Lawrence Browder Frederick, age 97, of Trenton, Ky. died at Spring Meadows Health and Rehabilitation on Sunday, July 6, 2025. He was born February 6, 1928, in Pembroke, Ky. to the late Lucy Gilliam Frederick and Talmadge Frederick.
He is survived by his wife of 51 years, Gail Hansel Frederick; and three children: Larry Dale Frederick (Glenda); Phyllis Jean Frederick Doyle (David); and Nancy Elise Frederick Shelton. He was the grandfather of Emily Frederick King (Chris); Julie Frederick; Michelle Doyle; Adam Shelton and Will Shelton (Elle). He was great grandfather to Norah and Aidan King and Vivian Corley. He also is survived by his wife’s sister and brother-in-law, Jan and Frank Burchwell. He was uncle to several nieces and nephews, whom he loved dearly.
He was preceded in death by his first wife, Isabel Taylor Frederick, to whom he was married from 1949 till her death in 1973. He also was predeceased by his siblings, Russell Frederick, Mosley Frederick, Virginia Bell Frederick Cates, and Edna Pearl Frederick Waggoner; and a grandson, Michael David Doyle.
In his early years, he attended Pembroke’s Lunderman Grade School, which became St. Elmo School, and finished at Pembroke High School. When he turned 18 just as World War II ended, his father took him to be registered for the military, but the draft had been suspended. His son Larry was born just before the Korean War, which lowered his draft card number, so he wasn’t called to serve.
He had some interesting brushes with fame when he worked at the filling station on East 9th Street (U.S. Route 41) in Hopkinsville around 1951. This is when 41 was a major north-south route covering eight states from Florida to Michigan. He shared that a group of men stopped with a flat tire, and while he was tasked with changing the tire, he accidentally put the whitewall on the inside, which was pointed out to him. Somewhat embarrassed as he wasn’t very familiar with whitewalls, he fixed it and asked, “Who are y’all?” He learned they were the Oak Ridge Boys and were headed to Paducah to perform. He said he later began to enjoy their music. He did recognize Ernest Tubb when he stopped by for a fill-up. “He was an ole country man, laughing and carrying on as he was about to head out on tour. He said he would be back on Saturday night since he had to be on the Grand Ole Opry. He is also recognized Hank Williams, even though he was covered in blankets and sleeping in the back seat of the car that pulled in to the station for a fill-up. Lawrence remembered it was 20 degrees below zero that winter.
Lawrence farmed for 66 years from 1952 – 2018, retiring at 90 years old. He dearly loved the farm even though “it was filled up with gullies,” he laughingly shared with family. He credited the Rice family with having the trust in him and giving him the support to fulfill his dream to farm the property on either side of Cemetery Road in Trenton. Charlie Rice, who lived in East Tennessee owned the property, and hired Lawrence to work and manage the farm. When Mr. Rice died, two of his sons, Paul and Carl took over as owners. When Carl passed 10 years ago, his son Charles Thomas and Paul shared ownership. Lawrence said the Rices were like his family and they continued to check on one another and visit throughout the years. On the farm, Lawrence raised livestock, but his passion was growing crops. “Just being a farmer is all I wanted to be. I knew I could make a good living, and I knew how it was supposed to be done. There were hard times in it, but a whole lot of good times too,” he reminisced.
In all his years of farming, he witnessed many changes and improvements. He shared how when he first learned about anhydrous ammonia fertilizer, it drastically changed the game. He talked about borrowing money from the federal land bank to make improvements and do what he knew needed to be done. Even though he retired from farming, his heart never left the farm and he kept in close touch with the Morris Chester family who took over from him. He also stayed in close contact with Gary Green who lives in the home he built at the farm.
When he wasn’t farming, Lawrence enjoyed music, starting first with the mandolin which he played with his brothers Mosley on fiddle and Russell on guitar. He later adopted the guitar as his primary instrument and enjoyed playing when he could with his Trenton friends. For a brief time, he played at Shakey’s Pizza on Riverside Drive in Clarksville. If it wasn’t music jams in different homes, he and his wife enjoyed playing cards with other couples.
And then he discovered golf. When he met and married Gail, she introduced him to the sport. It was an inauspicious introduction as he got too close observing her backswing and it connected with the crown of his head. He was undeterred, however. “Before I finished the first nine holes, I thought, ‘I’m going to take that up,’” he said. Playing with friends and family became one of his favorite pastimes. He was a competitor, playing several amateur tournaments, and walking away with trophies. He was also proud to have twice hit holes in one.
In addition to golf, Gail sparked his interest in the stock market. She had 78 shares of Phelps Dodge, where she previously worked as the plant nurse. He said he took her shares, bought 22 more to make it 100 even, then learned how to invest from brokers at Hilliard Lyons in Hopkinsville. He shook his head when he said he “went broke” three times investing in the market and warned, “You can’t get in love with a stock.” When all was said and done, he became adept and impressive as an investor.
Lawrence served as a trustee and elder at Trenton Presbyterian Church. He was an ardent fan of the St. Louis Cardinals and the Vanderbilt Commodores men’s basketball team. Another of his joys was spending time with his grandchildren, whether on the West Fork creek in a canoe or fishing or just enjoying time with them and his great grandchildren at his and Gail’s home in Trenton. He was a prolific storyteller and began each yarn with “I wanna tell you a story.”
A celebration of life service will be held on Friday, July 18, at 1 p.m. at Trenton Presbyterian Church. He will be laid to rest in Edgewood Cemetery in Trenton. Maddux-Fuqua-Hinton Funeral Home of Hopkinsville has been entrusted the cremation and burial. Memorial remembrances may be sent in his name to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.
