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Anderson County couple Walter and Ola Belle Broughton will celebrate 75 years of marriage Saturday. A celebration is being held for the couple from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday at the Palestine Senior Center. MARY RAINWATER
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Happily Ever After
Broughtons to mark 75 years of marriage
Palestine — Just days away from celebrating their 75th wedding anniversary, Anderson County natives Walter and Ola Belle Broughton have many fond memories of their life together.
But for Ola Belle that wasn’t always so. Her first memories of her husband-to-be were of a cantankerous youngster who enjoyed aggravating the little girls in the street.
“I was 10 and he was 12, and we were playing in the street with our friends,” she recalls. “Walter and his brother were trying to throw red dirt in the girls’ hair — particularly in those with blonde hair.”
“I had black hair so they left me alone,” she smiled. “That memory made it hard for me to see him as a gentleman, though.”
But that all changed by the time the two began dating, she said, adding that the love of her life remains a gentleman to this day.
“I was 17 and he was 19 when we started dating,” Ola Belle said. “He begged me to marry him at that time, but I wanted to graduate from high school first.”
So on June 3, 1931 — just days after Ola Belle’s May 25 graduation from Palestine High School — the couple were married in the home of Rev. Calvin Nelson, who was pastor of First Baptist Church at the time.
After a very short honeymoon in Tennessee Colony — Walter had a job at Palestine Laundry — the couple began their new life together.
“Beginning in 1940 I worked for the Missouri Pacific railroad as a locomotive engineer,” he said. “I worked there for 35 years before retiring.”
The Broughtons have not always lived in Anderson County. After more than 40 years in the area, they spent 12 years in Ben Wheeler before returning to the area 21 years ago.
The couple also lived in Grand Prairie for a short time — a time when Ola Belle experienced what she considers one of the scariest moments of their marriage.
“It was during the war and Walter was working for a factory that built B-24’s,” she recalled. “I had gone out to check the mail and opened a letter.
“The first word was ‘Greetings,’ which meant he had been drafted,” Ola Belle continued. “It was very scary for me.”
But everything turned out well. Because of Walter’s job helping the war effort he was able to get a deferment.
“We just take things day by day,” the couple said about their long-lasting marriage. “We don’t worry about tomorrow and forget about yesterday.
“That is what has kept us together through the good and the bad times.”
Ola Belle was a faithful wife and mother throughout the couple’s marriage, raising three children and keeping the home fires burning.
She also remained active in her church, Southside Baptist, teaching all age levels of Sunday school classes and working with children during the annual Vacation Bible School.
“I am the oldest member of the congregation,” she said. “I have been a member there since 1941.”
Walter Broughton was active in the local Masonic Lodge, serving two terms as the Lodge Master in 1994 and 1995. He also is a member of the local reenactors group, The Texas Regulators.
The Broughton’s children are hosting an open house in honor of the couple’s 75th anniversary from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday at the Palestine Senior Center on Kickapoo Street. All who know and love the couple are invited to drop by and offer their best wishes. No gifts, please.
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Mary Rainwater may be reached via e-mail at mrainwater@palestineherald.com
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