Morton Helped Shape Moore County History
W. J. Morton Jr. tells the story of the Morton family in a book he wrote in 1966 called Snowstorms, Dust Storms and Horses' Tails.
The family story begins in Maury County, Tennessee, when his parents, William Jones Alexander Morton and Laura Elizabeth Kennedy were married in 1892. Jones and Laura left three days later on a journey that would lead them to Moore County.
They filed on 160 acres on the north side of what later became Hollis, Oklahoma. They made their home in a dugout. Jones remembered a story his mother told about sitting in the middle of the bed holding him when he was a baby. She was holding an umbrella over them to keep the snow off during the blizzard. They later traded that land for land four miles west of Hollis. Again, they lived in a dugout.
In that late fall or early winter of 1901, Jones and a friend, Jesse Walker, left Oklahoma and came to Texas looking for land. Jesse had purchased land from Tom Ward in the eastern part of Moore County.
Jones and Laura had six children: William James Jr., Hiram Ezra, Altha Nathalia, Annie Josephine, Minnie Wilna, and John Vesta.
Soon after coming to Moore County, Jones went into the real estate business. He and a partner, Joe Wynn, sold land all over the county. In 1908, he and a group of men purchased the Dumas townsite and formed the Moore County Townsite Company.
Jones organized the First State Bank in 1908, opening in December. He was one of a group of North Plains citizens to build the Enid, Ochiltree and Western railroad. The project was not successful, but Jones still worked on helping to get a railroad to Moore County and was successful in getting Santa Fe Railroad here. He served as county chairman of several government agricultural boards.
He died in November of 1934 at age 66. He was president of the bank he started. He had served as county commissioner for many years. He served as president of the Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado Highway Association where he worked to see the completion of hard surfaced routes across the county.
W. J. Jr. followed in his father's footsteps, working to make Moore County a better place. He realized the need for health care in the county and worked with county commissioners to build a hospital here.
He was named "Man of the Year" at the annual chamber of commerce banquet in 1967. When Hugh Lyle made the presentation, he said, "Many of us owe our lives to you. We have waited a long time to give you the honor due."
In a story in the Moore County News-Press in January of 1967, it was reported, "Morton had the idea and drive to push the building of a first-class hospital facility for Moore County back in the 1940's. He started a drive that came to a successful end in 1948 when Memorial Hospital opened its doors in May of that year to take in its first patient."
Morton served as a director of the bank his father started and worked on several other projects that made Moore County a progressive county. One was to get electricity to the rural part of the county. That happened in 1945 when Rita Blanca Electric Cooperative ran the lines to make electricity available.
He was a member of Texas Farm Bureau and a director of the Soil Conservation District and was vice chairman of Agricultural Stabilization Commission.
In 1935, he worked with a committee to set up the Moore County Wind Erosion District.
Morton Park which is near the junior high was named after the Morton family. W. J. Sr. gave the land to the city. When the land was given, Morton said he didn't want a baseball diamond -- they could be everywhere. He wanted trees and a real park.
He and his wife, Willie, were parents of three children, Jim Ed, Harold Dean and Genevieve. They continued to live on the family farm in the Palo Duro Community until a fire in October of 1949 destroyed their home. They moved into Dumas.
W. J. Jr.'s book describes the hardships of Moore County's early pioneers. In a story in the November 25, 1966 edition in the Amarillo Daily News, the book is described as written "in a conversational style, the author has traced not only his life but the progress of Moore County." The news story stated, "As readers scan the pages they will find that Morton's words can almost be heard. It is as if one were listening to the author rather than reading."
Descendants of Jones Morton have worked to make Moore County better. That tradition goes on with grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
The family story begins in Maury County, Tennessee, when his parents, William Jones Alexander Morton and Laura Elizabeth Kennedy were married in 1892. Jones and Laura left three days later on a journey that would lead them to Moore County.
They filed on 160 acres on the north side of what later became Hollis, Oklahoma. They made their home in a dugout. Jones remembered a story his mother told about sitting in the middle of the bed holding him when he was a baby. She was holding an umbrella over them to keep the snow off during the blizzard. They later traded that land for land four miles west of Hollis. Again, they lived in a dugout.
In that late fall or early winter of 1901, Jones and a friend, Jesse Walker, left Oklahoma and came to Texas looking for land. Jesse had purchased land from Tom Ward in the eastern part of Moore County.
Jones and Laura had six children: William James Jr., Hiram Ezra, Altha Nathalia, Annie Josephine, Minnie Wilna, and John Vesta.
Soon after coming to Moore County, Jones went into the real estate business. He and a partner, Joe Wynn, sold land all over the county. In 1908, he and a group of men purchased the Dumas townsite and formed the Moore County Townsite Company.
Jones organized the First State Bank in 1908, opening in December. He was one of a group of North Plains citizens to build the Enid, Ochiltree and Western railroad. The project was not successful, but Jones still worked on helping to get a railroad to Moore County and was successful in getting Santa Fe Railroad here. He served as county chairman of several government agricultural boards.
He died in November of 1934 at age 66. He was president of the bank he started. He had served as county commissioner for many years. He served as president of the Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado Highway Association where he worked to see the completion of hard surfaced routes across the county.
W. J. Jr. followed in his father's footsteps, working to make Moore County a better place. He realized the need for health care in the county and worked with county commissioners to build a hospital here.
He was named "Man of the Year" at the annual chamber of commerce banquet in 1967. When Hugh Lyle made the presentation, he said, "Many of us owe our lives to you. We have waited a long time to give you the honor due."
In a story in the Moore County News-Press in January of 1967, it was reported, "Morton had the idea and drive to push the building of a first-class hospital facility for Moore County back in the 1940's. He started a drive that came to a successful end in 1948 when Memorial Hospital opened its doors in May of that year to take in its first patient."
Morton served as a director of the bank his father started and worked on several other projects that made Moore County a progressive county. One was to get electricity to the rural part of the county. That happened in 1945 when Rita Blanca Electric Cooperative ran the lines to make electricity available.
He was a member of Texas Farm Bureau and a director of the Soil Conservation District and was vice chairman of Agricultural Stabilization Commission.
In 1935, he worked with a committee to set up the Moore County Wind Erosion District.
Morton Park which is near the junior high was named after the Morton family. W. J. Sr. gave the land to the city. When the land was given, Morton said he didn't want a baseball diamond -- they could be everywhere. He wanted trees and a real park.
He and his wife, Willie, were parents of three children, Jim Ed, Harold Dean and Genevieve. They continued to live on the family farm in the Palo Duro Community until a fire in October of 1949 destroyed their home. They moved into Dumas.
W. J. Jr.'s book describes the hardships of Moore County's early pioneers. In a story in the November 25, 1966 edition in the Amarillo Daily News, the book is described as written "in a conversational style, the author has traced not only his life but the progress of Moore County." The news story stated, "As readers scan the pages they will find that Morton's words can almost be heard. It is as if one were listening to the author rather than reading."
Descendants of Jones Morton have worked to make Moore County better. That tradition goes on with grandchildren and great-grandchildren.