tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-110422572012-01-02T13:49:46.446-08:00<b>Memories of a Tennessee Farm Girl - </b> Stories of preserving food, making lye soap, hunting herbs, home medical remedies, growing tobacco, making feather beds, pea pickin' and other accounts of life and death, hardship and survival in times long ago.Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.comBlogger661100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-68750427483725916852007-08-05T15:26:00.000-07:002007-08-05T15:39:18.590-07:00

I remember working in the tobacco fields when the tobacco was almost over my head, so big it lapped together between rows. One day we were working, all sticky and gummy with tobacco juice, and my mamma's sister and her kids came down from Nashville.Well, we thought they were a big city bunch, and it would be a tragedy for them to see us dirty. As the grown son came looking for us, he saw several

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-7187963531492045522007-03-10T18:37:00.000-08:002007-03-10T18:44:41.759-08:00

My grandma was a great one for hunting wild herbs in the spring of the year. She called this "going 'senging." She would get her herb apron on and her 'seng hoe, pack a lunch of biscuits, fried eggs, hog jowl, green onions and radishes from her garden.She would always take us with her and we would roam the woods all day for weeks. She would dig only ginseng. She let us dig star grass root and

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-11311996079830385202007-02-19T18:24:00.000-08:002007-02-19T18:43:43.203-08:00

Like death and birth, marriage and courtship came to our house in its own time. According to our custom, courting was done on Saturday night, Sunday afternoon, and Sunday night until 10 p.m.We had a Victrola, as I said (Country Music & Vittles 3/1/05], and we played that a lot when our dates were there. One record, large and with recording only on one side, was entitled Love with a Capital L. It

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-81967019393982965372007-01-22T19:17:00.000-08:002007-01-22T19:36:51.164-08:00

I visited my friend Maggie Lee more than anyone else. One winter her Dad decided he was going to save money. He would not buy matches that year. They kept a fire going. One cold winter morning she and I woke early and were playing loud. Her Dad awoke and he called out to her to start kindling up the fire.I knew very well what she was up to as she got up. She was giggling. She found a very small

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-59443604837978120422007-01-15T20:03:00.000-08:002007-01-15T20:16:38.922-08:00

I experienced the harshness of the elements when my sister Sadie's son, Virgil, was born. Her family had to vacate the house they had rented, so another family shared one large room of their house with them until the baby came as it was so near time.I went to help her out after the baby was there. It was very cold and the snow was about two feet deep. I cooked on a wood-burning heating stove for

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1161836495727851822006-10-25T21:21:00.000-07:002007-01-22T19:38:39.592-08:00

When my next sister after Jennie was born, my mamma wanted to name her for her sister's dead child, so she named her. None of us would call her this name until later when we could tease her with it. She hated it also, so we called her Bette. She is still Bette.When she was very young, maybe twelve years old, she came down with pneumonia. Then treatment was not so advanced for pneumonia as it is

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1158715682247852702006-09-19T18:23:00.000-07:002007-01-22T19:39:38.610-08:00

I really did not think Cudram could remove warts - but I did have this wart on the side of my finger. One day I saw Cudram walking toward our house. I thought I would trick him, so I went out to the road as he passed and I told him I would like for him to remove my wart.He said, "Well, maybe." He asked for a pencil, so I had someone bring out a pencil. All the time I was laughing to myself. He

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1157470428587031142006-09-05T08:32:00.000-07:002007-01-22T19:40:49.749-08:00

Mrs. Ollie was a neighbor. Everyone loved her. She always had lunch ready by 11:30 a.m. each day. Everyone close by knew when she rang the big dinner bell outside high up on a pole that it was 11:30 and dinner was ready for her menfolks in the field to come in to eat.But any other time the bell rang meant trouble. Her husband, Mr. Sid, had a heart problem, and this was her signal for help. If the

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1156455878745152822006-08-24T14:41:00.000-07:002007-01-22T19:42:15.284-08:00

We were allowed to play in the rain or get under the downspouts whenever there was a good rain with no lightning. This was like a shower. We could even take the soap outside and really take a shower, with our clothes on, of course. We could make mud pies and wade mud puddles to our heart's content. It was so relaxing to feel the mud between my toes.Some of the things we did were not good for our

