Heritage, Life as a Mountaineer

The Heritage-Life as a Mountaineer The lives of all great men remind us, we can make our lives sublime,, and departing leave behind us, footprints on the sands of time- footsteps that perhaps another,seeing, will take heart again.... Nannie Nadine Bailey b. February 4, 1932-February 23, 2003 The following is what can be remembered going up on Peel Chestnut mountain as related by Nannie Nadine Bailey Smith.The coalfields of southern WV brought many people in the late 1800 and early 1900. However, in the county of Mcdowell, even today the roads are not very well connected to any major city. The following memories are appropriate for at least 100 years before. My grandmother is no longer living (d. 1959) and although I can not ask her I feel she lives through these memories and with these memories the future generation can also remember those that have gone before. People grew all their own food. Mommie (Laura Marinda Harman Bailey) would can on the cook stove or outside using a large open fire. She would make kraut in a large crock and pickled beans. Often we would love to eat these treat right out of the crock. We had a cow for milk, buttermilk and butter. Everyone raised chickens for meat and eggs. The cow was let out in the morning to graze where ever she wanted to go. In the evening we kids would go find the cow to bring her in to be milked.. One of the childhood things we would do is catch a grand daddy longlegs (member of the spider family). Then holding two legs we would ask which way did the cow go. We set off in the direction that the free leg would point. We had no electricity nor running water so we stored milk and other things like that in the spring house. We were poor but did not realize it as we were equal to everyone else. Mommie would make all our clothes from feed sacks--from underware, slips to outerware.We would get water from the spring house. Located about 100 yards from our house. We always checked for the big black snake that often would be on the ledge over the door. We always would keep our eye on him as we scooped up the water and darted back out. On the fourth of July was the only time we had watermelon, ice cream packed in dry ice, and soft drinks. Mommie would put them in the spring house to cool. Our bathroom was an outhouse. The mail order catalog came in handy--as we could read it and then use it for toilet paper. Everyone did this back then. Daddy (Nathan Asbury Bailey) worked in the coal mines as a scrip checker. He loved to fish and hunt. Later with electricity and television he loved to watch sports. He also loved to play baseball. Mommie would bake pies and cakes on the cook stove. We would visit the Bailey relatives (sisters of Nathan). She never went anywhere without taking something. Blanche Ellen Bailey b. June 2, 1927 Blanche Ellen Bailey reflects.... Special foods: Sulphur apples-put cut up apples in wooden barrel, put sulphur in dish and light with a match. Place this on top of apples and seal with lid. Very different taste._ Leather britches-string green beans in rows and hang up to dry. In winter, add water and cook. Dried berries-put berries to dry on wire in sun. In winter, add water and cook or make cobbler. Cracklin-when they rendered the fat from pork to use in making soap the rendered meat was a treat much like pork rinds. Permelon butter-a member of the pumpkin family my mother (Laura Marinda Harman Bailey) would make this like making apple butter. Hominy-she made this really good. She would soak the corn in a mild lye water to remove the husks. Chow Chow a real treat! The recipe is: Cabbage 2 gal. chopped fine, green tomatoes 1/2 gal.chopped fine, 1/2 gal. onions chopped fine, vinegar 1/2 gal., sugar 3 tea cups full, to this amount of ingredients salt and pepper to taste. Cook until well done. Seal in jars or pack in stone crock She made biscuits and cornbread. Used lard for shortening. She would save the lard from cooking for making soap or she would render the fat from chunks of meat in the oven and store it in a crock. Pickled Green Beans: 21/2 gal. beans strung and broke, 2 cups vinegar, 1 cup sugar, 1 cup salt, boil 20 minutes and can and seal. Pickled Corn: 2 gal. cut off corn, 1/2 pint sugar, 1/2 pint salt, cook done then can and seal. Making soap: One can lye, 2 tablespoons borax, 5 pounds lard, 1/2 cup ammonia, 1 quart and 1/2 cup cold water. Mix lye and water let cool thoroughly. Melt fat (not hot) stirring constantly, being careful not to get the fumes into your eyes. Add other ingredients; mix till cool. Pour into mold, let set overnight and cut into bars. We would take eggs to school to trade for school lunch. We used eggs for money. About my grandmother: I used to think my mother made cakes without using recipes but later learned she made them so often that she had the recipe in her head. She would boil the icing on the top of the stove, chocolate icing for a yellow cake. She worked hard in her life time. Planting the garden, canning the food, making soap, milking the cow and making butter and buttermilk. She once told me her parents separated when she was