Free-Range Summers

I wrote the followoing article for a local family magazine several years ago. That magazine was short-lived, so I'm recycling the article: Free-Range Summers in the 1950s

In the 1950s when I was young, the term “free-range kids” wasn’t used, but that’s indeed what we were in my Williamson Road neighborhood. We played outside, we explored our neighborhood, and we entertained ourselves—especially in summer.

 

“No more pencils, no more books! No more teacher’s dirty looks!” my friends and I chanted in early June as we walked home from Huff Lane School on the last day. We’d be free of educational obligations for three whole months.

 

We didn’t go cold turkey (a term that hadn’t been thought of in those days). For a week in June, we usually attended Bible School—which was a little like school but without homework or tests. Although I wasn’t a member of Grace Methodist Church, my friend Martha was, so I went with her. I don't remember any parental involvement—we kids walked a few blocks to the corner of Floraland and Williamson where the church was, showed up, and were admitted to a class in an old house that used to be behind the church. After a morning of singing “Row, Row, Row Your Boat,” “Jesus Loves Me,” and other songs that everyone knew, we worked on craft projects, and had a snack—usually cookies and Kool-Aid. We were back home in time for lunch.

 

Sometimes we’d ride our bikes to Huff Lane School to play unsupervised on the playground. Usually we’d take a piece of wax paper to slick up the slide so we’d go down really fast. We’d swing as high as we dared, and then we’d climb on the monkey bars—which some called a jungle gym—without anyone to tell us how high we could climb or how long we could hang by our knees. During the school year, girls weren’t allowed to climb high because we wore dresses and boys might see our underpants. But wearing our shorts in summer allowed us to climb as high as we wanted. From the top, we could get a good view of the Huff Farm next door. I don’t remember anyone ever falling onto the asphalt below.

 

Our bikes gave us the freedom to explore, too. When we were six or seven, we usually ventured no more than two or three blocks from home. Most folks in that area knew who we were or where we belonged, so we could always stop for help if needed. Since few women went to work, housewives would be home to no doubt keep a watchful eye on us as we passed by. I don’t remember ever needing help, though. 

At eight or nine, we’d go farther. If we had a dime, we could ride the shady back streets to Hardies—a combination gas station/convenience store—on Williamson Road for a Coke or an ice cream bar. If we had any empty soft-drink bottles, we could turn them in for a refund. I think it was 2¢ a bottle. 

 

By the time we were ten, we’d ride to Evans Drug Store near the intersection of Hershberger Road and Williamson. Of course, Hershberger didn’t have nearly the traffic it does today, so it was easy to cross, and what would become Crossroads Mall was then a cow pasture. Evans Drug Store was my main source for comic books when I was ten, and a few years later my source for movie magazines. When I was twelve, I bought my first Revlon lipstick there.

 

We didn’t always ride bikes. On Saturdays we’d walk a mile along Williamson Road to the Lee Theater for the Kiddie Show which cost a quarter. The main movie was usually a western, but there was also a serial (usually Tarzan), and a couple of cartoons. I don’t remember any parents attending with their kids.

 

If we didn’t go to the Kiddie Show, we’d spend an entire Saturday morning watching TV because the shows were geared to kids. There were cartoons, but I’ve forgotten which ones. I remember Sky Kingwas a western with an airplane, and Furywas kind of a modern western about a boy and his horse. I loved horses, so I rarely missed a western. Rinky Dink and Youwas an interactive show, in which viewers could attach a plastic cover to the TV screen and use special crayons to draw objects to help Rinky Dink achieve his goal. A voice-over would tell us what crayon to use and what to draw: “Use the black crayon to draw a bridge so Rinky can cross the river.” Mr. Wizard introduced us to science experiments and told us what to eat for breakfast: “Fruit, cereal, milk, bread, and butter.” Prior to Mr. Wizard, we’d always eaten eggs and bacon or sausage for breakfast, but now we demanded the cereal that sponsored the show.  

