My Grandparents(Alonzo and Nora Gray), where Uncle Walt and Ot, born and reared, was partly log. My Grandfathers father(James), well, before he passed away, he lost it because of taxes. An old boy(Josh Kindle), he bought up 3-4 different places- he had a son get killed WWI and they lived like hogs, but he used that insurance money and bought up property and he bought that, and John told me… "That place in Martinsburg right?" yeah, that one down there and more what I call in the corner down there… "Where the cemetery is?" yeah, exactly. That cemetery is- it didn’t look the same to me as I thought it was supposed to when Doris June and the kids and I went over there- they took ground off 4 different places there in that corner. But, John told me one day if he'd known that place was sellin for no more than it sold for, he'd a bought it. He was still single at the time.

Harold(Gray), they called him Dump. Too bad he died young. I think he could have made a professional ball player. That boy squatted, he caught there, school ground/school games, but they didn’t steal 2ND on him. He didn’t have to get up and throw, he'd throw it to 2nd just squatted down there. He really had an arm on him.

But Uncle Ot(Otis Gray), I don’t know why they named their kids any, cause they had a nic name for each and everyone one of em.

When I showed him a photo of Susan Crump Gray's stone, he said… She was French, around 6' tall or better. I don’t remember which one it was, there was two of those women(Melvina and Susan), they married brothers(James and Elisha Gray). And there was family over by Barry by same name; their surnames were the same. I got some letters one time from someone wantin to know about em, so I took it in and gave em to this lady. She and her husband run a store there, Craig Spencer, his mother had the same name as these women had. I always heard my Grandfather claimed that his father and uncle met this Crump family over in Jersyville. That’s where the women came from.

I met a boy at a donut shop; my grandmother corresponded with someone from Oklahoma . I remember one picture that had an ice storm, and they used a maintainer to clear the streets there in this town. Anyway, I met this young guy there in this donut shop in Pittsfield . Gus and John Gray, and My Great Grandparents, after their mother died, reared them. They were older than my grandfather. Their dad(Elisha Gray) was the one who went to Oklahoma . He's my Great Grandfathers brother. Anyway, I met this boy up there, and we got to talkin about this lumberyard man buildin those homes on the ledges over there in Louisiana . He said he was born down there this side of Louisiana . I said "You mean Pike Station?" Yeah. I said "Where abouts?" Out that gravel road. I said "That 1st house on the right?" Yeah. I said, "You must be one of Gus Grays descendants." And he said, "Yeah, he's my grandfather". I didn’t remember weather they had more than 1 boy Jim or not, but we always referred to him as Preacher Jim. He said that was his father. Well, I didn’t know what had happened. I was a pallbearer for some of the older folks and he was a minister. This boy said he gone down Missouri and died down there and he was a minister too. He had a church there in Quincy , but he moved out a short while after that. We didn’t try to keep contact with one another. He told me about Gus and Johns Father moved to Oklahoma and as he said, married a Squaw. That’s who my Grandmother was writing to.

My mother had a boy buried over there too- probably won't be any marker, a little baby. She'd take a reap hook up through the hill and right on over to the cemetery, wasn’t very far through the field there. She'd mow around that grave and different places there.

I'm the oldest of 12 children. My mother had 7, my father had 5. They each one lost a little boy- his mother was out helpin chores and he got his clothes on fire and he burnt so bad he died. My mother's boy, they were heating that house with a kerosene heater. I think he died from lack of oxygen. Theres 2 girls on my father's side dead and 2 on my mother's side are dead. Its really something how that the 2 of em are the same.

Walt(Gray) and Lillie(Fast), they were married 2-3 times. She told my grandmother she was getting ready to divorce Pat and go back to Walter though before she got sick. And Malone didn’t believe in Doctors, and they let her lay there and die.

