| Notes |
- Gladys Mary Richardson, nee Corder, was born in Kimble County, Texas, the8th of nine children. Gladys spent virtually all of her youth on ranches in Kimble and Edwards Counties. Her father, my grandfather, was a rancher all his life. He was completely devoted to his family and my mother always spoke of him with love and respect. My mother suffered through a very painful first marriage. When she became pregnant with my older,half-brother, her husband demanded that she have an abortion. When she refused, he became very nasty, told her that she would receive no further money from him and walked out the door. Within a few days she had no food left, so she called her next oldest sister, Alice, who lived in Center Point, Texas. Alice and her husband immediately came to San Antonio,packed my mother's things and took her home with them. My brother was born in their house. Mother worked in Center Point as a telephone operator for a while and then moved to Junction, where she again worked as a telephone operator. It was here that she met my father. On 31 August1928 my mother and Pete Richardson went to a dance together. After the dance was over Gladys and Pete were walking home.
Pete suddenly stopped and asked Gladys to marry him. Gladys, who perhaps was expecting this proposal, said yes. Pete said, "let's get married right away." Gladys said OK. So, the two walked over to the County Judge's house, banged on his door until he got up and then persuaded him to marry them.
They were married at approximately 2 am on 1 September 1928. The judge must have been very sleepy when he did the paperwork because he misspelled my father's name on the marriage license. Gladys was wonderful mother, a great cook and a devoted Christian. When I was in 1stgrade she insisted that we drive into town for church services every Sunday; she was determined that I attend Sunday School.
Gladys was affectionately called "Aunt Pete" by the people in both families. My grandfather Walter Richardson was very fond of my mother because she was the only one who would cook liver for him(my grandmother disliked liver intensely); every so often my mother would cook liver smothered in onions and she and my grandfather would sit down(just the two of them) and eat until the platter was clean. Gladys was plagued by bad health for years and had at least 2 or 3 major operations. She had a quiet determination about her and seldom complained, even when things looked bleak.
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1902 - 1963 (61 years)
