Stories from the Tree - A small, curious item

This little item was among some recently-acquired family keepsakes. It's a name tag. Polished brass holder, measuring about 1" x 2" in size. On the back side there is a pin to attach the badge to your clothing. We are familiar with the concept; usually we see them as adhesive "HELLO" stickers, or plastic-encased credentials with our name and affiliation printed for the occasion.

The name that is typed on the paper insert (though woefully misspelled) is that of my grandfather, Lee Bramblett. And Lee Bramblett was a ginner. During his working life he owned several cotton gins and worked at others.  Here's a photo of Lee (2nd from left) and his crew at a gin he owned in Stubblefield, Texas, about 1910.

 The three boys on the right are sons Homer, Tommy and Carl. The dog was named Fritz. One look at the photo and you know that Lee didn't wear a name tag at work, nor did any of his crew. No photo-id on the end of a lanyard here.

So what called for the wearing of a name tag as a representative of the Taylor Gin Company? I'm guessing that most folks knew everybody else in town (except for whoever typed Lee's name) and I don't think there was a big annual convention and trade show of Cotton Ginners in Johnson County. And I doubt that Lee was driving around the county, repping Taylor Gin Company and admonishing cotton growers to "come gin with us."

I searched diligently for some record of the Taylor Gin Company in Cleburne, Texas, and while there were several prominent Taylor families in the region at that time, they all tended to be merchants and store keepers. Based on my grandfather's history, gins came and went with some degree of regularity, so this small, curious item will just remain a mystery.