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Barbara Ellen Shackelford

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Barbara Ellen Shackelford

Birth
Death
3 Jun 1949 (aged 63)
Burial
Marathon, Brewster County, Texas, USA Add to Map
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Barbara Ellen Shackelford was named for her maternal grandmother, Barbra (Hunsaker) Simpson, who, with her husband, William Jones Simpson, both of Adams County, Illinois, moved to Bandera County, Texas from Missouri in the early 1870s, where they settled on land at Pipe Creek. Barbara Ellen's father, William Jefferson Shackelford, was the second husband of her mother, Elvira (Simpson) Young.

Barbara Ellen never married, but became a midwife in Marathon and helped usher dozens of babies into this world. She also did practical nursing for private patients, and assisted the town doctor, G.W. Worthington, in many cases. She also was an adept seamstress, sewing garments for many family members and others throughout her life. Her hobby was creating hand carved items from soapstone & sandstone, such as ashtrays & bookends.

She taught me to whistle, took me on walks to discover interesting rocks, warned me about snakes & other hazards. She created the two headstones of her parents, Elvira and William J., who are both buried in the Marathon cemetery. These headstones are decorated with quartz formations and small petrified rocks she had gathered from the Black Gap, a volcanic area near the Rio Grande River. She used horseshoe nails to form the letters of their names & dates of birth and death.

She became a beloved and valuable member of her family and to many residents in the small town of Marathon during her lifetime.
Barbara Ellen Shackelford was named for her maternal grandmother, Barbra (Hunsaker) Simpson, who, with her husband, William Jones Simpson, both of Adams County, Illinois, moved to Bandera County, Texas from Missouri in the early 1870s, where they settled on land at Pipe Creek. Barbara Ellen's father, William Jefferson Shackelford, was the second husband of her mother, Elvira (Simpson) Young.

Barbara Ellen never married, but became a midwife in Marathon and helped usher dozens of babies into this world. She also did practical nursing for private patients, and assisted the town doctor, G.W. Worthington, in many cases. She also was an adept seamstress, sewing garments for many family members and others throughout her life. Her hobby was creating hand carved items from soapstone & sandstone, such as ashtrays & bookends.

She taught me to whistle, took me on walks to discover interesting rocks, warned me about snakes & other hazards. She created the two headstones of her parents, Elvira and William J., who are both buried in the Marathon cemetery. These headstones are decorated with quartz formations and small petrified rocks she had gathered from the Black Gap, a volcanic area near the Rio Grande River. She used horseshoe nails to form the letters of their names & dates of birth and death.

She became a beloved and valuable member of her family and to many residents in the small town of Marathon during her lifetime.

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