Cline, Lloyd 2000-05-10
LloydCline talks about his life growing up on a cotton farm near the community of Key, Texas. He tells about his work history from high school throughout his adult life, his buying and selling land around Lamesa, Texas, his accomplishments as mayor of Lamesa, and his experiences working with the National Cotton Council.
General Interview Information
Interviewee Name: Lloyd Cline
Additional Parties Recorded:
Date: May 10, 2000
Location: Lamesa, Texas
Interviewer: David Marshall
Length: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Abstract
Tape 1, Side 1: Cline, Lloyd
Born at home in Lamesa, Dawson County, Texas
Mother
Luches O. Cline, originally from New Mexico
Father
G. E. (Jack) Cline, from Ellis County, Texas
Parents met and married in Lamesa, Texas
Maternal grandparents lived in Lamesa, Texas
Father (again)
Moved to Lamesa, Texas with his parents – 1917
Reason for moving to Lamesa, Texas
Life-long cotton farmer
Cline, Lloyd (again)
Raised on a farm near the community of Key, Texas until 1947
Married in 1947
Wife
Joleen McCaslin (?) from McCarty (?) community
Description of the Key community
The caprock as a major geological divide
Finding Indian artifacts near the farm in Key, Texas
Farm’s location on the edge of the caprock
Difficulty father and grandfather encountered plowing virgin land
Farming equipment
Childhood experiences farming cotton
Size of father and grandfather’s farm
Amount of farm in cultivation
Difference in amount of farm land in cultivation today
Amount of farm in cultivation (again)
Wildlife around the farm
Problems with wild hogs
Listing of wildlife
Crops
Childhood duties on the farm
Started work in the fields at 5 or 6 years old
Working in the Cotton gin
Differences in harvesting and ginning cotton today
Childhood duties (again)
Picking cotton
Heading maze
First cotton harvesting machine – a slide
Description of how the slide operated
First cotton stripper and how it operated
Problems with rubber tires on tractors
Scattering burrs in the field
First tractor with rubber tires
Used in conjunction with horses
Animals raised on the farm and their uses
Self-sufficiency
Raising everything family and animals ate
Selling cotton to buy other necessities
Mother making nearly all the clothing
Listing of vegetables grown in the garden
Early childhood memories of the 4th of July
School
School let out every year for cotton picking
Not strict about attendance when kids were needed to help at home
Went to elementary school in the Key community
Rode the bus to Lamesa, Texas for high school – graduated in 1946
Took post graduate courses at the high school in typing and bookkeeping
Going to work in Lamesa, Texas after getting married
Working in a grocery store
Learning to butcher
Progression of jobs in the grocery store
Changing jobs from the grocery store to the bank
Job security in banking
Difficulties with changing jobs
Tape 1, Side 2: Difficulties with changing jobs (again)
Progression of jobs in banking
Description of posting ledgers with a posting machine
Progression of jobs in banking (again)
Continuing education at LSU while working
Buying bank stock
Supplementing bank salary with outside income
Running concession stands at sports events
Buying peanut machines
Renovating old houses for rental property
Buying bank stock (again)
Description of the method used in purchasing land
Began by trading home for a farm and buying it back
Choice of property locations and why
Pros and cons of properties being close together
Banking jobs (again)
Retired as Chairman of the Board after 44 years at the bank
Advantages as a supervisor of having held numerous banking positions
Lessons learned in banking that carried over into farming
Working in the cotton gin (again)
How previous jobs, especially banking, helped in working the National Cotton Council Benefits of starting at the bottom and working up
Hidden advantage of not having connections
Progression of involvement in the cotton industry
1982 elected chairman of the Texas Cotton Producers Association
First meeting attended at the National Cotton Council
Acceptance of the Texas delegation
Texas delegation as a radical group
Texas cotton was considered “junk” cotton
Description of “junk” cotton
Setting the goal of improving the image of West Texas cotton
Progression of work with the National Cotton Council
Working from the bottom up
Importance of negotiation and compromise
Being the mayor of Lamesa, Texas for 11 years – 1960’s into 1970’s
Contacts made during those years
Contacts made while working with the National Cotton Council
Advice received from George Mahon
Challenges and successes as president of the National Cotton Council Board
1985 Farm Bill
Segments of the cotton industry
Tape 2, Side 1: Challenges and successes as president of the National Cotton Council Board (again)
Large group with diverse opinions
Negotiations after hours
How to handle a stale-mate in negotiation
Upgrading West Texas cotton
Setting up a cotton classing office in Lamesa, Texas
Closing the sub-offices
Politics involved in upgrading the classification of cotton
Procedure for passing a resolution
Requirements and costs of owning classing machines
Raising funds to purchase classing machines
Process of setting up the classing office – 1978-1980
Classing cotton prior to the establishment of the cotton classing office
Lamesa, Texas classing office as the prototype for other classing offices
Tape 2, Side 2:
Blank
Range Dates: 1917-2000
Bulk Dates: 1947-1985
Access Information
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Recording Format Notes:
Transcript:
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