young. She would have to cook and could hardly reach the stove. She would plant the garden and one time as kids will do she took a shortcut and dumped all the beans at the end of the row so she could finish quickly. When the beans came up her plot was revealed and I guess she got into trouble. We didn't have a horse and when plowing time came Daddy (Nathan Asbury Bailey) would borrow his fathers horse (James Wesley Bailey).Mommy would pickle beans in a barrel and then when they were pickled she would put them in jars and seal them. Summers she would can as many as 600 jars of jelly and vegetables. She would pick huckleberries, blackberries, grapes to make the jelly and jam. The use large pan on the cook stove with water for the water bath method of canning. Later when she got a washing machine we still didn't have electricity so she used a gasoline motor, earlier she washed clothes on wash boards.We made riding stick horses, swings from grapevines and would wade in the creek and catch crawdads. We looked under rocks to find them and would pull off their pincers. My grandmother died before I was born (Arabella Abigail Dillon Bailey) but I remember my grandpa. James Wesley Bailey had a crippled leg. He hit it with and ax and cut a tendon--but he could still really move out. He was tall and slim, unlike his wife who was short and plump. My father took after his mother. He was 5'8" but my brother Harry was 6' tall. Nathan Bailey worked in the coal mines at Switchback. That is over Peel Chestnut Mountain on Route 52 .He kept the books on how many cars of coal were loaded. They played baseball in the bottom where the Little Creek School was located. Nathan , Sam Lambert, Clyde McGraw his nephews. Sometimes they would play a Switchback team. They would call Nathan "Rule Book", whenever a questionable play needed a referee they would call for him. We were raised in a 3 room house. They were large long rooms with a long porch. The kitchen, sitting room where mom and dad had a bed contained the heatrola. This was a large wood burning stove that would warm the house. I don't think we used coal. The bedroom had three beds and we'd sleep two to a bed. We had feather mattresses that mom would make from chicken feathers. We had turkeys and one time a big white turkey hen. She would go to the top of the mountain to lay eggs in her nest and then fly out. One day daddy followed her to find her nest. We had an interesting life. We would go out in the mountains and pick mountain tea, roam around all over the whole area. Things were safe not like the danger we have today. From Things Appalachian, by William Plumley, Marge Warner, Lorena Anderson. Our people in Appalachia go back to the traditions of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. What they gave our early ancestors, which date to the pre-Revolutionary War period, we have kept. We have kept these traditions when the British Isles has changed and lost them. M. Cecil Sharp from England came to Appalachia more than a half a century ago, collecting English Scottish, and Irish Ballads the British Isles had lost. He found them here. Dora Helen Bailey Baldwin b. ! Dora Bailey is the first cousin of Blanche and Nadine Bailey their fathers being brothers and sons of James Wesley Bailey and Arabel Dillon Bailey. The following is written by her.... There were seventeen children born to Grover Cleveland Bailey and Mabel Beatrice O'Brien Bailey. The second child was a little girl who died in her second summer. There were five boys when my next sister, Zelma was born. All told there were ten boys (including twin boys) and six sisters making six to grow into adulthood. All sixteen finished High School. I was the tenth child born in the tenth month and the fourth daughter born on the forth day. Never did I think about what's good about the past. Now as I think back about making food and taking care of a big family on a small farm with a disabled father, it seems amazing. Poppy was hurt in the mines and had rheumatism, liver trouble, pernicious anemia, and died of liver cancer at the age of 74. Mama followed three years later at the age of 69. I truly marvel at the stamina, intelligence, and faithfulness of my parents. My mother trusted in God and never shirked her part. Just how good were "The Good Old Days"? The answer depends on who is telling the story. Here's my version which of course is individual. Including my parents there were at least 16 people and after the 2 oldest boys were married my mother gave birth to identical twin boys. We had two double beds in each bedroom. We slept sometimes four to a bed, two at the head and two at the foot. We walked the distance of four to five miles each way to school. The older ones did this for all their high school. When I was in the eight or ninth grade a bus would run as far as it could in good weather. We couldn't count on it in bad weather, so we got up earlier and walked like the older siblings had. I started teaching before my 19 birthday in a one room school near where my uncle Nathan lived. I taught my first cousins, twins Ronnie and Lonnie Bailey, who were the his sons. Years