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1153773026057768232006-07-24T13:28:00.000-07:002007-01-22T19:44:17.325-08:00

I used to enjoy visiting my Aunt Hattie and Uncle Herman. They had two small daughters, Mary and Marie. Aunt Hattie was my pappa's half-sister, the only sister he had. I would walk four or five miles to spend the weekend with them.Once Uncle Herman was going to say grace. He stuttered pretty bad. Mary was a baby on Hattie's lap. Just as Uncle Herman started the blessing she put her foot up on the

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1148678325188543872006-05-26T14:18:00.000-07:002007-01-22T19:45:32.955-08:00

My folks had very strict rules, both moral and religious. We were not allowed to "sass" or talk back to parents or anyone older than we were. We were not allowed to swear, cuss or use bad language of any type. Church was our main place to go.If we did not have church at our home church, Scott's Chapel, a Freewill Baptist Church, we were allowed to go to the Methodist Church or Church of God of

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1148587041706362542006-05-25T12:56:00.000-07:002007-01-22T19:46:54.621-08:00

One of our new amusements was to catch big tobacco worms and tie thread to the horn on their tail. About four worms were a good team. Then we would fasten them to a small match box and add little pebbles until they could hardly pull the box. Oh, this was so much fun! We just rolled and laughed to see the worms work so hard.To add to the fun, we decided to tie the cat to a shoe box and load it

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1148073633985489542006-05-19T14:18:00.000-07:002007-01-22T19:48:01.490-08:00

We always loved to make playhouses out in the woods in the summertime. Each person cleaned out a spot around a big tree, walling it in with rocks and using big rocks and pieces of scrap lumber for seats or tables.We would make beds from soft leaves. We used old pans or pieces of discarded dishes. We worked like beavers making a place that was ours for the whole summer. We cooked make-belief cakes

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1146777842203200192006-05-04T14:23:00.000-07:002007-01-22T19:49:23.470-08:00

One of my fondest memories is of market time for tobacco. When my pappa sold tobacco, he had to stay two or three days in Clarksville for the auction. He always came home with each of us a dimestore gift. Some of the gifts were scissors, rings, watches, crayons, coloring books, or little toys. We usually told him what we wanted before he left.Once, however, he surprised us with what was called a

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1141914200042436082006-03-09T06:22:00.000-08:002006-03-09T06:23:20.066-08:00

My world back then was very small, about a thirty mile radius, but it seemed vast to me. I loved to watch the garden and crops mature. I would dream of finding huge radishes in the garden after season when no one knew they were there.Sometimes I would dream of our little grocery store. The keeper there always gave us much more candy than five cents or three eggs paid for. I would sometimes dream

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1138765752130177662006-01-31T19:48:00.000-08:002006-01-31T19:49:12.146-08:00

When Sissy was thinking marriage, her husband-to-be was brave, for Sissy was about 19. So he came riding over on his beautiful horse, all shined up. I remember how he and my pappa sat together on the swing in the breezeway, and he asked my pappa for Sissy in marriage. After a little "pep talk" to him, my pappa said they could marry with his blessing.Well, my mamma and Sissy sewed a lot in the

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1134595361279071252005-12-14T13:19:00.000-08:002005-12-14T13:22:41.300-08:00

Like death and birth, marriage and courtship came to our house in its own time. According to our custom, courting was done on Saturday night, Sunday afternoon, and Sunday night until 10 p.m.We had a Victrola, as I said (Country Music & Vittles 3/1/05], and we played that a lot when our dates were there. One record, large and with recording only on one side, was entitled Love with a Capital L. It

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109556920798444642005-11-27T17:20:00.000-08:002005-11-27T17:27:50.933-08:00

I remember how my pappa loved gospel songs. At sometime in his years, he had learned music. He taught all of us to sing in harmony. While we were about our chores, making beds, washing dishes, empting the pots, or sweeping, all of which we did every morning, someone started a song and all joined in around the house.At his time my pappa was usually waiting for the stock to eat and planning out our

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109555434692562512005-11-18T19:20:00.000-08:002005-11-18T19:25:47.696-08:00

