Mary Daggett Lake and David Henry Rankin, Sr by Julie Arrington Culver and Mike Arrington Great Aunt Mary and Great Uncle David were always so much fun! Cathy, Mike and I would go to Fort Worth to stay with them while our parents, George and Jane, went to the OU vs TX game in Dallas. Their back yard was full of tall bamboo shoots, and we loved playing “fort” in their back yard. Aunt Mary had pictures all over her walls of the house. Uncle David would take us downtown to ride an underground subway (?) at Leonard’s Department Store. We went to Radio Shack at the end of the subway and go back to the beginning. We would go to a store where he got a loaf of French bread, a hunk of cheese, and some salami. He let us pick out our favorite pop (like Nehi Grape or Orange Crush) in a bottle. We would go to a park downtown and have a picnic. He always took us to Tandy Leather Store. He was a “crazy” driver and riding around with him was an adventure! We would do plays for them when they came to the ranch to see Grandmother and Jule. Uncle David had a ranch in South or North Dakota (?) and would drive from Fort Worth to Canadian to stay the night, go on to his ranch and repeat on his way back. To us kids, he was always a hoot! After college in the early 80s, I worked for Governor Bill Clements and would stay with Aunt Mary and Uncle David when I came to Fort Worth for political events. Aunt Mary had severe osteoporosis in her later years and was pretty much bed-ridden by then. I would go visit with her in her bedroom as she sat very propped up in bed. I remember her glasses pushed up on her head as she was busy. She was always typing on a typewriter, reading, or doing research. She was a very “learned person”. Uncle David was very “tight” with money. Mike remembers when we went out to eat that Uncle David would ask if we were going to eat our bread. If we said “no” he would put the bread in his pocket to eat later.

David and Mary (Lake) Rankin's son, Hank (Col. David H. Rankin, Jr) was a true American hero! In Vietnam, he had a stuffed Snoopy (The Red Baron) in his cockpit with him on his 425 bombing missions. His mother wrote to Charles Schultz and he sent the picture of Snoopy along with his best wishes and signature back to Aunt Mary. She kept it on her hall wall in the Fort Worth house. Hank met his wife, Donna in Hong Kong, when he was on his way back to the states from Vietnam and she was on a lay-over with Delta where she was a flight attendant. They continued seeing each other and got married. David was my dad's cousin, but he was only 10 years older than me. Cathy, Mike and I were always in awe of him and we spent much time together at our Arrington Ranch. David and Donna lived in Hawaii where Hank was in charge of the planes at Wheeler Airforce Base when I was in summer school at the University of Hawaii after my sophomore year at Oklahoma University. My roommate and I rode a bus from town to Wheeler Air Force base on Friday afternoons to go stay with them. They were both gourmet chef's and made delicious meals. We loved going to the officer's club on Friday nights with them for nickel beer nights. We spent our Saturdays and Sundays with them snorkeling and rode the bus back to town on Sunday evenings. He died with an inoperable brain tumor caused by Agent Orange. We all loved him deeply and America lost a true hero. Rest in peace, Hank!

Left to right: Melanie Arrington Smith, Buck Arrington,Mike Arrington, me (Julie Arrington Culver), and Cathy Arrington Stephens George and Bill Arrington were the twin sons of French and Ollie Lake Arrington (daughter of Mary Daggett Lake). George and Jane had Cathy, Julie, and Mike. Bill and Greta had Buck and Melanie. Many of our week-ends and summers were spent at the Arrington Ranch in Canadian, TX. We used cardboard boxes as our sleds to slide down the caprocks, we hunted arrowheads on top of Cedar Mountain, and our grandmother, Ollie, made us many picnic lunches. We always lit sparklers on the 4th of July. We had 4 cousins in Arizona that came in the summer, too. When the cousins got together, we always put on a play for our parents and grandparents and charged them a nickel to buy a ticket. Sometimes they gave us a dime! We would divide the money evenly and Grandmother would take us into town to go to the grocery store and buy candy or a pop. Thanks to our grandparents, parents, aunts and uncles, cousins, and siblings for making our childhood magical!