 

We played outside games during the summer—tag, hide and seek, croquet, badminton. Hide and seek was especially fun in the dark. Since everyone had a cap gun, we might play cowboys and Indians, which wasn’t politically incorrect in those days. None of us had ever met a real Native American, but we were familiar with cowboys from all the Westerns on TV. Just about everybody watched Gunsmoke, Hopalong Cassidy, Roy Rogers,Gene Autry, Lone Ranger, Have Gun Will Travel, and others. I don’t remember any organized sports. If we needed a team to play a game, we formed teams with whoever was playing outside at the time. We kept cool by soaking in a wading pool in the backyard. When it was too hot to play in the sun, we might lounge on an old quilt and read comics book in the shade or stay inside and read books.

 

Parents almost never supervised our outdoor recreation. Once in a while, a parent might take a carload of kids to Lakeside or Tinkerbell swimming pool, but in the neighborhood we were pretty much on our own. I don’t remember any fights breaking out, and arguments were usually settled quickly—a little name-calling and maybe a few thrown rocks was the extent of it.

 

Once a week or so, we might accompany our mothers on their shopping trips. This involved a bus ride to downtown, so we’d have to dress up—no shorts and sneakers! My mama would always buy some canned goods from the A&P at the edge of the market, fresh meat from one of the butchers in the market building, and some fresh vegetables from the outside vendors. When she had two shopping bags full, it was time to catch the bus for home. Once in a while, we might first take in a western movie at the Rialto Theater near the market or shop in the dime stores a block or two up Campbell Avenue.

 

On some Sundays, Mama and I would ride the bus to Grandma’s house in Rugby, where my cousins and I played outside while the grown-ups stayed inside and talked. Grandma’s big front yard was perfect for games that involved running or required us to spread out. We played Red Light-Green Light, Mother May I, Old Gramma Hippy-Toe, and London Bridge Is Falling Down. We sometimes explored the Watts farm next door, taking care to keep our distance from the resident bull. Sometimes we’d go down the hill past Grandma’s big garden to Lick Run Creek where we might wade or look for minnows. Sometimes we’d just sit on the bridge and watch the water as it flowed toward 10th Street. Once when I was five, I leaned a little too far over and fell in. My nine-year-old cousin reached down and pulled me out. By the time we climbed the hill back to Grandma’s house, I was halfway dry.

 

Looking back, I’m glad we didn’t have computers, tablets, and video games that would’ve kept us inside and isolated. I’m glad that instead of virtual reality, we had real reality—playing games with real people, running across real fields, riding bikes to real places, and even falling into real creeks. The 1950s was a great time to be a free-range kid.

~

Gifts in Appalachian Lit

 I've been a fan of Appalachian literature ever since I read Jesse Stuart's short story, "Split Cherry Tree," in my 7th grade lit book. The first Appalachian novel I read was when I was thirteen— Harriet Arnow's Hunter's Horn. As I got older, I read more Appalachian books—novels by Jesse Stuart and Janet Holt Giles, and eventually others. When I was in my fifties, I started writing Appalachian short stories—I eventually won the Lonesome Pine Short Story Contest five times—my favorite is this one— and the Sherwood Anderson Short Story Contest three times. My Sherwood Anderson winners are in this ebook, Rest in Peace.

I especially like Appalachian stories where a character has a "gift"—like Sharyn McCrumb's character Nora Bonesteel, who's appeared in several of McCrumb's novels. My favorite is The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter. The first two lines of this novel immediately hooked me: "Nora Bonesteel was the first one to know about the Underhill family. Death was no stranger to Dark Hollow, Tennessee, but Nora Bonesteel could see it coming."

In 1916, when I wrote my own Appalachian novel, Them That Go,  I featured a main character with a gift—Annie Caldwell, who can communicate with animals. 