Another thing that is very vivid in my mind is how we were made aware to watch out for storms, which we had quite often. While we were in the fields, we were taught by my pappa how to "read the clouds" and wind patterns.We knew almost exactly how long to wait to start to the house. We worked and read the clouds. Sometimes we knew not to go for shelter. And when we must go, we knew never to get

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109555046048972822005-11-16T19:50:00.000-08:002005-11-16T19:53:57.513-08:00

We were trained to trust and fear God, which we did. I have felt the care and love of God in my life since I can remember almost. I was converted and gave my life to Christ at a very early age. I was about 11 years old when I received Christ and followed in baptism in a nearby creek.I will never forget our dear old pastor who baptized me, Reverend Green. He visited our home many times and stayed

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1110766808450507772005-11-14T15:00:00.000-08:002005-11-14T13:29:26.066-08:00

I remember how peddlers used to come by our house with huge loads of pots and pans, medicines, or whatever they could carry. They would put down a big cloth with all their wares on it, take it up the the four corners, and fling it upon their back. They would go from house to house selling things. I remember thinking, "Oh, how nice that would be! I might just like to be a peddler when I grow up."

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1110765335540147052005-11-05T17:25:00.000-08:002005-11-05T10:28:25.293-08:00

Everyone big enough to work helped in the fields. Tobacco had to be worked a lot. After it was about grown, my pappa always did the "topping," breaking out the center top. Then the leaves that were left grew thick and were of a good grade.But it grew what was called "suckers," two over each leaf next to the stalk, and many near the ground. We must go over each plant and remove each of these

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109554452857347292005-10-27T15:40:00.000-07:002005-10-30T14:43:49.696-08:00

They [the church]once had an evangelist for revival. He was very unlearned. He had to have someone to read the scripture. But what I remember most was how he kept asking for someone to bring him a poisonous snake.The next day we were working in the tobacco field and a man we knew came by. He saw a copperhead sunning itself on the rocks, so he put a plank on its neck and called my pappa to come

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109549884662070252005-10-11T17:30:00.000-07:002005-10-11T17:34:36.220-07:00

On snowy days my pappa would wrap his feet and legs with burlap socks, since he could not afford boots, and he would get out his twelve-gauge and his hound. Then he would start out looking for rabbits for supper. I could hardly wait for his return. I knew when he went we would have rabbits when he came in. I would almost pray for a big kill. Sure enough, he always had from three to five rabbits.I

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109548862379852252005-10-09T15:05:00.000-07:002005-10-09T15:06:46.410-07:00

My mamma never knew when she started a meal how many might be there to eat. All the mailboxes for people miles around were in front of our house. Sometimes people would meet the mail carrier.Folks came early to listen to the radio news, and they might just stay for dinner, which was a noonday hot meal for us. No one around then had a radio except us. It was battery operated because no one had any

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109546763712287842005-10-08T19:35:00.000-07:002005-10-08T19:38:00.010-07:00

After dishes at night, all done by hand in a dishpan, wood was brought in, water was drawn from the cistern - or if it was dry, carried up the hill from my grandma's spring. All stock, chickens and pets were fed.Then we could play and eat goodies, such as, home-grown popcorn from the ears hanging from the rafters to dry in the attic. We could make popcorn balls with sorghum molasses, make candy

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109210665717245422005-10-06T15:15:00.000-07:002005-10-06T18:47:53.150-07:00

As a child, I could make mudpies and wade mud puddles to my heart's content. This was so relaxing - to feel the mud between my toes. When it rains, just try walking barefoot in your garden or yard - it saves lots of nerve pills.I learned kinds of trees, plants, birds, and insects, and all of this was very important to me. Lots of people that I know ask now, "As you go along or look out, what do

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1110768950136713692005-09-03T16:12:00.000-07:002005-10-06T15:55:06.243-07:00

As I have said, I had "big ears," always open. I listened very carefully to grownups talk about voting and who would be the best in office nationally, statewide, and even for the local sheriff. I was aware of all of this at an early age.My grandma always took the Nashville Banner and read it from cover to cover, mostly outloud. She amazed me with the big words she knew and with her knowledge of

