Martin "Buddy" born April, 1946

Family & Friends

These pages were initially created to transfer photos from traditional scrapbooks to the internet in order to both preserve and make the pictures and history available to family and friends. It has become more extensive than I intended. However, I see it as a way to save the details before they slip away.

Martin T      ©2015 Theophilus

Rock hunting with Martin's Mom

My Grandad George Crerar came to the US from Glasgow in 1907, eventually moved to Cleveland and was a mason who helped build the Cleveland Tower (1926 and 1929). His daughter married my Dad. Dad was then drafted in 1942 and sent to Marfa as a Link Trainer Instructor. Mom and Dad went back to Cleveland after WW II, hated the Ohio cold snowy winter and decided to return to Alpine. Dad arrived back in Alpine on January 7, 1946 where they had just received the record 15 inches of snow and the Alpine train station had burned to the ground. Luckily for me, they persevered!

 

Early movie • mobile

Martin was born on Austin Street in the Marfa, Texas Searls hospital (pictured above).  Time  cover 04/08/1946

Martin's parents chose to live in Alpine while Martin's Dad was stationed at the Marfa Army airbase and they returned to live in Alpine permanently after a brief return to Ohio after World War II.  Due to a dispute between 2 Alpine doctors (one not allowing the other to use his facility), Martin's Mom and Dad went to Marfa where Martin was delivered by Dr.W.E. Lockhart in the Searls Hospital's second floor.  more

Go to more about Marfa, Texas

Marfa, Texas Searls Hospital in 2009

The Marfa, Texas Searls Hospital is now someone's home with a laundry underneath

Martin (Buddy) April 8, 1946

Peg, Peggy Anne & Martin

Peggy Anne & Martin

Martin "Buddy" born April , 1946

George and Margaret Crerar, Cleveland, OH, April 17, 1946 (11 days after Martin's birth)

Martin at two weeks with Mom & Sis

Martin's Grandparents Margaret & George told Peg and Ollie that if they had a red headed boy (George originally had red hair) that they would move from Cleveland, OH to Alpine, Texas.  Martin was born and they moved the next year.  It was wonderful because Peggy Anne and martin always had their Grandparents near by.

 

Oliver Martin "Buddy" Theophilus

Grandma Crerar noted that this was the last birthday card that she received  from her mother Maggie Reid who passed away February 24, 1947.

George and Margaret in Cleveland, OH in 1946 prior to their moving to Alpine, TX

Margaret Crerar letter March 11, 1947

Martin's Grandmother, Margaret Crerar's letter to their daughter Peg Theophilus and her husband Oliver Theophilus, as the Crerars were preparing to move to Alpine, Texas. Lots of difficult and sad decisions, however a happy ending! Click for full letter

Margaret Singer Crerar 1947 - When Martin's grandparents moved to Texas in 1947, his grandmother was only given 5 years to live due to a heart condition. Luckily Texas must have agreed with her, as she enjoyed another 28 years.  In 1975 she fell backups over a rock in their back yard and was hospitalized a couple of times. She passed away from pneumonia May 7, 1975.

Peg and Ollie started their own printing and Shoppers Guide distribution in 1947

Crerar's Cleveland Ohio home as it looks in 2022. They moved to Texas and left that home in 1947.

Peggy Anne on fence with "Pop" Crerar rebuilding a cow shed

Peggy Anne 1946

Peggy Anne and her Grandmother Margaret Crerar standing by the Manuel Musquiz ranch Texas Historical marker

Sally Theophilus (Ollie's Sister) and Don Gibson were married on February 7, 1947 in Newcastle, Pennsylvania

 

Martin's Dad worked initially for the LaBeff Motor Company auto dealer as an accountant.  He and Martin's Mom then started their own gift shop and printing service.