Walt Gray; he was a stubborn old pus, and after Lillie died, he married this DeJaynes woman. She had a child and it didn’t live long after that, but the dammed old fool, I think he got 5 from her after that. A boy (Paul Gray), and 2-3-4 girls. Paul Gray married Liza Mae Billings’ daughter, she(Liza) told me one time "Wordell, I don’t care if he is kin, hes the laziest damn person I ever saw!"

I showed him a photo of Grover and Pearlie…
She has a son over there in Grigsville- in fact, she had a Grandson Howard too. He was elected Mayor over there at Grigsville same time I was elected Mayor of New Canton . Betty talked to me about having two relatives elected at the same time. One of those girls died, we went to the burial over there; not sure just where it was, but anyway, I met Howard, I met him over there, they had a blue grass festival one time, and he had a broken leg. I was tellin some guy that knew him, he said, "Did he tell ya how he got that?" I said "No", he said, "He was actin up on a motorcycle and it got away from him" (He proceeds to laugh about that one)

I showed him a photo of Shuly Gray…
Shuly married George Moore and had 2 boys and a girl. I went to the funeral of each one of em. I think I was probably the only one of my generation there. This one boy, was a tall son-of-a-gun, his wife was. They were over 6'. They belonged to a club down there in Texas . Said they had to be 6' to join it. Now Carl Moore, he married Katie Yokem. He was found in a hog pen one day chewed up. He had died doin chores or something. This George Moore was better known down there in Pleasant Hill as Churney; that was his nic name.

"Did you know your Great Grandfather(James Gray)?"
No, I remember; he lived; they had him out there in a nursing home. My mother worked there, she took me with her one week. I remember the day he was buried. On our way back they all stopped at our place there, we lived there by Martinsburg. Otherwise, I don’t remember him. My Grandmother always claimed that when he accumulated any money, that Ot would go get him. When they'd run out of money, they'd take him back to the old folks home. Well, my Grandfather couldn’t do it. He tried a time or two, but the old man didn’t want to stay with him, he wanted to go to Ot's all the time.

John(Gray), I bet the truth be known, his cholesterol was sky high. Sally always cooked rich. We heard that he died, then we heard that he hadn't, then we finally got word again. They had a floor furnace there, he came from the bathroom and he fell over that furnace there, and I guess that’s where he died. I've often thought; he was having stomach trouble when I worked with him and he took soda and awful lot, ordinary baking soda, he'd carry some with him. He had some kind of an attack and was in the hospital. He took Sally over there at the doctor in Louisiana and the doctor put him in the hospital. When I found that out, I went over there to see him and she was there with him, and he had his arms up over his head, and she scolded him, told him the doctor told him to keep his arms down. I don’t know what was wrong, he came home later. We ended up with a pick-up he'd had.

Sally's folks(Allensworth's) was having trouble one time. Her brother Capp was gonna kill all of em. Someway or another they got word to John about it. He went to the house, and on the way over, cut him a wallo shalaylee(NO idea what this is, help me out if anyone else does!). He got Capps car up the road, wrapped him across the backend there after a while, asked him what was the matter with him. When he got married he told me that Frank and Capp was gonna tell him what to do, he said he shoulda learned he couldn’t do that. I never heard any of em criticize John any. But I had a run in with Capp one time. They took him out the front door of the store, and he was standing there raisin heck with me. One of his neices husband was JP and I didn’t dare touch him, cause I know if I did, he'd get a warrant out for me. I was just standing there lookin, he was accusing of not even wanting him in the lodge. I had nothing to do with him goin to the lodge. He petitioned it once and he made a remark about he was gonna show people around there how to make use of it when he got in. Well, they told a manager, he went to him and told him he better withdraw that petition for a while. They got another guy in there, so he got Capp and both his boys in. I wasn’t even there the night they voted on him. He was givin me the devil there. John came over from across the street, walked up behind him, Capp looked up at him, and boy, he just shut up right now. Just like some kid with his dad walkin up behind him, He didn’t say anymore. I don’t know weather he was afraid or respected him. I never will forget that, how he shut up and went on.