later I taught both daughters of Blanche Bailey (my first cousin and daughter of my uncle Nathan). Jane in grade 5-6 and Laura at Anawalt Jr. High School, both were honor students. I taught 4 years at Little Creek. I retired from teaching after 34 years in Anawalt Jr High School, in June 1992 My mother sewed many crazy quilts and then we kids tacked them. It was too time consuming to stitch by quilting. After completing a quilt the four oldest single people would put the family cat in the middle and gather up the four corners and shook. The cat jumped when the corners were loosened. Whoever was closest to the place the cat made it exit, was said to be the next to marry. In the summers we held bean stringing, apple peeling, and later we had corn shucking. The beans were canned, string on twine and hung to dry, and pickled. Corn was pickled in a barrel and/or mixed half and half with beans. Some of the corn was cut off the cob, but some was pickled on the ear. The dried beans were known as "leather britches". We picked blackberries, raspberries, dewberries, and huckleberries. We had dried apples, applebutter, apple jelly, and applesauce. My mom always fixed a large 10 gallon crock of sulphured apples for my dad because he loved them so well. Sometimes mom would make corned beef. We'd can about 2000 jars of food each summer. In addition to the canning, drying, and conserving we usually had two hogs to butcher around Thanksgiving. Sometimes we also had a beef. Poppy would dig the ground and what cabbage was left after kraut, chow-chow ect. we would simply pull up by the roots and put the cabbage head where the roots had been and when needed, even in the dead of winter, this could be pulled and presto--fresh cabbage. Potatoes were put in a hole lined with tar paper and hemp sacks and were covered with a mound of earth until needed. Apples too were buried in such a mound. I especially loved the hominy mommie made. Mommie usually made lye soap. This was used to scrub the bare floors and sometimes we boiled the dingiest clothes with lye soap cut up in the boiling vat. Washing was no fun. The laundry was gathered and put into pillow slips according to the color. Then they were carried to the "big" spring. My dad cut an oil drum in two and sanded the edges. These were put over fires built between two large rocks. Another oil drum was nearby, when one was hot it could be divided in half. This way two tubs were ready for the wash boards. Two people washed and then assembly style after two waters, the clothes were ready to rinse and some needed starching. They were spread over bushes to dry while the next ones were washed. Sometimes it was necessary to boil some of the laundry to keep it white. Some of the first ones were dry and sent by "carriers" back to the house. Ironing was done on a folded sheet with a "flour" sack covering. Irons were heated on the cook stove. The pad was placed on the side table. We often would do this with two people so the job went faster. We didn't have a washer until Patricia was born. She was number 15 in the family. Mama bought a Maytag with a gasoline motor. It had a long exhaust pipe which we ran outside after we had started the engine. We did this by stepping on the starter. Years later after electricity came to the mountain, one of my brothers took the old motor out and put in an electric one. Mama then bought a Maytag churn. The gyrator came out and the churn fit in its place. Sometimes we didn't have a full churning and one of us would shake a gallon jar until butter was made. Of course the old churn and dasher were not discarded. Water was hauled from the spring in a sixty gallon barrel on a sled with runners, pulled by one of the horses. The barrel had a bung hole and a stopper. A hose was put in the bung hole and siphoned into whatever vessel we needed. This was used for cooking, dishwashing, or bathing. "Kiss my bung hole" was a common expression. We were all expected to do our share of work. I pestered my older brother to let me milk one one the cows. He used psychology on me and pretended I couldn't learn but soon he was off to more pleasant chores. I found myself on the udder end of "Old Star" both morning and evening. I would much rather work outside instead of doing housework. I've hoed many a quarter mile row of corn. The beans and potatoes and other vegetables were grown in shorter rows. Sometimes corn field beans were planted with the corn and would run to the top of the corn stalks. In the summer the boys would move the hay in the barn and sleep there. My grandmother, Arabel Bailey died before I was born as did my grandfather O'Brien. I stayed with Granny O'Brien several summers while Aunt Mamie was in summer school renewing her teachers certificate. Later, I boarded with her when I first started teaching. My grandpa, James Wesley Bailey was a walker in spite of his bent leg. He had a tendon cut in his knee area. After I married he would often ride to and from church with me. Sometimes he wouldn't recognize me. Once he told me that he didn't ride with strange women. My daughter Verna Sue, loved to ride in the back seat with "Poppy's Poppy" and talk in his ear trumpet. When Grandpa Bailey was in his mid seventies he married an eighteen year old and the outlived he by nine or ten years! Some of the games we played were, "heavy, heavy, hangs over your head", " fruit basket upset"," cross questions and silly answers", "where you are, who you're with, and what are you doing". To play "fruit basket upset", was like the modern musical chairs, except instead of music we used a storyteller. Each person was assigned a fruit. When the storyteller told his story he would then either name two fruits or would say "fruit basket upset". If he said two, those two had to change places and the storyteller would try to beat one to a seat. If "fruit basket upset" was called everyone got up and scrambled to find another chair before the storyteller beat them to it. The odd one was the new storyteller. Other games we played at school were, "go sheepy go", "pretty girl station", "prisoners base", marbles, softball, "hide 'n seek", "Polly Holly" (a marble game), "blind man's bluff", and tag. When I finished the 6th grade in the 2 room school, I went "off the mountain" to McComas High School for grade 7-12. All 16 of us finished high school and several have various degrees and/or college credits. Other "envious" things I remember are, using "umpteen" year old books, wearing hand-me down clothing, going barefoot until snow was threatening close. Sleeping at the foot of the bed, getting to the long table before someone else got your place and your food. My parents were honest, hard-working, Christian people. Mama was asked by the family doctor, Dr. P.R. Foxxe, how she could sleep with all the children to feed and clothe. She told him, "I say, God please take over tonight and I'll be ready for them in the morning. " He never failed her. This additional information was obtained from my friend Jo Byrd Sammons. Jo was a resident of Princeton, Mercer Co. until her death last summer (1998) She remembers.... Her mother was from Craig Co. Va and her father was from Bland Co. VA. Every Thanksgiving my family would slaughter hogs. My mother would make a liver pudding with the fresh hog liver. Several of my family liked this although I never had a taste for it. She would also take the hog parts and put in a large kettle with water near the stone fireplace. She then pulled hot coals around the kettle and let it simmer all night. In the morning any one who wanted could have this for breakfast with biscuits and gravy. Even though there were things I didn't much care for nothing went to waste as there was always someone to eat it. I remember we had a neighbor who lived a right smart piece from the nearest town. He always stayed with us overnight and then would get up and continue his journey the next morning. We always had company whenever supper time would come. We had a well that was close to the house and my father built a spring house by the back door. We could pump water through the spring house to cool the milk or any other thing that was stored there. Sometimes we would pump the water a couple of times a day to cool the milk especially when my mother wanted to churn the milk for buttermilk and butter. We dried apples for use in the winter. Peel, core and slice thin. Spread out on a clean bed sheet that was spread out on the roof of the porch.. They dry in no time. Then store the dried apples in a clean white feed sack. We always kept them upstairs where it was cool. The dried apples make the best fried pies. Cook apples with water and spices until they are cooked down dry. Make pies and add flavoring. To make hominy, my mother always put a pot of wood ashes under the eaves of the house where rain water could drip in. The pot always had a hole where the lye solution would drain to another shallow pan placed underneath. Put corn-nice big white field corn in large brass kettle with water and cook adding the weakened lye solution to remove the husk until done. Rinse, rinse, and rinse and then store the hominy in a large crock covered in fresh water. Rinse again before you cook it for supper. We had a neighborhood store and I rememer kids trading eggs for candy. Also it takes a little extra seasoning for the leather britches. I hope you enjoy these shared memories as much as I have collecting them and getting them written down. My Bailey connection: Zachariah Bailey/Rachel Glandon--> James Wesley Bailey/Arabella Abigail Dillion--> Nathan Bailey/Laura Marinda Harman--> Blanche Bailey/James Cochran Lovelace Jr--> Laura Virginia Lovelace Larkin James Bailey/Lucy Simms--> Richard Bailey/Elizabeth Anne Belcher--> John Bailey/Nancy Davidson--> Martha Bailey/"Long" Henry Harman--> Daniel Harman/Rebecca Dillion--> Anderson Harman/Mary Murphy--> Laura Marinda Harman/Nathan Asbury Bailey--> Blanche Bailey/James Cochran Lovelace--> Laura Virginia Lovelace Larkin Email Laura for more information or if you want to be listed as a researcher llarkin@hotmail.com An overview of my Bailey genealogy Researchers Other Bailey Lines Zachariah Bailey Back to Laura's Genealogy John's Stock Page This page hosted by Get your own Free Home Page