Appalachian
Continued From P?' 1
sick.
You will still find the people
friendly. They will ask you in
to take a meal or spend the
night.
It used to be a little (arming
community with a lot of activi
ty around the house. Now
Seminary is quiK, for most of
the family are away working
in plants with not even
chickens to sing around the
house, and the children go by
bus all the way to Marshall to
school.
From Seminary, we drove
across the mountain to a little
community called Devil's
Fork, on a creek called Rocky
Broad. At one time, this little
community had a mission sta
tion run by the Preabyterian
U.S.A. board. We could easily
see how the people missed the
station, and they were proud
to tell us about the good work
that used to be carried on
there.
A few miles down the creek,
we came to another of the
Presbyterian missions, one of
the largest carried by the
Presbyterian board. Rocky
Fork. It was under the super
vision of Jennie Moore, one of
the early pioneers of the East
Tennessee mountains, not far
away. The people loved her
and respected her. There were
a few doctors at that time, and
Miss Moore worked hard until
she got a nice building for a
clinic. She knew what she
wanted in a nurse: the nurse
must be able to drive a car
over almost sled roads, and
when the way got so rough
that she could not drive, she
must get out and watt the rest
of the way, whether hills,
valley or mountains. She must
roll up her sleeves and fix any
part of "Lizzy," the Model-T
Ford. It was said that the
nurse. Miss McDougle,
delivered more babies than
any two doctors. She was jolly,
and could almost make a joke
out of a tragedy. The people
always looked forward to her
coming.
At Rocky Fork were a
teacher's cottage, a church
and a larger elementary
school. It was a sad day when
the mission doors closed, but it
was one of the roles of the
Presbyterian church to move
on to a more needy place as
soon as the people were able to
take over for themselves
There are so many boys and
girls Miss Moore sent out to
further their education who
came back to Rocky Fork to
carry on what the
Presbyterian Board had
started.
From Rocky Fork, we drove
across Sugar Loaf Mountain to
a little community called
Carmen, where the
Presbyterian Board had also
had a mission station and
where we later worked.
There was a nice teacher's
cottage that stood at the foot of
the mountain surrounded by
tall pines, rhododendrons,
laurel and other trees. Large
rocks were in the yard, where
children loved to play, and a
little stream called Mill Creek
if as there. It had trout in it
There was always on*
romaa missionary to carry on
he work. It looked a lonely
?lace, but it was far from be
ng lonely. A preacher came in
wice a month to preach.
Thoae doors are closed now,
he cottage almost down, and
he little church changed into
i dwelling bouse.
On our Journey to the past,
we then followed the Big
Laurel River about four miles,
ind again the wagon road had
seen changed to a hard
surfaced road, wide enough
For cars to pass. The cabins
lad vanished, and you saw no
more farm animals. Every
family used to keep a hog,
cow, and mule or horse. Now,
nice automobiles are standing
in the yards, instead of sleds
?r wagons. Children are
almost glued to TV, instead of
carrying water and wood.
People have their electric
stoves and all the push-button
things, and go to work in
plants, often miles away from
home.
We reached White Rock,
which used to be near the big
lumber mills with all the
timber cutters. White Rock
was the largest community
station operated by the
Presbyterian U.S.A. Board. It
had a modern hospital,
teacher's cottage, manse for
the pastor, church, store and
post office.
Dr. Packard and his nurse
operated the hospital. At first,
they traveled by homback to
reach the people throughout
the mountains, traveling day
and night. I have heard Dr.
Packard talk about falling
asleep on his horse, and old
Dan would take him home.
Before the hospital was
built, one of the men had an
acute attack of appendicitis,
and Dr. Packard put him on
the dining table and perform
ed the operation. He had hung
a hanging lamp over the table,
and just as he removed the
man from the table, the lamp
fell right where the man had
been lying. Dr. Packard began
in earnest right then to work
for a hospital for men cutting
timber in the mountains and
for the men working at the big
saw mill.
There were many accidents
and the injured would be pul
on the logging train and taker
to Run ion, on the railroad thai
led to Asheville and a hospital
but often they would get then
too late.
