Family Card - Person Sheet
Family Card - Person Sheet
NameRobert Benjamin “Bob” Melton 
Birth7 Feb 1872, Rocky Mount, Nash County, NC
Death18 Jun 1958, Rocky Mount, Nash County, NC
Burial20 Jun 1958, Pineview Cemetery, Rocky Mount, Edgecombe County, NC
Spouses
1Lilla Mitchell
Birth24 Nov 1869
Death3 Dec 1950
BurialPineview Cemetery, Rocky Mount, Edgecombe County, NC
ChildrenMavis (1896-1972)
Birth18 Sep 1900, North Carolina
Death6 Dec 1988, Salisbury, Rowan County, NC
BurialSt Matthew’s Lutheran Church Cemetery, Rowan County, NC
FatherGeorge Allen Trexler (1862-1939)
MotherLouise C. Brady (1868-1942)
Marriage6 Jan 1952, Rowan County, NC
Notes for Robert Benjamin “Bob” Melton
"Barbecue King" Dead At 86 In Rocky Mount
Robert B. Melton, or "Uncle Bob" as he was also known, died at his home about noon Wednesday of pneumonia. He had been in failing health for two years but seriously ill for only a week. He was 86.
Melton was known throughout the country as the "Barbecue King." Shipments of his barbecue went all over the United States and to several foreign counties.
Uncle Bob started his small establishment on the banks of the Tar River at Melton's Springs in 1924 although he had been cooking pigs since he was a youngster.
He was born in Nash County on 7 Feb 1872 and was christened Robert Melton, but since childhood he has been known only as Bob. He once remarked that he loved Nash County so much that he saw no reason to leave it. When he first came to Rocky Mount at the age of 35 he went in the mercantile and horse trading business but this venture did not prosper. He loved to cook and eat barbecue, so he started off his barbecue business in a small shed. Now Melton's is well equipped to handle large crowds and has a high sanitary rating.
Bob would not allow any beer or whisky on his property. He was known to order patrons out of his establishments if they had the odor of alcohol on their breath. When beer was legalized he told friends that many folks begged him to serve it but beer was never allowed at Melton's.
His first wife, the former Lilla Mitchell of Nash County, died in Dec 1950. A daughter, Mrs. Mavis Bell, survives from this marriage.
In 1952 he married Dorothy Trexler of Rowan County who also survives.
Although not a member of any church. Melton contributed liberally, especially during the last 10 years when it is estimated he gave $100,000 to various denominations.
Funeral services will be conducted at Gay's Funeral Home at 11 o'clock Friday. The Rev. Hoke Ritchie, pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church, Dr. J.W. Kincheloe, pastor emeritus of the First Baptist Church, and the Rev. Raymond Clyde Lanier, pastor of the North Rocky Mount Baptist Church, will officiate. Burial will follow in Pineview Cemetery.
Robert B. Melton, or "Uncle Bob" as he was also known, died at his home about noon Wednesday of pneumonia. He had been in failing health for two years but seriously ill for only a week. He was 86.
Melton was known throughout the country as the "Barbecue King." Shipments of his barbecue went all over the United States and to several foreign counties.
Uncle Bob started his small establishment on the banks of the Tar River at Melton's Springs in 1924 although he had been cooking pigs since he was a youngster.
He was born in Nash County on 7 Feb 1872 and was christened Robert Melton, but since childhood he has been known only as Bob. He once remarked that he loved Nash County so much that he saw no reason to leave it. When he first came to Rocky Mount at the age of 35 he went in the mercantile and horse trading business but this venture did not prosper. He loved to cook and eat barbecue, so he started off his barbecue business in a small shed. Now Melton's is well equipped to handle large crowds and has a high sanitary rating.
Bob would not allow any beer or whisky on his property. He was known to order patrons out of his establishments if they had the odor of alcohol on their breath. When beer was legalized he told friends that many folks begged him to serve it but beer was never allowed at Melton's.
His first wife, the former Lilla Mitchell of Nash County, died in Dec 1950. A daughter, Mrs. Mavis Bell, survives from this marriage.
In 1952 he married Dorothy Trexler of Rowan County who also survives.
Although not a member of any church. Melton contributed liberally, especially during the last 10 years when it is estimated he gave $100,000 to various denominations.
Funeral services will be conducted at Gay's Funeral Home at 11 o'clock Friday. The Rev. Hoke Ritchie, pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church, Dr. J.W. Kincheloe, pastor emeritus of the First Baptist Church, and the Rev. Raymond Clyde Lanier, pastor of the North Rocky Mount Baptist Church, will officiate. Burial will follow in Pineview Cemetery.