Mrs. J. H. Key Recalls Memories of Early Life

Lea County Families,"Then and Now", Vol I, 1979

Oklahoma land rushes, painted Indians, and trips across the land in covered wagons. These are a few of the memories of Mrs. J. H. Key, who is now (1979) and a resident of the Lovington, New Mexico Good Samaritaan Center.

Lena Malinda Medlin was born October 6, 1881, to Isaac and Sallie Medlin in Burnet County, Texas. When she was four years old the family moved to Knox County, Texas and settled on a section of land where the town of Munday is now located. Lena started to school there, riding on a little brown pony behind her Aunt Laura, who was the school teacher for the Helm school.

When she was twelve years old her family moved to Oklahoma and settled on the banks of the Canadian River. She remembers the time a band of painted Indians came to their house wanting "Wookaw"or beef. Her father was away at the time and her mother was frightened, but she gave them the beef. The Indians paid for it with trinkets and blankets and went peacefully away.

One of her favorite memories is the time she and her family took part in one of the Oklahoma land rushes, near the present site of Woodward. Her father and brothers made the twenty mile run on horseback while her mother and the other children followed in the wagon.

"We left Oklahoma after six years with a caravan of two wagons, a herd of horses and a hack whick mother drove. I rode horseback everyday, all day long, helping brother Lew drive the horses because I liked that better than riding in a wagon," said Mrs. Key. "We settled about twelve miles northeast of Big Spring, Texas. It was here that I met a young cowboy by the name of Jim Key who worked on a neighboring ranch. Jim and I were married on June 19, 1901."

In 1904 Jim and Lena Key, with their two children, Sid and Gladys, moved to Dawson County, Texas, after buying two sections of land in what is now known as the Key comminuity, located east of Lamesa, Texas.

"Jim donated the land for the school house, helped to freight the materials from Big Spring, helped to build it, boarded the teacher and furnished a good part of the enrollment, so it is no wondre that they named the school "Key", said Mrs. Key.

"He cleared our land of brush, freighted lumber and supplies from Big Spring and built a home for us. I have had several houses since then, much bigger and better, but I was never so proud of a house as I was of that one,"said Mrs. Key. "I thought that little pink and white house was the prettiest thing in the world."

It was here that Violet Kinnison, who now lives in Lamesa and Mary Lee Frier, who now lives in Tatum, New Mexico, were born, also two other children who died young.

In 1916 they sold the farm and the pink house and moved to Lamesa to go into the ginning business with a cousin. Three sons wer born there, James Travis, now of Mineral Wells, Texas, Dewayne of Eunice, New Mexico, and Jack of Uvalde, Texas. Sid passed away in 1941 in Eunice, New Mexicoburied at Lamesa Texas; Gladys (Mrs. Edd Eoff) passed away at Tatum, New Mexico in 1965 and is buried there.

Mrs. Key moved to Tatum soon after the death of her husband. She is now (1979), 96, years old and has been a resident of the Good Samaritan Center for the last seven years.

The nurses refer to her as "Our Lady" because she always dresses for dinner and never wears a robe into the dining room.

One of Mrs. Key's daughters found an unsealed envelope addressed to "My Dear Children," and felt it clearly demonstrated the type of person her mother was and is. It read "Your Daddy was a wonderful man-husband-father and we raised all of you just the best we knew how. We think you are wonderful. Hope for you and yours the very best in life-which is not riches-but that you will live good honest Chritian lives-that you will be a blessing to your community; men among men, women who are the very best; Pray to God always, and live close to him, love and worship Him always. God Bless each and all of you. Lovingly, Mother."