CA357

Audio interview with Gladys Roberson Avis about the life of Jake Avis, Jr.
(C. Avis Catalog entry #357)
(Document ID #613)

This is a recording of Gladys Roberson Avis being interviewed by her grandson Charles Avis.  It is the story of the life of her son Jake Avis, Jr..  It was made at the apartment of Betsy and Charles Avis in South Pasadena, California in November 1977. 

For context:
• Gladys was married to Jake Avis, Sr., known to us as 'Dot Daddy'
* Her son, Jake, Jr. was married to Peggy Chiles.  'Mart' was David Martin Avis, their oldest son.
• 'Nana' was Peggy's mother, Fay Chiles
* 'Hilda' was Fay's sister, married to Tom McElhenney, and lived across the street from Peggy and Jake
• 'Auntie' was Gladys' sister, Jennie Roberson living in Wichita Falls.
* 'Zola' was another sister, married to Reuben Gracey.  Jean was their daughter, married to Tom Hopkins.
• 'Grandmother Roberson' was the mother of Gladys, Jennie and Zola living in Wichita Falls.
• 'Katie Lou' was Jake, Sr.'s sister, married to Fred Weeks living in Wichita Falls.


The life of Dr. Jake Avis, Jr., as told by his mother Gladys R. Avis to his son Charles Avis, November 1977.


Well, he was born in Wichita Falls. We lived in an apartment there. And one thing I remember, our good old doctor. I started labor pains in the night, and the good old doctor came by, and about six o'clock next morning took me to the hospital. And the baby was born about noon.

And then finally we moved out of the apartment into a house. And so we lived there several years in different places. And he went to the Alamo School there, until we moved to Austin.

>What kind? Is that elementary?
Yeah, elementary school.  And then when we moved to Austin, he went to, what was the name of that school -  east of town?

>Would I know?
No. I don't remember either.

>The high school or junior high?
Junior high. And he went to the Austin High School. That's where he graduated.

>Where are we all living then? Where we are now?
No, we were living in an apartment on Guadelupe Street.

>Oh, you showed me that.  You went to a high school east?
No, the high school was, you know, down there on 12th Street.

>Yeah, Austin High.
It was Austin High.

>Now it's old Austin High.
Old Austin High.

And then he wanted to go to A&M when he graduated from Austin High. So he went to A&M for just one year, I think.

>And did he know he wanted to be a dentist by then or what?
No, I don't think he was interested in becoming a dentist until about the time he and Peggy married.

But he had been to dental school. I mean, they were sweethearts then.  He went to dental school and graduated from dental school.

>So he went one year to A&M.
And then, I don't remember whether he came back, went to university, and then went to dental school or not.

I've forgotten about that.

When he was in dental school, that was when Mart was born, when they were living in Houston, when he was in dental school.

>What happened? When did the war come in there?  Was that after A&M or what?
I'd need time to think about that.

>Well, he was in Austin when he joined the Marines?  
Uh-huh.

>Why did he join the Marines?
Well, that was the branch he wanted, he was interested in.  And he made up his mind. He and his dad talked it over.  It was before Christmas that they talked it over.  But they didn't let me know until after Christmas that he was going to join the Marines.

>Just after Pearl Harbor, that Christmas?
Yeah. And we took him over to San Antonio.  He had to go to Houston for some reason to, I guess, get the rest of the group that was going to California.  And he went to California, I think he was in Camp Henderson.  I believe it was Camp Henderson.  Or was it Pendleton?  

>Well, there is a Pendleton.
Well, it's Pendleton.  And then, I've forgotten how long he was there.  First thing we knew, we had a message that he was sent to Hawaii.  And they had told him that he would have a furlough before he was sent out of the country.  But it was an emergency and they needed some troops over there.  So, he went over there right away.  And he was over there two and a half or three years.

Then he came back. He and Peggy were married then.  So, they married while he was in the service.

>That was after he came back to the States.
Yeah, he came back.  That was after he left Hawaii.  And then he was stationed with a supply company in California.

That's where the Del Mar came in.  

>Del Mar City?
Yeah, it was a little community between here and San Diego somewhere.  And then they came back to Austin and he must have gone back to the University.  Because I know they lived in an apartment over close to the University.  It was Dan Felt's mother's and father's apartment.  And that's where Mart was born.

>Oh, that was like Lindon Lane?
Landon Lane. We lived on Landon Lane.

>You lived there?
We did. And they lived in this apartment, close to it, not too far from us.

Then, they went to ... Well, I'm sure he was in the University then.  Then they went to dental school, went to Houston to dental school.

>That's when I was born.
Yeah, I remember the night you were born.

>Well, tell me about that.
Well, Jake and I had gone down for the weekend.  We went down about every other weekend.  And we always took us some dry ice with steaks and ice cream and things.  And so Peggy was fixing dinner that night.  And I was helping her and she started having pains before she had finished eating.  So Jake rushed her to the hospital and Mart and I stayed there alone.  And I remember they had that couch in the living room, you know, that made a bed.  And Mart and I were lying there in bed.

Finally, Dot Daddy came in.  And you were born that night.

>That was in San Filipe Courts?
San Filipe Courts.

>Was that near the Buffalo Bayou?
I don't know.

>Y'all went down every weekend?
About every other weekend, not every weekend.

>That must have taken you a while to travel that back then.
Well, I guess we just wanted to be with all of you.  And then we went down for his graduation.

>How long was that after I was here?  A year or two years?
I can't remember.  Anyway, instead of him opening his office right away, he drove to Colorado and they visited Zola and Reuben.  And Mart was with us.  I don't know if I went out with him or if I was already there.  I remember that your dad and Mart and I drove back to Austin.

