John Morgan built our home at the turn of the century one and a half blocks from where it currently sits.

Mr. Morgan was a blacksmith and brought one of the first cotton gins to Gladewater.

A poem “The Coming City” by Dr. Thomas Jefferson Allison described the business district of Gladewater in 1904.
The first stanzas read:

The town begins at Morgan’s
Down at the blacksmith shop
Where broken guns and crippled wagons
Are almost sure to stop.

He fixes things that’s broken
And labors hard all day
But when the job is finished
You’ll find he wants his pay.

We did find out thru ladies attending DARS meetings here at our home, that John Morgan lost part of one of his arms in a cotton gin accident.

Mr. Morgan (April 5, 1869 – January 31, 1944) was a bachelor until his mid sixties. He married Deborah Measles Wood (February 17, 1871- August 22, 1936) in 1934, widow of James D. Wood.
Due to their age, there were no children and just two years after their marriage, Deborah passed away.

Mr. Swearingen, a local real estate person, somehow ended up with the home and wanted it sold and moved, as Gladewater was expanding downtown.

According to the Landrum family, Mr. Swearingen did not care for Mr. Landrum and therefore refused to sell the home to Mr. Elna Forrest Landrum, but instead sold the home to Mrs. Lela Betty McClure Landrum, Mr. Landrum’s wife.

In 1943, the wrap around front porch was taken off the house and the house was loaded on a flatbed trailer. The Landrum family with their two daughters, Bonnie Faye and Elma Jean moved the home down the street to its current location at 207 South Center Street.

Mr. Landrum added onto the home and the Landrums began their venture renting rooms in the boarding house.

Mr. Landrum passed away from emphysema in 1976. He was an avid fisherman and worked for Magnolia Oil, which later became Mobil Oil. Mrs. Landrum passed away several years later suffering from Alzheimer’s in Shreveport, having moved in with her daughter and granddaughter. Mrs. Landrum ran the boarding house and at one time worked at K. Wollen and as a ticket seller at the Cozy Theater downtown. She also sold home baked pies and cakes. Some of her favorite recipes were: FRESH coconut cake, “Egg” pie, Pecan pie, Devil’s food cake with butter cream frosting. There was always something tasty displayed on the mahogany teacart in the dining room.

Both of the Landrum daughters married in the living room. Jean married a “boarder”, Mr. Eldon Simon Ebarb June 28th, 1947. Mr. Ebarb was the meat market manager at the local A & P store (he worked for A & P for over 30 years). They soon moved to Shreveport where they would have their only child Pam, born in 1950. Mr. Ebarb actually moved to Shreveport prior to marrying Jean because Jean told him she would not marry him as long as he lived in her parent’s boarding house.

A son, Rodger was born in 1954 to Bonnie Faye and her husband Mr. Floyd Kennedy. Rodger passed away at 4 years of age suffering from leukemia.
Lela was the only daughter born to Bonnie Faye and Floyd Kennedy in 1965.

We have the honor of possessing Mrs. Landrum’s crystal punch bowl on a pedestal with all 12 punch cups and glass ladle, the Landrum’s yellow checked top enamel kitchen table which was in our kitchen for 43+ years and Mrs. Landrum’s dresser. Pam tells me her grandmother used to keep coins in a special place in the dresser for her granddaughters.

This old house has been a labor of love for the past 18 years. We truly love this old house and all of the memories that our family has experienced here.