“GENTLE FAMILY OF SANGER” By Sanger Area Historical Society and Museum

Thomas A. and Clarice (Rutherford) Gentle, along with brother Oscar Monroe Gentle and wife Berta “Bert” (Harris) Gentle, relocated to Sanger in 1902 from Tennessee. The brothers opened a hardware store at the southeast corner of Bolivar and 3rd Streets. Oscar Monroe later opened his hardware store at the northeast corner of Bolivar and 4th Streets.

The Thomas A Gentle family included the following children:

Mittie Belle Gentle (married Herman Harris)

Ora Lee Gentle (married Floy Ezell)

Ruby Helen Gentle (married Mr. Kiesling)

Kate Mae Gentle (married Roma King)

Roy Egbert (Peggy) Gentle (married Nanny Mae Sinclair)

Albert Lee “Abb” Gentle (married Alma Gentle)

Ben E. Gentle (married Robbie Waide)

Clarence Gentle (married Francis Cloyd)

Thomas Alton Gentle (married to Francis Juanita Jackson)

Bud Gentle (married Maggie Neal)

The Oscar Monroe Gentle family included the following children:

Cathlene Gentle (single)

Oscar Monroe (Mun) Gentle (married Laverne Scott aka Scotty)

Lewis (Red) Gray Gentle (married Elizabeth “Betsy” Davidson)

Ben Gentle was born on 12-8-1904 and died on 6-7-1984. He was a 1921 Sanger High School graduate and attended Metropolitan Business School in Dallas. He was married to Robbie Waide. After he finished school, he worked as a bookkeeper at Metzger Dairy. He excelled, and his reputation in the business community in Dallas led to Dallas City Hall The Dallas City fathers had Ben come to work for the city as head of the tax collector office Mr Metzger was disappointed in Ben leaving, and rumor was he refused to take Ben’s name off his office door hoping he would return as the business bookkeeper. Ben became the Tax Assessor-Collector for Dallas County in 1947 and retired in 1973.

Ora Lee was born on 5-8-1933 and died on 11-5-2013 She married Floy Ezell and lived her life in Sanger

Ruby Helen was born on 3-24-1912 and died on 5-9-1996. She was married to Mr. Kiesling.

Kate Mae was born on 9-18-1892 and died on 12-6-1976. She was married to Roma King.

Mittie Belle was born on 7-24-1890 and died on 3-21-1962 She was married to Herman Harris

Clarence was born on 7-18-1907 and died on 11-9-1978. He was married to Francis Cloyd.

Thomas Alton was born 8-27-1909 and died 8-25-1988. He owned a furniture business in Dallas.

Lewis “Red” Gray was born on 3-23-1917 and died on 2-11-1976 He was married to Elizabeth Davidson

Bud Gentle was born on 3-27-1900 and died on 5-17-1986. He was married to Maggie Neal, and she was his life companion They had two daughters, Lillian Frances and a younger sister, Sally Ann. Sally Ann was born on 11-51926 and died on 2-18-1970. Lillian Frances was born on 127-1921 and passed away on 3-5-1936 at the young age of 15. According to memories written by Idaleene Scheu Fuqua, she recalls when she died how difficult it was to realize her young friend’s passing She remembers Frances loving to dance, would act like she was Ginger Rogers, and loved telling silly jokes. So many friends and family attended her funeral that they had to move vertical partitions between Sunday School rooms for the crowd, and many people stood by open windows outside to hear the service

Maggie was devastated over the loss of her oldest daughter, and Uncle Herm Harris and their wife, Aunt Mit, helped to care for Sally Ann during this time. Bud had been transporting fuel from East Texas to local stations but realized his need to be home and not on the road, so he took ownership of a filling station in town. Maggie recovered and devoted the remaining years of her life to Sally Ann, her grandson, Mike Martin, and granddaughter, Anna Lisa Guillott. Sally Ann became a beloved English teacher at Sanger High School but tragically died of cancer in 1970 Bud and Maggie cared for Anna Lisa for some time before she moved to Louisiana to live with her father and his family.

Bud joined the Denton County Sheriff’s Department in 1952 as a deputy after the death of Sheriff Onus Hodges, who had been killed in 1953 as he walked to work and was hit by a boy delivering newspapers; Bud served out the remainder of his term until the next election. He was appointed Sheriff by the commissioner’s court to fulfill this remainder of Hodges’s term, but when the next election period began, it was determined he would have to live in Denton to run for Sheriff, so he again became a deputy sheriff. Wylie Barnes was elected Sheriff in 1954, and Bud returned to the ranks of deputy sheriff until his retirement in 1971.

