Birth 13 December 1887 Pall Mall, Tennessee
Death 2 September 1964 Nashville, Tennessee
Sergeant Alvin C. York, recipient of America's highest military award, the Medal of Honor. He was a deeply spiritual mountain boy from Tennessee who plowed fields for a dollar a day as a youth and also became a champion wild turkey shooter. Drafted into the U.S. Army, he had never heard of the Kaiser and did not understand the war--a scenario that was explained to him by Army officers after they received a letter from his pastor requesting his release as a conscientious objector. York chose to fight and was sent to France. Pinned down with his patrol unit during the Argonne Offensive on October 8, 1918, he continued on his own and single-handed took out 35 German machine-guns, killed 25 Germans, and captured 132. York was one of 78 Americans awarded the Medal of Honor in World War I.
When we moved to Jamestown I went from a farm girl to a small town new girl in the neighborhood. I started to like one of our landladies grandsons Mike Raney. I sort of started dating him. On Saturdays we would go to the movies. There was a small theater in this town too and a Drug Store next door and when the movie was over we would get mike shakes and then he would walk me home. He and I were in the same class in school so I got to see him every day. One day he wasn’t where he always was to watch for me and walk me to school. I was not sure why but I just walked to school by myself. There he was at school with another girl hooked to his arm. OH NO! Not my boyfriend I said. We fought and that was the end of my three-week romance. I remember that was when President Kennedy got killed and we sit all day listening to the radio on the intercom that was on Nov 22 1963 . . .
I moved on to with a boy named Timmy Stockton. His daddy owned the local garage and he was so cute. Within a week I had a new boyfriend and within two weeks he gave me a friendship ring. My mother didn’t like that at all. She made me give it back to him. I guess cause she knew we would be leaving there soon. We stayed about three months and back to Hartsville we went. The day we were to leave was a Saturday. Momma knew that and we regularly went to movies on Saturday, she told me to go down to the theater and say my good-bye. When I got there, I saw Jimmy sitting there and I started crying and he got up and came to me and we sat there for a few minutes. He just leaned over and kissed me goodbye, he got up and left me sitting there. Wow what heartache. As an adult I don’t think I felt that much pain due to loving a guy. When I left my husband, it didn’t hurt as much . . .
Back to Hartsville I go in May in 1964. I thought that I was gonna die of fear when I had to go back to school. I knew that nothing had change there and that within a week I would be fighting to save my own but. Mark Humes had moved on, as well he should have. The bulling started the very first day back to school. My sister came home too. She wanted to graduate with the class she had gone to school with all those years. She was so opposite from me. Her graduating year she was voted Miss. Congeniality and she was the girl’s basket ball team manager and she was well liked and hated that I was her sister. Once I beat this boy up before we moved to Jamestown and the principal called Lee Ann to the office. He asks her in front of me, “what do you suggest I do with your sister?” She said,” I don’t care, she is not my sister and momma and daddy doesn’t care what you do with her either.” That is when I found out that Lee Ann hated me. She was embarrassed by me. She had a right thought I brought it all on myself. She had not let momma and daddy's fighting and drinking get her to be like them. I think I was mimicking what I saw at home. That caused a lot of heart aches for me in years to come. She could have any boy in school. She was beautiful and always a lady. Her hair had to be just so and clothes just right. Till this day she is the same. I look at her and ask myself why I am so different and why is she the way she is? Just recently I ask her why mommy and daddy's fighting and drinking didn’t affect her like it did me. She said, it did affect me I just let it make me a better person and not hurt myself and others like they did . . .
When I got back from Jamestown, I also had to deal with the fact that Lula May had moved to another farm. It was about three miles from me. I would beg momma to take me over there and she would finely give in. It was a much bigger house and it had a big pond on the farm. We would go swimming and take a picnic lunch and make a day of it. I would some times ride the bus to her house and that would cause all the kids on the bus to make fun of me and that just had another thing to pester me about. I didn't care I love that family and they could make all the fun they wanted to . . .
One day while I was at Lula May’s we were in the living room watching T.V. someone knocked at the door. Mr. Sullivan was in the chair reading newspaper and he got up and answered the door, this was 1965. At the door was three black gentlemen and a white man dressed like Lawyers. They ask Mr. Sullivan could they talk to him and he said surely. The men didn’t like that I was there. They ask could they go outside and talk to him. He said you can say what you need to here or not whichever they wanted. Remember the beginning of this book I talked about how blacks had their own schools, well the four men came to ask Mr. Sullivan if he would start sending his children to the white school. They also said that if he would they would make sure they had better clothes and the things they needed for school. They added that the reason they were asking him was, he was a preacher and well respected and that would help their cause to integrate the school in Hartsville . . .
Mr. Sullivan excused him self and told them he had to ask his wife what she thought. Lula May and I knew she was not even home so we were kind of startle that he left the room. I asume tjat he left the room to pray before he KICKED them out of his house. When entered the room he told them they were trouble makers to leave his home. They told him your children will get a better education at the white school. He said to them one more time, you need to leave. Lula May and I thought that our prayers had been answered. We always wanted to go to school together and didn’t understand why we had separate schools. I am not lying that really did happen . . .
This was the year my sister graduated. It was in the graduating class of 1965, there were five black students at the white high school. The senior class for many years had taken a class trip to Washington, D.C. to see the sites. This year it would have been impossible for the reason that blacks were not allowed in the same hotels and restaurants. The five black students offered not to go on the trip so the rest of their classmates could go . . .
Lee Ann, like I said was well like in Hartsville She could have any guy at school. My momma had and always did have a way with being understanding of other people just not her family. She would take in and help people of all ages. There were some kids that Lee Ann would date and come over to the house and they would get close to momma. She would let them drink beer and play cards. They all liked momma she became a surrogate mother to many kids Lee Ann’s age. One I remember was Hubert Ward. He was a top notch football player and he was a real redneck, He in later years told momma how much she meant to him when he was younger. Lee Ann reminded me about the senior party the year she graduated. We lived like I said earlier on the top of a large hill, at the bottom of the hill there was the creek and the creek emptied into the Second Creek landing and that emptied into the Cumberland River. The graduation party was at the Second Creek Landing. It got loud and momma and daddy called the law not knowing Lee Ann was there. They scattered every which way when the cops came. I cant remember if anyone got arrested on not. Lee Ann reminded me of that earlier this year. Momma did that through her whole life, be nice then do something mean. She guided and helped many people after her move to Nashville which is yet to come in my book . . .
Next Chapter is about my momma taking control of the family and finding work . . .