The big band-saw mills thai
sawed the logs were at Ru
nion, on the main railroac
line. They used cross-cut saw;
' and axes to cut the timbei
I down, then they would ball
i shoot it down the mountain
> side. They would put the log!
I in a big dam of water, an<
twice a week, they would opei
: the dam, and the logs would g<
thundering down the river
knocking everything out of tlx
i way. They called it a splash. I
i was so inconvenient for tlx
t people, for they could hardl;
i keep foot-logs across thi
; river. We had to wade or rid<
was written by LilUe 1
of
mem bej^MM
Club and the Appalachian Room of Mara HU
College. Members of the Homemakers Club are
selling the book at a sale price of $3.50 per copy.
The book will be available at Ingles on the Mar
shall Bypass on Friday. July M from 1 until 4
p.m. At other times, the book is available at The
News Record office on Main Street. Beginning
on Aug. I. the book will be available for $5 at the
Mars Hill College bookstore and from clob
members.
The book is the autobiography of Mrs. Clark,
who grew up in Revere and later returned to
Madison County as a Presbyterian missionary
in Carmen.
The News Record will present a second ex
cerpt from the book next week
horseback in order to cross.
Usually when traveling any
distance, people rode
horseback, because the roads
were so narrow and rough.
When the timber was all
taken out in the White Rock
area, the mountainsides look
ed like a tornado had struck
them. The scars still show,
and it will be years and years
yet before we have large trees
again as all the small trees
were destroyed. And that
meant that the doors to
another mission station were
closed. What a great work Dr.
Packard and his nurse Miss
Rich did! He was with my
father just a few minutes
before he passed away.
Still on my way to my old
home, we left the Laurel River
and took a hard-surfaced road
to Chapel Hill and Gunter
town, two more small com
munities, all the time getting
closer to my birthplace and all
the time excitement growing.
We came to Rice Cove, where
there used to be another mis
sion station, and where I
would sometimes go over to
help out. From there on to my
old home was three miles,
with only a gravel road now.
As we rounded a curve, I
would look for a hill covered
with broomsage that we used
to slide down on our home
made sleds with many spills. I
could see the hill, but no
broomsage; instead, small
timber was growing. I knew
that our old house was at the
foot of the hill. I kept looking
and finally I saw the top of the
house, almost covered by
bushes and weeds. It was a
two-story house, built of logs,
weather-boarded, and sealed
with broad white pine boards.
It had a lovely chimney, made
of brick my father and his
neighbors, and the broad logs
had been hewn by can axe
called a broadaxe.
Could this be it?
Memories flooded my mind
( so fast, I almost lived over my
# childhood days in those few
minutes!
I
Walnut School Reunion Set
A Walnut School reunion is being planned for
Saturday, August 11, 1984, beginning at 3 p.m.
The reunion is not limited to graduates and is
open to anyone who attended Walnut School.
Former teachers and principals are also in
vited.
Plans are being made for an assembly in the
gymnasium at 4 p.m. for a short program and
possibly some entertainment.
A hot dog supper will be held between 5 p.m.
and 6 p.m., sponsored by the Walnut Communi
ty Development Club.
Anyone who has ideas or information that will
be of help in planning this reunion are asked to
contact Ernestine Plemmons at 649-3816 or R.J.
Plemmons at 649-3364 after 5 p.m. or on
weekends.
Court
(Continued From Page l)
Craig Austin Young, Danny
Eugene Laws, Luther Edward
Fore, Carl Albert Carter,
Richard Wayne Presneil and
James R. HensJey were con
tinued until the Aug. 30 session
of District Court.
The court dismissed a
charge of unauthorized use of
conveyance against Darryi
Scott DeVane
Douglas Hue Presnell failed
to ipfrw to fac* charges of
driving winle license revoked,
impaired driving and failing
to give information concern
ing an accident. Judge Van
Noppen issued an arrest order
for Prassnetl and ordered him
held on 11,000 secured booi
pending his court a i a nee
Norman Eugene Flynn failed
to appear to face DWI charges
and was ordered held on 1901
secured bond.
Mattress and
box springs at
clearance
savings.
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