John (Gray) was helpin his brother-in-law take a man to jail one night. His brother-in-law was cheif of police there in town. This fellow, somehow or another, he just fell on the floor, on the sidewalk. John bent over to just pick him up and he kicked in the privates. They said he picked that man up and shook him like a dog with a rat. Boy, he didn’t do anything anymore. I remember one time we were workin on the well at the feedlot across the road where I lived with the family I worked for. And Nicholas, my landlord, he and I, my fellow I worked for were partners and they were getting this pipe to windmills, gettin apart so they could pull a pipe, put a new point on it. And Paul was pullin his in, and John reach over and put his hand over Pauls and told him to wrench it together. He had one wrench in his hand and reach over and put his hand over Pauls hand. Paul began to holler, "You're hurting my hand, you're huirtin my hand!" Wordell could hardly tell the story from laughing so hard.

He (John) run a tractor when they were threashing, Paul would get another man to run a separator.

One time, I'd been up about all night; my cousin, Doris June and I had been over to Barry to the carnival, anyway I was supposed to be running the stacker where they were threashing, blowing the wheat and straw. So I set it and went over and sat down by the fuel wagon I guess. Next thing I knew, water was goin down my neck, over my head. John was over there with the jug pourin water down on me. He picked up Paul (Pit) one time, held him with one hand, and poured water over him with the other, had a jug in other hand. He worked for Nicholas for years. And after I went down to Wallaces', John went to work for him then. He was livin on the place where we had our pasture there anyway. He told me one time, he was getting $1.50 a day, wintertime, but there wasn’t much doing. Course, he got straight time. Paul would say, "Well, I've got to cut you down to $1 a day. I can get people, men in town, for $1 a day." John said "What in the hell was I gonna do?" "I had to take it till more worked opened up."

Uncle David was tellin a deal one time. My Grandfather still lived at home for quite a while after he married. Some of the neighbors were havin a dance; so Uncle David said that Ot had asked me if I wanted to go to the dance, so he said, "I went with him" "He got me up behind him on the horse and we took out." "Got over where the dance was goin on, tied his horse up and went in." The man that owned the place there was sittin there in his rockin chair. Said Ot sat down across his lap facin him. Said, "You told me you were gonna whip me or somethin like that didn’t ya?" Said he slapped him one side of his face, then the other. Said this man was tryin to keep his hands away from him. He denied doin it. Ot said, "You said it, and I know ya did, cause so-in-so told me." I don’t know how long he boxed him around. I don’t know if Uncle David or Ot told me who it was.

Another interview...

I was tryin to think… What’s Gloria Wells’ husband’s name? I couldn’t think of that name, I’ve known that boy for years. In fact, I moved him, I think to Quincy once when we were truckin. I don’t think it was to move em from Quincy back. I don’t know where they live now even.
I told him where Pearl used to live.
In there now, is where his parents lived at one time. I delivered LP gas to em up there. I think his mother may have worked at the nursery.

Gloria was Mid and Grace’s daughter. That brother of hers that died around the sny. That boy really turned out bad. I’d see him up there at Quincy . I was on a tour motor down town there, and quitting, I’d get out and walk around, cause my knees would get beat, botherin me see, and I’d see him across the street, between two guys practically holdin him up. He’d holler and call me by name, he always knew me. Bill, William, was his name.

The other girl was named for her, Doris June. “I didn’t know it till she was about 16 years old.” She married Kenny Foster.

Who was the brother-in-law to John that was a cop in New Canton?
Lou Main, he married Leona’s(Allensworth) sister. Had that CC Camp up there for the older men. I don’t know how far back Lou was. He wasn’t the one ahead of me. The guy ahead of me was always drinkin and they couldn’t find him, or else he was involved in the trouble. But he got John (Gray) to help him take this guy back to camp out there on the edge of town.