I have Annie begin her story by remembering which stereotypes her classmates were. She concludes her list by identifying herself: "Who was I back then? The quiet mousy one that nobody noticed. I was 'The Other,' a term I learned years later when I was no longer an Other. But in 1972, I didn't have a word for who I was. All that I knew was that I was Annie Caldwell, I lived at the end of a holler, and I wasn't like other kids. I had what Aint Lulie—my great aunt on Daddy's side—called 'the gift.' "

Consequently, I'm always delighted when I find other Appalachian novels that feature a character with a gift. Rebecca D. Elswick's new novel, The Dream is the Truth, has several characters with "gifts."

This ovely and lyrical novel has a strong sense of place—Coal Valley West Virginia. Among its Appalachian motifs are superstitions, mountain wisdom, uses for plants, Irish heritage, strong women, and the importance of family, 

The book bridges two stories and two time periods: Zelda's story which begins in 1912 and Maggie and Hannah's story which begins in 1990

And the first line hooked me: "Two days shy of Zelda Ryan’s tenth birthday, she went into the forest to gather Shepherd’s Purse and came back with a dead baby."

The rest of the opening paragraph kept me hooked: "Zelda’s mother was a midwife, and she needed Shepherd’s Purse to make a poultice to stop bleeding. It was May fifth and Shepherd’s Purse was in bloom on Rock House Mountain, and thanks to her grandmother, Zelda knew every nook and cranny of the mountain. Zelda was named for that grandmother, a healer who now in her old age was called Granny Zee."

Chapter 3, which switches to 1990,  begins: "Addie buried the secret ring deep in the heart-shaped pocket of her dress. With her other hand, she grabbed her mother’s wrist and tugged her down the hall. Her Tinker Bell backpack swished back and forth on her thin shoulders as she step-skipped through the crowd of parents and children gathered in the hallways of Coal Valley Elementary School."

This chapter introduces Margaret—Maggie—Whitefield and her daughter Addie, and Hannah Lively and her daughter Reilly. Maggie recently moved from the Washington DC area because of her husband's job, but Hannah's family has lived in the Coal Valley area for generations. The two women  meet on the first day of school where their daughters are beginning kindergarten. Addie finds a ring on the ground and returns it to its owner, Reilly. 

Maggie "had not seen Addie pick up the ring, but she had looked around the parking lot, and she was certain the mother and daughter, who claimed ownership, had not been there.  She said, 'Addie, when you found that ring was the girl there?' Addie shook her head in a slow side to side motion. 'Then, how did you see her drop it?' Addie giggled. 'Oh Mommy, I saw her with my other eyes.' ” 

The rest of the novel switches back and forth between the two time periods, and connects them beautifully. I highly recommend this novel—it is indeed a gift!

~

Same Place, Different Times

 In the late 1920s, my maternal grandfather, Howard Ruble, bought some land on Watts Avenue in Roanoke's Rugby section and built a house. By 1928, his family was living there 

The front porch—Grandaddy in his rocking chair and Grandma in the porch swing. The shrubbery looks freshly planted. Behind the house, you can see the corner of Grandma's chicken house.

The swing is to the right in this photo of their daughter Alene—who was 15—standing in front of the porch steps.

From the left corner of the porch, you can see a mostly rural neighborhood behind Alene and her brother Lawrence.

Another picture of Alene—now 17—on the porch shows the fields in the background.

The view from the kitchen window showed Grandma's garden and Mr. and Mrs. Bishop's house. Above the Bishops' property was part of the Watts Farm, and beyond that was Round Top—later called Round Hill. Now I-581 runs through where the trees were, Valley View Mall is where the Watts farm was, and Round Top is covered in houses. 

Soon Grandaddy and his sons—Lawrence and Raymond— built a garage.

Near the garage was a sycamore tree. Alene stands on the running board of one of Grandaddy's trucks while a chicken is headed to the road.

