MARY ELLEN “DUDE’ BARTON
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Mary Ellen “Dude” Barton age 95, slipped away on Friday, May 10, 2019 in Matador, Texas.
A Memorial service was held at 2 p.m., Wednesday, May 15, 2019 at the First United Methodist Church in Matador. Her great-nephew, Danny Jones, officiated.
Arrangements were under the personal care of Moore Rose Funeral Home of Floydada.
Mary Ellen “Dude” Barton was the youngest of nine children. Dude grew up riding horses as a toddler and helping her brothers and sisters work cattle on the sandy river bottom. As a teenager she entered local and regional rodeos and excelled in roping, barrel racing, and, at the Will Rogers Coliseum in Fort Worth, the event Musical Chairs by Horseback.
She was a life-long farmer and rancher who lived on the North Pease River in Motley County. She was a founding member of the All Girls Rodeo Association and a National Cowgirl Hall of Fame honoree. She loved nothing more than working on the farm or ranch and when she could no longer do that, she took up wood working as a hobby. She would often say, “I have lived the best life anybody could have had.”
Barton was preceded in death by her parents, W.B. and Ella Orr Barton; her best friend ever, Viola Stinson; her sisters, Opal Martin, Eliza Jones, Allie Hart, and Mollie Burleson; and her brothers, Millard, Clayton, and France Barton.
She is survived by 15 nieces and nephews and a community of friends in the area of Flomot, Turkey, Quitaque, and Matador.
Memorials may be sent to Dude’s favorite charities: The Motley County Library, The Motley County Museum, or the Motley County Senior Citizens.
