Her Face

I don't always get around to posting a photo on Instagram for the #genealogyphotoaday challenges. I do post more than I blog, though. On the 22nd of this month the prompt was #face And I couldn't think of anything unique or new to share.

This month is National Letter Writing Month, my fellow blogging, genealogist, sister-in-law, recently started working for the post office, and has been encouraging us to write more letters. She is right. While packing and then unpacking I have loved coming across my stack of old letters from various people, mainly my paternal grandmother, Mammy. I have a few letters she wrote to me and at least one letter to each of my three children. One of the people I chose to write to this month was her eldest sister, Frances. Today, much to my surprise, and enjoyment, was her return letter. Tucked inside the folded pages she included this picture of her paternal grandmother, my 2nd great grandmother, Leona Bass Jones.




The only pictures I have ever seen of Leona before this one, were very tiny, grainy, black and white newsprint-like pictures that were printed in one of my favorite books, Between the Wichitas. You couldn't see the details of her face, only her small stature and her hair pulled back into a bun. On the back of this picture, Aunt Frances writes that Leona was only 4' 5" tall and that she was 1/4 Cherokee Indian. And that her Uncle Frank said that Leona had long black hair and black eyes.

In my research I have found her application into the Cherokee Indians, as well as those of her siblings and her father. They were all denied entry, stating, "It does not appear that ancestors were ever enrolled, or were parties to the treaties of 1835-6 and 1846. Applicant shows no connection with Eastern Cherokee "

Her paternal grandfather was Samuel Bass. His descendants with his first wife were granted citizenship.

Leona was the daughter of James Martin Bass and Margret Ann Miller. On 20 Oct 1881, she married John Calvin Jones in Cooke County, Texas.

Aunt Frances also tells me she herself was named after both her grandmothers, Ora Frances McClung and Leona Bass.

I plan on writing her to tell how far back I have found the name 'Frances' on her mother's side.

I hope this post encourages you to write to a few of your family members. Who doesn't love getting a letter?

Until next time,
Becky

The Aquitania

For years I have been pretty disappointed about what little information I found available online through Ancestry and Fold3 about my WW1 ancestors outside of their draft registration cards. This afternoon, as I was desperately trying to think of something to blog about, I found myself, on the Family Tree Magazine blog where they mentioned something new/updated available on Fold3. They now have WWI Transport Service Records. 

I have found several ancestors and relatives' draft cards, but off the top of my head I only know for sure of one ancestor who actually fought in that war, My paternal great grandfather, Newell McKinley Stepp. I quickly entered his name into the database and voila, a hit!

My mother's first cousin Tarona interviewed my great grandfather in the 1980's, and asked him a few questions about his war service but he was older and difficult to understand. I definitely want to include her video of him though.



When Newell was 21 years of age, on the 5th of June 1917 he registered for the war.



I don't know when or where he did his basic training. I assume Fort Chaffee because of its proximity to his hometown, maybe my grandma or her sisters will know.

On 2 Nov 1918, my great grandpa, boarded the RMS Aquitania and headed to France. 

I also have a few pictures of grandpa in his uniform:

According to the paperwork, not quite two months after leaving the US for France, on the day after Christmas, Grandpa boarded the USS Georgia at Brest, France, and headed for home. (In his interview he stated he was "over there" about 6 to 6.5 months).




A homecoming was even printed in the local paper:

Fayetteville Daily Democrat 30 Jan 1919

In his interview he said he didn't shoot his gun at all overseas. I wonder what it was he did while over there.  He was one of the lucky ones. My son and I recently watched Saving Private Ryan. It at times is very difficult for me to watch. It portrays so well how war is tragic. Scary. And sometimes necessary. I'm grateful for those who willingly enlist today and for the families of those who have sacrificed their lives. I hope we all take the time to realize the cost of freedom and ask the same last words of Captain John H. Miller, that we "Earn it".