>From where?
From Colorado.

>Where was Mom? and me?
Well, she must have stayed home.  Maybe you were a little fella then.  So she stayed home.  He just wanted to go for a rest and do a little fishing before opening his office.

>Was he able to set it up right away financially and all that?
Well, of course his first patients were friends, of course, mostly.  And he had a nice looking office.  It was nicely furnished.

>Where was it?
In the, you know, where the Capital National Bank is in Austin.  Well, it was in that building.

>I remember that.  That was his only office?  He started in it?
Yeah.

>I remember looking out over all the other buildings with their water coolers.
Yeah.
I don't even remember what floor he was on. But he had a nice looking office.  And he enjoyed his work.  Of course it was hard on him to stand on his feet because of the back injury he got while he was in Hawaii.

>Tell me more about that.  How did it happen?
Well, it was in the training for the Marines.  It was something strenuous that hurt his back.  I don't remember just what.  We had this telegram that he was in the hospital in Hawaii.  And we were so shocked and worried to death.

>They didn't tell you why was in the hospital?
Yeah, I guess they did.  It was some kind of an injury to his back.  Frankly, I've forgotten whether they put a plate in his back or not.  But it was something to do with his spine.  And of course standing on his feet was not the most pleasant thing he could do.

>Did anybody go out and visit him?
No.

>Was that possible?
Well, war time I guess it was.  Well, I don't suppose we could afford to go.  But no, the doctor, Dr. Shipp, he sure said he would be all right.

We have some pictures, or a picture made while he was, after he got out of the hospital.  He was very thin.  But he looked up fine when he came back home.  I remember when he came back and he and Peggy got married.  He was coming to San Antonio and was going to get off in San Antonio.  And we drove over there to meet him.  It was way in the night.  And he was so surprised to see us at the station to meet him because he didn't expect us there.   But we surprised him and he had, of course hadn't been cleaned up and had to have a haircut and everything.  But we stopped in the south part of San Antonio and ate at one of those little snack places.  A little hamburger joint I guess it was.  There was some young man with him, I've forgotten who he was.  And we drove on to Austin.

Then right away while Dot Daddy took time off and got him whatever he needed.  And he got his uniform all cleaned up.  Got himself cleaned up.  And Mrs. Herman Brown gave a cocktail party before the wedding, one evening before the wedding.  And they had that little church wedding.  

>Where was that?
It's a little Presbyterian church over near the campus.

>It wasn't the University Presbyterian?
No, it wasn't the University Presbyterian.  Not called that, it was a small church.  We could have just so many guests and I don't remember how many that were.  Then the reception was at over Nana's.  You've seen those pictures?

>Yeah.
Grandmother Roberson sitting there by Peggy and Jake.  Peggy was showing her her ring.

She and Auntie had driven down from Wichita Falls for the wedding.  And Ruben and Jean came over for it.  Ruben and Zola and Jean and Tom came over for it.

And Hilda had the rehearsal dinner over at their house.  That rock house on Rainbow Bend.

>Great house!
Yes, I just made me sick when they decided to move out on the lake.  But that's Tom's business.  

>And his back gave him trouble the rest of his life.
Yes it did.

>I remember him being in the hospital in Galveston.
Yeah, well he had kind of a nerve breakdown.

Do you remember when Zola and Ruben bought that ranch out there?  Do you remember weekends that you and Mart and Jake and I spent out there?

>I remember being out there, I don't know if it was just once or all day.
Well, we went out there I guess one Saturday when Dot Daddy didn't have to work.  But we took something to eat and took some bedding and took Blackie.  And some of us slept on the floor that night.  And I think there were two cots.  And two people slept on the cots.  I think Mart and I slept on the floor.

>I remember Blackie out there jumping at the cow's ears.  And I remember those rock piles.
Yeah, there was a rock pile out there.  Part of an old fence I believe.

>I don't know, the ones I was talking about were real tall.
Oh, well they were hills I guess.
Rocky hills maybe.

Well, anyway, we spent the night there.  Most of the next day.  But I remember cooking Sunday dinner out there.  We didn't do anything but just wandered around.  I don't know how long it was before Zola and Reuben moved over there.  

>Anything else you can …

—— Interruption in recording.  Restarts while discussing the accident that killed her son. ——

>Yeah. That was at home, right?

Well, your mother had gone to a Junior League meeting that morning.  He had a couple of cancellations around noon and he decided he'd go home.  And I guess just go home and eat lunch since he had some extra time.  And he went home and, as I understand, he fixed some orange juice.

And walking down the hall, you know, behind that couch, we just figured out that that gun had fallen.  And he opened the door after he heard the noise.  And maybe in picking it up that's when the gun went off.

>I never heard that.
There were some painters working over Tom and Hilda's.  And he called to them for help.  And they went over there.  I don't know how they called the doctor.  I don't remember who they called.

Anyway, he was sent to the hospital right away.  We were called, but Dot Daddy came home.  And they had called me from the hospital.  They needed some member of the family there.  But he just passed away before we got into the hospital.

>Poor mom back there, too?
She came in. Tom brought her in while we were there.  She said if she had known Jake didn't feel good that day, she would have come on home for lunch.  After the meeting, some girls went out for lunch.
And so...

>Tom was taking care of everything.
Yeah.  And Dan Felts came over there and took us home.  We left our car there and he took us home.  Then he met Katie Lou and Fred Weeks at the train next day.  He did many nice things for us.  So we have just loved him ever since.