My mom (Joyce Abraham) was a home ec teacher at JACHS at the time of government commodities, and she had students who always offered to sell her their cheese for $5.00 a block. We drive Chryslers, BMWs, Honda Van, Subaru sports car, Chevy pick-up, Harleys, Hondas, Yamaha V-stars-4-wheelers. Where you from?..Pike Countylol. Im sorry but I dont think so. Enjoyed reading your blog. Again I will say Harlan is a great place to be from but I would not want to live there today. Managed by: Carlton William . Never mind. I dont believe Ive ever been called a mooron before. Madison Funeral Services. Very isolated. I didnt know, but thats before my time. art halcomb. After hours we would head to the American Legion behind the Post Office. My mother taught Home Ec at Evarts for 28 years. Always. To her credit this pretty city girl took these inconveniences in her stride and made this mountain man a very good wife. Guy Enos Bobby T. Jessie W. Finis Marvin W. Burley . Harlan, KY Mt Pleasant Funeral Home Inc Add Photos 1 Memory Ruby Margaret Smith Ruby Margaret "Lucy" Widner Smith, 70, of Essie passed away Monday, February, 20, 2023, at her residence. So, I speak of how it was 30 years ago. Id love to learn more about the people, especially on the other side of the strike. Box 102, Oswego, New York 13126. Although we certainly werent poor, Government Cheese is excellent, and my Dad would get us a block whenever he could. I was born in Harlan County, Louellen specifically, but moved away when I was little due to my dad being in the Navy. I live in the city now, and raised my daughters here. Bad and small isnt a recipe for success. I first saw the light of day in Oneida, tn because that was the closest hospital & the road l.P. looPwas better 66, originally of Loudoun County, VA passed away January . We are our own world. Oh, you might go to Garys Lounge and Roller Rink sometimes. I remember your father well, especially his hair! Although I left Harlan County in 1968, and grew up in Florida, I am still proud to say, I am from Harlan County! March 23, 1977. Other than the commentary there are some other good features, such as a 20 minute long documentary about the documentary, called The Making of Harlan County, USA. https://thetrivialtroll.com/2012/03/10/adventures-in-hitchhiking/. Nothing will get a hard-working coal miner or school teacher fired up like a discussion about those drawing a check. Thats how it was when I was a kid, and it hasnt changed. I loved growing up there and go back frequently. Girl fights were always the best. They find it hard to believe we had no fast food restaurants. Age 82. We once had a train full of nerve gas pass through Loyall. I must admit, however, that we have had few issues adjusting to Tennessee except for the color orange. We were always suspicious of outsiders, especially those offering help. We could tell if you were from Ohio or Michigan or some other exotic place. Graduated from jach in 78. jack brock ha d 21 dogs and 21 kids, he got kill by a drunk man he was taking home that was about like the earth quake in los ang years ago it was bad , for those who know my grandpa honey bill saylor and my dad and my friend big al ,arnold lee saylor he was a damn good man i miss alot cause he is in all my boys alot i see him every day yours trunly ronnie gene saylor of molus ky aka molus hollow. Now, dont confuse Harlan County with the town of Harlan, our county seat. In Barbara Kopple 's 40-year career as one of America's . as differences, real ones, but the rest is a little over stated, like JUSTIFIED, eh? I never got a straight story from my parents and possibly they didnt know why or what happened. =). The general store, a thriving Coal community. Glad that youre happy in whatever metro area you moved to. A convenient store replaced the gas station and stores. A spokesman for the Harlan Appalachian Regional Hospital said Mr. Bruner, who was shot with a . Basil Collins Harlan County Obituary | Death | Basil Collins Dead | Died | Funeral Plans - We heard about the great loss, that Basil Collins is no more and has reportedly passed away. I still tell people I am from Harlan because it brings instant recognition. Garys was a fun place. We like being the badasses of Eastern Kentucky. Oh, and that knife fight deal down there: I saw a big one at Hall once, in the yard in front of the school crazy watching the teachers try to break that one up. Iowa Gravestones is a genealogy project with over one million gravestone photos from across 99 Iowa Counties. If you dont, I cant fault you for that, either. Hell, it was the best cheese everthe only thing the Federal Government ever perfected! I went to Business College, married my daddys cousin (you had to know that was coming didnt you). Im on the state Corrections Commission, so Ive seen her name. No worries. Ben Joe Harris disarmed the guy so that it would be a fair fight. I lived across Pine Mtn. born & raised Pathfork Ky~, Thanks. Oh the cheese made the best grilled cheese, My wife from Ohio and my 2 children even loved it. I have enjoyed these old memories!!! Lots of memories from Harlan. Bell county baby.We got the mountains here too. They just hang around and complain. Well written and interesting. I grew up in Sunshine too. February 23, 2023. If not, you should. We know at least one person who has been shot with a gun by someone else or by themselves accidentally. Take care. My mom was from Lynch and my dad from Without. Loved this! . Mr. Blanton explained the reasoning behind coal camps. Of course, it doesnt. We also have accents, heavy mountain accentsthe kind that can be indecipherable even to natives of the area. The hills and hollers made me who I am today and the people I love still call Eastern Kentucky home. Im very impressed by your writing. Moo-ron. Photoplay, 'I Saved My Brother's Life,' by Helen Martin, p. 94, February 1967. God do I ever remember the Government Cheese and all the other free food provided by the gov. Btw, the Mount Victory part of this county feels very Eastern KY. Just found the blog and enjoyed it. We liked him! It still is in some ways, although it has been many years since the United Mine Workers Association held great sway. I have to admit that I enjoy