Telegram from Martin's Mom to Dad regarding Ollie's Mom passing away

November 19, 1947

Grandma Margaret Crerar, Martin, Sister Peggy, Dad, Oliver Theophilus, Grandpa George Crerar and Susie • view video from that period

That's a 1939 Chevy they're standing beside

The Theophilus/Crerar homestead in 1947.  Left to right - Theophilus home; "Middle House" where Peg, Peggy Anne and Ollie lived while Ollie was stationed at the Marfa Army Air Field.  It became Peg's "rock" house where she worked on her pottery, art and jewelry.  The porch of of the "Middle House" became Martin's "Ham Shack"  with a pole tower on the roof.  Later a large ham tower erected  with John King's assistance behind the Shoppers Guide Office, which at this point had not been build.  Next was the Crerars's home and the garage.

This is the Theophilus home from the front in 1947

Peggy Anne in the snow in 1947.

Susie

1947 Alpine snow - chicken house

Dad, Peggy with Sussie & Martin

Martin and his Grandmother in April, 1947.  Notes written to Martin from his Mom

Dad, Martin & Peggy on front porch in Alpine in 1947

Mom & Pop Crerar with Martin & Peggy at the Rock Pile 1947

Pop Crerar with Martin & Peggy 1947

Alpine Big Hill pre-paving

!947 Alpine, Texas parade

!947 Alpine, Texas parade

1947 Peggy Anne with Mom & Pop Crerar

Grandma Margaret Crerar, Buddy (Martin) Peggy Anne and DAD (Ollie) 1947

Mom Crerar with Martin & Peggy on her front porch

Martin & Peggy in back yard 1947

Martin & Peggy in back yard 1947

Margaret & George Crerar & Aunt  Ina at Clamity Creek south of Alpine

Margaret Crerar at the Rock Pile in 1948

Dad, Martin & Peggy 1948

Mom, Martin & Peggy 1948 on Crerar's front porch 1948

Grandma Margaret Crerar, Sister Peggy and Martin (Buddy) 1948

Martin, Mom (Peg) Peggy Anne, Dad (Ollie) and Susie in 1948 in front of the family's 1939 Chevy.

Crerars with Helen (left) and Margaret (2nd from rt) at San Francisco airport 1948 - view Crerar video

Helen, Margaret & George in Oakland, CA

Aunt Isabelle 1948 at the Failes

Big Hill South of Alpine in 1946, Peggy Anne and her Grandmother Margaret Crerar

Martin's Grandfather was the greens keeper for the Alpine Country club Golf Course when they first came to Alpine in 1947. This is the Golf Course maintenance shack.

movie

Susie 1948

1948 Grandparents garden

Margaret Crerar 1949 - in her 1912 wedding dress

Martin's grandmother by the same location

Aunt Isabel golfing at Alpine Country Club

Buddy (Martin) & Peggy 1947

Golf Course mower

Martin on his tractor

Buddy beside grapevine

Alpine, Texas snow 1949 Martin & Peggy

Peg, Ollie & Martin (Buddy) 1949

Peggy on dog house 1948

Theophilus swing set 1948

 

This is the Cine-Kodak T-25 which was used by Peg and Oliver Theophilus to shoot their early movies.

The Cine-Kodak Eight, Model 25, was manufactured by Eastman Kodak company of Rochester, New York. Only produced from 1933-1946, The Cine-Kodak was the first affordable home movie camera. This camera was covered in metal-black leather and operated by a spring-loaded motor, with an eight millimeter size film.

5.1 Ciné-Kodak Eight–Model 20 and 25 The next stage of the revolution came in July, 1932, when Eastman Kodak introduced 8 mm motion picture film and a lovely small spring wound camera to use it, the Ciné-Kodak Eight. This structure resulted in lower cost, weight, and size for a camera of given capabilities and significantly lower cost for film and processing. Figure 8 shows a typical Ciné-Kodak Eight.

There was more to the development of usable 8 mm motion picture film than might be thought. Most critically, because of the smaller image size (and thus the greater enlargement in projection), a film with finer grain than the 16 mm film was needed to maintain image quality. It was also necessary to develop cost-effective ways to more precisely register the film both in the camera and in the projector, again because the greater magnification in projection would make much more noticeable to the viewer any unsteadiness of the image.

Ciné-Kodak Eight Model 25 The Kodak Ciné Kodak line of motion picture cameras

Largely to be able to take advantage of film production and film processing machinery developed for 16 mm motion picture film, the new system used the “double 8 mm” system. Here the film as supplied had an actual width of 16 mm, but the sprocket holes on each side were at half the pitch they would have had on film to be used in 16 mm cameras. The film was run once through the camera, during which the frames, with about half the linear dimensions of the frames in 16 mm cinematography, would be laid down on one side of the film centerline. When this “pass” was done, the film (now on the takeup reel) was removed and replaced in its original “supply spool” position, other side up, with the original spool (now empty) in the “takeup” position.

The film was then run through the camera again, the frames being laid down opposite those from the first pass. At the processing laboratory, the film was developed intact. Then the film was slit lengthwise, giving two lengths of actual 8 mm wide film. These were spliced end to end and returned to the user on a reel, ready for projection. The most common film “package” in this mode had 25 feet of film (plus some extra on each end to be used for threading and to protect the roll from the intrusion of light during handling). Thus the result for the user was a 50 foot movie, with a running time of a little over four minutes. The Ciné-Kodak Eight was initially produced in two variants, the Ciné-Kodak Eight Model 20 (equipped with a fixed focus 13 mm f/3.5 lens) and (as of July, 1933) the essentially identical Ciné-Kodak Eight Model 25 (equipped with a fixed focus 13 mm f/2.7 lens) The Model 25 was made through November, 1946. A credible report is that the main drive spring in these cameras is in a sealed canister lubricated with whale oil. In July, 1933, when it was introduced, the Ciné-Kodak Eight Model 25, equipped with a 25 mm f/1.9 lens, sold for $45 (considered equivalent to nearly $850 in November, 2017).

 

 

1948 Movie Peggy, Martin (Buddy), Peg and Ollie Theophilus, Margaret and George Crerar • view video 

I (Martin) was born in 1946. My grandparents, Margaret and George Crerar moved from Cleveland, Ohio to Alpine in 1947. They lived in a house behind our main house and grew vegetable gardens, grape vines, peach trees, fig bushes and raised chickens. My grandfather worked as the Alpine Country  Club golf course caretaker. My grandmother worked for the First Presbyterian Church. My Mom taught private art classes and my Dad was an accountant for LaBeff Motors.

                                

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1950 snow in Alpine, Texas • view video

Swimming at Balmorphea and at the Sul Ross State College swimming pool • Crerars • view video

1947 Ohio Visit with Sally (Olllie's Sister) & Don • View Video

1947 Alpine Scenes

Grandma Crerar taking train to Ohio for visit

Ollie returning from his Mom's Ohio funeral October 1947

Martin (Buddy) & Susie

1947 Peg Sul Ross Geology Field Trip • Theophilus Baton Rogue trip • view video

1947 Theophilus Halloween Party, Alpine Halloween parade • view video

Theophilus backyard • LaBeff/Ritter Motors promo • Alpine train depot • Presbyterian Church Rev Rogers • Easter egg hunt • view video

1948 Ohio trip to see relatives - Sally & Don • View Video 

Truman campaigning by train in Alpine 1948

1948 Alpine, Texas Snow • View Video

1948 movie shot by the Theophilus' shows another heavy snow. There are some scenes around the Theophilus property including the Central School where the gym had not arrived. There are scenes with Bill Dunn, Mrs. Dunn and other family friends. The Sul Ross swimming pool is also in one scene.

                           

Alpine house 1949

Ollie worked part time as an accountant at LaBeff Motors in addition to Shoppers Guide Press

 

 

Peggy Anne in front of the Theophilus home where Martin's Mom and Dad had opened their own Gift Shop which later became Shoppers Guide Press of Alpine.

Grandpa Crerar at the chicken coop 1949 (Garner's home in background)

Crerar chicken house in the snow in Alpine January 1949

Peggy snow in Alpine January 1949

Peg building snowman in Alpine January 1949 - Garners home in background

Martin (Buddy) & Peggy 1949

The Theophilus family: Mom (Peg Crerar Theophilus, Dad (Oliver "Ollie" Theophilus), Martin (Buddy) & Peggy Anne in 1949

Peggy Anne with Ginger and her kitten in 1949

Mom & Buster Krogstad riding mules at the Woodward Ranch South of Alpine, Texas

Horse and riders by Crerar's home

 

Peggy Anne by the Alpine back yard swing in 1949

When Martin was three (1949), he fell off a swing in the backyard of his parents home.  When he was checked out by Dr. Lockhart, he found Martin had cancer (Welm's tumor - kidney was removed) and sent the family to El Paso.  His surgery was successful at Southwestern General Hospital in El Paso by Drs Turner and Deter.

  The movie below include scenes from the hospital grounds including the nurses.  Also a cab driver that always met Martin's train when he was going back and forth from Alpine to El Paso for checkups. 

View video of scenes around hospital - El Paso

El Paso Greyhound bus station 1949

Martin (Buddy) El Paso for surgery 1949 • View Video

In 1949, Martin (Buddy) fell off the swing ladder in the family;s backyard. His Mom and Dad took him to Dr. Lockhart, who said there was more going on in addition to the fall. He referred the family to Dr. Deter at El Paso's Southwestern General Hospital where they found Martin had a Welm's tumor and they removed it and his left kidney. The surgeons were cautiously optimistic that they's found all the cancer. However they also noted that often Welm's tumor patients did not have longevity and predicted High School graduation would be success. The doctors were elated when they received an invitation to Martin's college graduation. Martin and his parents made return train trips to El Paso regularly for the next couple of years for checkups. He had a taxi driver that always met them at the train to take Martin to the hospital. This movie shows scenes at and around El Paso's hospital.

                  

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Back home

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Buster Diamond and his Dad visiting from Michigan • LaBeff Motors • Peggy Rainbow Theophilus backyard

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More Alpine, Texas parades • view video

                            

Peggy as witch • Alpine parade (family took lots of parade footage (:-)

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1949 Easter Egg Hunt and Roadside Park Picnic • View Video

                                     

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1949 Parade of the Wooden Soldiers • Michigan Relatives visit • View Video

                     

1950 Theophilus family friends • Central School movie making • view video

1950 Barney & Buster Deyman (Grandma Crerar's Sister Ina's family Michigan) Alpine visit • view video   

1952 Theophilus home • view video

1954 Fort Davis Centennial • view video

1955 Martin's family trip to Cincinnati (Ollie's Sister) and Baton Rogue (Ollie's Brother) • view video

Waiting at El Paso airport for Aunt Isabel

El Paso airport with Aunt Isabel

And we'd always go out and eat at the El Paso airport and watch the planes come and go.

Martin & his Mom at Southwestern General Hospital, El Paso, Texas 1949

Martin, his Mom and Aunt Isabel at Southwestern General Hospital, El Paso, Texas 1949

Giant movie set West of Marfa in mid- 1950's

Go to more about Marfa, Texas

Martin had to return often to El Paso for checkups.  The facade of Reata from the filming of Giant was a significant landmark in the trips.

 

 

Dad & Martin, El Paso 1949

When we'd go to El Paso for my checkups, we'd always go to downtown El Paso and see the alligators (no longer there)

 

   

El Paso Airport

Peggy Anne in Alpine back yard snow 1949

Big Bend Park 1949

"They went that a way"

Margaret Crerar's sisters, Jean, Elsie, Isabel with Mrs. Miller

Martin's Grandmother's sister Isabel with Mary Lynch & Ms. Miller

Mrs. Failes, George Crerar (2nd from left), his sister Anna, Margaret Crerar, John Crerar and Mr. Failes

1950's

After WW II, Dad worked as an accountant for LaBeff Motors and then he and Mom started Shoppers Guide Press.  Martin began working for his Dad in the 1950's printing business cards on an offset press and helped put together the Alpine Shoppers Guide Press.  View copies Shoppers Guide

Dad managed distribution of newspapers (El Paso Times, San Angelo Times and the Odessa American) from mid 1950's to the 1970's .  He later became the distributor for all magazines in the West Texas area.  Mom taught art classes and for awhile taught art in the Marathon school system.  She earned degrees in Geology, Art and Industrial Art from Sul Ross State College.

Martin "Buddy"

Martin (Buddy)

Martin's Mom's Cousins Margaret & Helen visited Alpine in 1950

Alpine backyard - Peggy chasing Martin (Buddy) in the snow

1950 Peggy and Buddy

Martin (buddy), Peggy Anne and Peg at Sul Ross swimming pool.  One of the reasons Peg went back to college was to have access to the pool.

1950 picnic between Fort Davis and Alpine - Peg, Ollie, Peggy Anne & Martin (Buddy) and unknown mother and daughter.

1950 picnic - Theophilus and Olsons

1950 Buddy (Martin)

Float prepared for Alpine parade 1950

Alpine parade 1950

Alpine parade 1950

Peggy & Martin

Peggy Anne early 1950's school photos

Margaret "Peg" Crerar Theophilus 1950

Peggy, Martin & Susie

Christmas 1951

Christmas 1951

 

Peggy Anne, Buddy & Susie - Christmas 1951

George "Pop" and Margaret Crerar at McDonald Observatory in 1951

Buddy & Peggy - Ft Davis Highway

Ollie & Buddy 1951

Peggy Anne and Susie 1951

Peggy Anne with turtle in 1951

Downtown Alpine showing the Granada theater, the Saddlery and Texas Cafe in the 1950s

Martin 1951

Martin and Peggy riding bikes around Central school

 

Martin with first dog Susie

Martin (Buddy) 1952

Martin's room in Alpine, Texas in 1952

1952

Martin and Peggy riding in horse cart

Christmas 1952

Peggy & Buddy (Martin) Christmas 1952

Martin (Buddy) riding horse in the Big Bend National Park

Martin with horse Woodward ranch

Martin on horse Woodward ranch

Martin on horse Woodward ranch or BBNP

Martin's Mom "Peg" on Sul Ross rock hunting trip - view video

Mom "Peg" and her cousins from Cleveland Ohio at the Lost Mine Trail head in the Big Bend State Park

Big Bend National Park fire truck & Martin (Buddy)

Big Bend National Park fire truck & Martin (Buddy)

Martin with Susie and a missing tooth

Peggy  Anne in front of new addition to house

First of School 1952 - Buddy with Peggy Anne

1952 Peggy & Buddy (Martin)

Buddy's First Grade teacher Mrs. Arthur Hill

Alpine 1952

Bill Ramsey, Martin's Crerar grandparents cousin.

Bill Ramsey and Anna on his boat on Lake Michigan

Martin "Buddy" 1952

Peggy Anne & Susie 1953

Flash flood at Calamity Creek 1953

New trees planted in front of home in 1953.  The trees grew to be huge.

Martin's favorite mountain Casa Grande.  It was used my the Army Air Corps during WW II as a reference point when flying out and into the Marfa Army Air Base.

Six foot high stack of hail near Alpine, Texas with Martin's Mom Peg on top in May, 1953

Sally (Ollie's Sister) Don & Jim Christmas 1953

1953 cutting hay along Ft Davis highway for the chicken house

1953 cutting hay along Ft Davis highway for the chicken house

Peggy riding in buggy at Cozy Courts

Martin and Peggy at Sawtooth Mountain near Alpine in 1954

Martin's Grandmother's (Margaret Crerar)Sister Ina in white sweater center.  Left to right Neil & Helen Murphy, Margaret , Barney & Ina Deymon, Buster, Mary & Charles Deyman.  Children Mickey (child of Neil & Helen), other child unknown

Martin & Peggy climbing Lost Mine Trail in Big Bend 1954

Martin's Great Aunt Ina and her husband Barney Diamond in 1954 at the Mitre Peak Girl Scouts Camp headquarters

Margaret Crerar, her sister Ina (sitting) Peg and Peggy Anne 1954

Peggy Anne and Aunt Isabel riding horses in the Big Bend.

Martin's Aunt Isabel at the Marfa Alpine Airport in 1954 waiting for a TransTexas plane.

Peggy Anne Alpine band 1953

Martin fishing at Marathon Post

Peggy, Martin & Mom in Big Bend 1954

Ollie & Martin (Buddy) 1954

Peg & Peggy Anne with clarinet

Pop Crerar, Peg & Peggy Anne

Mom & Pop Crerar 1950's

 

Peggy riding with Myra Hord

Martin & Jackie Crawford

Grandpa (Pop, George Crerar) & Martin

Martin & Peggy - Halloween

Peggy Anne playing piano

Martin broke his arm falling off the back of a donkey on the Woodward ranch (he was behind 3 other riders on the same donkey when it stepped over a log and dumped Martin off).

Martin's Mom Peg Theophilus received her Industrial Arts Degree from Sul Ross College in 1954.  However, Sul Ross had a policy of not hiring its graduates, so she applied and was hired as the Industrial Arts teacher in Marathon, Texas.

Peg took on the "teacher look"

Mom's (Peg Theophilus) Sul Ross art show with portrait of Martin

1954 Fort Davis Centennial Celebration (1854 - 1954)

1954 Fort Davis Centennial Celebration (1854 - 1954)

Cloudcroft, New Mexico Presbyterian Camp Peggy 1954

Peg Theophilus' Marathon High School Industrial Arts scrapbook

Peg Theophilus

Peg's Marathon art students

Theophilus' favorite cabin in the Big Bend National Park.  It overlooked the "Window."  Our family stayed there many times in the 1950's.

1955 Big Bend National Park Crerars and Theophilus'

Picnic with Newbills & Theophilus'

Mid 1950's Alpine, Texas flash flood

Hunters home and Twin Sisters in background

Alpine flash flood with Baptist church in background

Alpine High School bell in parade

1957 Birthday party Buddy, Joe & Bill

Jackie Crawford, Buddy T (Martin), ?,Bennie Wright & Joe Burgess

Martin, Dad and Peggy

1957 Balmorphea

Ollie with friends overlooking the new Pecos High River bridge

Martin sword fighting with Joe Burgess.  Mom always created great costumes for us.

 

Ollie and Peg Theophilus 1955

1957

Here's an Alpine parade with a Girl Scout float.  Around the World in 80 Days was showing at the Alpine, Texas Granada Theater.  It was released in 1956.

Dad, Martin & Mom in Grandparents house

Martin's Dad Ollie was starting his own printing business, however his first job when he came to Alpine was as the accountant for the DeSoto/Plymouth dealership, seen here as yet another Alpine parade passes by.

Martin's Mom & Dad staged a HellZ A' Poppin show at the First Presbyterian Church in Alpine, Texas in the 1950s

Pat, Elsie, Sandy, Peggy Anne & Bud Big Bend Park

Martin's gas airplane

One of  Martin's model cars with Central school gym in background

One of  Martin's model cars with Central school in background

Martin's model ships

During the many trips Martin's parents made through Ft. Stockton, Martin met Trisha Hardy.  She made some of the paper trips with his family and Martin would spend some Saturdays in Ft. Stockton.  Some of Martin's first records were 45s purchased at the Ft. Stockton record store.

Martin doing homework? Really?

Bill in Martin's room working on gas plane

Ben in Martin's room

Martin's room showing first reel to reel tapes, ham QSL cards, QSL map, old WW II receiver, covered typewriter and phonograph

 

Martin's original ham set up - Recently saw receiver listed on ebay  - vintage WWII 1944 Navy radio part of RBS-1 radio equipment group, 2-20 Mhz. Receiver model CCT-46217 - 112311

Martin with code key & QSL cards

ham room being built

unhappy to pose ham cat

Martin ham radio KN5YCJ 1956

Very early switchboard in Martin's ham room & Bill looking at radio catalog

David Forchheimer in Martin's ham radio shack (Central school out window). Martin's friendship with David who was a classmate that worked at Alpine's KVLF radio station also peaked an interest in radio, recording and the music business.

Bill Stovell in Martin's Ham Shack