Obituary

Branham, Gordon

Gordon Branham, 95, died Saturday morning at his residence at Raider Ranch. Gordon was born on 2-27-1920 in Plainview, Texas, on his father's farm. He attended Plainview schools and then went on to attend Wayland College, and Texas Tech University from 1938-1941. After Pearl Harbor, Gordon enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps. There he became a pilot, then a flight instructor. Later he flew missions over Guam and the Philippine Islands until the war ended. He received the rank of major in 1951 from the Marines, and continued in the reserve until 1960. While in the Marines, he married Marilynn Ruth Steen from Norman, Oklahoma, and after the war, they moved back to Plainview, where he continued farming his family farm until 1970. Gordon and Marilynn then moved to Ingram, Texas. There Gordon was a jack of all trades. He raised cattle and sheep, did land appraising for the state, worked at Camp Waldamar for many years, cooked for private deer camps, and finally settled on doing woodworking full time. He continued his wood working hobby and business up until 2012, making and selling hundreds of pieces of furniture, which are spread throughout the Hill Country and beyond. Gordon is survived by his son, Steve Branham of Amarillo, daughter, Georgia Locke, of Lubbock, and grandson Trent Locke of Levelland.