Walter Byrd Carswell (1882-1965)

Payne Gap Cemetery Directory

Names Detail

First Name

Walter

Middle Name

Byrd

Last Name

Carswell

Birth and Death

Birth Date

April 14, 1882

Death Date

January 10, 1965

Age at Death

82 year(s), 8 month(s), 26 day(s)

Cemetery Location and Disposition

Cemetery Location

Row 04, Grave 13 | Map

Disposition Type

Burial

Relationships to Others at the Cemetery

External Links

Notes

He was married to Carrie Carrigan. Here is her bio, written by Cleo Carswell.

Walter Byrd & Carrie were farming on the land inherited from Byrd’s father, W. T. Carswell, near Moline, close to the Lampasas County and Mills County line. Their three children were born there on the homeplace, attended by Dr. Florence Brooking of Star, Texas, which is nearby.

The children helped with the farm chores, often milking before walking to the Moline School, 2 miles away.

The Carswells were close friend with all their neighbors, and they helped one another out in times of need.

In 1918 there was a serious drought in Central Texas, so the crops and animals suffered. In need of money to live on and pay debts, Byrd and Carrie loaded up their children in their covered wagon and drove the 150-200 miles to East Texas to help pick cotton. The family camped near the cotton fields, laying quilts on the ground to sleep on, and cooking over campfires. In about 2 months, the chilren talked thier parents into loading up and returning home to Moline.

Each of the children married as the years went by. Lora Bell married Norman Godwin in 1927. Johnnie married Alma Featherston in 1931. Pat married Cleo Back in 1940.

These days of simple living without electricity or running water, with wood to cut to heat the home in winter, of heavy farm work done by hand labor, all resulted in very loving relationships and good, healthy, sturdy bodies, with a knack for life.

Carrie spent her last days in Goldthwaite and Evant, Texas, as a result of a broken hip from a fall at home. She eventually had a stroke and passed away in 1963. She rests in Hines Chapel Cemetary, Adamsville, near Evant, buried next to her father.

Her husband Byrd was living in Lampasas when he suffered a gall bladder attack and ensuing surgery in Childress Hospital. After surgery, he resided in Heritage Home in Goldthwaite, Texas and passed away a few months later in 1965. He is buried in Payne Gap Cemetary [sic], Mills County, near Moline and Payne Gap, where his parents and family are buried.

(bio by Cleo Carswell, in the Mills County Book “Memories”)

Images and Documents

Obituary, The Gatesville Messenger and Star-Forum Fri, Jan 15, 1965, Page 9
Obituary, THE GOLDTHWAIT EAGLE MULLIN ENTERPRISE Goldthwalte, Texas, Thursday, January 14, 1965
Obituary, THE GOLDTHWAITE EAGLE MULLIN ENTERPRISE Goldthwalte, Texas, Thursday, January 21, 1965

Share Your Thoughts

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *