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David Mitchell

The following is a warning from the Emergency Alert Broadcast System!

Please do not attempt to adjust your set.

Russian hackers have been attempting to infiltrate this website. 

          BE VERY AFRAID !

(ya know Tim, I was sorta thinking that same thing)

Mark Schweickart

Tim - It is true that my picture is less than up-to-date, as it was taken some 13 years ago when my wife and I visited New Orleans for Mardi Gras shortly after Katrina in 2005. As those of you who saw me at the reunion in 2016 will recall, I am a bit grayer and wrinklier than I was in this photo from 2005, but still, oh mossy one, I think it fair to say that this picture is a bit closer to reality than the ones on the forum using our highschool photo from 1966 as a representation. But then again, who ever claimed that there should be truth in advertising? Not me.

And yes, that is my sweetie I am dancing with, but if truth be told, she too has allowed nature to change the color of her hair to that salt and pepper look that reminds us who is in charge here--nature, not hair coloring, moisturizer, or us wishing it weren't so. I haven't taken to removing all the mirrors in my house yet, but I must admit I do avoid looking at them.

Timothy Lavelle

Mike, I have to apologize. Your silence reminds me so much of Oliver Hardy staring silently at the movie camera right after Stan Laurel made another epic mistake. Or of Jack Benny, who in his monologue would just pause for long moments. Your silence is truly golden.

Mark's reply, while thoughtful, noteworthy and well written, does not camouflage the cry for "HELP!" coming from his partner's mouth.  

I feel like I have to 'splain. See, I was rootin' around for something funny to say. Forum-itis. I had decided to start with Frank and his golf outfit picture. Such an easy target for his attire and his bromance with Trumpy. He looks a little like Bilbo Baggins in Liederhausen to me. Frank is a member of the PGA, it is true. He first joined the Pai Gow Association in an attempt to fleece unsuspecting Chinese widow's at a local Indian casino. They cleaned his clock.  

Many of you know that Frank has never really played golf in his life, right? You know that, right? Banned from courses in 37 states, he has spent his time caddying for actual golfers while trying out for multiple parts in "The Hobbit". I know that when I first read Lord of the Rings in college, Frank Ganley was the first person I thought of when Golom's character appeared in print. I have seen photos of Frank in a Frodo costume and he truly carries it off well.

But Frank is such a sad, disillusioned figure to make jokes about that I went in a different direction. I have been jealous of both you and Mark and your writing ability so that made you a prime target for humor, I thought. Living on the edge and having a penchant for sick humor as I do, I have spent a lifetime making people laugh and also saying "I am sorry" when the attempt fails badly. I have apologized pretty often in my goofy life.

But this time....this time....listen, it's all Frank's fault. Honest to Ganley, I meant no harm.

Sincerely, or not,

Tim "who never does harm" L.

NB: The author wishes to thank Frank Ganley for the  phone call, the many long laughs and for volunteering to take the hit for my poor humor attempt. He can be reached at his website www.FranktheHobbitcom. And "Thanks" Donna.

Michael McLeod

Bwa ha ha, Tim

My picture is a year old.

The tie is from my Jack Skellington collection, so it must have been around Halloween.

Can't remember the event

Do remember my companion, a good friend, but not my significant other -- who is,alas, notoriously camera-shy, and is likely lurking in the background somewhere.

James Hamilton, M. D.

Appalachian Roots

Recently there were several heartfelt posts on the Forum about mothers and some of you have talked about your Irish, Scottish, German and other heritages. In Post #2981 I mentioned that some of my roots were in Appalachia and that probably contributed to my spending a month down there during med school. What with Mother's Day approaching I began thinking about the stories mom used to tell about part of that area.

Nelsonville, Ohio is part of Appalachia. The namesake founder of that small town was Daniel Nelson, my mother's great-great grandfather. Nelsonville grew up as a coal mining town as did many villages in the Appalachian region. Mom was raised in Nelsonville and Lancaster. My maternal great-grandfather was a mine owner in the town of Lorado, West Virginia (an acronym for the Lorain Coal and Dock Company) where my mom spent summers of her teenage years working in the mine's company store. The miners were paid in script, which was the tender for that store, but could be exchanged for dollars if they went out of town to make other purchases. I recall seeing old pictures of my grandmother and her sister in mine regalia and those helmets with large lights on the front of them when they toured the mines. Horses were often a mode of transportation around town and the family's horse was named Fred. Fred was often photographed, sometimes with mom aboard.