Until next time,
Becky

Furniture Man

Today's genealogy prompt, hosted by Genealogy Girl Talks, is #occupation. It took me half of the day before I thought of an ancestor that wasn't listed as a 'farmer'. My 2nd great grandfather, on my mother's side was Kinchen Leroy Bynum. I have written about him briefly, here.

Kinchen was the oldest child born to John Thomas Bynum and Laura "Lou" Elmer Reynolds. He was born 9 November 1893.

Here is the Bible page listing the birth (and death) of the children born to John and Lou. My Aunt Diane is in possession of this treasure.



Here is a family portrait taken when Kinchen was about 10. He is the young man standing on the right. His brother Sidney is standing on the left, and little Grace is sitting on Papa's lap.

Because I love old family pictures and am blessed to have family that shares them on this side of my family, here are a few more of him.

I would guess him to be about 15-17 here:

And here he is with his beautiful bride, Ludia Belle Moore.

Now for the picture that prompted this post, Kinchen's WW1 Registration Card. It even gives his street address. 2004 North 10th Street, Fort Smith, AR. This could quite possibly be where my great grandmother Bondell was born the following year. I also love that it has his signature.

Kinchen says he is employed by the Ballman-Cumming Furniture Co. as a laborer. In the 1920 census, he is still living in Fort Smith, earning a wage, as a laborer for a furniture company.

City Directories from Fort Smith tell me that in 1925, widowed and remarried, Kinchen now works for Ward Furniture Manufacturing Company as a finisher and by 1928 he had worked his way up to inspector.





In 1930 he is found living in Tulsa, OK where he rents his home and is now earning a wage as a shipping clerk for a furniture company. The Tulsa City Directory from 1931 shows that he worked for the E M Brown Furniture Company.

The thing I want to point out, and hopefully someone can tell me, is that here in my home town, when I was growing up, was a furniture store called Bynum Home Furnishings. My mom used to tell me we were related somehow on my grandma Bondell's side. If you're reading this and know the answer, please let me know the connection.


Until next time,
Becky Drake

Since publishing this, I was informed that my Aunt Michelle has a wardrobe that was built by Kinchen. Below is a picture:

Just Getting Started

Today's photo prompt hosted by Genealogy Girl Talks is #farm. The first thought that popped into my head was a picture that used to hang above my grandparents fireplace of an areal view of their farm; the farm I grew up working on most of my childhood. I would help haul hay before I was able to lift a bale. This was when square bales were still often used. Today it seems like almost everyone bales their hay in round bales or those massive square bales only machinery could lift.

My job, with other younger cousins, was to go out into the field and roll bales from the outside row into the one the grown ups and my oldest cousin Mitch were working so that they could get two rows at once. When we were able to reach the break pedal (just barely) the younger cousins and I would take turns getting to "drive" the hay trucks between the rows. The trucks were put into low gear where they creeped at a slow pace all on their own. We just had to steer and stop when we were told. Then once the trucks and trailers were loaded down and secured we would head to the barn.  My job then would be to haul the water bucket back to my grandparents house and re-fill it with ice cold water and quick! Then as I got older I would buck hay with the rest of them.

I also helped build fences, barns, and work cattle. Rarely was I "too little" to do something. They always could find something for me to do because when you own a farm, something always needs to be done.

I don't have access to that picture, so the next thing that popped into my mind was the Agricultural census.

In 1860, Burnet County, TX  I love what can be seen on page 5 of that Agriculture schedule.

In 1859 of that same county, my 3rd great grandfather, Killion Rich, married my 3rd great grandmother Minerva Jane Wooliver. (I wrote about them briefly here and here)

Back to the schedule: On page 5, person 34, is Killion Rich and persons 38 and 39 are his father, John Wesley and her father, Alford Wooliver. The whole family right there bunched together.



Its interesting to look at each of their agricultural holdings and compare the seniors with Killion who is just starting out.

I cropped the picture for my Instagram post so that you could read the names and if I were to just attach a copy of the original its so smeared I doubt you could read it very well. I myself had to go online to find a blank form so that I could make out what each column said. I used that blank form (found here) to make a more legible one for you to read. *This is NOT the actual census



It doesn't tell us how many acres Killion has, maybe he was living on his father's land? It seems that John Wesley had plenty.

I have searched for land records belonging to these three men, in vain, on the Texas General Land Office website. Maybe you will have better luck.

I have also squinted and scoured this old 1862 Burnet County map hoping to find at least Wesley and Alford. Nope.

Maybe they didn't own this land. The title of the column where their names are written does say "Owner, Agent, or Manager"

In the 1867 voter registration, Wesley is found in Milam County (though his name is marked through on the actual image) and Killion is found in Falls County. I'm not certain when Alford died but in 1869 voter registration there is an A W Wooliver born in NC registered in Colorado County where his family is found in 1880 without him. His son Alford M Wooliver wasn't born in NC but Alford Sr was.  I couldn't find Alford Sr, his wife or younger unmarried children at all for the 1870 census. Neither could I find Killion or Wesley.

Here is a close up of Burnet and surrounding counties to help you see where Milam, Falls, and Colorado counties are located in proximity. The 1860s census and voter registrations are circled in blue. And where each of the families were by 1880 in red. Wesley was in Lamar, Killion was in Collin and as stated before Alford's family remains in Colorado County.




When researching ancestors from this era, I am always amazed at the distance they traveled and how often. You know it had to be so hard to pick up and start over, over and over again.

Until next time,
Becky.

He Made My House His House

My 4th great grandfather on my mother's side was William Bynum. Today I wanted to share with you the answers he supplied to a few questions, when interrogated on behalf of one Noah Ledford, when Noah was applying for reparations from the Southern Claims Commission.

To start, I wanted to inform you of William's service during the Civil War. He fought in Co D of the 2nd Arkansas Infantry (Union). He enlisted  15 March 1864 in Clarksville, AR. He was 46 years old and gave his birth place as McCreary and McNairy TN - there is no McCreary TN - take that for what you will. William's father Eli was enumerated in McNairy TN in 1830 and Lawrence County TN in 1820. So it's safe to say McNairy County is where William was indeed born.

William was described as being 5'11", grey eyes, light hair, fair complexion.



Noah Ledford was a loyalist. In his application file we're told he voted for Lincoln and was threatened to be hung. He was arrested on three occasions and after the last one, in fear for his life, was sworn into the Confederacy. He was able to seek protection and switch sides whenever the Union took over Fort Smith. In the later part of 1863 his house in Franklin County, Arkansas, was burned to the ground by rebels because of his loyalty. During Noah's own deposition when asked who the leading Unionists in his vicinity during the war were and if they were called to testify and why or why not, his answer was:

William Bynum, William Parker, Hinson Harris. William Bynum is called to testify, William Parker is dead; Hinson Harris* cannot be obtained on account of distance to his present residence. 

Below is my transcription of William Bynum's testimony which took place 5 March 1878:

William Bynum being duly sworn answers as follows 

1. What is your name, your age, your residence, and how long has it been such, and your occupation? My name is William Bynum. I am forty nine years old. My residence is Pope County, Arkansas.  Have been residing in Pope County about two years. I am a farmer by occupation.
2. If you are not the claimant, in what manner, if any, are you related to the claimant or interested in the success of the claim? I am neither related to the claimant nor interested in the success of his claim.
3.  Skips ahead to questions 52 - 65

