Born February 5, 1878, at Saint Jo, Arkansas. He was one of 10 children born to Mack Manilus McNair, who farmed 165 acres of land. Seventy acres lay at the side of Boston Mountain, part of a mountain range in Arkansas. Frank attended a rural school finishing formal schooling at an academy in Valley Springs. He did not have a degree but was a certified schoolteacher.
He moved to Texas in 1900 at the age of 22. He worked in a General Store and taught school at Blevins. Papa said that God called him to preach in 1902, but he continued to teach school. He taught in McLellan County, and one of his pupils was Ella Vermell King. He married her June 6, 1903. Ava Ella was born on April 21, 1904. She was only 19 days old when Papa moved to Taylor County. He continued teaching and did some carpenter work. He lost one of his eyes when he was struck by a flying nail. He had one glass eye, but you really couldn't tell it was false. He taught school in Shackelford County. A son, Bernie was born sometime along in this time frame. This child died in childhood 6-8 years old. He had some kind of kidney disease.
In 1909, seven years after his first call from God in 1902, Papa preached his first sermon while he was visiting his father in Jones County. His family was of the Methodist religion. One of Mama's brothers who was a Baptist preacher baptized Papa, and he started preaching as a Baptist. He pastored small churches that could not support a full-time preacher. He pastored at Guion, a town 26 miles southwest of Abilene. He continued to support his family teaching school. He was my mother's teacher until she was in the third grade.
Papa served as Associational Missionary in Callahan County for four years. Two more daughters were born in Abilene. Ova Orene was born in 1913, and Lillian Frankie was born in 1914. He moved to Tolbert, Texas, in Wilbarger County in 1919, a small town just a few miles north of Vernon. He served as Associational Missionary there for two years. A daughter, Ada Benona (Bennie) was born there March 19, 1919. During the time Papa served as Associational Misssionary, he traveled by horse and buggy. He would occupy these distances and times reading and studying the Bible. He moved to Thalia Baptist Church in Foard County in 1920-21. He then moved to Margaret, Texas, a small town a few miles north of Crowell in Foard County. He was at this church for ten months. In 1924 he went to Lockett, a small town 10 miles west of Vernon in Wilbarger County. Lockett Baptist Church was organized with 12 members. They met in the Lockett School Facilities. The church was built under his leadership. He was there for 12 years. He moved to Electra, Texas, in Wichita County to a rural church outside of Delhi, Oklahoma. This was the largest church he pastored with a membership of 500. From there he moved to Hess, Oklahoma, and retired from there in 1948 at the age of 70. He built his retirement home himself in Lockett. Texas, and lived there until his death December 9, 1968, at the age of 90.
I remember Papa as having reddish blonde hair and a fair, ruddy complexion and freckles. He was not fat but had a little rotund belly. He was rather a practical joker and somewhat of a clown. I always took him seriously because I could never tell if he was joking. He was stooped and crippled up pretty bad with arthritis, but he was active and alert and cared for himself as long as he lived. He worked jigsaw and crossword puzzles and was a very well-read man. He was a great whittler of wood and carved wooden people and animals out of wood. He always raised a large garden, working his ground with a homemade plow which he would hitch to himself. I wish I could have known him better.
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