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1110767532485459432005-08-27T20:50:00.000-07:002005-08-27T20:50:18.876-07:00

When I was a few years older, I had a dear friend who lived several miles away. I would walk there and spend weekends with her or she with me. Her family had five children.The eldest son, named Paul, was a real math whiz. He had the bare necessities for studying, but he managed to earn a scholarship to Vanderbilt University in Nashville; they said the professors needed him to help. Paul was very

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1110764004280127332005-08-21T16:45:00.000-07:002005-08-21T16:44:57.736-07:00

All cooking and heating was by the woodstove method, so we needed a lot of wood. We chopped and sawed all wood used from our own farm, taking out "second-grade" trees or taking tops and limbs from timber that we cut for cross ties to sell to railroad companies.We also sold cords of wood to those who needed to buy wood. We furnished timber, cut the wood, hauled it on a wagon, unloaded it, and

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1110081559273299182005-08-14T13:50:00.000-07:002005-10-16T10:14:37.506-07:00

Our lifestyle was derived from tradition passed down for generations. We never owned a washing machines. The clothes were washed once a week on tub and board by hand. The water was carried up the hill from grandma's spring, two buckets per person. It was a day's work.Clothes were hung on lines to dry outside by sun and wind. Sometimes it rained on them, maybe overnight. If we needed something

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1110078841105184922005-07-26T17:20:00.000-07:002005-08-21T20:54:47.526-07:00

Another person I knew back then was Lovie Pauline, a teacher at our school. She hated the "Lovie" part, so when we wanted to make her mad, we would call her "Miss Lovie." She was a good teacher and a swell person. I spent a lot of time with her later, but she was very tense and nervous.Sometimes she would get so upset that she would lie down on the front bench and cry and kick her heels, saying

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1110078000222250432005-07-17T18:15:00.000-07:002005-07-17T18:26:23.460-07:00

As I mentioned before, we liked to have playhouses outside in summer. When I was a little older, my young sisters, Jennie and Bette, had a playhouse close to the house and near where the mailboxes were all located on the mail route. Many people came every day to get their mail. Most of the time they waited for the mail carrier at our house.Well, I had my eye on a neighbor boy and so did my cousin

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1110076211750639292005-06-29T17:55:00.000-07:002005-06-29T17:58:57.076-07:00

Speaking of funerals, I recall going to a small baby's graveside funeral with Maggie Lee, the friend who you will recall got me in trouble many times. The undertaker was in charge. He did as they often did then and asked for anyone there to help with song. These were hard times and no one bought floral arrangements, but some people brought bouquets if they had flowers blooming at home.As we were

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1110075100295554442005-06-27T18:05:00.000-07:002005-06-27T18:07:58.756-07:00

When we were children, we had a game we played in early summer when June bugs came out. June bugs were large bugs about one-half inch long and almost as big around. We would catch one, tie a thread ever so long to its leg, and let go - holding on to the string.Boy, could they fly and buzz! They sounded like a little motor humming. This game could last all day. The June bug would come down to rest

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1110074166386095862005-06-20T20:20:00.000-07:002005-08-21T20:06:03.586-07:00

I remember how my mamma had a way of having enough food for last minute visitors. Once, I remember, company came just at meal time. She had cooked only enough for the ones there. She usually made an extra dish, perhaps a platter of fried eggs. But this time she had fixed pork chops.So, she turned her back to the company, took each pork chop by hand and simply pinched them in two. Then she turned

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1110041807608643132005-06-19T04:30:00.000-07:002005-07-17T18:37:14.900-07:00

I remember many simple things that were dear to me as I grew up and still are. Some of my favorites are: mushrooms, butterflies, sassafras trees and the smell of tea made from the roots of the red sassafras, and wild flowers, especially bluebells. I like best anything resembling an iris or of the lily family.I learned early in life which flowers came in bloom at what time of the season, when to

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1110040663816421562005-06-09T20:30:00.000-07:002005-06-08T20:28:49.780-07:00