• 52. In whose favor are you here to testify? Mr. Noah Ledford
• 53. How long have you known that person altogether, and what part of that time have you intimately known him? I have known him about 27 years and intimately known him all that time.
• 54. Did you live near him during the war, and how far away? At the beginning of the war I lived in Fort Smith about 40 miles from Mr. Ledfords. But when he could no longer stay at his house he made my house his house. [I love this part]
• 55. Did you meet him often, and how often, during the war? I met him on average once a week during the war. 
• 56. Did you converse with the claimant about the war, its causes, its progress and its results? If so, try to remember the more important occasions on which you so conversed, beginning with the first occasion, and state, with respect to each, when it was, where it was, who were present, what caused the conversation and what the claimant said in substance, if you cannot remember his words. I conversed with the claimant frequently, about the war, its progress, its causes, but don't exactly remember the occasions nor the persons present. Before our country was taken by the Union Army our talk had to be private. The substance of all his conversations was that he desired to see the Union cause prevail. 
• 57. Do you know of anything done by the claimant that showed him to be loyal to the Union cause during the war? If you do, state what he did, when, where, and what was the particular cause or occasion of his doing it? Give the same information about each thing he did that showed him to be loyal. He never took up arms against the Union cause nor served in the Confederate cause in any way except one time he was forced to drive a team about a month. I know he went to the Union Army as soon as he could safely get to them.
• 58. Do you know of anything said or done by the claimant that was against the Union cause? If so, please state, with respect to each thing said or done, what it was, when it was, where it was, and what particular compulsion or influence caused him to say or do it. I do not except the driving of the team above mentioned. And he was compelled to do that to save his life.
• 59. If you have heard of anything said or done by the claimant, either for the Union cause or against it, state from whom you heard it, when you heard it, and what you heard. I never heard of him saying or doing anything against the Union. I never heard of him doing anything for the Union. What he did I know of my own knowledge.
• 60. What was the public reputation of the claimant for loyalty or disloyalty to the United States during the war? If you profess to know his public reputation, explain fully how you know it, whom you heard speak of it, and give the names of other persons who were neighbors during the war that could testify to his public reputation. His public reputation as far as I know was for loyalty to the Union. I know this from William Sewell, George Pillows, Cager Stone and Hinson Harris who were his neighbors who can testify to his reputation if they are living.
• 61.Who were the known and prominent Union people of the neighborhood during the war, and do you know that such persons could testify to the claimant's loyalty? Hinson Harris*, Cager Stone and George Pillows and I know they can if living.
• 62. Were you yourself, an adherent of the Union during the war? If so, did the claimant know you to be such, and how did he know it? I was most assuredly. He knew it by my course and conversation with him. 
• 63. Do you know of any threats, molestation, or injury inflicted upon the claimant, or his family, or his property, on account of his adherence to the Union cause? If so, give all the particulars. I know that one Jacob Bean, a Confederate Captain, threatened to and tried to kill Mr. Ledford, the claimant on account of his adherence to the Union Cause. Also, that his house was burned for the same reason by Confederate troops but don't know who commanded them.
• 64. Did you know of any act done or language used by the claimant that would have prevented him from establishing his loyalty to the Confederacy? If so, what act or what language? I know that he refused to assist the Confederate cause and that when forced to go with them he made his escape to the Union Army. Also that he hid out a good deal of time to keep out of the way of the Confederate Army. 
• 65. Can you state any other facts within your own knowledge in proof of the claimant's loyalty during the war? If so, state all the facts and give all the particulars. I know that he was in favor of the Union cause from the beginning to the end of the war. He voted against successive abuse.

William Bynum
J H Battenfield (Special Commissioner) 

Until next time,
Becky

*I suspect Hinson Harris could have been Henderson Harris.

Hilltop 45's

Today's blog post is written by my mother-in-law and was prompted by the Instagram photo-a-day challenge #records put together and hosted by Genealogy Girl Talks

In 1959, 1960 maybe 61, my mom and dad, Lum & Jessie Bates owned and operated a cafe in Sulphur Springs. It was located at the top of the hill on the way out of town. Hence the name Hilltop Cafe. When you entered the door there was an eating bar that had stools. To the right of this was the main dining area. In the dining area, besides table and chairs, there was a pinball machine and a jukebox. The jukebox is the focus for this post.

There was a vendor that would come regularly to change out the records. Once the records were removed. These could be bought for about 25 cents and sometimes they were just given if they were not played a lot. There was a counter inside the jukebox that kept a count of how many times a record was played. To encourage playing music, Dad would put money in the machine. This money was returned to him when the vendor came. They could tell what money was Dad's because he marked his with red fingernail polish. That money he got back before his profit was calculated. I don't know how his profit was calculated . That was how I got my 45's. Many of them I still have.

