Robert Russell (Bob) Petty Jr. died Oct. 7, in Sweetwater, at the age of 77. He was born on March 16, 1941 in Sweetwater, the only child of Robert Russell and Mamie (Petri) Petty.
Petty was a lifelong resident of Nolan. He graduated from Divide High School and was the valedictorian of his class in 1959. He attended Texas A&M University where he received his degree in Animal Science and Animal Husbandry in 1963. He was a member of the Corp of Cadets (ROTC) company D-1, “Spider D”. He also received his commission into the U.S. Army the same day as graduation. He received a deferment to do graduate work towards a master’s degree in Animal Genetics and Statistics. He was called to active duty in 1965 and served in the Medical Service Corps where he was stationed at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio; Fort Hood in Killeen; Fort Knox in Kentucky; and Fort Benning in Georgia, before being deployed to Vietnam in December 1966. Following his service, he returned to the family ranch in Nolan, RR Ranch, and married Nadene Daws on Aug. 11, 1962.
He was a member of the American Angus Association, Texas Angus Association, and a number of civic organizations. He was also a member of the Texas A&M Former Students Association.
He received the Outstanding Conservation Farmer Award in 1988. Petty was one of the first to introduce Crop Insurance to farmers in Nolan County in 1984, operating Petty Crop Insurance for 20 years. Petty and RR Ranch were featured in two different magazines for his outstanding work in breeding Angus cattle. He was a member of Phi Kappa Phi, Saddle and Sirloin Club, Alpha Zeta, a member of the Wool Judging team and a member of the Livestock Judging team.
Petty is survived by his wife, Nadene, of Nolan; four sons, Russ (Terri) Petty, of Sweetwater; Ron Petty of Benbrook; Randy (Larissa), of Sweetwater; Rolan (Leigh) Petty, Sweetwater; 11 grandchildren; one great-granddaughter; and many relatives and friends.
Memorials may be made to the Nolan-Divide Community Center or First United Methodist Church Food Pantry in Sweetwater.
Published in the December 2018 Issue of The Cattleman Magazine