Robert Paul Herndon^[1]

1909 - 1992  (83 years)

• Name	Robert Paul Herndon  [2]
  Birth	9 Oct 1909	Durant, Bryan County, Oklahoma, United States   [3]
  Gender	Male
  US SSN	463-09-9887  [4]
  Occupation	Salesman/Accountant  [5, 6]
  Census	12 May 1910	Ward 4, Hugo Township, Choctaw County, Oklahoma, United States   [7]
  Residence	Aug 1932	El Paso, El Paso County, Texas, United States   [2]
  3522 Lebanon Street
  Residence	26 Apr 1937	Fort Worth, Tarrant County, Texas, United States   [4]
  Star Arms Hotel
  Residence	Nov 1941	San Quentin State Prison, Marin County, California, United States   [8]
  Residence	Mar 1942	California Institution for Men (“Chino”), San Bernardino County, California, United States   [8]
  Cause of Death	Pneumonia/Emphysema  [9]
  Death	12 Dec 1992	West Memphis, Crittenden County, Arkansas, United States   [9]
  Burial	15 Dec 1992	Dogwood Cemetery, near Blytheville, Mississippi County, Arkansas, United States   [9, 10]
  	Block 7, Lot 98
  Person ID	I116	Lindell-Herndon Genealogy
  Last Modified	23 Jun 2018

  
  

  Father	Robert Boyd Herndon,   b. 22 Jun 1886, Chicota, Lamar County, Texas, United States d. 9 Mar 1934, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma County, Oklahoma, United States (Age 47 years)
  Mother	Tennie May Calhoun,   b. 1 May 1891, Sherman, Grayson County, Texas, United States d. 7 Nov 1977, Port Hueneme, Ventura County, California, United States (Age 86 years)
  Marriage	12 Dec 1908	Durant, Bryan County, Oklahoma, United States   [11]
  Separated	Aft Jun 1917  [12]
  Notes	Tennie’s parents, James Marion Calhoun and Sarah Elizabeth (Turpin) Calhoun, served as witnesses for the marriage license application and marriage certificate. [11]
  Family ID	F804	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family 1	Elizabeth Marina Masten,   b. 5 Feb 1915, Mimbres, Grant County, New Mexico, United States d. 20 Sep 1937, El Paso, El Paso County, Texas, United States (Age 22 years)
  Marriage	13 Apr 1932	Las Cruces, Doña Ana County, New Mexico, United States   [13]
  Separated	Abt 1936  [1]
  Notes	A ‘Mrs. H. Mabry’ (Tennie (Calhoun-Herndon) Mabry) witnessed the marriage of Robert Paul Herndon to Elizabeth Marina Masten in New Mexico in 1932. [13]
  Children	1. William Cecil Herndon,   b. 12 Aug 1932, El Paso, El Paso County, Texas, United States d. 20 Oct 2011, El Paso, El Paso County, Texas, United States (Age 79 years)   2. Robert Frank Herndon,   b. 19 Jul 1935, Houston, Harris County, Texas, United States d. 4 Aug 2012, El Paso, El Paso County, Texas, United States (Age 77 years)
  Family ID	F39	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	1 Jan 2014

  
  

  Family 2	Lois J Bidwell,   b. 1 Jun 1922, Luxora, Mississippi County, Arkansas, United States d. 28 Dec 2021, West Memphis, Crittenden County, Arkansas, United States (Age 99 years)
  Marriage	Aft 24 Feb 1956  [8]
  Notes	The date of Robert Paul Herndon’s marriage to Lois J Bidwell is not known, but it could not have been before 24 February 1956 when Robert was released on parole from the California Institute for Men at Chino. [8]
  Family ID	F2426	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	20 Jan 2022

  
  

• Event Map

  Birth - 9 Oct 1909 - Durant, Bryan County, Oklahoma, United States Census - 12 May 1910 - Ward 4, Hugo Township, Choctaw County, Oklahoma, United States Marriage - 13 Apr 1932 - Las Cruces, Doña Ana County, New Mexico, United States Residence - Aug 1932 - El Paso, El Paso County, Texas, United States Residence - 26 Apr 1937 - Fort Worth, Tarrant County, Texas, United States Residence - Nov 1941 - San Quentin State Prison, Marin County, California, United States Residence - Mar 1942 - California Institution for Men (“Chino”), San Bernardino County, California, United States Death - 12 Dec 1992 - West Memphis, Crittenden County, Arkansas, United States Burial - 15 Dec 1992 - Dogwood Cemetery, near Blytheville, Mississippi County, Arkansas, United States  = Link to Google Earth

  
  

• Photos » Slide Show		Herndon Boys William Pryor Herndon and Robert Paul Herndon, Bill's great uncle and grandfather (paternal) circa 1919 - Photo courtesy Robert Raymond Herndon
  		William Pryor and Robert Paul Herndon Bill's great uncle and grandfather (paternal) circa 1990 - Photo courtesy Robert Raymond Herndon
  		Robert Paul Herndon Bill's paternal grandfather - Photo courtesy of Robert Raymond Herndon
  		Robert Boyd Herndon and Sons Bill's great-grandfather (paternal) and sons circa 1914 - Photo courtesy of Robert Raymond Herndon

  
  

• Notes

  Robert Paul Herndon abandoned his first wife and sons late in 1936 or early in 1937. Family rumors indicate that he attended Elizabeth Marina Masten’s funeral, but since he was incarcerated in Ft. Worth, Tarrant County, Texas in 1937, this seems unlikely. From late in 1941 through 1956, he was incarcerated in California, and [Cobb-1992] indicates that he was a resident of West Memphis from 1986 through his death in 1992. [10, 14, 15] Robert Paul Herndon’s Social Security Application has a birth date of 19 Oct 1909, but this conflicts with his birth certificate and his marriage application. [3, 4, 13] Robert Paul Herndon was convicted on 5 counts of forgery in Modesto, Stanislaus County, California on, or just before, 7 November 1941. He was sentenced from 1 to 14 years and incarcerated at the California State Prison at San Quentin as prisoner 67459 on 10 November of that year. In March 1942, he was transferred to the California Institution for Men, a minimum security prison at Chino, San Bernardino County, California. Information gathered to date suggests that he served the remainder of his sentence, 14 full years, at “Chino” and was paroled on 24 February 1956. [15, 16, 17] [SanQuentin-1941b] and [SanQuentin-1941c1] note that Robert Paul Herndon also served 7 months for forgery in Fort Worth, Texas in 1937. [14, 18]

  
  

• Reference

  Herndon, William. "Robert Paul Herndon". Lindell-Herndon Genealogy. https://lindell-herndon.org/getperson.php?personID=I116 (accessed July 13, 2025).