We used to have a silly way of talking that no one but us understood. For instance, if something was good to eat, we would say it was "larapin." I do not know why, but we used a lot of expressions like this. Instead of "I dare you" we would say, "I double dare you and you're a coward unless you take it." Well, one could not pass that kind of dare.I guess my folks did not realize back then that

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1110039427465539852005-05-28T06:15:00.000-07:002005-08-21T19:45:05.180-07:00

When my second brother came along, he was completely different in looks from my first. He had lighter hair and looked a lot like my pappa. My pappa had blue eyes; my mamma had brown eyes. With every child that came, my mamma would say, "This one will be blue eyed." At first Lee looked like he would be blue eyed, but like all before and after him, his eyes changed to brown.He was my pet. I loved

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1110037590484565292005-05-23T06:00:00.000-07:002005-05-23T18:00:44.976-07:00

An important item to everyone back then was their feather bed. Everyone who was anybody had feather beds on every bed.These were placed on top of corn shuck "underbeds." The shucks were well dried, then stripped from the end knot with a dinner fork until very fine. Then the knot was removed. This procedure was repeated until you had what we called a "shuck tick full," meaning a bed-size bag left

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109821632952667502005-05-17T16:30:00.000-07:002005-08-21T20:38:53.286-07:00

When we were not occupied with things at home, we had community social events. If we needed to raise money for church or school, we had what we called an ice-cream supper.Each family donated milk, sugar, eggs, vanilla, and hand-turned freezers. Some of the men and my pappa, because he always had a car or truck, would drive to town 15 miles away to the ice house and buy several hundred pounds of

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109821192341595572005-05-15T20:45:00.000-07:002005-08-21T20:33:44.200-07:00

My mamma must have been a good nurse with her home remedies. Our family never had a hospital bill until my older sister, Evie, had her appendix out. Then it only cost $100 for the hospital stay and all.My folks believed Vicks salve, Rosebud salve, castor oil, turpentine kerosene, and a lot of love were a cure for everything. Turpentine was always used for stomach worms, three drops on a teaspoon

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109820586416431822005-05-13T18:45:00.000-07:002005-05-13T18:45:51.383-07:00

Often we gave Doc Martin a ham or canned fruit or eggs. He would just say, "Oh, give me whatever you can spare. I have to eat too." An office call was always 50 cents, including the medicine, which was kept at the office or in his bag. No drug store visits were necessary. Once in a while if Doc had to lance a boil or stitch up some injury, he might ask for about two dollars.Doc was a dear, dear

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109820215650832082005-05-10T21:07:00.000-07:002005-08-21T20:17:37.150-07:00

Everyone then had their babies at home. As I said, my mamma had eleven children, all at home. Once, however, she needed an appendectomy. She did not want to leave the kids, so the doctors, nurse, and neighbor ladies prepared for a day at our house for surgery.My pappa made an operating table, the date was set, and I watched my mamma walk to the table in her white gown and get on the table. Then

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109819211328715392005-05-08T18:30:00.000-07:002005-05-08T18:31:32.530-07:00

Mrs. Ollie was one of my best buddies, even though she was an old lady and I was just a child. She used to sit on her porch swing and teach me to patch overalls and socks.She had six sons and one daughter. When she lost her daughter who had four children, she and her husband, who we all called Mr. Sid, went to Illinois, took care of the details, and brought the four children home to raise. Mrs.

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109818711313628322005-05-05T18:15:00.000-07:002005-05-05T18:43:37.743-07:00

Maggie Lee was devilish, but I loved her dearly. I would follow her in anything she could think up. Once on a Sunday morning, we sneaked two gallon buckets with lids and went to a deep creek. Neither of us could swim. We tied the buckets to our shoulders and went swimming. As usual we were caught - by her mom and sister this time. We were in the doghouse for a long time over that one.One day she

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109816595967466632005-04-29T17:45:00.000-07:002005-04-29T16:49:27.056-07:00

In the fall of the year, our uncle had fields full of what we called "stock peas." They were small brown peas with speckles. I later learned to call them whipporwill peas. He let us pick what he called "shares." We could have two tow sacks full and give him one if we did the picking.We would pack a lunch and go to the "river-bottom land" and pick all day. Some days it was cold and windy, but

