Told by his sister, Evvie Bass Stevens”Milford Allen Bass was born August 11, 1893 in White Oak, Hardin County, Texas. He was the third child and the first son born to William Riley and Frances Elizabeth Collins Bass. A little sister, Eliza Jane was born November 20, 1891 but lived only one month.
When Milford was about 16 or 17 years old, he was coming down the stairs on a Saturday evening. He had a date and was going to his high school graduation exercises. His brother, John, met him on the stairway with a small pistol that a friend had given him and told him that it wasn’t loaded. So in a playful way, he said to Milford, “Hands up!” Milford didn’t play along with him so John pulled the trigger and found too late that the gun was loaded. The bullet went through his mouth and lodged above the lobe of the left ear.
When the Doctor arrived, he did not want to remove the bullet, but Mother and Dad insisted and when it was removed, a small piece of the brain came out with the bullet. The Doctor was sure he would be mentally impaired, but time proved him wrong.
After the excitement of that evening wore off, the family began searching for John who had disappeared. They found him behind the kitchen stove where he had crawled and cried himself to sleep!After Milford was healed and well again, from the accident, he went to school, took tests, received his graduation certificate, and then went back to work. For several years, he did part-time clerking for the Teels in their store. He also worked for a livery stable driving a team and wagon with supplies for different companies in the oil fields. He heard from some of the men working on the rigs that there was a lot of work in Oil City, Louisiana and they paid three dollars a day. He went to Oil City and it was there that he met his future wife, Minnie Horton Nordyke. She ran a boarding house for oil workers.I do not remember the date of their marriage, but it was probably 1919 or 1920. Their first son, William Andrew Bass was born July 12, 1921 and a little girl, Sarah Francis was born October 23, 1925. She did not live very long.
Milford did not live to be very old. He died September 19, 1944 at the age of 31 years. He was a loving and caring person to all who knew him… especially to his parents!Mother and Dad were in Utah and so were unable to attend Milford’s funeral.”This bio was produced for a big Bass Reunion in the late 80s, it lasted for days and I’ve heard that hundreds attended over the course of those days.
The source document was shared with me by Kris Crowther.
