John ThomasSchacklett          1857-1918

John Thomas a man born to good parents raised in the time of the civil war, cattle drives, to see electric lights,car, and airplane just to mention a few. Raised on the farm and working hard, having a mind of his own and seeking his own destiny in what he wanted. Born and lived in Kentucky until the age of three, his parents moved to El Paso where his mother Susan Jane Shacklett's brother lived and was the first mayor of El Paso. They live there for a year having a farm where they milked twenty five cows with the help of hired mexican help and made and sold butter at one dollar a pound. Around 1860 John Thomas's parents decided to move because of the civil war.  They moved up to Sherman and settled for awhile.  In January of 1864 his father Burnis Brown Shacklett enlisted in the Texas Confederacy and served until the end. John Thomas had to help out while his father was away and his mother worked sewing late at night for other people just to make ends meet. After his father returned from the war he was unable to work for two years. In 1869 they bought one hundred acres for six dollars and farmed for 25 years.

In 1881 he married Amanda Ann Evans who's family was from Evansville, Indiana.   Their first child was born Benjamin Cad Shacklett on March 16, 1882 in Gainsville Texas. Moving around the country John Thomas and Amanda settled in Arkansas where their second child was born, a daughter Susan Jane Shacklett, who was named after his mother on July21,1889. Farming and share croping and moving around they settled in Goodwater in Oklahoma Territory were there third child is born, a boy, Jess Granby Shacklett, on March 5,1892. You had to watch out for indians even in 1892 Oklahoma because it hasn't become a state, laws were a little different.  Lots of people did thing you couldn't do if you were a state. Some three years later their 4th child was born, John Douglas Shacklett, on April 17, 1895.

Some time after their 4th child, Amanda Ann fell ill and John Thomas had a young girl, Mary Lindsey, to help around the house and help raise the children until Amanda Ann could get back on her feet. A short time afterwards John Thomas told Amanda Ann that she could go back up to Evansville, Indiana if she wanted to, he was leaving. There he left his wife and four children for another woman Mary Lindsey.

How could a man leave his family in those day?  Time was hard but they knew how hard it was to make it but they did. They say he did things he wanted to do. No one was going to get in his way so he left. They were married and had 7 children. It's hard to say if bad luck happend to some of them or a curse. Some of them landed in prison. Lizzie's husband was in a fight and a man was beating him up.  She ran over with a knife and cut his throat.  He died and she went to prison for 4 years. It seems that almost all the children of John and Mary had some trouble with the law. Is it because he left his first wife for Mary? Or because the kids grow up with no father and leadership?

John is believed to have died between 1915 and 1920, in a tornado somewhere around Atlus Okla. It was always said that when he would die his head would be in the saddle and have his boots on, and that's the way they found him. One of his daughters was hit with debris and lived for one year later. But no one really knows where he is buried.