Addie Ellis

      First of all, I have got to admit that I am guessing how to spell Addie Ellis’s name. Now, Addie was the mother of Fred Ellis, who worked in the post office for many years.  She was a very colorful character and a fixture in Menard for many years. I never knew her husband.  He had passed away by the time I got to know Addie. She was a small woman and she had a rather wrinkled and freckled complexion. I hope no one thinks I am being hateful when I describe her in this way.  She had a very soft but raspy sounding voice.  I know that one time they had some ranch land. But, I don't know where it was or how much land they had.  It apparently qualified her to have a place in Menard's society circles.  Now, this was in the late 50’s and 60’s.  In this period of time,  there were a lot more local social parties for the women to attend than there are now.  So, Addie seemed to be a member of every woman’s club in Menard.  Her best friend was Clara Wilhelm.  Now Addie drove a red and white Ford Fairlane station wagon. It was not the fanciest car in town.  So, Clara Wilhelm would usually pick up Addie in her big fancy car.  Addie lived in the old Napier house, the house Dr. Nixon lives in the present time.  Clara must have been  impatient.  When she came to pick up Addie, she apparently wanted her to be standing outside waiting for her.  I spent a lot of time at my grandmother's house when I was a kid,  which is the house I presently live in now.  I would always know when Clara was coming to pick up Addie, because she would always start honking her horn about two blocks before she got to Addie’s house.  It seemed like there was a party every other day.  Then one day it all came to an end.  Clara lived about twelve miles out on highway 190 towards Brady.  So, she was running late for one of these parties and she had a cake for the party setting in the front seat.  In the last little valley before you get to the old drive-in theater, the cake started sliding off the seat.  Clara grabbed for the cake and she lost control of the car and rolled it.  She was critically injured, but she lived several days before she succumbed to her injuries.  I am sure this was devastating to her family and I am sure it was devastating to Addie.  I realize this is kind of a depressing little story.  But, it is a snapshot of the way Menard was in the 50’s and 60’s before we had so many forms of entertainment and social status was much more important then than it is now.  So, instead of watching T.V. or cruising the internet, they had little social events and parties to go to for entertainment.   

    But, even after Clara Wilhelm was sadly killed in a car wreck, life went on.  Addie sold her house and moved to another, smaller, house and lived several more years.  As I said before, She was a small lady.  She couldn’t see over the steering wheel of her car.  So, she just looked through her steering wheel.  She was famous for being a horrible driver.  So when you would see her coming, you made sure you stayed out of her way.  Pat Riley told me this story about her bad driving.  I thought it was a funny story and I have told this story many times down through the years and it is a true story.  He said he was in the post office one morning and he heard Addie and Curt Stockton arguing about something.  Now I am sure many of you remember Curt Stockton.  Curt was afflicted.  Not sure what happened to him, but he walked and talked like he was drunk, and a lot of the time he was drunk, in his younger days.  He rode a three wheeled bicycle because he was unable to drive a car.  A lot of times he would go to the bars on Saturday night.  So, when he was heading home from one of these bars on a Saturday night, he would get run off the road or he would lose control and end up in a ditch.  I don’t know how many times I would see flashing red and blue lights on Saturday night, and it would be Curt and his bike in a ditch.  So Curt and Addie were having an argument.  Curt told Addie, “You run over my bicycle.”  Addie said “Curt, I did not run over your bicycle.”  Curt kept saying “Yes you did.’  Finally, Addie said, “Curt, how do you know I ran over your bicycle?”  Curt said, “Because I was on it when you did it.”