Taken from Jim Webb’s family history:329 James Robert Stewart and Mary Coral Adair moved from Hays county Texas to Frio county Texas in 1906 and lived there on a ranch which bordered on the Frio River. Their ranch was near the town of Dilley which is a small agricultural-related community situated between San Antonio and Laredo. Ranching and farming were the main industries in the area, sometimes called the "Winter Garden" area of Texas. They became mainstays of the community and highly respected citizens who raised a family of six fine children. These sons and daughters remained close and visited often, even after adulthood and marriages took them to other areas of the state. A tradition which remained with the family even after the parents were gone was a Thanksgiving gathering in Dilley for a big dinner. Everyone would come from Dallas or Haskell, bring the young children, and set up tables and benches while Lex would barbeque a freshly slaughtered calf. Out-of-towners would stay overnight at the various homes of those who lived in Dilley. As time went by, the children would bring their children and the group grew larger. When James R (Jim Bob) Webb was a boy he remembers that his Granddad Stewart's ranch had mostly cattle, but there was a watermelon patch, too. Every year his Grandfather would go out and find the biggest watermelon they had and ship it to Jim Bob. The watermelon patch was harvested each year and the crop would fill a railroad car as it was loaded at the rail station in Dilley. Wesley, the eldest son, married later than most and stayed with his parents to help with the ranch before that. He kept hives of bees and gathered honey which he sent to various family members. Clyde and Stella were the children who married and moved away from Dilley. Wesley and his wife, Ruby, Lex and his family and Cleo and May stayed at Dilley and lived the rest of their lives there. Lex's first wife died of complications of diabetes, early in their marriage. He married Kathleen Bennett later and they had two children, Shirley and Larry. Lex's life continued to be marked by sadness as he and Kathleen parted, amicably, and Shirley became troublesome and had run-ins with the law. Larry married Pat and they have helped raise Shirley's son and took care of Lex in his later years. Lex died on Christmas Eve in 1990 in his apartment in Dilley, after having participated in a party with Santa Claus at the Community Center. Lex sat on Santa's lap to show the children that Santa was not to be feared. Wesley and Ruby did not have children of their own but always had toys at their house for visiting nieces and nephews. Ruby diligently drew up the family history and had it typed, sending copies to all. It was titled "The Stewarts in America". Clyde and his wife Mildred, lived in Dallas where he was co-owner of a refrigeration and air conditioning business. Their son Robert (Bobby) attended schools in Dallas and has worked for Texas Instruments for many years. Stella and Oran owned a farm just outside the small town of Haskell in West Central Texas. Oran died suddenly at the young age of 50 and Stella was left to care for the farm and property on her own. Nearly twenty years later she married a local widower who was a retired mail carrier, Oscar Tooley and they enjoyed each other's companionship in their final years. Lula May, called May, taught school and did not marry until she was in her mid 40's. And she married Mr Lloyd Wright whose son was married to May's younger sister, Cleo. This made her Cleo's sister and step mother-in-law. Mr Wright, a widower when he married May, loved to tell the young grand nieces and nephews that they could have any pig that they wanted to take home with them if they would just catch it. Of course, no one could ever catch a pig but he loved to pull the joke on each new group of young children. Cleo and Harvey married and had a daughter, Alice Rhea. The baby soon showed signs of not hearing and turned out to have been born deaf. This was such a tragedy to Cleo and Harvey that they did not have another child in fear that her deafness was caused by some genetic defect in them. Alice Rhea grew up, learned sign language and lip reading and made a good life for herself in Dilley working at the bank. Jimmy also remembers going to Dallas in 1936 and spending a week with Uncle Clyde during the Texas Centennial Celebration. Clyde was overseeing the installation of refrigeration and air conditioning systems at the Fairgrounds and they enjoyed going to the various exhibits and events.

As the years passed by and it became necessary to travel to Dilley for funerals when the Stewart sons and daughters passed on, it was plain to see how important this family was to the town. Funerals were attended by large groups of mourners and the church was always filled with floral tributes. And the memories of how life was in the community of Dilley during those Thanksgiving celebrations and special occasions will always remain.

Funeral notice:329 James Robert Stewart, pioneer citizen of Dilley Texas, died Friday, January 18, 1946 at his home from an extended illness. Funeral services were held at the home Saturday afternoon at 3:00 PM and also a short service was held at the grave in the Dilley City Cemetery. The attendance and funeral cortege was one of the largest ever witnessed in Dilley. James Robert Stewart was born in McNairy county Tennessee on April 28, 1871. He came to Hays county Texas when a young man and there was married to Mary Coral Adair on November 22, 1893. In 1906 he moved his family to Dilley Texas and there he made his home until his death on the afternoon of January 18, 1946.