2nd of November in 1932. The family resided in Kelsey, a small community just outside of Gilmer in the piney woods of East Texas. Alfred paid the midwife with 2 jars of molasses and wrapped their new son in his sheepskin work coat. His mother called him "Sonny Boy" – always her pet name for him. Sonny Boy grew into a skinny little kid with a shock of blonde curly hair, freckles, and blue-green eyes. His love of 4 footed creatures surfaced early, as his favorite toys were the "mule sticks" his father carved for him out of pine tree limbs. While the rest of the family picked cotton (including his 2 older sisters, Dorothy and Polly), Sonny boy would be found galloping up and down the cotton rows with a mule stick in each hand, stomping and pawing the ground, nickering like a horse!
The name Sonny boy turned into "Junior Bailey" as Clinton grew up. A few years later the family moved to Freeport, Texas and his father saw his way clear to buy Junior his first horse. He made a good cow hand and he was a natural with young horses. His teen years were spent working cattle for area ranchers and he had a waiting list of folks who wanted him to ride for them. He recalled how he and other cowboys would swim herds of cattle across the intercostal canal with baby calves riding on their mothers' backs, and tales of salt grass and rattlesnakes.
He always loved his rodeo – competing in calf roping, bull riding, and steer dogging events. When he hauled to rodeos on Bolivar Peninsula, he'd often have to spend the night on the dock when the rodeo ran late and the ferry shut down at midnight. He learned the blacksmith trade during these years as did his grandfather Hartman before him – a trade he would rely on for most of his life. He had a list of folks that he shod for on a regular basis in his younger years, and he put shoes on all our ponies as long as his health permitted.
He graduated from Brazosport High School in 1950, and enlisted in the Air Force on January 8, 1951. He served in Korean and receiving an Honorable Discharge on January 7, 1955. He went to work for Dow Chemical Co. in Freeport, Texas and was a shift foreman when he left the company in 1974.
For years, he rode with every trail ride that fit in with his work schedule at Dow – Brazoria, Saltgrass, Brackettville, Chisholm and the Texas Trail Riders Association out of Altair. It was on the Altair ride in 1972 that he met Cynthia Halamicek Goolsby. They were married the following September 1, in Ardmore, Oklahoma. The family lived in the Lake Jackson and Angleton area, and he joined the Presbyterian Church in Angleton, the same Sunday his baby daughter Noelle was christened. Clinton's first born, Clinton Lee resided with the family for several years – and was in his senior year at Angleton High School. Every Friday afternoon, Clinton Lee brought his teammates by our house for a meal of pinto beans, cracked rice, and fried chicken. The menu never varied – Clinton had stocked our freezer with 3 cases of chicken he'd brought on "special". Noelle was a baby and Bruen was 2 years older. Clinton Lee would babysit while we rode nights when Clinton came home from the evening shift at Dow.
He worked hard and played hard. Throughout his life, he worked with horses and kids and enjoyed hauling to rodeos. Clinton instilled confidence and that can-do attitude in our kids. He then helped Bruen and his friends get down on countless steers, bulls, bareback horses, and saddle broncs. He hazed for Bruen in steer dogging and any other kid in need of help. He pulled many a wet saddle blanket off of Noelle's horses, switching saddles and horses for different events. He supported all our kids in anything they wanted to do.
It was later in life when Cade came along; Noelle said it best when she said, "Momma and Daddy have been having babies for generations." By then, we were trail riding again. Weekends we'd ride the lake road and when it was too hot in the summer we'd ride half the night when the moon was full – a horse-thief moon! When Cade became interested in karate, it was Clinton who signed him up for lessons and took us to competitions. Later in high school when Cade participated in track meets, we knew were the oldest parents in the bleachers, and we' d laugh when someone mistook Cade for our grandson.
