The Mothes-Carranza House

Contact Clifton Key (940.564.2979) for changes or corrections.

In 1911, a mechanic’s lien was entered into by Charles H. (1882-1956) Mothes, the owner of the lot with J.W. Byrom, to erect a four-room house for $690. Mr. Mothes, in later adult life, became a premier house builder in Olney but spent most of his life in Seymour. This first house on this lot was probably moved because Mothes sold the lot to William Thomas in 1916 for $120. In 1925, Hattie Thomas Logan sold the lot to W.H. Junker for $500. Mr. Junker was the son of C.W. Junker, the house mover in Olney, so these trades may be related.

Also, in 1925, Junker sold the lot to J.T. Hutchings (1893-1966) for $750. Junker and his father, J.A. Hutchings (1864-1947) operated the first fresh meat market in Olney. Meat from meat markets was fresh before refrigeration as they used iceboxes to store the meat. The Hutchings were also farmers and ranchers as well as cattle dealers.

Tee Hutchins married Clara Steele in 1915 and executed a mechanic’s lien with Will O’Connor to erect a five-room house for $3,875. Jimmy Steele was their only child, and he grew up and married Margaret Lunsford, who worked in the box office at the Westex Theatre in Olney. Jimmy Steele had a convertible in the late 30s and early 40s, and he was the man about town before he and Margaret married.

In 1937, Tee and Clara Hutchings sold the property to W.B.(Preacher) McCary (1903-1991), whose wife was Mary Opel Shelton, whose sister Jewel Christine Shelton was the wife of Slim Eubanks who was the owner of the Green Derby—the alcoholic beverage place just across the Archer County line as soon as prohibition ended in the early 30s. McCary was a successful businessman in Olney, running a dry-cleaning establishment, a tailor shop and a men’s clothing store.

In 1990, the McCarys sold the property to Jimmy Kyle Wade. Later in the year Jimmy Lyle and Stacy Wade sold the house to Jim Wade.

Jim Wade sold the house to Pamela Kennedy under a contract that provided for the cancellation of the deal if there was a default in payments. At some point, there must have been a default, and Wade sold the property again in 2022 to the current owner Modesta Carranza.