Rochester Cornelius Strickland

Rochester Cornelius Strickland was born on March 11, 1896, in Delta, Clay County, Alabama.

In the fall of 1925, Strickland moved with his wife, Elsie, and their two children to the location that would become the town of Bledsoe.

Although the townsite had been surveyed and its lots had been sold, the Strickland family and land agent Garland McCoy and his family were the only residents when the Stricklands arrived.

The family unloaded its cooking equipment and erected a canvas lean-to that extended from the side of their Model T truck to the ground.

By winter, Bledsoe was growing rapidly. The Stricklands hauled lumber from Brownfield and built the first residence in the new community.

Strickland's carpentry skills and his truck, which he used to haul construction materials, were in high demand as the town developed.

After the railroad was completed, Bledsoe continued to flourish and a post office was constructed. The Strickland family operated Strickland's Pharmacy next door to the post office.

The family moved to Morton in 1931. Strickland then assumed the duties of Cochran County tax assessor-collector.

At the time, the county lacked sufficient funds to pay its officials in cash. Vouchers were issued in place of salaries, and county officials often struggled to meet their living expenses until the vouchers could be redeemed.

Strickland later opened a dry-cleaning shop and a dry-goods store in Morton.

He entered office as Cochran County judge on January 1, 1941, and served two terms through December 31, 1946.

In 1947, Rochester and Elsie Strickland constructed what was described at the time as an “ultra-modern” dry-cleaning shop on West Washington Avenue in Morton.

The couple operated Strickland's Cleaners until retiring in 1967.

Strickland was a charter member of the Morton Volunteer Fire Department, the Morton Lions Club, and American Legion Jesse R. Bond Post No. 374. He also served on the Morton City Council.

Rochester Cornelius Strickland died from pneumonia on August 14, 1974, in Morton, Texas, at the age of 78.

He was buried at Resthaven Memorial Park in Lubbock, Texas.

Biography source: Adapted from Texas Sesquicentennial: Texas' Last Frontier, Cochran County, 1836–1986, Volume 1 . Copyright Cochran County Historical Commission. Written by Pat Strickland Mullinax circa 1985 and adapted by Mary Helen McKnight in 2016.