Music was not a big part of our family but I do remember hearing songs from Patsy Cline, Jim Reeves (a favorite of my grandmother was his song "He'll Have to Go") and other artists from that region. One that comes to mind was Tennessee Ernie Ford's "Sixteen Tons" recorded in 1955. One of the lines was:

                  "Saint Peter don't you call me 'cause I can't go,

                   I owe my soul to the company store."

I think that must have brought back memories to mom.

On 26 February, 1972 some slurry dams, comprised of water, coal ash and other coal mining sediments, above Buffalo Creek burst and flooded many towns and villages essentially destroying several of them, one of which was Lorado. (It was just a few days after that when I arrived in Pomeroy.) A year or so later my uncle drove down to WV to see what remained. According to his report the only house left standing was my great-grandfather's - it was built on a hill.

In the next installment I'll write a little more about Doc Pickens, who's favorite country singer was also Jim Reeves.

Linda Weiner (Bennett)

Dr Jim, 

I am currently living in Appalachia in Gilmer County GA. (Another classmate lives in Bartow county, but I should let him speak for himself.)

I have always called myself a "hillbilly" due to my family roots. Folks don't want to believe it because I was born in Columbus, but my family roots are in Perry & Morgan Counties, Ohio in the Appalachian foothills; my grandfather was born in Huntington West VA. & his parents' roots are in (Appalachia) Virginia. He raised his family, farmed his land & worked in the Sunday Creek coal mines in San Toy, Perry County, Ohio.

San Toy is now a true ghost town, but at one time it was growing fast with company-built homes popping up in abundance. Trouble (fire & possibly employee strike) caused the mines to close and not much is left except for the two room jail.  (Mother told me it was such a rough town., just like what we saw in westerns on TV, that there was a shooting nearly every Saturday night!

Dad's home still stands, (Perry & Morgan County line) on Rt 555. The (Adams) covered bridge across the road was rebuilt few years ago after being closed for many,many years. Some interior wood pieces with people figures (that the young Weiner boys drew anatomically carrect) were replaced inside the new, I have heard. 

On dad's side, grandpa & he & some siblings played the fiddle. Later dad played upright bass fiddle & electric bass. All this was before my time mostly. 

On mother's side, grandad loved Jim Reeves and was heard frequently singing (to himself) "He'll Gave To Go" or "I Really Don't Want To Know." Mother's faves were Jimmy Dean and Tennessee Erie Ford. 

Last Fall there was a TV series, "Appalachia" (exact title?) which I found interesting and learned exactly what "owed my soul to the company store" really meant! Mother called it the "general store" and would point out the different foundations of this, the movie theater, etc when we would ride down to the old homesteads around San Toy, New Lex, Corning & more including Portesrville cemetery. I miss going there.

James Hamilton, M. D.

David Mitchell

Is if posible that the S.W.A.T. team that had recently surrounded a house outside of Mossyrock might need to return and take up their positions again? Rumors have it that their is a huge illegal stache of laughing gas hidden somewhere on the property.

Jim and Linda,

i loved the cool stuff on your familiy's roots.

Correct me if I am wrong but I remember having the "Company Store" explained to me years ago. It was the only source of food, clothing, supplies, etc. that the miners families had access to and everything was always bought in Company issued "script" or currency - not U.S. dollars, so they could not spend it anywhere else. Plus, everything was usually so overpriced that people ran up bills that they could never pay off - often dying in debt to the extent that their families were honor bound to spend the rest of their lives trying to pay it off - but often going further into debt themselves. A never ending cycle of fundamentally cheating people out of their hard earned income. (not very different from the "government trading posts" that once dotted the landscape of most of our Western Indian reservations - and still do. Or the "Grocery Markets" that inhabit our inner city low income neighborhoods today - where rotted lettuce and spoiled meat often goes for two and three times the price of the nice new Krogers out in the "burbs". 

My Dad did some volunteer Medical work late in life down in Jackson County. The stories he told of the poverty and deprivation were disturbing.

* There is a wonderful book (and Movie) about this aspect of Appalachion miners lives - "MATEWAN" (1987) is the title - staring Chris Cooper, James Earl Jones, and a few others. Still a little-known favorite of mine - very moving, but disturbing.  

David Mitchell

Jim,

I finally was able to enlarge and decipher the (slightly blurry) print in your newpaper article posted above in #2981.

