Stephen Roland Seaboalt was named for his grandfather Stephen ROWLAND. Only problem was that is mother Sara Jane ROWLAND could neither read nor write and they wound up spelling his middle name Roland instead of ROWLAND. Around Rankin, he was perhaps the most respected man in the community. He was known as Mr. Seaboalt, Steve, Uncle Steve, S. R. or Pa, depending upon a persons formal relationship with him. He was an Elder in the Rankin Church of Christ. He ateve actively farmed, until his death at age 89, approximately 160 acres in the Rankin community with the help of his two sons, Stephen Alonzo (Lonnie) and William H. (Bill)Seaboalt. After his wife Ada died in 1921, his son Lonnie and his daughter Mary Jane lived with him and helped him run farm and keep house while his son Bill lived and farmed part of Steven's land on the south side of Rankin. Mary Jane raised her only daughter Falsom in this house. The two-story white frame house was built in 1905 on top of the "Seaboalt Hill" 1/2 mile due north of the Rankin Lodge building; it could be seen from miles around. On a clear night, from the second story, one could see the lights of Ennis, fifteen miles away. When Stephen died in 1944, Lonnie inherited the home place and he and Mary continued to live and farm there until he retired and sold the place to Wilmer Gorman in 1947.
Although electricity came to the Rankin area in the mid-thirties, Stephen never had it brought to his house. His farm was fairly self-sufficient. They had a cow for milk, raised hogs and chickens for meat, had a garden for vegetables which they canned and put away, and plowed their fields with mules which pulled a cultivator. Their principle income was from cotton which was taken to the Rankin cotton gin in a wagon pulled by mules. Stephen made extra money by raising watermelons and keeping bees for honey. I can remember watching him put on a big black hat which had a cloth screen all around to protect his face from the bees. He had a smoke box, into which he would place a smouldering rag. By pumping on a bellows attached to the bottom of the smoker, he would force smoke out of a small funnel opening and into the bee hive in order to make the bees evacuate the hive.
(Bio written by his g-grandson, William "Bill" Gorman)
Although electricity came to the Rankin area in the mid-thirties, Stephen never had it brought to his house. His farm was fairly self-sufficient. They had a cow for milk, raised hogs and chickens for meat, had a garden for vegetables which they canned and put away, and plowed their fields with mules which pulled a cultivator. Their principle income was from cotton which was taken to the Rankin cotton gin in a wagon pulled by mules. Stephen made extra money by raising watermelons and keeping bees for honey. I can remember watching him put on a big black hat which had a cloth screen all around to protect his face from the bees. He had a smoke box, into which he would place a smouldering rag. By pumping on a bellows attached to the bottom of the smoker, he would force smoke out of a small funnel opening and into the bee hive in order to make the bees evacuate the hive.
(Bio written by his g-grandson, William "Bill" Gorman)
Stephen Roland Seaboalt was named for his grandfather Stephen ROWLAND. Only problem was that is mother Sara Jane ROWLAND could neither read nor write and they wound up spelling his middle name Roland instead of ROWLAND. Around Rankin, he was perhaps the most respected man in the community. He was known as Mr. Seaboalt, Steve, Uncle Steve, S. R. or Pa, depending upon a persons formal relationship with him. He was an Elder in the Rankin Church of Christ. He ateve actively farmed, until his death at age 89, approximately 160 acres in the Rankin community with the help of his two sons, Stephen Alonzo (Lonnie) and William H. (Bill)Seaboalt. After his wife Ada died in 1921, his son Lonnie and his daughter Mary Jane lived with him and helped him run farm and keep house while his son Bill lived and farmed part of Steven's land on the south side of Rankin. Mary Jane raised her only daughter Falsom in this house. The two-story white frame house was built in 1905 on top of the "Seaboalt Hill" 1/2 mile due north of the Rankin Lodge building; it could be seen from miles around. On a clear night, from the second story, one could see the lights of Ennis, fifteen miles away. When Stephen died in 1944, Lonnie inherited the home place and he and Mary continued to live and farm there until he retired and sold the place to Wilmer Gorman in 1947.
Although electricity came to the Rankin area in the mid-thirties, Stephen never had it brought to his house. His farm was fairly self-sufficient. They had a cow for milk, raised hogs and chickens for meat, had a garden for vegetables which they canned and put away, and plowed their fields with mules which pulled a cultivator. Their principle income was from cotton which was taken to the Rankin cotton gin in a wagon pulled by mules. Stephen made extra money by raising watermelons and keeping bees for honey. I can remember watching him put on a big black hat which had a cloth screen all around to protect his face from the bees. He had a smoke box, into which he would place a smouldering rag. By pumping on a bellows attached to the bottom of the smoker, he would force smoke out of a small funnel opening and into the bee hive in order to make the bees evacuate the hive.
(Bio written by his g-grandson, William "Bill" Gorman)
Although electricity came to the Rankin area in the mid-thirties, Stephen never had it brought to his house. His farm was fairly self-sufficient. They had a cow for milk, raised hogs and chickens for meat, had a garden for vegetables which they canned and put away, and plowed their fields with mules which pulled a cultivator. Their principle income was from cotton which was taken to the Rankin cotton gin in a wagon pulled by mules. Stephen made extra money by raising watermelons and keeping bees for honey. I can remember watching him put on a big black hat which had a cloth screen all around to protect his face from the bees. He had a smoke box, into which he would place a smouldering rag. By pumping on a bellows attached to the bottom of the smoker, he would force smoke out of a small funnel opening and into the bee hive in order to make the bees evacuate the hive.
(Bio written by his g-grandson, William "Bill" Gorman)
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