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109815837988426102005-04-28T18:00:00.000-07:002005-04-28T13:51:33.153-07:00

Once we rode to a meeting on the back of a large truck. The roads were dusty and it was several miles. By the time we got there, we were covered with dust, along with the clothes we were to wear to the meeting all day.Well, we went to a house nearby, and the lady let us draw up cold well water. With our hankies, we washed off as best we could. We were windburned and chapped, but we stayed all

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109815300799109812005-04-27T19:45:00.000-07:002005-08-21T20:26:33.703-07:00

At night before bedtime, she [Granny] read her Bible to us and talked about the meaning of what she had read. This was a great part of my early Christian beliefs. She always stressed why we believe the Baptist doctrine. Maybe that is why I felt so strongly when she went to be with the Lord. I felt the Lord very deeply impressed on my mind. I felt that I must hold to the beliefs she taught me,

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109814888941462602005-04-14T18:55:00.000-07:002005-04-14T18:53:12.526-07:00

Once my parents had to be away. They very seldom were both away at one time. We stayed with my grandmother. She told the older kids to go get in some wood to cook with. I was told to stay behind. Well, I did not like being left behind, so I was going to disobey. I started down the road yelling for them to wait for me.Well, my granny broke a little switch from the buckberry bush and it was the "

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109732396057214802005-04-09T19:20:00.000-07:002005-04-10T17:29:09.266-07:00

I really did not think Cudram could remove warts - but I did have this wart on the side of my finger. One day I saw Cudram walking toward our house. I thought I would trick him, so I went out to the road as he passed and I told him I would like for him to remove my wart.He said, "Well, maybe." He asked for a pencil, so I had someone bring out a pencil. All the time I was laughing to myself. He

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109561265161101952005-03-27T21:30:00.000-08:002005-03-27T09:31:16.460-08:00

We were allowed to play in the rain or get under the downspouts whenever there was a good rain with no lightning. This was like a shower. We could even take the soap outside and really take a shower, with our clothes on, of course. We could make mudpies and wade mud puddles to our heart's content. It was so relaxing to feel the mud between my toes.Some of the things we did were not good for our

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109559637084049692005-03-24T18:10:00.000-08:002005-08-21T19:51:09.060-07:00

Most housing on PZ Ridge was crude. Our house had many open cracks. We used heavy blue paper to cover the walls and ceilings. If we could not afford blue paper, we used newspaper. Then we would lay in bed at night and play games from the ads in the paper.One game was called "I see." One gave clues, and the others tried to find the item. We also played what we called "coffee pot." One found and

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109558814450571752005-03-22T20:25:00.000-08:002005-03-22T20:23:49.430-08:00

When Sissy was thinking marriage, her husband-to-be was brave, for Sissy was about 19. So he came riding over on his beautiful horse, all shined up. I remember how he and my pappa sat together on the swing in the breezeway, and he asked my pappa for Sissy in marriage. After a little "pep talk" to him, my pappa said they could marry with his blessing.Well, my mamma and Sissy sewed a lot in the

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109546355907866982005-03-05T17:00:00.000-08:002005-08-21T20:00:39.376-07:00

We all knew the good ax was not a toy. We learned to use and care for tools of all kinds, to file the hoe, to sharpen the ax on a grindstone - a large round one turned by hand, to sharpen the tobacco knives.We even had our own special tobacco pegs to set plants with. You were counted an expert tobacco setter if you could keep up with Hester, the husband of my eldest sister, Christine. We called

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109545601650440162005-03-04T18:25:00.000-08:002005-03-05T17:42:39.590-08:00

My pappa most always talked to us instead of giving spankings. At mealtime he explained why what we did or wanted to do was not to his satisfaction. By the time he finished, very calm and collected, I always felt so bad I would have rather have had a whipping and got it over.Then he would say, "Do you understand?" So pleased to get it over and to get the lump out of my throat, I would quickly say

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109544759669108332005-03-03T17:40:00.000-08:002005-03-03T17:40:37.483-08:00