the irony of a sentence like Your ignorant., Its like the guy who commented that Im a fuckin mooron.. A mouthy little man like me finds out the hard way that bad is good, but big is better. He used to go visit with Norman during the strike. John, this is really good stuff! My grandfolks, originally from Johnson Ct. lived up at the end of a holler. My best friend (not from Harlan) went to Saudi Arabia as a traveling nurse. He was retired from the Harlan Co. Board of Education with 35 years of service in the maintenance department. harlan community school district job openings; scottish reeling dresses; chanel miller boyfriend lucas; marilynn bradley horton; foreign education consultants in sri lanka. There are people who will pretend to be from Harlan or any place else in Eastern Kentucky. I am definitely proud of my heritage, both generally mountain/Appalachian and Harlan County in particular. They pity Harlan. The economy continues to contract and isnt likely to get much better. Happy to be an Outlander! I not THAT old! You mustve been a good student, John. I am a faithful Kentucky Basketball fan and follow them year in and year out, through good and bad GO BIG BLUE.. The name of the area now came to be because the truckers that hauled from the mill just refrerred to it as Holmes Mill! We mispronounce light, fight, white and night. U may or may not remember it and I also did alot of the fencing around the many many acres he and ur moms own. Government checks. Finished my last year in high school from there. Interview Summary. Ive lived a few places in east ky, but never been to Harlan. You can see it in Google Street Views here: https://goo.gl/maps/QoyKa, Hey my cousin owned the fuzzy duck my papa had a poker house there and boot legged beer iwas raised in the first house coming down black mountain love it go back all the time, Right before you get to lynch golf course coming down black mtn there was a house to the right my great great grand pa had a saw mill there and built the house where my great grand pa lived then my mama got it love it there if I ever hit the lottery ill be back to live and put alot of people to work I love the mtns go there every christmas and summers thanks for the memories cool blog sorry for the grammer lol periods commas all the same to me it. I would sometimes go out and spend a month or two with my grandparents and spend some nights with other family members in Harlan and Bell counties. Check out some of my other posts. His name was Arthur Johnson, he was from Cumberland, but lived at ha! Oh, and we moaned and complained about not having anything to do. I was born in my grandmothers house, in those days hospitals were few and far between. I go back once or twice a year to visit relatives. My grandad lived and mined Stone Ky, in Pike County. My Dad was born in Evarts andexpect for military service and collegenever lived anywhere else. If you need to go someplace that can be accessed through Harlan County, I guarantee that theres an easier, quicker way to get there. My brother and I thought we had died and gone to Heaven. Andas for the grid: Morehead is east of Middlesboro. Harlan County, Kentucky: UMWA on a 13-month strike at Brookside mines and on the pick line at Highsplint mine. He lived there with his wife my Aunt Hazel and their children Laura Jean, Stanley and Mickey. She was retired from the Harlan County Board of Education, where she worked at the Wallins School. I believe they graduated for there on 83. They have cousins or in-laws or remote ancestors who hailed from the mountains. She was one of my favorite. Death, Burial, Cemetery & Obituaries Search; Sponsored by Ancestry. What happened to Basil Collins in the end? Growing up, I didnt feel particularly tough. I believe you will see that I have great affection for Harlan, much more than many of the people who still live there. I feel like they are missing something that we experienced, but so is life. My grandfather worked in the Sunshine mines in the 20s and 30s. I have a 95 year old aunt who still lives there. Ring any bells? Honestly, it took me years to adapt. Maybe its the camo/orange. By the way, Cumberland had the Novo Theater and the drive-in theater as well. Im from Loyall. One day I kidding with a guy about something he was buying and at some point he says that hes from Mingo, West Virginia. There are a few folks who left and dont care to ever hear of Harlan again, but thats true of all small towns. The only tv stations the antenna could pick up were out of knoxville If you read it carefully, youll note that I said I havent lived there in 30+ years. Im one of those that left for work but I have a brother who still lives there and I occasionally visit. Jane E. Bailey Graves, 72 Mynatt Funeral Home, Halls Chapel. I live in Lexington now as well have since 1990. North America. Kevin, Sarah (parents) and Grace (daughter age 12) Hendrix of Corbin Kentucky were shot and killed by Jason Hendrix, their son and Grace's brother. My mother grew up in Cumberland and knew tons of Creeches from up that way. I am simultaneously entertained and offended. Great description. We got segregation in those years, and I never knew the difference, we all got along. You werent one of us. JACHS did not open until the 66 67 school year. A meeting of the Brookside women's support group. Like inner cities, there are generations locked into a poverty cycle. You havent had a grilled cheese sandwich until youve had one made with govment cheese, govment butter and fresh Bunny Bread. I thought Harlan was great as a kid but my wife told me if I ever wanted a divorce all I had to do was move here to Harlan. Hes married married to one of my first cousins for many years. That hurts everyone. Were still Harlan Countians. Who are we? So my family got to enjoy it even tho they never lived in Harlan. Dad used have him mow for us sometimes. Harlan is mean. I was born in Harlan and I remember living there, but I didnt have the experience that my parents had (who were both born in Harlan County) since I didnt grow up there. associate director When we heard a car coming we knew we were having company.we usually hid to see who it was. 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