Sina Agnes Thompson Crosby

Sina Agnes Thompson Crosby

       (a brief sketch of her life by Juanita Crosby Bobo)

On the 23 of  May 1905, Sina Agnes was born to Jack Hansford Thompson and Sina Cole.  She was the third child.  She was born in the Williamson Settlement, named for her great grandfather, William Williamson who migrated and settled that section of Orange County, Texas.  Everybody called her Agnes. When Agnes was old enough to go to school she had to walk 2 1/2 miles to school.  It was a hard walk, but it got easier when her brother Cole started school and could mind the Brahma cows off them.   

She loved to read and shared this love with her father.  Sometimes his love of reading was a real trial to his wife as he was prone to let work slide just to read.  After his death in April of 1915, Agnes was forbidden to read so much.  Sometimes her mother would find her reading and burn her books.  Life was hard for the family after the death of her father because her mother had to make a living for a large family of 8 children.  But Agnes managed to finish the 10th grade of school.

Noah Lee Crosby

Agnes met her future husband at the Pine Forest School and they were married on December 17, 1922.  They were married standing on the front porch of her mother's house.  Noah Lee Crosby was his name.  He came from a farming family that lived in Tyler County, Texas.   

For the first years of their married life they moved around while Noah Lee farmed on shares.  Juanita was born to them on  October 7, 1923 at Agnes' mother's home.  Ouida Audrey was born there too on  January 16, 1925.  Agnes wanted to name the little girl Alice,  but other people won her over  to agree to Ouida Audrey.  Evidently it was against her will as the child was and is still called Alice.  When Ouida was born Agnes was at her mother's in Orange County.  When she knew it was time, her mother Sina Thompson went to get the woman to act as midwife.  But the old Model-T Ford had a flat.  In a great hurry, Sina fixed the flat and finally got off.  When she returned with the midwife the baby had been born. On  May 7, 1926 Doris Elizabeth was born.  At this time they were living in Tyler County and her mother-in-law Lizzie Annie Odom Crosby acted as midwife.  Agnes had her children rather fast when she started so she knew that it wouldn't be long, but her mother-in-law knew that those things took a lot of time. 

Noah Lee and Sina Agnes with their three oldest children, Juanita, Alice, and Doris (right to left).

 

She made a pot of coffee and got out her Bible to read to pass the time away until time to deliver the baby.  Agnes tried to tell her different, but she wouldn't listen so the baby was born almost unattended.  Doris was a big fat baby.   About two weeks after  the birth of Doris her brother Milton died.  He was epileptic and was in a home for the sick when he died.

During all her life, Agnes had asthma.  It was becoming much worse and quite a drain seeing so many doctors and trying everything for relief.  So in 1929, the family decided that they would try a different climate. They packed up and started for Utah with a double purpose, a different climate for Agnes and to go to the Temple in Salt Lake City.  Agnes's mother was a member of the church but when she married, Jack Hansford was very prejudiced and refused to have to do anything with the Mormon Elders.  After his death in 1915, Sina wanted her children to be baptized.  As she was a widow her bachelor brother, Isma came to live with her.  He also had been baptized but had turned away from the church.  When Agnes was considering being baptized her uncle came to her privately and told her that if she was baptized then the Mormon Elder would take her back to Utah to be one of his many wives.

On the way to Utah the family traveled and worked when they ran out of money.  All of the household goods were packed in the back of the car and a feather mattress was placed on top where the three little girls rode.  It was a hard life but the family always managed to get by.  Agnes's health did improve.  In their travels, they went back to Texas for a brief visit and returned to Utah. Noah Lee's sister, Gladys, and her family joined them for awhile but did not like that way of life so she returned to Texas.  Agnes's sister,  Camellia joined them for a short while in Provo, Utah while they picked fruit for Mr. Payne.  It was time to get the children in school so Noah Lee decided that he had better settle down.  Agnes's health was better so they went back to Texas.  There on June 13, 1931 in the home of her sister Mamie Christman, her fourth child and first boy was born.  He was named Gary Wayne.  After working a few years at public works.  Noah Lee decided that he was still a farmer and so with 5 cows he started a small dairy farm in Willimson Settlement in Orange County, Texas.  So, after about ten years of moving around, Agnes was back where she started from.  The dairy farm grew from small to large with all the family working to make it successful.  On April 11, 1940 a baby girl, Callie, was born to Agnes.  This was her last child and a very beautiful one.  It was necessary for Agnes to deliver milk house to house in a truck. So she had to take Callie, short for Caroline, with her on her rounds.  Most of the customers made a big fuss over the pretty baby but she remained unspoiled by it all.

Agnes with one of the dairy cows.

In 1943 Noah Lee was appointed to fill the unexpired term of the county commissioner.  Agnes was rather upset by all this as she was by nature very shy and hard to get to know.  Most people thought that she was rather unfriendly but it was nothing else but shyness and an inferiority complex.  When it came  election time Noah Lee decided to run for the job he had by appointment.  On election day Agnes literally took to the woods.  She went off by herself and remained all day so she would not even have to vote.  Noah Lee was elected and as long as he remained in public office Agnes very seldom accompanied him to any official function or gave any indication that she approved of what he was doing.  But secretly, she was proud of her husband, that he seemed to be well liked by everyone.  But life for Sina had not been easy, living with a man who began to expand  in the company of a crowd when for her, it actually hurt to meet strangers and when your husband had no sympathy with such feelings.  Noah often laughed or scolded her for having such a shy demeanor.

    

      In 1948 Agnes and her family moved to Vidor to be closer to Noah Lee's job, having sold the dairy the year before.  Here, she had a small but new home that she could putter around in and grow her flowers.  Her health was not so good having undergone a major operation the year before.

In the meantime Doris had married Lyle Tregaskis whom she met while going to Brigham Young University and Juanita and family had moved to Provo, Utah where her husband Boyd Bobo was attending school.  Then Wayne went to Utah to go to school and was called to fill a mission for the church.  So as Noah Lee was no longer in public office and as an answer to the prayers of Agnes, they moved to Provo, Utah.  This was in 1951,  the very first day they were in Provo Noah Lee went out to the local steel plant to apply for a job.  He never thought that he would be hired due to his age and having been in a serious car accident the year before,  but he was hired that very day and they bought a home.  At this time Agnes is living in Orem , Utah.  All her children  are married and she has 13 grandchildren--January 1957.