The labels of the ones pictured:

• Liberty, Willie Nelson, Touch Me
• Sun Records, Johnny Cash, The Ways Of A Woman In Love
• RCA Victor, 'Nita, Rita and Ruby, Last Night In My Dreams
• Mercury Records, George Jones, Out Of Control

At the end of mom and dad's cafe was a shop and dad built truck racks there. Here is a picture of the tags he put on those racks:

Sew Terrific

I recently went to my mom's to gather pictures for the post I did on all the houses we grew up in and while I was there she dug out her old scrapbook. It's amazing to me the things you don't always know about your parents.

I knew she could sew. She made curtains and reupholstered a few cushions when I was growing up. she may have made my square dance dresses but I'm not sure. When she would get out her sewing machine do do these things I just figured the knowledge came from experience working at Levi's and La-Z-Boy. But as it turns out, she was a pretty good seamstress even in high school. She won a sewing competition her Junior or Sophomore year and placed second another time. Not only did she sew the items she's wearing, she also designed them.

Here are a few pictures from the newspaper articles she had in her scrapbook.

Until next time,
Becky

The House(s) That Built Me

It's a rainy day today. The kind of day that is perfect for inside chores and relaxing. We have recently moved to what we think will be our last home. How many times do people think that, and end up moving again? I thought I would use moving and the houses I have lived in as a prompt for a blog post. If my children ever end up interested in this crazy hobby of documenting family history, they may find this one interesting.

House # 1

When I was first born, my parents lived in the same house my Dad still lives in. Right next door to the slaughter house that employed him and that his family owned during the 1970's-90's in Canehill. That house was built in the 1960's and has gone through a lot of upgrades through the years. My Step-mom has a great knack for seeing improvable space. When I was growing up, that house had a pea green carpet in the living room and I think, hallway. My room had wood floors, and so did the family room. Dad's room had a flat red carpet, not plush at all. The kitchen had linoleum that had the same pea green colors of the carpet in its pattern. When I was in my single digits, it had two bathrooms. The one you entered directly into from the hallway was pastel pink and had a bathtub. It had the wall tiles similar to this picture.

The one you entered into from the laundry room was pastel blue and had a shower. Later on, walls were torn down and it became one larger bathroom. This was a 3 bedroom home. Growing up I went back and forth between the two bedrooms at the back of the house. When I was in my teens, I helped remove the old pea green carpet and we replaced it with a hunter green carpet. I can vaguely remember gold vein mirror tiles I think above the cabinets in the kitchen....

House # 2

I don't remember the house my Mom moved into after she and dad divorced. The only "memory" I have of it is a picture she has of me and my **step-dad next to a huge snowman he built. I was about one or two at the time. It was on the corner of Cheri Whitlock and Mt. Olive/Hwy 43 in Siloam Springs.

**When you read 'Dad' from this point on - I will be talking about my step-dad, Steve, since while I was growing up and even today, my Dad (Johnny) only had one house. Mom and Dad (Steve) had several.

For more on my feeling about the whole step-parent thing, read here.

House # 3

The first house I do remember was on Stonewall Rd, in Prairie Grove and it is a great example of how our young minds remember things vs how things really are. The way I remembered this house was that it sat on top of a hill. A pretty steep hill and at the bottom of that hill along the road were two apple trees. When I drive by that house today I can barely call that "steep hill" a knoll and I don't think the apple trees are there anymore. That house had a basement that leaked. I remember having a sand box to the east of the house. This is the house we lived in when my little brother, Tyler, was born. This is the house we lived in when Dad worked the late shift at Franklin Electric and when he would come home, he and I would sit on the couch and eat while he watched TV. I was about 3 or 4. He and I were really close during this time. Mom was going to school and working during the day, I wasn't old enough for school yet, so it would be just the two of us all day and baby Tyler once he was born. (Jared and Laney had a similar relationship because I worked graveyard and slept during the day, while they two of them hung out - and baby Ashley mainly slept.)