After we were settled in our old house, I decided to go back to school after Christmas break. My teacher was Mr. Earnest Gunson, a tall, good-looking guy, I though the world's greatest. He pampered me and told me if I did not miss a day, I would receive the same reward as those who attended every day all year.Mr. Gunson had what we called "nickle pencils." We all had penny ones. He would let me

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109544038809459792005-03-02T17:10:00.000-08:002005-03-05T17:35:23.146-08:00

My pappa kept trotlines in the river all summer and winter. He trapped and hunted both for meat and furs. We stretched the skins for drying on the front of the smokehouse and sold them to the "skin man." My pappa made hay for wintering the cows and mules, which he used to plow the crops.For a "money crop" he grew dark-fired tobacco, which was really hard work. From plant beds to harvest was from

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109541869259222682005-03-01T16:40:00.000-08:002005-03-02T17:41:07.250-08:00

I remember that time and how I would wake around 4 o'clock to my pappa's record player. He loved music. We had all the latest records and a wind-by-hand Victor Victrola that played three minutes to a wind. Our records were by the "skillet-licking crowd," Jimmie Rodgers or the Carter Family. My pappa loved Mamma Maybelle's song Wildwood Flower.When I awoke to this music, I knew I must hurry into

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109537842110695702005-02-27T12:48:00.000-08:002005-04-10T19:23:20.220-07:00

Shortly after that [starting school], the crops were ready for harvest. The maple sap was collected and cooked, a new one-time crop. Then my pappa bought back our own little house that he had cut logs for with his ax and built by hand.One cold windy day we loaded up kids and belongings for PZ Ridge, about 3 miles away. As I sat upon the wagon full of our feather beds and stuff, we came to the big

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109528906623482682005-02-27T10:25:00.000-08:002005-04-10T19:19:45.616-07:00

Soon after that [summer] my pappa came home to stay. He rented farmland in the river bottoms and half of Squire McIntosh's house, which was far nicer than our old home. It was two stories. We had a kitchen, dining room, sitting room with beds for my parents and the baby, and two large bedrooms upstairs for the other kids.There was a second story porch all the way across, which came in real handy

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109473935487571602005-02-26T20:15:00.000-08:002005-02-26T19:12:15.486-08:00

When the baby was three weeks old, my mamma took us kids and our belongings and caught the train back to Cumberland City to live with my Grandma Bullard in her three room house while my pappa stayed on to work at what we called public works.Soon afterward Jennie came down with double pneumonia. My pappa was called from a telephone located at Squire McIntosh's house, this being the only telephone

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109473261003845962005-02-26T20:00:00.000-08:002005-03-05T17:25:16.530-08:00

The flat I remember was downtown. Pollution was heavy from the steel mills. My mamma washed every day in the kitchen, heating the water on the coal-burning stove and using a washtub and board. It was very hard for her to dry clothes outside with all the dirty air.My second sister, Sadie, was the one who did the running to the grocery store and the snuff store for my mamma. My third sister,

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109472339027803222005-02-26T19:45:00.000-08:002005-04-10T19:14:26.750-07:00

All of this [scandal], of course, led to a lot of gossip, so my pappa sold the farm and left, going to Granite City, Illinois, to work and make a place for us to come to.When the news came that he had an upstairs flat, four rooms with cold water and an outside toilet, my mamma got six kids ready, packed the feather beds, quilts, and the sewing machine she would be needing to sew for the new baby

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109385052645952752005-02-25T18:15:00.000-08:002005-03-05T17:20:49.630-08:00

When I was somewhere between the ages of 3 and 5, our neighbor decided she wanted our farm. She schemed to send her 18 year old daughter to seduce my pappa and to make him think he was to father a child.My pappa was taken in. His way to deal with the problem was to supply his family with groceries and leave to take the girl where she could stay and have the child. While he was getting dressed to

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11042257.post-1109291677111062302005-02-24T19:35:00.000-08:002005-03-05T17:18:36.036-08:00

I can well remember back to when I was three years of age. My family members were small farmers living in a three-room wooden house on a dirt road, one mile from the closest store and four miles from the post office and doctor's office. It was about three miles to the Cumberland River and Cumberland City was the name of the nearest town. The high school was located there. The grade school from

Gladys Adams Crumphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09443833848729461240noreply@blogger.com0