Roy Egbert (Peggy) Gentle was born on 1-25-1898 and passed away on 12-30-1969. He was married to Nanny Mae Sinclair He became a grocer in Sanger, and his original store was called Help Thy Self Grocery, later Peggy Gentle’s Grocery His son, Bill, and wife, Frankie, took over the business, which was known as Gentle’s Grocery, until their retirement in 1982.

Albert Lee “Abb” Gentle was born on 8-24-1895 and died on 9-20-1968. He was married to Alma Gentle He worked for his father at the original hardware store He was the oldest son in the family, and Oscar sent Abb to Moline, Illinois, to the John Deere factory to learn how to put the tractors and implements together as the parts were shipped on the Santa Fe Railroad to Sanger. Abb would painstakingly take the parts and put the piece of farm equipment together. This tractor would be put on display, and when a local would order one, the pieces would be transported to the gentleman’s farm, where Abb would begin his task Sometimes he would work into the night or maybe go back the next day to finish Abb’s daughter, Abbie Lee, reminisced in 2007 that she recalled the long days her dad would be gone and maybe not see him for the entire week. Agriculture was big in the Sanger area, and men depended upon these pieces of equipment.

Oscar Monroe (Mun) Gentle was married to Emma Laverne “Scotty” Scott He was born on 6-16-1910 and died on 2-11-1976 He was a long-time businessman in Sanger, and the business was an important business, especially during the years Sanger was a farming town. Mun sold just about everything from nails to farm equipment and everything in between. The business was at the northeast corner of Bolivar and 4th Streets, and the old wooden floors had many years of oil and grime soaked into the planks. The business had a distinct but not unpleasant smell, and you would know you had entered the hardware store Mun’s father, Oscar Monroe, Sr; opened the business in the early 1900s after being in business with his brother, Thomas Gentle. The old Dunn building became the O.M. Gentle Hardware store in 1925. The business was sold to Frank Smith and became Smith’s Country Store in 1968. This business/building burned in 2000, leaving a vacant corner lot in downtown Sanger. Mun had a sister known to many as Miss Cathlene His brother was Lewis Gray and known as “Red ”

Mary Cathlene Gentle was the child of Oscar Monroe Gentle, Sr. She was born 8-6-1904 and died 1-10-1994 at the age of 89 and was never married. A much-loved teacher in Sanger for 34 years of educating the students. She graduated in 1921 from Sanger High School and attended college in Denton. She graduated from CIA, now TWU, where she received a vocational certificate in homemaking She taught in Valley View and Justin before returning to Sanger to teach She went back to college at North Texas State (now UNT) and received her BS degree in 1940 and later her Master’s Degree. She taught school for 41 years, with 34 of those in Sanger.

Miss Cathlene, as most knew her by, taught many generations of families in the local and surrounding areas of Sanger She was quoted in 1973 as saying, “I’ve never done much but taught school and enjoyed it ” She taught fifth grade and was later named Principal of the Elementary School. Her personality was fitting for the young people in her classes. She was tall, slim, and funny. Most never remember her getting angry and would twirl those skirts, and students could be mesmerized by her. During her teaching years, she was active in Sanger community events and retired from teaching in 1971. She was a member of Kappa Gamma Sorority, was the 1971 Coming Home Queen at Sanger Homecoming, was involved as an election judge for the City, County, and State elections, and was a member of the Wednesday Study Club. Miss Cathlene lived in the grand twostory home her great-grandfather built, which is still located at the southwest corner of 7th and Bolivar Streets.

The Gentle families were prominent citizens of the Sanger area and ran businesses instrumental to the Sanger community It was families such as the Gentle family who relocated to Sanger, and many families came from Tennessee and Kentucky. They still have a presence in the community. The final business under the umbrella of the Gentle family is Randy Gentle’s Tire Shop. Randy is the grandson of Roy Egbert (Peggy) Gentle and the son of Bill Gentle.

Thomas and Oscar Gentle Hardware store 1927 Shown is Tom Gentle, 3rd from left. Son Roy E. “Peggy” Gentle is behind the counter on the right, and son Abb Gentle, also behind the counter, wears a white shirt. One of the customers was identified as Fred Amyx. (Courtesy of Frances (Schertz) Gentle, Toni Gentle, and Janis (Bailey) Wetherbee)

OM Gentle Hardware 1928 Operated under Mon Gentle’s ownership until it was sold to Frank Smith in 1968 and burned in 2000 The location is now a vacant lot at the northeast corner of 4th and Bolivar Streets. (Courtesy of SAHS)