James Riley Morgan was born Sept. 5, 1940, in the Freestone County community of Rocky Branch (Creek), which is located between Kirvin and Wortham. He was the youngest son of nine children – three sons and six daughters – born to farmers James and Tennie Morgan. He attended a small country school in that community then went on to attend and graduate in 1959 from the segregated F. W. Wheeler High School in Wortham. He was a well-rounded student and gifted athlete who played a variety high school sports but it was basketball where he excelled.
He received scholarship offers to play college basketball at New Mexico State University but chose to stay close to home and family by enrolling at Paul Quinn College in Waco. At Paul Quinn he continued to play basketball, the sport he excelled and loved.
Upon graduation from Paul Quinn in 1963, he received an offer to play for the professional basketball team, Detroit Pistons. He went through two rounds of tryouts with the Pistons and finally on the second round was offered a spot on the team. He was told that the offer was uncertain with the possibility of being cut from the team at some point.
He also had been offered a position on the Harlem Clowns, a Harlem Globetrotters-franchised team. The HarlemClownsteamwasbasedinLos Angeles. The Harlem Clowns team was established in 1934 byAl Pullins, a charter member of the Harlem Globetrotters organization, who owned and coached the Harlem Clowns for many years. Morgan played various court positions point guard, forward, etc.) on the Harlem Clowns 29th 1963-1964 season. The team travelled across the United States playing exhibition games in the entertaining tradition of the Harlem Globetrotters.
His professional basketball career was cut short by his draft in the U.S. Army in 1964 where he served in Vietnam and promoted to a Specialist 4 Switchboard Operator in the 50th Artillery Unit 6th Battalion (Hawk Missile Unit). While in the U.S. Army, he was recruited to play basketball and received an MVP award in the U S Army sponsored National Championship Tournament held in Albuquerque, N.M.
After military service, James Morgan returned home to Freestone County and met and married the love of his life, Joyce Wadley. He remarked he looked and searched for “the one” during his worldly travels and found her near-by, 56 miles away in Palestine. They have been married 57 years and have one son, Ronnie Morgan. organ worked 21 years for Dallas Independent School District and 12 years for the City of Dallas. He is an 84-year-old retired school, city employee and distinguished military veteran. He spends his retirement time between his residence in Dallas and his family farm in the Rocky Branch community. He serves his Lord and community as an elder in the Bonnie View Christian Church in Dallas and as a lifetime member/ deacon of the Rocky Branch Primitive Baptist Church in Freestone County.
Of special note, the Rocky Branch Primitive Baptist Church was established in 1869 during the post-Civil War Reconstruction era and has been recently awarded a Subject Marker plaque from the State of Texas Historical Commission. Minnie Jones, another lifetime member of the Rocky Branch Church, initiated the application process for this worthwhile recognition.
Story by Patricia Pratt, Freestone County Historical Museum with research material provided by Linda Mullen, president, Freestone County Historical Museum Board of Directors.