Whenever there was an occasion for a birthday cake at a family celebration, grandmother Ollie Lake Arrington, always followed the English tradition of inserting small items into the cake. Everyone had great anticipation when the dessert plates were passed around the table. As you ate your piece of cake, you had to be careful not to break a tooth! If you got the dime, it meant you would have the most money in the coming year. If you got the penny, it meant you would have the least money. If you got the ring, you would have the most romance in the coming year. If you got the button or the thimble, you were out of luck with romance. Ollie also could read palms and tell fortunes. I think it was mostly for fun. . .but strangely her predictions often came true!

Daggett Reunion 1888 - Fairview, PA

 

“A Daggett Reunion was held on the lawn of Dr. Weeks, August 9, 1888, a company of one hundred and seventy-five being present.”  History of the Doggett (Also Daggett) Family, 1894, written by Samuel Bradlee Doggett; published Boston : Press of Rockwell and Churchill.

 

Dr. Helen Marian Daggett Pollay Weeks, born in Girard, PA in 1840.

https://fairviewhistory.org/helen-weeks-outstanding/

This transom window came out of the Daggett-Keen livestock commission building at Fort Worth Stockyards.

My paternal grandmother was Ollie Mae (née Lake)Arrington. Over the years, all of her nine grandchildren would stay with her overnight at the big, old ranch house in Hemphill County, Texas outside of the town of Canadian. The Arizona cousins, The Johnsons would sometimes stay for almost the whole summer. The rest of us were lucky to be with Miss Ollie/Grandmother and Jule (French) whenever our parents dropped us for a stay. She loved to read us Uncle Wiggily and tell us stories at bedtime.

Memories from my Grandmother, Helen Glenn Allen Williams:

 

I was born in Fort Worth, Texas at the home of my grandfather and grandmother Daggett. My birth date is May 31, 1917.

 

I was named Helen Daggett Allen. Daggett was my mother’s maiden name and a proud one. Families carried their heritage with family maiden names. Several of my cousins claim this family name. At age 5 or 6 I decided I didn't like the Daggett name and preferred my Daddy's first name. It seemed to me I should be named for both parents, not one only. Aunt Lake, my mother’s oldest sister, had a friend in the state records department in the capitol building. My Mother was willing to follow Aunt Lake's advice that we go to Austin and legally change my name. Aunt Lake knew a lot of things. I can still remember there was an older lady with a very large record book. Lights were bright. The building inside had everything marble or granite.

 

To identify my parents and their locale - my mother and daddy were Glenn Joseph Allen and Laura Helen Daggett. They established the Lazy R Ranch in 1914 in Crane, Ector, Ward and Winkler counties. My maternal grandmother was Laura Alice Palmer Daggett and Ephraim Merrill Daggett was her husband. The kids called him "Big Pap". Laura Daggett was called Grandma by her numerous grandchildren. Grandma and Big Pap came to Fort Worth when they were young.

Daggett Memories from Helen Glenn Allen Williams:

 

Grandma Daggett was Presbyterian and organized and taught the Bible Browning Class at First Presbyterian Church in Fort Worth. My first baptism as a young adult was in this church. Grandma Daggett liked to tell bible stories to us kids. Seems that we sat on the floor.

Big Pap died when I was just a little girl of what they called then, leakage of the heart. Grandma took in boarders to help with expenses on the big frame two­ story house. One time the house caught fire from the neighbors burning house and grandma's house burned to the ground. I think this house was re-built. Mother told the story about going back in to save the family silver. Fire was everywhere. Grandma gave the silver to Aunt Elizabeth, her youngest and most favorite daughter.

Grandma Daggett did beautiful needlework after she gave up housekeeping and moved in with Aunt Cora. I have a large yarn picture and several smaller ones and also several very finely stitched quilts. I have not seen any so elegant.

My Grandmother is Helen Glenn Allen Williams. This is one of her memories: Grandma Daggett loved to go out to lunch and always took any and all visitors out. I can still see her sitting in the big swing on the porch wearing her black hat, her black coat with black fur collar and black shoes and bag. She was waiting for us younger ones to dress, and we always seemed to be holding up the departure. 

 

My Memory:This makes me laugh now because my Grandmother was the same! She complained endlessly about how long it took us (me, my sisters and cousins) to get ready. She would say we took 30 minute showers and an hour to dress! It used to bother me but now I realize she was just behaving the way she had learned!