What was the name of Preacher Jim’s son you talked with?
Preacher from the other side of the family. He was a double cousin of my Grandfathers. They always referred to him as Preacher Jim, because Uncle Ot had a Jim too see. The other Preacher Jim was Gus Gray’s son.

Where did he die?
His Grandson said he died down in Missouri . I happen to accidentally meet one of his Grandsons up there at the donut shop one day, and he was a minister too. This boy was, had a church there in Quincy . I heard later that he changed there and he moved down by Missouri . I say down there, I suppose that’s towards where his Grandfather was. But he was the one tell me about my Grandfathers brother(Elisha Gray) goin to Oklahoma and marryin that Squaw.

What was the name of the man who bought the Gray land after James lost it?
Josh Kindle. Grandfather lost it for taxes and he (Josh Kindle) had 2 girls, 3 boys. 1 boy was killed in service. They lived like pigs. He saved his money and bought a section for each one of his kids. John (Otis’ son) told me, he’d realized no more what it was gonna cost, he’d a bought it. There was 60 acres over there. And there was a big spring there between the road and the house and a big willow tree. My grandfather told me, neighbor’s boy came there one day on horse back and he had a twig. Got off, tied his horse up, went over and stuck that down in the ground. Well, when I knew it that tree was like that, a great big thing. That sprout took root and grew into a great big tree.

I asked you about Gloria(Gwartney), heck we were just talkin about it a while ago. She was Mid and Graces’ daughter. I knew her parents and Grace’s parents too, Grimsley. Then Mid, he was a Jr., more or less. Milton was his right name and so was his father. His father married another woman and they had this boy. She divorced a Saxbury. “She was a Kirtright wasn’t she Wordell?” Yeah, she was a Kirtright. In fact, Mr. Gwartney, the second wife there had been married to a Saxbury. Lived over there in Louisiana and they divorced and she married Mr. Gwartney. She had a son and a daughter. “Oh yeah, that’s right, I forgot there was a girl, Vivian.” This girl up there at this tire shop, they were connected there some place. Her father was a Saxbury. “He was a half-brother, to the Gwartney boys.” “That means his mother married her dad.” “Junior’s sister was named Saxbury too, Vivian Saxbury.” What’d I say a while ago I thought it was? “Well, you thought she was a Gwartney, but she was a half-sister to Junior, she was red headed.” Her ex-husband lived down there on the end of Kentucky Creek, past where my mother lived. I think she was the woman I made the frame for, so she could make these rag rugs. And the first one she made looked like an hour glass. My mother said “You damn fool, don’t ya know you’re supposed to tack that on the side?”

“This Junior Gwartney, he was lost in the service.” “They sent his stuff back; I don’t think they brought him back.” I never did hear if they brought his body back or not. “He was a half-brother to Saxbury.” He was the youngest brother to Mid and Ed, half-brother. Did they have a sister? “Well, there was a Saxbury girl.” Well, I don’t think Gwartney has a daughter. He was the old man that’d go on a drunkin spree, drinking. One time he came in with a horse, he said been off a race track. Well, I was out workin there for my Aunt and her husband and heard a noise and we were out in the barn washin harnesses. I opened the door and here old man Gwartney was. So and so’s house was on fire over there. Well, it was really windy, and you could see the blaze over the levee where the ditch was laid out. So I ran out and run the horses in. My Uncle took his buggy and horse and I took one of the mares. They went down the road. Well, I cut across; I crossed this ditch and cut across on that hill. He beat me up there but… My Uncle laughed when they got back. He said when they charged up that dirt road, the old man began to push this mare. He said I just sat there and had a look. They run neck and neck. That horse mare, she had, would have, she’d drop dead before she’d let the other one out run her. I think the old man Gwartney thought he’d out run him, he’d run off and leave him, but he got fooled.

