Leslie E. “Gene” Bates, the owner of the Cullman Flea Market and former owner of Bates Farm Equipment in Cullman, died Saturday at the age of 77.

Funeral services are planned for 2 p.m. today at Cullman Heritage Chapel. Burial will be in Bethsadia Cemetery.

Bates, a long-time businessman and farmer, was found slumped over inside his car on the shoulder of County Road 222 in the Trimble community around 2 p.m. Saturday.

His son, Lionel Bates, said Monday indications are his father died of a massive heart attack.

“He hadn’t been in good health for some time. He had pacemaker surgery six or eight years ago and he hasn’t been feeling particularly well the last three weeks or so,” Lionel Bates said. “The best we can figure out, he was driving down County Road 222 Saturday afternoon and apparently started having a heart attack. It appears he temporarily lost control of his car, but still managed to maneuver it to the shoulder of the road. A passerby found him slumped over and called 911.”

Bates was later pronounced dead at Woodland Medical Center.

Born in Akron, Ohio, Bates was a 13-year U.S. Army veteran, having entered the military at the end of World War II. He served two tours of duty in Korea where he achieved the rank of sergeant first-class.

After he left the military, Lionel Bates said his father moved his family to Cullman County where the majority of his family was from.

“One of his first jobs was that of a car jockey, which is the term given a car salesman who would get on a train with other dealers in the area and ride the rails all the way to Chicago. In Chicago he would buy used cars and bring them back to Cullman,” Lionel Bates said. “During that time, Hurricane Camille came through Mississippi and he and others went to the coast and bought cars, brought them back to Cullman, fixed them up and sold them.”

That was the beginning of Bates Auto Sales in the 1960s.

Along the way, Lionel Bates said his father tried his hand at farming corn and livestock, including hogs and cattle.

The family farm was located on Bates Road (County Road 463) in southwest Cullman.

“Dad was also an avid hunter. He particularly enjoyed coon hunting and he served for many years as president of the Cullman County Coon Hunters Association,” Lionel Bates said. “He was also a champion coon dog breeder and trainer. He has a utility building that is full of trophies and plaques he won in competitions over the years. Several of his dogs were sold for thousands of dollars. I remember one he sold to a man in Ohio, sight-unseen, for $10,000.”

In the late 1960s, Bates attended St. Bernard College and obtained his real estate license.

“I think that’s about the time he started to establish himself as a businessman in the community. He began investing in commercial property in the area and those investments usually paid off very well for him,” Lionel Bates said.

As his car dealership continued to grow, Lionel Bates said his father decided to go to school to earn his auctioneer’s license. Afterward, he began auctioning cars in Mississippi and Georgia. That led to him purchasing the Arab Auto Auction, which the family ran for about three years before it was sold.

“Around 1972, dad hit on the idea of establishing an auction for farm machinery. People came from all over both to sell and buy at the auction. The auction was so popular in fact that he backed off his car sales and began selling farm machinery almost exclusively,” Lionel Bates said. “The business grew quickly and soon became a statewide attraction for people who wanted to buy and sell farm equipment and accessories at a good price.”

In 1987, Delwin Kilgo and Bob Cheatwood opened one of North Alabama’s first large scale flea markets under roof and the Cullman Flea Market was born. A year later, Bates purchased Cheatwood’s half interest in the flea market and two years. Later he purchased Kilgo’s interest and the name was changed to Cullman Flea Market, Inc. Over the years it has grown into one of the largest indoor flea markets in the state.

“Dad was always looking for ways to make the flea market bigger and better. He added Country Village, Glover’s Produce, and Gallaway Furniture, to name a few,” Lionel Bates said. “He was still very active in the business up until the day he died.”

Bates Farm Equipment, which originated in Good Hope, was moved adjacent to the flea market in 1988. Lionel Bates bought the equipment business from his father in 1994 and continues to operate it today.

Asked how he hopes people will remember his father, Lionel Bates said he thinks his dad would like to be remembered as someone who supported his community.

“He was always willing to help people with less for less,” Lionel Bates said. “I’ll remember him as a loving and caring father and family man. He was also a good businessman who had vision and the determination to turn challenges into opportunities.”