ANDERSON COUNTY NEWS
March 3, 1928
“The Houk Family”
W. J. Smith
L C Houk’s mother was married twice, after L C’s father deid she married a Mr. Rhea.
L C Houk received a common school education. He left home and joined a show, he quit the show and came to Knoxville. He worked in G W Brownlow’s printing office for about two years. He went home on Pigeon River. He married a lady by the name of Smith and then moved to Clinton. He formed a law partnership with D K Young, their offece stood in the lower corner of the courthouse yard, next to where Jas. Gamble now lives, Samuel C Young lived there then, D K Young’s father. Houk was a good successful lawyer. He stayed with Young about two years and quit his law practice.
He joined the M E Church and went to preaching. His first sermon was at Sulphur Springs in an old hewed log house where the new one now is. H P Farmer lives close to the springs. My father lived on Black Oak Ridge, he took his family and went. The Smiths and Houk’s were good friends. L C Houk married a Smith and that made him a better man. I am in my 80th year and I never did forget his text it was “Trust in the Lord with all thy heart and lean not unto thine own understanding but in all thy ways acknowledge Him and He will direct thy path.” James Young was there. I remember after he came down out of the pulpit they had an old time hand shake and some of the old soldiers shouted. Houk laughed and talked hoarse you know they all talk that way. That was about 71 years ago and I doubt if there is anyone living now that was there, except the writer. Uncle Billy and Rufus Dail were there, both dead now.
I want to say to my readers, people served their God then with pure-hearts, they had all things common then. Dressing was different, home-made goods, old mothers wore long dresses. Now Paul’s writing had come to pass, a form of godliness and denying his power. Well, Houk preached on till the Civil War broke out.
ANDERSON COUNTY NEWS
March 24, 1928
“The Houk Family”
W. J. Smith
Lee Houk practices up to the breaking out of the Civil War.
When Abraham Lincoln was elected president, the south went wild on account of their slaves. Andrew Johnson came to Clinton and made a speech beseeching the people of the South to be quiet and give Abraham a chance. Clinton was divided that day. Some said he should not take his seat, but he did. There were two flags raised that day in Clinton; a confederate flag with 13 stars waved over the brick house belonging to Richard Jarnigan. The house is still standing down close to the jail. The old rock courthouse stood at the corner of the street in front of the brick house. An American flag floated over the old courthouse. Dan Vann had an old hog rifle, took site at the confederate flag, swore he would shoot the staff in two but was prevented. There were several hundred people in town that day; all Anderson County neighbors. They would stand and talk about the trouble, cuss each other. One had a confederate badge, the other one a union badge. After Mr Johnson got through his speech they all lined up. The county was pretty well divided, but the union side had the majority. The officers could hardly keep down war. Brother against brother, father against son.
I was a ten year old boy then. My father lived in Clinton. He reared up his horses, put the family in the wagon. A small Union flag waved over his horses heads. My father was a fearless man. Old Uncle John Jarnigan was a good man, but heowned a good many slaves and sided with the south. His house stood where Charlie Butler now lives. There was a large tree that stood in front of his porch. My father drove up pretty close to the tree and said, “Hurrah for Abraham Lincoln.” Mr Jarnigan was standing in the door when my father hollowed for Lincoln. He said something I could not understand. There was a terrible uproar in Clinton that day. The devil was playing his tricks that day getting up a confusion and division among our good American people who had been in peace for several years.
ANDERSON COUNTY NEWS
A local newspaper
In the 1920′s, Jasper Smith wrote articles for the Anderson County newspaper about the different areas of the county. They are being shared with you because of the genealogy that was written in some of the articles.