A PERSONAL LINK TO HISTORY

I was born and raised in the former state of FRANKLIN!

In the 1790’s the people living on the western slopes of the Blue Ridge Mountains of North Carolina seceded from the state and formed the state of Franklin. The people living within certain boundaries in what is now northwestern North Carolina and northeastern Tennessee formed their own government and elected John Sevier as governor. The capitol of this new state was Jonesborough in what is now the state of Tennessee. When North Carolina ceded all properties west of the Blue Ridge Mountains the state of Tennessee was formed and the state of Franklin was dissolved. The present boundaries were then surveyed and the citizens of Franklin pledged their allegiance to these states. The majority, by far, to the state of Tennessee as the new boundaries dictated.

My Grandmother was a teenager during the Civil War. As far as I know none of my forefathers fought in this war. According to my Grandmother they were individualists and slavery was reprehensible to them. To some degree these people were landlocked and they were somewhat an island unto themselves, right smack dab square in the middle of the Confederacy. The lack of roads and the mountainous terrain made trade and travel extremely difficult. They simply let the War Between the States pass them by! While the war did not affect them directly she told me the people were able to keep up with the news through the very limited travel and mostly by word of mouth. Sometimes a traveler would have newspapers printed several weeks earlier.

Grandmother Shepherd, she insisted that we call her Grandmother, came to live with us in 1934. She was already old as the hills at that time, somewhere close to ninety. My Father fixed her a private room opening onto the front porch of our home. She was a beautiful old lady with thick white hair like spun cotton and her eyes were as blue as violets. She told me her hair was raven black when she was younger. Grandmother seldom came into the main part of the house and preferred to take her meals in her room. It was my chore to bring food to her on a tray and I had to stay with her until she had finished eating. My Father insisted upon this. It was also my job to empty and clean the thunder mug!

Grandmother talked to me continuously all the time I was with her. Although I knew she liked me, she never once made an effort to touch, hold, or show any kind of physical affection. The only times we made physical contact was when I combed her beautiful white hair. She loved having her hair combed and would have me use her special brush and comb for this purpose. Otherwise, I was never permitted to touch any of her personal effects and I definitely honored her wishes!

This was sometime before radio and television were introduced within these mountains. Lengthy conversations between young and old were commonplace and to this day I still cherish the talks with my Grandmother. They had a profound affect upon my life and gave me a personal link to history that is very precious and dear to me. I miss these types of conversation to this day!

Grandmother stayed with us for almost one full year. She took ill with something and went to stay with her daughter, my Aunt Rebecca. I missed her terribly but I must admit I was glad to get rid of that thunder mug!

I didn’t get to go to the funeral. Mother and Father went. When they returned my Father told me her casket was made from some of the finest wild cherry wood he had ever seen.

I went to her room hoping to find some personal effect, a memento I could hold and keep. There was nothing, absolutely nothing! So, I just closed my eyes and I could see her in that wild cherry casket with her gorgeous white hair with her deep blue violet eyes wide open. She was beautiful! I opened my eyes, closing that casket lid and she just disappeared into eternity!

To this day I have never been able to find a picture of my Grandmother.

Oh, distant days of long ago,
And mellowed moments spent.
The lady fair,
The snow white hair,
The memories she could share.
I wonder where they went!
But I’m content
Just being there!