Under the Blackgum Tree: 165 Years in the Piney Woods

by Winnie Graham

Overview

I originally started out to write down a few of my family’s tales for our current generation, but the Piney Woods kept butting in. That is, telling only about family would be about like serving black-eyed peas without cornbread. So, while this memoir is built around my family’s tales and history, the Piney Woods lore and way of life, dating back to the earliest settlers, get their share of attention.

Most of the tales in these pages are cheerful since we were, and are, a jolly bunch. The grownups passed lots of the stories along as we sat on the porch or in front of the fireplace. They wedged in other shorter tales as folks took a break from work (often in my family) in the shade of the black gum tree.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781622880225
Publisher:	Stephen F. Austin State University Press
Publication date:	10/24/2013
Pages:	200
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.44(d)

About the Author

Winnie Graham is a sixth-generation Texan with a long family lineage in the East Texas Piney Woods. She earned a degree in electrical engineering from Louisiana State University and studied anthropology at the University of California at Los Angeles. She lives near Lufkin.

Table of Contents

Prologue: The Pevey Woods: A Dab of History 9

1 The Black-eyed Pea/Pinto Bean Divide 15

2 A Terrapin's Pace 18

3 Some Do's and Don'ts 21

#1 Under the Blackgum: Hog Hunting 24

4 The Early Settlers: Grandpa's Lineage James Eason Caroline Welch Russell William D. Russell (Grandpa Bill) Mary Chestnut Russell 26

2#2 Under the Blackgum: How Uncle Bud Got His Name 36

5 The Early Settlers: Grandma's Lineage 37

The Renfros

The Browns

6 Granny Hutch and Her Two Husbands John E. Brown Aaron Hutchinson 42

#3 Under the Blackgum: A Bone Felon Tale 47

7 That Old Time Religion 48

8 The Church in the Wildwood 51

#4 Under the Blackgum: Church Tales 56

9 Grandma Wade and Some of Her Husbands 58

#5 Under the Blackgum: Grandma Wade's Verses and Sayings 65

10 Leah Azeta Sowell Russell: Her Growing-Up Years 67

11 William Eli Russell: His Growing-Up Years 70

12 Riding the Ring 73

13 Eli's and Leah's Young Family 77

#6 Under the Blackgum: In the Fust and Fo'mst Place 84

14 Vittles and Grub 85

15 Step-ins and Duds 93

16 Lillian Leaves the Nest 100

17 Fred Graham 112

18 The Ferris Wheel Ride 132

#7 Under the Blackgum: The Trunk in the Garage 129

19 The Pine Grove 133

20 Fiddling Around 138

21 Back at the House 147

22 Grandma Wade's Fourth Husband 156

#8 Under the Blackgum: Uncle Josh in the Corral 159

23 The Dipping Vat 161

24 Uncle Thedford 167

25 Grandma's Favorite Things 171

#9 Under the Blackgum: Corny Jokes 177

26 The Great Dispersal 179

27 Some More Peanuts 186

28 A Visit to Jonesville 190

#10 Under the Blackgum: Mama's Words of Wisdom 196

29 A Cabin in the Woods 198

Acknowledgments 201