By 1946, when this picture was taken of Alene's daughter (the author of this post), flowers and bushes had grown up around the garage. The sycamore tree would be to the left of this view.

A winter view in the early 1930s, looking left from the front yard shows houses in the background along 10th street. The big house on the hill belonged to a Hunt family.

About 1936 and from a slightly different angle (the Hunt house is on the hill in the upper left), Alene holds Lawrence's son Jimmie on a sled. More houses have appeared and some farm buildings have vanished. 

In the early 1930s, Alene and her cousin Pearl Hunt pet Grandaddy's dog in front of the rural view from the front yard.

 

 A few years later, the view from a different angle shows the neighborhood developing as more houses appear.

About 1931 or 1932, Raymond and his cousins Billy and Danise Gross sit in the same spot where Pearl and Alene sat. 

In the late 30s or early 40s,  Howard's dog "Nick"stands in front of a tree growing near the same spot. 

In 1942 or maybe 1943, the neighborhood behind  30-year-old Alene and her niece has developed and trees have grown. 

In 1947 or 1948, Alene's daughter stands in front of the same view as the previous five pictures.

I still have that doll carriage. Unlike my grandparents' neighborhood, it hasn't changed much.

~

Red Mill Bookstore Review

The Red Mill Bookstore is the latest in Lin Stepp's Smoky Mountain series. I've enjoyed  other books in this series—Happy Valley, Downsizing, Eight at the Lake, Seeking Ayita, and Shop on the Corner—and I also enjoyed this one. 

Some of the resident cats were interested in the book:

Grover: Look Otis! I heard there's a black and white cat in this book.
Otis: Grover, I don't think it's about you, though.

Grover is right—there is a black and white cat. Plus an orange cat and a calico.

Chloe: Did you hear that, Rufus? There are cats that look like us!
Rufus: I'll take a look after I finish my nap.

 

Like some of Stepp's other Smoky Mountain novels, The Red Mill Bookstore features a main character who is faced with a problem and who either finds her way to a new home or else finds her way back to her home or hometown. 

Ella Quinn is left adrift when her boss and good friend dies, and the Boston bookstore where Ella works must close. Ella had hoped to eventually own the bookstore, but now her dream can't come true. To make matters, Ella's father calls from England with news that her grandmother in Townsend Tennessee broke her arm and needs someone to help her. He's already arranged for Ella's plane ticket and will cover her expenses—but she has to leave Monday and it's already Friday. Ella goes to her condo and starts packing. While her two best friends visit, her boyfriend shows up and is surprised that Ella isn't dressed for the symphony. She tries to explain that she forgot and that she has to leave soon to help her grandmother and she'll be gone about six weeks, but her boyfriend is angry that she's leaving—after he spent $100 each for the tickets that will now go to waste. Ella's friend Cora, still dressed up for work, offers to go with him so the tickets will be used.

When Ella arrives in Tennessee, a childhood friend—Jesse Helton, whom she hasn't seen in fourteen years—is waiting at the airport to drive her to Townsend. While Jesse works in his family's business, Helton Repairs, he also sometimes works for Ella's father, Hershel Quinn, who owns the Red Mill. So, Jesse and Ella will be seeing a lot of each other while she's in town. 

Ella soon reconnects with family and neighbors and is a great help to her grandmother. Ella soon loves the town, the mill and the activities surrounding it, her family, neighbors, and—eventually—a certain young man. But her dream was to own a bookstore, and—eventually—this dream comes true. To find out how, you need to read the book.

One of the things I liked about The Red Mill Bookstore is the map that Stepp includes:

In The Red Mill Bookstore, setting is important. Stepp includes many of the local attractions—for instance, hiking trails and festivals. Townsend is a real town in Tennessee and some of its festivals, such as the Hot Air Balloon Festival mentioned in the book really do happen. 

The Red Mill Bookstore is rich in family and community values, a sense of commitment, and the importance of faith. While the story has several themes, probably the two most important  are that you can go home again and that dreams can come true. 