LOVED IT!

I bet those are some fond (and proud) memories.

James Hamilton, M. D.

David Mitchell

Jim,

My apologies. I should have clarified my point. I doubt if she was the one who dictated the policy of that "Company Store". They were usually completely owned by the mining company and set up to be the only outlet for the miners in their settlements. From your account, it sounds like she was merely an employee. And it may well have been operated by a more fair minded source of ownership anyway. But that is the general meaning of the term and usage in Tennessee Ernie's song. Many miners passed on to the next life owing more than everything they had to the "Company Store".

Also, here in the South, the huge old textile mills of the region were built around whole towns of workers. They included housing, a church, a Town Hall, store(s), etc. And a few other quaint elements - almost always a band and a baseball team. One factory's team would play another, and great pride was at stake between the various "Mill Towns" of South & North Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee. But some also had the infamous "Company Stores".

Those mills are almost entirely gone (to Italy after WW2, and now China). They left behind some monstrous old buildings which have moslty fallen into decay, but in some cases been restored into modern useful buildings - retail malls, office buildings, even condos in some of the larger towns. Greenville, SC and Chatanooga, TN come to mind. Two old Mill Towns with vibrant new downtowns. 

Fred Clem

I don't think I've shared this story about my father's exodus from Appalachia.

It was the late 1930's in Harlan County Kentucky, deep in the heart of "Coal Country".  He was 27 years old and had worked in the mines for 10 years.  He wanted out and decided the best way was the military.  WWII was going on in Europe but the US was not yet involved.  He went to his local recruitment office and was turned away.  At that time they wouldn't take anyone over the age of 25.

So he went another office about 50 miles away and lied about his age, saying he was born in 1914 instead of 1912.  That office approved his entry and he was off to Fort Knox for induction.

After Pearl Harbor, a young Italian guy from Columbus Ohio volunteered for service and was assigned to the same unit as dad.  He later introduced his sister to his new Army buddy and the rest is history.  So if it weren't for Hitler and Tojo my parents would have never met.  They married in December 1945 and settled in her hometown.

My dad was involved in the Battle of the Bulge and received the Bronze Star for heroism.  

Fast forward to 2003 when dad passed away.  He had a headstone with his acual  birth year, but my brother and I wanted a military marker to list his service.  We explained to the VA about the discrepancy in his age.  They said if we wanted the marker, it had to reflect his military records.  So one marker has 1912-2003 while the other states 1914-2003. 

I guess it's no surprise to you folks who served in the military that the VA would not bend the rules even a little for this decorated WWII veteran.

Timothy Lavelle

What a great story Fred. I love these histories of our predecessors. They often went thru crap that make our trials seem so insignificant. I wish that anyone who has the least inkling of such a story would have a cuppa, flex those fingers and pass it along. Many of our people arrived in Ohio from hard lives in neighboring states. 

James Hamilton, M. D.

Janie Albright (Blank)

Congrats to Jim on making the 3000th post on our message forum!!!  And not all by him btw .

I don’t post too often but like many of you I always read. You make my day old friends!

Speaking of “old” friends, most of us are turning 70 this year, me next week. Should we have a party? If so What? Where? When? Would you come to CMH if from out of town with enough notice? Would you meet up some where else? I think Clare has mentioned Las Vegas. Feedback please! 

Michael McLeod

Here's piece I wrote that gave me a chance to do some digging into something beautiful - music - and something not so beautiful about our history, as a country, of treating certain people as "less than."

http://www.orlandomagazine.com/Orlando-Magazine/April-2018/African-American-Composers-Striking-a-Chord/

James Hamilton, M. D.

Timothy Lavelle

Janie....Vegas....and make it this weekend...Please!

Hey, is anyone out there an astronomy buff?

Tim 

Jeanine Eilers (Decker)

Mike--What a great story!  I am embarrassed that these composers were unknown to me.  I will seek out their music.  Thank you for giving them to many of us.      Jeanine

Fred Clem

Tim & Jim,

Thanks for your kind comments on my dad's story.

