Charles Thurman Eddins Charles Thurman Eddins was born in Tennessee on November 24, 1888.
He was the oldest of 8 children. He came to Texas on a train with his parents when
he was 8. He lived in Honey Grove on a farm where he helped his dad. He went to school in
a 2-room schoolhouse at Dial. Mr. Sam Rayburn (later the Speaker of the United States
House of Representatives) was one of his high school teachers. His favorite subjects
were Math and History. He attended East Texas Normal College (now Texas A&M
University-Commerce) at Commerce, Texas where he worked his way through college by being a
janitor. His first teaching job was at Rockwall, Texas, where he met Mirita Leah
Cantrell. They were married April 9, 1911. Mr. Eddins loved teaching school and
enjoyed playing dominoes with friends, listening to baseball games on the radio (long
before television), and working crossword puzzles out of the newspaper. The
Eddins’ had two children. Charles Talmadge Eddins, and Verna Beth
Eddins. Mr. Eddins’ favorite meal was sausage and biscuits (which he
would often take to school for lunch before schools had cafeterias). He also loved
fried chicken and watermelon. Mr. Eddins taught 52 years in all, 38 of those years at
Fanny Finch Elementary in McKinney. He retired in May of 1961. After retirement, he
would often drive his car by Fanny Finch to watch the children playing at recess.
Mr. Eddins’ died January 26, 1969, at 80 years of age of heart failure. His
family or family members have lived in a home on Louisiana Street for over 50 years. He
had 5 grandchildren. Mr. Eddins’ family attended Trinity Presbyterian church ,
where he served as an Elder and usher, and Mrs. Eddins as Sunday School teacher for over
45 years. Photo Gallery |
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Age 19 |
College Student |
Wedding |
 Age 35 |
 Age 52 |
 Age 75 |