We loved celebrating Christmas at our house. We looked forward to have as many friends and family as could come. We'd have in-laws, outlaws, and anyone in between! Everyone would be crammed into our kitchen, talking at once, asking each other questions with no one listening for answers! Some years we decorated the balcony with red, white, and blue rodeo banners and the American flag centered above the front door. We would find "the" mesquite tree in the pasture and made a production of getting it into the house. We'd decorate with white lights, curly ribbon and Christmas horses and the den would be dancing with lights. The stairway and the beams in the kitchen were laced with chile pepper lights and Christmas was a fine time for us all! Christmas day would find Clinton in rare form on the back porch frying chicken to go with the ham, turkey, and all the good food folks brought with them. After dinner, we'd have a card game out on the front lawn and that's when all the news and family gossip would fly!
Clinton knew how to get things done. He could (and did) build anything – be it a house, barn, roping arena, or bucking chute. He had a garden as long as his health permitted, and the man knew his way around the kitchen – he was a great cook! We thought he was a master plumber ad electrician. "I'm just a jack of all trades, master of none," he'd say.
He was one of a kind and larger than life to us. He was blessed with a sense of humor that was legend and he had the ability to laugh at himself. He was a well-spring misinformation – "I've taught you everything I know, and you still don't know anything," he'd say.
Clinton loved the color red, red roses and cactus flowers. He loved family, old friends, horses, cattle, campfires, a good storm, the changing of the seasons, old dogs, hunting trips, and fishing in the gulf. Four years ago, he was adopted by a cat. His tender heart betrayed his bluster – as he took his turn bottle feeding motherless calves and fawns we brought to the house, orphaned kittens, and any helpless creature we took on "to mother." As a boy he raised a pair of flying squirrels that fell from their nest during a storm; and took them to school with him in his pocket. He kept a ladder on our front porch and was forever putting baby swallows back in their nests when they were learning to fly.
He put us ahead of himself. He'd say, "Aw, I've gotten so old that my wants don't hurt me." We never thought of him as hold – he was always in the thick of things, interested in any project we were working on, and he was the one who would come up with the solution to any problem that might arise.
His mother would shake her head and say, "When it comes to his family, Junior is like a hen with one chicken." We, in turn, were blessed with his laughter and the pleasure of his company. He was the most fun we ever had; the best father, husband, and fried, I could have asked for.
He was preceded in death by his parents, his sister Dorothy Colene Perry, and his grandson Clinton Lee "Tiger" Bailey, Jr.
Pallbearers included Clinton Lee Bailey, Sr., Cadence Bailey, Bruen Goolsby, Eddie Halamicek, Cody Stowers, and Dean White.
The name Sonny boy turned into "Junior Bailey" as Clinton grew up. A few years later the family moved to Freeport, Texas and his father saw his way clear to buy Junior his first horse. He made a good cow hand and he was a natural with young horses. His teen years were spent working cattle for area ranchers and he had a waiting list of folks who wanted him to ride for them. He recalled how he and other cowboys would swim herds of cattle across the intercostal canal with baby calves riding on their mothers' backs, and tales of salt grass and rattlesnakes.
He always loved his rodeo – competing in calf roping, bull riding, and steer dogging events. When he hauled to rodeos on Bolivar Peninsula, he'd often have to spend the night on the dock when the rodeo ran late and the ferry shut down at midnight. He learned the blacksmith trade during these years as did his grandfather Hartman before him – a trade he would rely on for most of his life. He had a list of folks that he shod for on a regular basis in his younger years, and he put shoes on all our ponies as long as his health permitted.
He graduated from Brazosport High School in 1950, and enlisted in the Air Force on January 8, 1951. He served in Korean and receiving an Honorable Discharge on January 7, 1955. He went to work for Dow Chemical Co. in Freeport, Texas and was a shift foreman when he left the company in 1974.
For years, he rode with every trail ride that fit in with his work schedule at Dow – Brazoria, Saltgrass, Brackettville, Chisholm and the Texas Trail Riders Association out of Altair. It was on the Altair ride in 1972 that he met Cynthia Halamicek Goolsby. They were married the following September 1, in Ardmore, Oklahoma. The family lived in the Lake Jackson and Angleton area, and he joined the Presbyterian Church in Angleton, the same Sunday his baby daughter Noelle was christened. Clinton's first born, Clinton Lee resided with the family for several years – and was in his senior year at Angleton High School. Every Friday afternoon, Clinton Lee brought his teammates by our house for a meal of pinto beans, cracked rice, and fried chicken. The menu never varied – Clinton had stocked our freezer with 3 cases of chicken he'd brought on "special". Noelle was a baby and Bruen was 2 years older. Clinton Lee would babysit while we rode nights when Clinton came home from the evening shift at Dow.
