About 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.

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