I want to tell you about Sister Fannie and
Uncle Fred and their family. They lived in what was then called
Southside, on a beautiful hill overlooking the big spring headwaters of Morgan's Branch. It was not very far south
of the Miss Cannie Smith woods, which, in turn, joined the school
campus on the south.
The Woodside children were Jack, Eugene, Samuella, Hilda, Josephine and L. N.
, Tennesseeans, and Bob, who Sister
Fannie called her Texas cowboy.
I remember Pop and me going out there to see Hilda the morning after she was born. We went through Miss Cannie's woods, which was a pretty scary undertaking unless someone like Pop was along to run off the boogers.
Uncle Fred moved his family to Dallas in 1920 or 1921, and headed
a sizable exodus from Smithville to Big D.
Pop went to visit them in 1922. L. N. told
me this about his arrival. Pete was about five at the time.
He was one of a bunch of kids playing on Pine Street when two men drove up in a Model T. One of them, a big handsome
man of middle age, got out of the car, looked the situation over, and picked Pete out of the bunch.
"Where is your mammy, son", Pop asked him.
Pete said he had no earthly idea who he was, but answered him anyway,
"She's in the house. I'll take you to Her."
When sibling greetings were over, Sister Fannie
asked "Brother, how in the world did you pick L. N. out of that crowd of kids?"
"Well, Frances," he replied, "he
looks just like you, but he looks more like Frog, so there is no way I could miss him!"
Today, Pete is the living image of his daddy
of forty years ago, and has the same wonderful, cheerful disposition.
Jack also told me some tales that will bear repeating.
Our Uncle David Gardenhire had come to Dallas
for a visit. You don't remember him, so you can't fully appreciate some of his antics. He had a particular obsession
against automobiles, which certainly had not flooded the country at that time.
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The funny part of Jack's tale is his discovery
after Uncle Dave had gone home. He had left a number of salty
inscriptions on the walls of the hen house. Jack remembered
three in particular. In his beautiful penmanship Uncle Dave
had written dates, and under them comments, as follows: "August 15, 1921 - Six autos passed today. Ruining
country." another -- "August 18, 1921 - Dry as a bone!" And finally -- "August 19, 1921 - Hot
as Hell!"
This, of course, was the same Uncle Dave
who was building a house out north of Smithville. When Pop asked him what color he was going to paint it, his answer
was "Black as Hell and varnish it!"
Jack also told me a good tale about his granddaddy Woodside - Uncle Pole we always called him. He and his daughter Miss Etta had come for a spring visit.
Jack said his granddad had always had trouble getting a stove to
suit him. Everytime Foster Bros. would get a new model, Uncle
Pole would have to try it.
It was cooler that April morning than it had been for several weeks, and Uncle Fred struck a match and leaned over and lit the gas stove with no effort or
strain.
Uncle Pole was delighted! "Ett, did you see that!" He asked excitedly. "I'm going to get me one
of those stoves and carry it back to Smithville."
As you know, Uncle Fred and Sister Fannie have raised a family of fine and successful men and women. Now they,
as well as Gene, have gone on to their rewards. They were responsible
for our move to Texas, and I am sure influenced others from Smithville.
Some who made the move were: Cousin Jim Tinsley, Hubern and Lester Womack, Furman
Love, Roscoe Burton, Landon Goodson, Ellis Dean, Brown Davis, Felix Lefever, Mary Elizabeth Burnett, and Allen and Gaston Chambers. I expect there are others. Homer Potter
settled in Huston.
I believe these families have been successful, and have enjoyed good lives. As you know, some
have done extremely well financially.