Rufus: We are a family, too!

Orville: Of course Rufus, We're brothers!

Chloe: Well, I'm not kin to you two, but we do share a bed.

The cats agree with me that The Red Mill Bookstore is a good read. 

Skippy: Nothing like reading a good book before you take a nap!

Rufus: There's nothing like curling up with a good book!

The book debuts on April 1, but you can pre-order from Amazon.

~

SOTK 2025

 The 2025 State of the Kitties Report 

by Tanner (Resident Housecat-in-Chief))

Well, it's been nearly a year since you last heard from me. Things haven't changed a lot. We still have the same kitties in residence in the house. There's me (of course),; Chloe and Jim-Bob (who will be 16 in August); Arlo (who I raised as my kitty a good while back); Otis and Charlotte (who will turn 7 this spring); the four kitties Daddy rescued—Rufus, Claudine, Orville, and Grover (who will turn 6 this summer). Jim-Bob and I go out every day if the weather is good because there's a lot of outside cat-work that needs to be done. If the weather is bad, we take the day off.

Most of the inside cats sleep in Mommy's bed during the day.

Sometimes I join them. That's me against the pillow. Arlo is next to me, and Otis is in front of me.

Sometimes we sleep in a line. Here I am, then Rufus, then Jim-Bob, the Orville, and the Grover who has his high-beams on.

The only full-time outside cats are Spotz (who will be 16 in June or July) and Cedrick (who I still don't much like and who is about 7). Cedrick went missing for two months in 2023 and never did reveal where he was, but he must have learned a lesson because he sticks around here real good now. Or maybe he can't leave because of his promotion. More about that later. A part-time outside cat is Max who is too wild for Mommy to touch and who likes to hang around outside, but sometimes he sneaks into the garage at feeding time,

It's hard to classify Skippy, who used to be a tom-cat who lived down the road and is the father of Otis and Charlotte. About 10 years ago, Skippy used to visit here most days and his owner would come grab him and take him home but he would soon be back. Then his owner moved away, and Skippy started considering here as his home base. Every so often, he'd go looking for love and be gone about two weeks. About seven years ago, after he'd been gone for nearly a month, Mommy thought he was gone for good. But he finally showed up missing his manhood and the tip of his left ear. Anyhow, he didn't leave after that, and he became the chief patrol cat outside. If anybody came onto our property, Skippy always had to check them out. Skippy would also attack dogs and raccoons. A couple of times he even jumped on me. Anyhow, I guess Skip (I can call him Skip since we're friends now) got tired of so much responsibility and decided to become a house-cat. He'd been training Cedrick to be a patrol cat, so Cedrick took over the job. Now Skip spends a good part of his time inside and Cedrick patrols. Cedrick sleeps in the garage at night. Skip sometimes sleeps in a basket of clean laundry, but usually he sleeps in the bed. Once in a while he will sleep in the garage.

Skippy is sleeping above my head.

A closer look at Skippy.

We had some snow this winter, so I didn't go out much while the snow was on the ground. It was too cold and I don't like how snow feels on my feet. Here's how it looked out the front door. 

Here's how it looked out back:

Here's how the driveway looked:

Here's how some of us looked watching it.

We also had ice and wind which messed up the big pine trees. Daddy wasn't happy about how much he had to clean up.

I wasn't happy because all the limbs blocked a lot of my favorite work sites. It will take a long time to clean up all the mess, but Daddy hauls a load or two down to the farm every day or so if the weather is good. 

That's about all the news I have to report this year. I am looking forward to warm weather.

~

Ice and Wind

 Ice and wind is not a good combination. Recently our trees were coated with ice.

Then the wind blew hard. A pine tree beside the road fell over and blocked the road.

A few days later, some of the debris was cleared.

Most of the pines that serve as our windbreak took a big hit.

An ill wind blows nobody good. And sometimes it blows over a lot of trees.

~