knoxcotn

knoxcotn-digest Thursday, August 23 2001 Volume 01 : Number 189

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Date: Sun, 19 Aug 2001 02:38:30 -0400

From: "Billie R. McNamara" <knox@tngenweb.org>

Subject: [KnoxCoTN] 19 Aug 2001 Sunday Afternoon Rocking

Sunday Afternoon Rocking

Note: Because I will be offline this weekend, Sunday Afternoon Rocking is

being delivered early.

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When Walls Talk (from the Sunday Afternoon Rocking series)

My mama says she can tell a lot about a person simply by looking around

their home at the books on the shelves. I suppose that is so, for titles

would devulge a lot about interest, and the shape of the bindings about

whether those were placed for purposes of décor or genuine regard for the

contents. But for myself, I tend to think it is the walls of a person that

truly do the talking.

My Pa's walls told me as much or more about who he was than most any other

clue there was, and the walls of the big sunny farm kitchen did the most of

the talking. I suppose it could be said I got my first civics lesson not

by gazing with rapt attention at an inspirational social studies teacher,

but simply by studying my Pa's walls.

You see, Pa had the old fashioned idea that a president was truly a "man of

the people", and most particularly if he were a Democrat. To him, a U.S.

President was an intrinsic and intimate part of his "own family", and fully

regarded as such. I have no doubt that if my Pa had ever had the

opportunity to physically meet in person such a man, he would remain

nonplused, walk assuredly up to him, stick out his hand for a shake, and

then expect to engage in friendly down home conversation about such

important topics as the weather and the shape of the crops. And what is

more, he would have expected the famous patronage to be as interested as he

was himself. So it was, Pa took the lives of his presidents to heart, and

having no snapshots of the man who "was family", simply clipped any and all

pictures from the newspaper, plastering them about his kitchen

walls. Since John F. Kennedy was the president at the time I first became

aware of Pa's peculiar and most old fashioned notions (at least, and

perhaps sadly, to today's way of thinking), as a young girl I watched the

first family quite closely. It was from Pa's walls that I learned of the

sad loss of the baby Patrick, from Pa's walls I realized the first lady was

quite fond of little pillbox hats, from Pa's walls I saw the handsome

smiling man shaking hands with any number of well known world

personages. And it was from Pa's walls I first realized the patriotic

nature and deep trust for a country and its leaders Pa had.

Pa's patriotic presidential picture gallery was a bit ironic, or perhaps

not. For a larger picture held reign over the sunny kitchen. In an oval

frame, the soldier who intently watched over our family gatherings was Pa's

brother, and until I was quite a big girl, that is the only explanation I

ever had. It was later I would learn this brother had been killed in

France during the Great War, and his body never returned after the ending

of it. It was many years after still, that in sorting through letters I

was able to piece the story together. It was a story told me again of

intense patriotism, both on the part of the young man who had foretold his

own death when he wrote, "Old Glory. The red, white and blue. I will

stand by her and die by her", and my own Pa, who found the death and his

own inability to retrieve his brother's body so painful, he never to my

knowledge spoke again of it. But my Pa was proud of his brother, swallowed

what could have become bitterness, and the old fashioned picture was

proudly displayed on the most prominent wall of the most important room.

Patriotism was well and good, but practicality was a necessity for

survival. Thus the old fashioned calendars given away annually by the

funeral home (or was it the general store?) served a most important daily

function. With large blocks suitable for daily recording a diary of

purchases made or the state of the weather, this was reason enough for

their placement. Being used as such, they truly were diaries, for one hung

on top of the other year after year, that one could look back and see what

was paid for a haircut ten years before, when there was a drought, when kin

folks paid a visit. But that was only one reason for the calendars.

The other reason would only be understood by a farmer, and a farmer who

understood that the good Lord had placed the stars in their position for a

purpose and a reason. Pa lived by the signs. And these calendars,

produced for rural folk such as he, prominently displayed the phases of the

moon and the signs. The signs governed planting and they governed

harvesting. They governed the time best to have a tooth pulled or a

haircut, and they governed when new shingles could best be put on so as not

to curl up. Pa saw nothing "occult" about living by the signs. He figured

his Maker had given folks signs in the sky for a reason, and man would be

wise to follow them. Time tested and true, it was how he had lived his all

eighty some odd years, and how his people before him had lived too. It had

worked, thank you.

