by Joe Stout
Roy was born in 1886 and died in 1966. Susan Stout the daughter of my gggrandfather Levi Stout was his mother. My ancestors Levi Stout and wife Anna Earls Stout deeded each of their children a farm on February 14, 1889. Levi was born in 1820 and died in 1908 and is buried in the Meridian Cemetery. His wife Anna Earls preceded him in death in 1891 and there is an old marker at her grave. Prior to 1992 there was no marker at Levi’s grave when myself and Gene Porter another gggrandson placed a marker there listing the names of all his children.
Roy Whicker lived his life on the farm that had been deeded to his father J. A. Whicker and Susan Stout Whicker without electricity. Roy was a well read man and some of his writings were published in the Memphis, Tennessee newspapers as well as stories being written about him. Roy never drove an automobile but drove a horse and buggy the 8 miles to Greenfield on Saturday for his “shopping”. Roy’s shopping consisted of trading chickens, eggs, peanuts or other products for the staples that he needed. He usually even went home with some cash from this in his pocket.
During the depression when FDR put in the program of limiting the amount of crop and even making government payments to plow up crops Roy would not participate. Roy picked his cotton, hauled it to Greenfield by wagon and team, paid to have it ginned and baled, and then hauled it back home and stored it in his barn. During World War II when controls had been lifted and the price of cotton had increased dramatically Roy sold his cotton.
It was during the 1940’s that TVA came to the rural communities. When they wanted to cross Roy’s land with poles and lines he would not allow them to do so. I recall in one of our classes in school T.Z. Elinor posed the question of how high up did a landowner own. This was because the electric company had set poles on the right of way but the transmission lines cut across Roy’s land and he did not want this. I believe the electric company backed off in order not to have trouble. I still never learned how high up a landowner owns.
Roy wrote a column for the local papers called Jonesboro Jots and sometimes Meridian Musings. I haven’t seen any yet in the Gazette but possibly Martha Smith will find some in the old Dresden Enterprise issues.
Roy had a “falling out” over the Meridian Cemetery cutting a tree near his mothers grave and decided to be buried in the Highland Cemetery. As frugal as he was he never contributed anything to the cemetery anyway.
The epitaph on Roy Whicker’s grave (which he had placed there prior to his death) reads “A Man Who Had No Outside Help.” I have to take issue with that epitaph. What about the farm he in essence received from my gggrandparents Levi and Anna Stout.