Bob Bardwell

Sweetwater - J. Robert (Bob) Bardwell, 87, of Sweetwater, died at 1:40 p.m. Monday at the Rolling Plains Memorial Hospital.

Services will be at 2 p.m. Wednesday at the Cate-Spencer Funeral Home Chapel. The Rev. William H. Hunt, pastor of the Presbyterian Church, will officiate, assisted by the Rev. Charles Reese, pastor of First Christian Church. Masonic rites graveside services and burial will be in the Sweetwater Cemetery.

Born Aug. 11, 1889 in Nolan County, he had lived here most of his life. He married Luva Brown on June 28, 1908 in Sweetwater. She died Sept. 4, 1975. He was a member of the Presbyterian Church and the Masonic Lodge. He was retired.

Survivors include two daughters, Mrs. Mildred Shuff of Sweetwater and Mrs. Mary Kennedy of Lubbock; two sisters, Mrs. J. H. Withers of Sweetwater and Mrs. Hershel Baird of San Antonio; and six grandchildren.

From The Abilene (TX) Reporter, Tuesday, May 17, 1977
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J Robert Bardwell
in the Texas, U.S., Death Certificates, 1903-1982

Name: J Robert Bardwell
Gender: Male
Race: Caucasian (White)
Age: 87
Birth Date: 11 Aug 1889
Birth Place: Nolan County, Texas
Residence: 1215 Beall St., Sweetwater, Nolan, Texas, USA
Death Date: 16 May 1977
Death Place: Rolling Plains Memorial Hospital, Sweetwater, Nolan, Texas, USA
Cause of Death: Acute myocardial infarction; coronary artery disease
Father: Brainard Bardwell
Mother: Mary Ada Fly
Occupation: Cattle Commissioner, State of Texas
Burial/Removal: Sweetwater Cemetery
Date: 18 May 1977
Informant: Mrs. Mildred Shuff (daughter)
Certificate Number: 37880

Source Information
Ancestry.com. Texas, U.S., Death Certificates, 1903-1982 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2013.
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JAMES ROBERT (BOB) BARDWELL AND LUVA LENORE (BROWN) BARDWELL

Bob Bardwell was born August 11, 1889, in the Bitter Creek Community, the son of Brainard and Mary Ada Bardwell, pioneers of Nolan County. The Bardwell family arrived in Nolan County in 1885. Bob was born in the house which now stands on the old Bardwell place and has been restored by the J. C. Pace Family.

Four other children were born to the Bardwells in this house. Among these were Mrs. Henry (Gertrude) Withers, who still resides south of the city.

Brainard Bardwell was shot and killed by a transient sheepherder when Bob was only nine years old.

Bob was interested in ranching, and for a number of years, he was state cattle inspector, during the eradication program on tickets, etc. He visited the ranches, especially at round-up time and inspected the cattle and dipped them if necessary. He rode with the cowboys and ate at the chuck wagon. This was a life he enjoyed very much.

Bob Bardwell and Luva Brown, daughter of R. O. and Sallie Brown, who were also pioneers to this country, were married June 28, 1908. They drove to the home of Rev. L. B. McCaslin, minister of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, in their horse-drawn buggy, accompanied by Ed Bardwell and Claude Brown and their wives. The minister came out to the hitching post, where the buggies were drawn up, and said the words which made them man and wife for more than 60 years.

Bob died May 16, 1977 and Luva died September 4, 1975. They are buried in Sweetwater Cemetery.

To this couple were born two boys and two girls, Gordon and Paul, who are deceased; Mary is married to Bill Kennedy and they reside in Lubbock where she works for the State Highway Department; and Mildred is married to Charles Shuff and resides in Sweetwater. Mary and Bill have two children. Bob Kennedy, his wife Marisa and son Matthew reside in Abilene. Mary Jane and husband Larry Harbison reside in Fort Worth. Mildred and Charles have four daughters, Charlene Ragan, Glenda Byrd, Margaret Joyner and Gayle Biggerstaff. They have nine grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.

Bob and Luva celebrated their 60th wedding anniversary in 1968 with a reception.

From FIRST 100 YEARS NOLAN COUNTY TEXAS (published 1985 by Nolan County Genealogical Society), Page 97
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BRAINARD BARDWELL

Brainard Bardwell and his wife, Mary Ada Fly Bardwell, came to Nolan County in 1885 from Gonzales County, Texas. They established their home in the Bitter Creek Community ten miles south of Sweetwater on a ten section ranch.

The Brainard Bardwells had ten children. The five oldest children moved to Nolan County with their parents. They were Emma Lou (Mrs. Sam Glass), Zoe (Mrs. Will Cook), Ada (Mrs. Sam Witt), Madden Fly Bardwell and DAVID EDWIN BARDWELL. The other five children, who were born in Nolan County, were Nanny Elizabeth (Mrs. R. L. Witt), James Robert (Bob) Bardwell, Nettie Irene (Mrs. H. E. Baird) and Gertrude (Mrs. J. H. Withers) and Brainard, Jr., who were twins.

During the early days on the ranch, it was necessary for family members to make the long trip by wagon to Buffalo Gap to buy provisions. Later on, the trip was made to Abilene as the T&P Railroad had been built that far west. These supplies were usually bought for a six months period. The grocery items had to be carefully stored and preserved for that long period of time.

Five of the Bardwell daughters were married in the ranch home that Mr. and Mrs. Brainard Bardwell built on the Bitter Creek ranch. This house still stands and has been restored by the J. C. Pace family, the present owners. The youngest daughter was marred in Sweetwater after the family moved to town.

In 1898, Brainard Bardwell was shot and killed on his ranch by a transient sheep herder. In those days, ranch land was unfenced. The sheepherder had driven his flock of sheep across the ranch land, allowing them to graze and drink water for several days. When Mr. Bardwell went to a watering hole where the sheep were to tell the herder to move on, he was shot.

Several years later, Mrs. Bardwell moved to Sweetwater from the ranch. She was one of eleven people who organized and secured a charter for the First Presbyterian Church in Nolan County. At her death in 1938, she was the last surviving charter member of the present First Presbyterian Church.

Both Brainard and Mary Ada Fly Bardwell are buried in the Sweetwater Cemetery. Two of the children survive, being Gertrude Withers of Sweetwater and Nettie Baird of San Antonio, Texas.
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