And of course, still another aspect of his beliefs were apparent on the

walls, for in addition to the practicality of coaxing a living from the

soil and living with trust in a country, Pa was religious. To keep himself

daily aware, he was fond of posting Bible verses that had struck him

particularly. And then there were the beautiful pictures to catch one's

eye too. Of course the lovely pictures of Jesus at the last supper, or

knocking on a door were not framed, but printed on cardboard fans (also

distributed by the funeral home), that folks in a world without air

conditioning could listen in comfort to sermons rendered. And those fans

hung about the kitchen, for beauty yes, and also as practical tools for the

hot summer days in a kitchen with an iron stove.

I suppose it could be said that all of the most important aspects of my

Pa's personality were apparent on his kitchen walls. They spoke of

unrelenting patriotism, love of family, faithfulness in daily recording

of mundane events. They spoke of close adherence to the signs that

governed a way of life, and they spoke of a love of God and God's

word. Walls talk.

Now I wonder what my own walls have to say? Looking about, I suspect they

say much the same thing my Pa's did, simply a different way of saying the

same thing. Walls echo.

Just a thought,

jan

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(Note: Afternoon Rocking messages are meant to be passed on, meant to be

shared...simply share though e-mail as written without alterations...and in

entirety. If planned for a publication, permission must be granted by the

author. Please forward sufficient information concerning the nature and

intent of the publication.

Thanks, jan)

Sunday Afternoon Rocking columns are distributed weekly on the list Sunday

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Comments about the content of these messages can be sent to

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Date: Wed, 22 Aug 2001 19:16:51 EDT

From: CKey558122@aol.com

Subject: [KnoxCoTN] John Clement/Clemmons Brown

- --part1_12f.372a7ad.28b59763_boundary

Content-Type: text/plain; charset="ISO-8859-1"

Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

Does anyone have any information at all on a John Clement or Clemmons Brown=20

b. ca 1832 in Knox County TN? All I know is he waived his right to administe=

r=20

his father, John Brown's estate, in 1860 in Knox Co. He had brothers Robert=20

L., Wm. W., Pleasant A., Joseph M., George Oliver, James F. and sisters Mary=

=20

Ann, Sarah C., and Margaret E. Several of his brothers all joined the Union=20

Army in 3rd TN Infantry Co. B. But cannot find him after 1860. Could possibl=

y=20

have gone to either Illinois or Texas as some of the others did.

=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0Thank you,

=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0Carol

- --part1_12f.372a7ad.28b59763_boundary

Content-Type: text/html; charset="ISO-8859-1"

Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

<HTML>Does anyone have any info=

rmation at all on a John Clement or Clemmons Brown=20

b. ca 1832 in Knox County TN? All I know is he waived his right to admin=

ister=20

his father, John Brown's estate, in 1860 in Knox Co. He had brothers Rob=

ert=20

L., Wm. W., Pleasant A., Joseph M., George Oliver, James F. and sisters=20=

Mary=20

Ann, Sarah C., and Margaret E. Several of his brothers all joined the Un=

ion=20

Army in 3rd TN Infantry Co. B. But cannot find him after 1860. Could pos=

sibly=20

have gone to either Illinois or Texas as some of the others did.

=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0Thank you,

=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0=A0Carol</HTML>

- --part1_12f.372a7ad.28b59763_boundary--

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Date: Thu, 23 Aug 2001 08:29:11 -0700

From: TIPPY <tippytnn@tctc.com>

Subject: [KnoxCoTN] Knox county marriage/divorce records

hi where can i get marriage/divorce records? does someone look them up

charging a fee? are they at mcclung library? or?.i need years

1880-1900.1 person.we know close to year.and my aunts name,but not the

hubby.thank you,Ray

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End of knoxcotn-digest V1 #189

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