Individual Details

Optimus John Hughes was born June 24, 1875, in Falls County, Texas, a few months after his father, John Hughes?, was killed from a fall off a horse. His mother Martha Jane (Patty) Wilson Hughes married Benjamin Dennis Useltin, Dec 5, 1877, in Falls County, Texas.

It was told that one time, a man and woman had a small child who had the "thrush" sickness (associated with small babies mostly in pioneer days) and they came to O.J. (Pa) Hughes to get him to cure it. He put his mouth on the baby's mouth and blew into it. The couple later said that the baby's mouth was cured in a day or so, and the baby had been hardly able to nurse because of its sore mouth. Pa Hughes had done this many times over the years. He was picked as one who could accomplish this cure because he was one who had never seen his father.

John came with his mother and stepfather, Martha Jane (Patty) and Benjamin Usselton, from Falls County to up around Grayson County when he was about 15 years old. According to Mary Hughes Spann, when they were on the road north and nearing Fort Worth, Benjamin was concerned about trying to drive the team wagon through Fort Worth, so John drove through without any trouble.

John worked on ranches around the area of Grayson County, breaking horses and general cowboy work. He married Belle Leeman on December 8, 1897.

Pa Hughes liked biscuits sprinkled with sugar, and coffee poured over it. He liked to gently and good-naturedly tease dogs and cats and children.

When Sam and Jack and Wilmer were still at home they would tease Ma Hughes in all sorts of ways, like tying her apron strings to her chair while she was sitting down to eat.

After Ma Hughes died, Pa Hughes would come to stay with us for a week or two when we lived in Westland on the west side of Fort Worth in the 1950's. We girls were about grown and a couple of us were learning to drive. We'd just climb into the little '39 Chevrolet Coupe and start driving around the dirt roads around Westland. We'd ask Pa Hughes if he wanted to go for a drive, and he'd say "I guess I might as well", and he'd get in the car and go with us. Mother said sometimes he'd been waiting all day long for us girls to come in from work and school, to go for a ride. Sometimes there would be me (driving) and Pa Hughes and Nellie Jean in the one seat, and Martha and Johnny laying up over the back of the seat. - by Mary Ann Spann Perry

compiled by Mary Ann Perry
P O Box 218
Lipan, TX 76462
updated September, 2005

Birth	24 Jun 1875	Falls, Texas, United States
Marriage	8 Dec 1897	Jacksboro, Jack, Texas, United States - Belle Smith Leeman
Census (family)	19 Jun 1900	ED 18 Justice Precinct 7, Clay, Texas, United States - Belle Smith Leeman
Census (family)	Apr 1910	Justice Precinct, Jack, Texas, United States - Belle Smith Leeman
Census (family)	1920	Jack, Texas, United States - Belle Smith Leeman
Death	9 Jun 1957	Jacksboro, Jack, Texas, United States
Burial	10 Jun 1957	Oakwood Cemetery, Jacksboro, Jack, Texas, United States

Spouse	Belle Smith Leeman (1880 - 1949)
Child	Johnny Barlow Hughes (1898 - 1988)
Child	Minnie Faye Hughes (1900 - 1970)
Child	Samuel Benjamin Hughes (1902 - 1969)
Child	Nellie "Millie" Hughes (1902 - 1997)
Child	Edith Loutisha Hughes (1903 - 1991)
Child	Leslie Lewis (Buck) Hughes (1905 - 1994)
Child	Fletcher Wellington Hughes (1908 - 1984)
Child	Little Ora Hughes (1908 - 1909)
Child	Carl Hughes (1910 - 1910)
Child	Clarence Hughes (1910 - 1910)
Child	Cora Edna Hughes (1912 - 1991)
Child	Hughes (1914 - 1914)
Child	Mary Hughes (1917 - 2009)
Child	Wilmer Wade Hughes (1918 - 1999)
Child	Jack Locker Hughes (1921 - 1997)

Father	John Optimus Hughes (1837 - 1875)
Mother	Martha Jane "Patty" Wilson (1849 - 1923)
Sibling	Minnie Edna Hughes (1873 - 1941)

Notes