Remember those apple trees? Its funny the memories you have. One year I was allowed to make my own lunch. I gathered apple blossoms from those trees, wild onions from the yard, and pickles from the fridge and made myself a salad! Dad actually let me eat that! I remember a time when I spotted a baby mouse behind the couch so I went to the kitchen and grabbed the cheese and threw pieces of cheese behind the couch to feed it. Mom and Dad were not happy when they discovered what I had done. I remember Dad with the help of my Grandpas, Uncles and other family members, built on the back room of that house as well as a covered patio to park under. While they were adding on I was running around barefoot and stepped on a nail. I remember when I was sat into the bathtub the water turned red. They had a wood stove in the new family room and one time mom threw the bathroom trash in there. Dad had thrown a shaving cream can in the trash and she didn't know it. It blew up and she was burned pretty badly. I remember being afraid of sleeping alone for a while and I would crawl into their room at night and sleep on the floor beside the bed on Mom's side. She would drape her hand down on the side of the bed and I would reach up and hold it until I fell asleep. I remember one summer mom kicking us outside to play (that was very common thing when I was growing up). She actually locked us out and I wouldn't' leave the porch. The next thing I knew there was a HUGE tarantula on the porch with me. I remember Dad trying to argue on our behalf to let us in. I don't remember the outcome. I only remember that huge spider! I remember a large Mimosa tree that was to the west of the patio. It had several branches that forked right there at the ground and I would often climb in there and just hang out. During that time Mom and Dad both had motorcycles and Mom's sister Michelle, lived a little ways down a nearby dirt road on a chicken farm. We would sometimes ride those motorcycles to her house to visit. Doesn't that seem strange? My mom driving a motorcycle? Hers was a little gray Honda. Dad's was red and seemed like more of a dirt bike. I can't remember what make it was. We also had a few stray dogs that would show up. I vividly remember one was a dark red colored golden retriever. Because of her color we called her 'Red'. She would follow me to the mailbox to catch the bus each morning and would be there waiting when I got home. I seem to vaguely remember a little puppy maybe named 'Socks' or 'Boots' that we had for a while too. When it was time to leave this house and move to our next home, we had to send Red to stay with my Grandma Reba. I don't remember exactly what happened to her, but I think she ran away.



House # 4
The next house we lived in was a rent house we had to stay in while our new home in Siloam Springs was being built. When I was in second grade we moved to a little house on W. Graham Street, in Prairie Grove. I remember being allowed to walk to school. I remember we were friends with the little family at the end of the street and I would sometimes 'baby-sit' the little boy named Justin, though at that age, I'm not sure I was baby-sitting as much as maybe just keeping him occupied. I don't have too many memories of the interior of this house. I remember it had carpet in the kitchen and it seems like the carpet was burnt or stained in a few places and left a life long impression on me that you would never want to have carpet in your kitchen. We still lived in this house by the time I started 3rd grade but not long after. I vaguely remember Dad driving me from Prairie Grove to Siloam the first few weeks of school.

House # 5

This house was a very exciting home. Mom and Dad had designed it. It was a mansion compared to all our other homes. It was in a little living addition called Country Acres. We lived on Hickory Lane. It was brand new and had an upstairs. Stairs are a big thing when you are young and have never had them before! The exterior was brown cedar and had brick half way up.  When you opened the front door you were facing the staircase that took you upstairs. Tyler's room was on the left, our bathroom was straight ahead, and my room was on the right. We had those gabled windows in our bedrooms and my closet also had a door that led to the attic. From the front door, when you entered and looked right you were in the living room. There was a fireplace to the right and entries on the left and right of the back wall. The left took you into the dining area, the right took you into the kitchen and the garage door was there too. The kitchen and dining area were an open floor plan. The dining area had a wall sized book shelf and to the left of the dining room was the master bed/bath. We had a deck and large backyard accessible from sliding glass doors in the dining area. We also had a garden. I loved that house. While we lived there we gained ownership of a beautiful collie that we named Lassie. She belonged to a neighbor that lived a few houses away. I'm not sure why but she would never stay home and made her residence at our place. Dad went and talked to the owner and she became our dog. Mom started her career as a first grade teacher in Gentry, when we lived there. We lived in that house for about three years.