Didn’t Grace have a brother that died in service?
“Jerry, Little jerry, had his picture.” “I went to school with Billy and Jerry.” “Billy also died young.” “But Little Jerry was lost in service.” “In Fact, he was lost at sea.”

Well this girl that runs this restaurant up at Kinderhook, her Dad was a Grimsley, Fred. And their oldest brother died here a while back, and he just lacked a little of being 100. In fact, where we lived there cattycornered form the park, they lived down there next to the levee right below us. “Charlie?” He was a heck of a guy. “I went to school with Ethle and Mable.” “We used to see her at the restaurant.” “She always knew me.” “She didn’t do good in school, and she told me that she couldn’t see.” “They wanted to help her mother get glasses, but she was proud and wouldn’t take and help.” “But by the time I knew her grown up, you could tell that she could see, and read and everything.” “In those days, children; they weren’t; well, people couldn’t afford.” “She was a born comic.” “Several of those kids were like that.”

I owed for one book. The class I was in, sophomore, mid season. I wouldn’t ask my Grandparents for the money. I still owed for one book. So I turned all my books in and left. Years later over at Barry this teacher, well, he’d been operated on and they wouldn’t let him teach for a while, was for the 6th grade or something like that, and a woman from Barry came down. Well the year before I didn’t like the woman teacher and I should have flunked. But I was makin better grades in the other room so she passed me. So the next year I decided if I finished that year, it’d be my last one. So I went back to the 8th grade, got books and studied up on em. This woman was the kind that made ya think you were doin her a favor to make a good grade. She was really a heck of a nice woman. As soon as the man was able to come back, of course she quit. One day, well, when they get ready to go to another town top play ball, he’d give me all the papers to fill out, info on these boys that were gonna play. Well, we didn’t have but 8 of us, and 5 boys got to play em see. So he came back one day and sit down. Wanted to know why I didn’t join the basketball team. Well I had 5 miles to go home, headin up them open creeks, and my Grandfather had a stroke, and I was the one havin to do the work. Milk 3-4 cows and feed these hogs, take care of the chickens. I told him I had all I can do. I can’t be out of a night. He said “Well, we’d take ya home.” I said about once would be all, you wouldn’t be goin up that road anymore. This other boy that wouldn’t play, we were in the same class, he died just here a week two ago. He chewed me out cause he said I talked to ruff to the teacher. I said I didn’t tell a thing only what was true. So I run onto him over there at Barry. “Wordell, he was good at suckin around the teachers.” Who was that? William Blackater. He went to school there where Doris June did. Hardin School , cause they lived just right back of there. He was just a moth older then me. The thing of it was, this guy, I saw him out to Barry years later, and he wanted to know why I quit and I told him. I owed for one book and another comin up. He said “Why didn’t ya say so? I’d have paid for em”. I was tellin some guy that I knew him; he said “Like hell he would have, I know him!” He died and left about 320 acres land out there by Barry to a guy. I wouldn’t ask my parents for money. If I couldn’t make enough during the summer to pay for all my bills, I was out of luck. Have to work during the winter. I worked a lot for one old boy, 2 of his sons. The boys never did pay me. With him, for instance, I had $9 comin from helpin him put up hay. I went down there, livin with this family the 14th of September. I finally got my last $2 out of this old man Christmas day. I go down there with my Aunt and her husbands to his folks, Id get a free dinner out of it.

