Saturday, February 23, 2013

Prattville Dragoons February Camp Meeting - A Tribute to the Gober Real Sons Part 2

Thursday night, February 14th saw the Prattville Dragoons celebrate Valentine's Day with their monthly camp meeting.  Former Camp and Brigade Commander Wyatt Willis presented a video interview of Vince and Henry Gober, deceased members of the Dragoons and Real Sons of Confederate veteran Lisbon Failes Gober.  Prior to showing the video, Commander Willis read a memorial for the Gober brothers calling them sincere Southern gentlemen and he read a prayer from the family prayer book.  He closed his introduction saying the Prattville Dragoons should be proud to have had two Real Sons as members of camp 1524.

(James) Vincent and Henry (Owen) were both interviewed in the video. Their Confederate veteran father Lisbon Failes Gober is buried at Rocky Mount Cemetery in Prattville.  Henry recalled his father - Lisbon was born in 1845 in Gainesville GA and joined the Confederate army at the age of 16.  Wounded in Tennessee, he stayed in his unit til it was disbanded at the end of the War.  He married and had two children with his first wife but she passed away when the children were young.  Lisbon did not remarry until these two children were grown.  He remarried around 1900 and had nine children with his second wife including Vince and Henry with Mary the youngest.  The children from both marriages stayed in contact with each other.

Henry was born in 1913 in what is now Millbrook AL.  He married in 1934 and had two boys and two girls.  Henry served in the navy in World War II and helped repair amphibious landing ships from 1943-1945.  After the war he was a contractor til the 1960s and helped build many of the homes in Millbrook. After this career he was a cattle farmer and stayed in that line of business til his retirement.  He recalled his father Lisbon was a farmer and also built houses.  He recalled the family's neighbors helped them clear their 40 acre farm.  They made sugar and syrup on the farm and raised beef cattle, hogs, tobacco and watermelon; Lisbon was also a carpenter and made some of the finest quality award-winning brooms. 

Vince was born in Winston AL in 1911.  Vince had four children also and similarly served in the Navy in WWII.  He recalled wonderful times on the family farm and that the family did well until Lisbon passed away.  Wyatt and Vince talked about some of the families which helped found and settle the Millbrook areas and recalled that Autauga County used to encompass the three counties of Autauga, Elmore, and Chilton counties until Reconstruction.

Both sons expressed their honor to be Real Sons of a Confederate Veteran.  They were pleased with the I-65 Battle Flag and Henry said, "I think it ought to be flying high."  He went on to say that he flew his Battle Flag at his home for many years until one of his children expressed concern over the possible repercussions and he took it down briefly.  But, in his later years he again flew it proudly in front of his home saying, "It will be flying there as long as I live."

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