House # 6

When I was in about the 6th grade, Mom and Dad sold their home and we again moved into a rental. This one was a trailer house that sat right where 412 is now. When they put in the new highway the rental was moved and the highway went in. It sat very close to 'humpback' bridge. We didn't live there for very long. I remember seeing "ghosts" when we lived there. There were a few instances when my cousin Christy and my best friend Cheryl were there and they witnessed this strange phenomenon  - I can't remember which story belongs to which person but once a silhouette ran through the yard and right though a barbed-wire fence. Another instance we were up late and Christy or Cheryl (who ever was there that night) their eyes glowed bright red. To this day I find it strange that there's a haunted house that takes place right there at Riverside each Halloween. When we lived there I also remember Tyler getting in very deep trouble when he and a friend walked down to the river without asking and none of us knew where they were.

House # 7

This house was not very far from the one in Country Acres. It was in a living addition called Meadow Wood on Crestwood Drive . I loved this house too. It had a lot of neat things like an intercom system, a built in vacuum cleaner, and a toaster that was built into the wall too. My bedroom was attached to the bathroom, so even though I had to share it with Tyler, and guests, it felt like it was my very own. My bedroom had mauve carpet and I had a canopy bed. This house was very long, no upstairs. When you entered the front door you were in the living room. We rarely used this room. I took piano lessons when we lived here so there was a piano sitting in this room and the NW wall had a mural on it. To the left was the hall way that would take you to the bedrooms. At the very end was the master bedroom and bathroom area. You would step down into the master bedroom. And it was huge. If you went straight at the front door you would enter the dining room and to the right was the kitchen and then you would step down into the den. Dad built a really nice deck onto the back of the house that wrapped around a rather large tree and it had built in benches. This house was dark blue on the exterior and gray brick. It had an attached patio to the right and a shed type room to the right of it. We lived in this house until I was in about the 9th grade.



House # 8

This was another rental that we stayed in while Mom and Dad renovated their next house. It was a little house on Rodric Drive, I think the house number was 207. I walked to school from this house too. This house didn't have much of a yard, front or back. I don't remember very much about the interior. We didn't live here too long.

House # 9
This is the last house I lived before I "grew up" and got married. I remember mom and dad doing a lot of painting, and fixing up before we moved into the house on Summit Drive. It had a fenced in back yard and a large lot to the North. When you entered the house it had a foyer. The hallway was on the left. The washing machine and dryer were down the hallway. I don't remember the laundry area of the other houses. Probably because this is the house we lived in when I learned how to do laundry. Across from the laundry closet was the bathroom and down the hall to the left was the master bedroom and bath. The hallway then made a right angle turn and my room was on the left and it made a dead end at Tyler's room. Tyler's room had a western theme. Mine room was two tone, hunter green on the bottom and a tan color on top and a  fleur de lis type pattern wall paper border between the two. Mom took my childhood toy box and painted it the hunter green color and added the border around it. I had a desk to do my makeup and a pretty good size closet. If you went straight from the foyer  you were in the living room and could look straight to the sliding glass door that went to the back yard. To the right  was the kitchen. It was quite small and led to the garage. I got my first care while living in this house. It was a white late 80's model mustang with red interior.

I married in 1998 and by the end of 1999 Mom and Dad had built the house they live in now on River Valley Road.

I don't know how or where they found the energy to do all they did when I was growing up. Besides moving that many times, my brother, Tyler, was heavily involved in baseball. Dad coached him in little league and later, on a travel team. Mom and Dad both worked full-time jobs and did most, if not all of the repairs and fixing up of all the houses we lived in, rentals included. The few times I have moved as an adult convinces me each time that I never want to do it again.

We have had quite a few hiccups with our new place but I do hope we can endure and spend the rest of our lives here.

Until next time,
Becky