He worked hard and played hard. Throughout his life, he worked with horses and kids and enjoyed hauling to rodeos. Clinton instilled confidence and that can-do attitude in our kids. He then helped Bruen and his friends get down on countless steers, bulls, bareback horses, and saddle broncs. He hazed for Bruen in steer dogging and any other kid in need of help. He pulled many a wet saddle blanket off of Noelle's horses, switching saddles and horses for different events. He supported all our kids in anything they wanted to do.
It was later in life when Cade came along; Noelle said it best when she said, "Momma and Daddy have been having babies for generations." By then, we were trail riding again. Weekends we'd ride the lake road and when it was too hot in the summer we'd ride half the night when the moon was full – a horse-thief moon! When Cade became interested in karate, it was Clinton who signed him up for lessons and took us to competitions. Later in high school when Cade participated in track meets, we knew were the oldest parents in the bleachers, and we' d laugh when someone mistook Cade for our grandson.
We loved celebrating Christmas at our house. We looked forward to have as many friends and family as could come. We'd have in-laws, outlaws, and anyone in between! Everyone would be crammed into our kitchen, talking at once, asking each other questions with no one listening for answers! Some years we decorated the balcony with red, white, and blue rodeo banners and the American flag centered above the front door. We would find "the" mesquite tree in the pasture and made a production of getting it into the house. We'd decorate with white lights, curly ribbon and Christmas horses and the den would be dancing with lights. The stairway and the beams in the kitchen were laced with chile pepper lights and Christmas was a fine time for us all! Christmas day would find Clinton in rare form on the back porch frying chicken to go with the ham, turkey, and all the good food folks brought with them. After dinner, we'd have a card game out on the front lawn and that's when all the news and family gossip would fly!
Clinton knew how to get things done. He could (and did) build anything – be it a house, barn, roping arena, or bucking chute. He had a garden as long as his health permitted, and the man knew his way around the kitchen – he was a great cook! We thought he was a master plumber ad electrician. "I'm just a jack of all trades, master of none," he'd say.
He was one of a kind and larger than life to us. He was blessed with a sense of humor that was legend and he had the ability to laugh at himself. He was a well-spring misinformation – "I've taught you everything I know, and you still don't know anything," he'd say.
Clinton loved the color red, red roses and cactus flowers. He loved family, old friends, horses, cattle, campfires, a good storm, the changing of the seasons, old dogs, hunting trips, and fishing in the gulf. Four years ago, he was adopted by a cat. His tender heart betrayed his bluster – as he took his turn bottle feeding motherless calves and fawns we brought to the house, orphaned kittens, and any helpless creature we took on "to mother." As a boy he raised a pair of flying squirrels that fell from their nest during a storm; and took them to school with him in his pocket. He kept a ladder on our front porch and was forever putting baby swallows back in their nests when they were learning to fly.
He put us ahead of himself. He'd say, "Aw, I've gotten so old that my wants don't hurt me." We never thought of him as hold – he was always in the thick of things, interested in any project we were working on, and he was the one who would come up with the solution to any problem that might arise.
His mother would shake her head and say, "When it comes to his family, Junior is like a hen with one chicken." We, in turn, were blessed with his laughter and the pleasure of his company. He was the most fun we ever had; the best father, husband, and fried, I could have asked for.
He was preceded in death by his parents, his sister Dorothy Colene Perry, and his grandson Clinton Lee "Tiger" Bailey, Jr.
Pallbearers included Clinton Lee Bailey, Sr., Cadence Bailey, Bruen Goolsby, Eddie Halamicek, Cody Stowers, and Dean White.
Family Members
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
Records on Ancestry
Advertisement