I came back from St. Louis , his youngest boy that was home there at that time, they lived down on a farm. He wanted me to come up and shuck corn for him. His nephew said I think he thinks he’s got an all weathered job. He’s one of those guys, short, heavy set guy. But, he’d pull 100 bushel a lot easier than I could 70. So when I got mine out, I brought my team and wagon up there and Id get 70 bushel a day. Got done, and there came a snow so I wasn’t so I wasn’t gonna come after em just yet. Well, I had to go in town after groceries and I run on to him. His nephew was on his way down with my team and wagon. So I waited for him. I took em from there on in home and let him drive my car down there so I could get back. So this guy laid the money out there and a coin or two dropped on the floor and I handed it to him. “No” he said. “That’s yours.” Well, long towards the last, he’d have a truck comin down there to one of these elevators, and we’d scoop our corn into that truck. Well, my Uncle was helping him when they’d get their wagon, and then they’d come over and help me. Well, I figured the length of time I’d shucked and figured what I would have shucked at that time. But he paid me for every bushel that went into my wagon, even he and his brother and my Uncle helping me. I told Doris June, I guess he’s makin up for the trouble I had with the rest of his family. My Uncle didn’t pay me the last time I worked for him, but he did enough to me for years later to make up for it. I bought a hog off him and butchered it. He wanted to let it go on what he owed me. I said “No”. I was driving at the time; I bought a small deep freeze. We worked that hog up and rendered the lard there that day. Had to use a, put a cloth over the lard can with a lid on it to keep it from spillin out.

You lived with your Grandparents?
Yes.

From the time you were born?
Well, no, not quite that back, but, I don’t know when I started in.

While you were livin there, was your mom there too?
Well, she got married. They lived in part of the house, that’s where they lost that one child, and I guess maybe I took up with my Grandparents. Because, when they moved, I wouldn’t move with them. That was back in 25’.

You didn’t move with them? When your mom left, you stayed?
Yeah, I can’t tell you exactly when it was, but we moved down there by Martinsburg in 1925. We’d been there a year or two before that.

Did your mom live near by?
No, she lived in Louisiana .

So she married, moved to Louisiana, and you stayed with your Grandparents?
Mm hmm (he nods his head)

Who did your mom marry?
William McCalister. He had a family ahead of her.

They had children too?
Yeah.

He already had children and she just had you? Just you before she was married?
Yeah, she wasn’t married when I was born, my father never married.

At all?
Not together, but they each one married again. When I was born, it was a terrible thing. A woman have a child and not be married.

You were the first born?
Oh yes.

Where were you born at Wordell?
Pittsfield weren’t you? To be honest with ya, I don’t know. My mother lived with Lindsey and Aunt Mammie for a while there, where the Brooster (?) Station is. Maybe she was at Lindsey’s when you were born.

She worked down in Missouri someplace one time before I was born, cause I have cards in there from Feren, he mailed to her. One of these girls checkin on her said my mother and Feren got in an argument and that’s why he left and married the girl he ended up with. They had some wild story, this Granddaughter; she lives in Florida , Charlotte . I had some post cards, I happen to acquire them. Anyway, he had written and sent to my mother, and they were dated see. I took em with me that day; let em see that their theory was all blown to hell. Was nothing to it. Well, his folks were a little big headed don’t ya think? Oh yes.

I finally went to see him and his family there when they lived over there by Summer Hill. Well he offered to take me in, and give me s farm of 40 acres. He even offered to let me finish my schooling. Easy for him to say, times were so hard, he could hardly raise the ones he had. I know it. The thing of it was… Too little to late. When this older girl got married, there was an empty house across from where they lived on the other side of Pittsfield . He paid em $5 a week and heck, I already drawin $10 when we got married.

This boy Lennis, is that the one that died?
Yes. There’s a picture of him in there in the casket in the window. I don’t know where it is, but I’ve seen it anyway. They heated that room with a kerosene burner, and I think that’s what killed him, lack of oxygen.

Where were you two married at?
Bowling Green , Missouri . We got married; the preacher said “You can kiss the bride”. I said, “I’m not gonna kiss her, she’s a married woman!” We stop and ate lunch in Louisiana when we came back. So now, on our anniversary ever since we retired we go back on that day and have lunch over there.

Donald, born after you. His last name is Gray. Does he have the same Dad as you?
No, he had a different father than me. I never saw him, never knew him. He still talks to Donald. He lives in Texas. He just became a widower this past year. He quit school out of the 8th grade. The teacher made out a report and faked it for him, and he got in the Navy. He spent 8 years in the Navy. And when he quit, he was 3rd in command on the ship.

