Wichita Daily Times 5/12/1957 p. 17e
(C. Avis Catalog entry #195)
F. Piner Avis
He's Seen 'Em Come and Go
Proud of a 71-year career which takes in about everything from cowpunching to banking, F. Piner Avis, 1105 Taylor, has "seen 'em come and has seen 'em go" in the Wichita Falls area.
Mostly, he says, he's "seen 'em come," and recalls when Wichita Falls was no more than a few scattered shacks and a patch of tents here and there. He probably knows as much or more about Wichita Falls than any other person living.
In past years, he has been consulted by lawyers and others to help settle property disputes. He has been offered suits, whisky and money for such services, but has never accepted any reward for information.
Avis remembers 1907, the year that the Wichita Falls Times was established, as a "panicky" year, when the fear of depression all but closed the banks of the town.
"During four or five months of 1907 you couldn't draw more than a few dollars out of any bank here, no matter how much money you had on deposit," says Avis.
Also in 1907 the Elks Lodge was established in the city and at present Avis is the only surviving charter member of the lodge.
Piner's father J. P. (Jim) Avis, was the first white boy to be born in Montague County, and his picture still hangs on the wall of the Montague district courtroom.
Showed Possibilities
Jim Avis visited Wichita County in the latter part of 1876 said Piner, when he met "Barefoot" Bryant, one of the biggest cattle kings in the country at that time.
Barefoot's 45,000 acre spread covered some of what is now Wichita Falls and extended into three counties—Wichita, Archer and Clay. Young Jim Avis figured the country here showed possibilities, and recommended that C. C. White, Piner's maternal grandfather, lend Barefoot a dollar for each acre on his ranch for refinancing.
Barefoot got the loan, but dry weather and low beef prices forced him into further money difficulties, and the whole affair ended by Jim Avis moving to the ranch with his wife in 1884 to take over from Bryant.
Piner Avis was born about a year later on Dec. 17, 1885.
Because he wanted to, and not because he had to, Piner punched cattle most of his early life.
"I have never been thrown by a horse in my life," boasts Avis "and I rode every bronc in the community." He recalls that some of his happiest days were in the saddle.
Tried Banking
"There wasn't much water in the country some of the time," recalls Piner, and says that he used to carry a small pebble to put in his mouth when he got thirsty while riding cross-country.
After his cowpoking career, he started work in a Wichita Falls bank. Grandfather White helped organize the Panhandle National Bank (now the First National) and provided Piner with an excellent chance to enter the profession.
"I got so high in the bank that several people would have had to die in order for me to advance any further," says Avis, "so I quit my banking career."
Avis' next business venture was a hardware store.
"I'm still trying to forget that hardware store," he declares, indicating one business venture that didn't pay off.
In the past few years, Avis has been in the cattle brokerage business, and still operates what is left of the old Barefoot Bryant spread. Avis' father liquidated much of the ranch into cash and other assets, but the acreage still remains at 4,394.
Avis says he owned Wichita Falls' third gasoline driven automobile - a sporty Abbot-Detroit, which he bought in 1908. The car was stolen and became the first recorded auto theft in the state.
No Traffic Problems
"I think that was even before they made laws against stealing cars," chuckled Piner, pointing out that the only crime that really brought severe punishment in those days was horse and cattle stealing. The stolen Abbot-Detroit was recovered when the thief was unable to get it through a sandbed. The motor was badly overheated, however, and Piner still remembers that it cost him $165 to "get 'er running again."
Traffic problems weren't much trouble in those days, says Piner but there were problems. Most of the roads had been made by wagon-wheels and were rutted, causing the comparatively low slung autos to "high-center" or hang on the middle of the road.
Another "first" which Avis recalls is the founding of the first chamber of commerce in Wichita Falls. He reports that he gave $2.50 to its early advancement.
One word of warning should be made in regard to F. Piner Avis. He is usually good-natured and extremely friendly, but has made a single reservation. The amiable pioneer doesn't like for his friends to call him "Mr. Avis," and claims it sounds too formal. "My name is Piner," he'll have you know, "and associates who come around with this 'Mr. Avis' stuff are likely to get knocked over against the wall."