Mark Schweickart

Mike -- Great article you linked us to. Congratulations on a a wonderfully well-researched piece. I wonder if you would mind sharing how you approach an assignment like this. Is it an assignment, or something you came up with on your own? It appears you interviewed, as mentioned, Celeste Headlee, Judith Anne Still, and Dr. John Sinclair. How did you go about contacting them? How much time did you have to put something like this together? Were you under a deadline? Obviously you were in that the performance is coming up shortly. Since these are obscure individuals, historically speaking and the point of your article, there probably is not much written about them. So how do you track down the historical details? I know you could just brush this off with a "that's what reporters do" comment, but I think many of us would enjoy hearing a bit about what goes into putting a piece like this together. 

We are all proud of you, bro.

John Jackson

My Appalachian bona fides are a bit suspect as my mother was born in Peoria, IL and my father near Albany, NY, but I do remember watching the Lester Flatt and Earl Scruggs Grand Ole Opry TV show (sponsored by Martha White flower) most Saturday afternoons.  I was never all that crazy about the vocals but Earl Scruggs’ banjo picking had me mesmerized.   Some of you may remember I played the banjo (badly) during our time at BWHS.  I wish I could report my banjo skills have improved but they have not, although that early exposure to bluegrass has left me with a lifetime appreciation of Appalachian music and its close cousins, Irish and Scottish music/fiddling.

A really evocative song about coal mining is “You’ll Never Leave Harlan Alive” performed by Daryl Scott on the Irish/Scottish Public TV series “Transatlantic Sessions”, a series that focuses on the links between Scottish, Irish and Appalachian music:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZtSLMGc4VSA

I guess Fred is living proof that the title of the song is not literally true, but, for my money at least, this song packs a lot of Appalachian life into a few short minutes.

Fred Clem

Mechanization in the coal industry caused a large drop in the number of people employed in eastern Kentucky.  A major migration to factory towns of the north happened in years following WWII.  So many found their way to Columbus it was jokingly said that the 3 R's taught in schools there must have been "Readin, 'Rightin and Route 23!"

It's somewhat ironic they wound up here since the Jeffrey Manufacturing Company was the source of much of the new machinery.  It was headquartered on Fourth Street, just north of downtown Columbus. 

James Hamilton, M. D.

Fred,

As always, thanks for that great history lesson. Thinking about eastern Kentucky and western West Virginia leads into one of the Appalachian stories I want to share. I'll call this one:

Appalachia: a Prequel

My first real foray into Appalachia actually came a couple of years before the Pomeroy experience. In the summer of '69 (sounds like a Bryan Adams song) I was interviewing at various med schools so I decided to take a week off working on the docks loading trucks and drive my rusty but trusty old Ford Falcon down to Durham, North Carolina to check out Duke University.

On my way back to Ohio I chose to avoid the major highways and meander aimlessly through parts of Appalachia. Ignoring maps I just sort of headed in a northwest direction whenever I could. At one point I was sure that the next state line would be West Virginia. Close, but no cigars, the sign ahead read "Welcome to Kentucky". Turning northeast I eventually entered the Mountain State and found another sign that stated "City of War, West Virginia". Population was about 800. It was not on my map. The map did show a road, State Route 52, which might get me back on track.

While stopped at the only traffic light in town I spotted a young man, perhaps 15 or 16 years old, sitting on a bench in front of a store. Pulling over to the curb I asked him if he could give me directions to Route 52. He approached my car with sort of a blank look on his face and proceeded to talk unintelligibly to me. He was obviously mentally challenged. (When the movie "Deliverance" was released in 1972 there was a scene, "dueling banjos", in which a musically talented young man, who was in real life autistic, played a banjo along with one of the actors, Ronnie Cox, on the guitar. To me that scene was like a flashback.)

Of course I did finally reach Route 52 and when I got home I wrote a song/poem which I entitled "I Thought I'd Never Find Route Fifty-Two". Somewhere I lost that paper but the first stanza was "Forest covered mountains, hillsides emerald green /  Unincorporated read the signs that mark the scene. /  Old folks sittin' round 'cause there just ain't that much to do, / and I thought I'd never find Route Fifty-Two."

Fred,

By the way, Harlan County, Kentucky was the supposed location of the series I mentioned in Post #2993, "Justified".

Jim

Daniel Cody

I wanted to let those on this board that my sister Kathleen Cody McClernon WHS 63 died this evening.  She served Catholic education as a teacher principal and diocesan administrator for over 40 years. She knew many of you through her activities at Newman and many other connections. It was nice to see some of her classmates from St Michael stop by today.  She is suvived by her husband Pete and daughter Kelly and grandaughter Katie. Funeral arrangements will be announced tomorrow or Sunday