The letters about the Crump name. Who did you give them to?
Craig Lister’s mom.

Your mother married a Hathaway didn’t she? Yeah. That oldest boy died young. I was Santa Clause for the Gambles store there one time. And their dad asked me to come out to their house. So we drove out there then. I went in with him. That was when Laverne was talking to you about when he was a little boy and here he wasn’t even hardly a teenager yet.

Did you live with you Grandparents till you two got married?
No, no. I lived with them most of the time till the Fall of 35’. That’s when I got this job on that farm where I lived with these people. Yeah, they treated him like a son. He asked me one night if I needed that money, getting $4.50 a week, and my board. I told him, well, I had to buy a pair of overalls, so he paid me. Well, I learned earlier then that. I worked for a guy on a bailer. He paid the rest of em and he said to me “You need your money, or want yours?” I said, well, I can get by without it. The old sayin is, I almost wore out 2 pair of shoes runnin after him to finally get my money.

I heard my Grandmother say, they lived in a place in Pittsfield . The man that owned it offered to sell it to em and let em pay by months rent. And they could have rented out part of the house. But my Grandfather wouldn’t take it. Other wise they’d had a chance there to own a home see.

I wanted to tell ya, Lewis Wells, I think his Dad was a brother to James Wells. I went to school with some of Jim’s boys, down at Rockport. And Everett, the oldest one lives up at Quincy . Well, here a few years ago we had a road failure. I had to call him up and he brought me home, so I could get the other vehicle, no charges. So later on, I was able to get him to come meet us at the restaurant and have lunch with us.

Oh, one time, I remember there goin to school. This Everett , he goes by the name of James Everett, anyway, a lot of the people down there called him Ted. Hid first wife said you could tell where they’d start talking to him, according to what they called him. Anyway, I came around the corner of the building and he was fighting a guy who was about that much taller than he was. But boy, he wasn’t backing off an inch. No, I bet he wasn’t. ______ Browning, Doris June. Uh huh. Later on, a few years ago, he said that when they were down in Florida , his wife said when he died she was gonna have him cremated, and Archie said “How soon?”

But, we knew Grandma Fuller. There was a killing in that family years ago. I’ve heard my Grandfather tell it. One time Doris June took her a piece of cake. We lives on the other end of the barn form her house. Doris June said she put that down right in her pocket and said “I never did care for cake” I believe Leta told me about a killing. Yes, a man, a young man, he was disgruntled. It was harvest time I believe. Well, this man was wanting to go with one of the girls and they wouldn’t let him. And he went in there, shot 2 or 3 of em and himself and a dog. The father Fuller, husband and one of the boys was farmin out there in the bottoms. They got on a horse and mule and went down there and got him. They put this ole boy in a crib and let him stay till the coroner came. They examined him the next day. She never really got over that. She lived to be in her 90’s. It was a family tragedy, it really was. I don’t know where they lived. I got the impression they lived along the bluff someplace below New Canton, but I don’t know where it was. No, they lived down in the bottoms didn’t they? Down on the river? I don’t know. The husband was farmin out there in the bottoms. He and one of the kids got on a horse or mule, rode out there to tell him about it. I don’t know how they escaped it. He wanted to marry this girl and they wouldn’t let him so he ended up shooting. And the thing of it was, to begin with, the day before he did that shooting, he was helping em there over there around Martinsburg. And my grandfather said they couldn’t remember him ever talking to anybody that day except one. He asked some guy for chewin tobacco, said “I haven’t had a chew since heck was a pup.” They had lunch, said he went out after he ate he went out and sit down by himself. Said he didn’t talk to anybody. The next time they’d heard, he’d done that shooting over there. Who was that? Do you know who it was? No. I tell you who he was connected with, Uncle Harry’s wife, and let me see…
Well, she was sisters to those twins too.