Eula –Mama Preasha and Papa John

Preasha became my mother at the age of seventeen when I was only five years old. At the wedding, her brother, Ottis East, and I crawled under the house where I cried my heart out because she would be taking my place as Papa’s cook and housekeeper. Papa had only recently bought some new pots and pans and had told me I could be his cook. I don’t remember when I first began to call Preasha “Mamma” but when Buster and Tootsy came along, I knew in my heart that she was my mamma too. Never once did I sense the idea of being just a step child. As long as I remember, each tiny sawmill house and farm house, including the old home place in Romulus, had all the essential things in it that made a home. There was a mother’s tenderness, kindness, constancy, selfless love, and care coupled with her expertise in providing warm, pleasing, and comfortable surroundings evidenced by cool, crisp curtains at the windows; clean, smooth beds; and tasty, nutritious food on the table. Papa added the outward affections as well as the inward love that both of them gave to the children. Mamma was not content with a sixth grade education. She took advantage o opportunities to learn. Through reading, club work, workshops and study courses she increased her knowledge of home-making, cooking, sewing, community living, and the Bible. Mamma saw to it that her children went to school. I had always wanted to be a teacher. When I finished seventh grade, I acquired a teacher’s certificate by taking the State Teachers Examination. I was too young to teach. I wanted to go to high school. When Tuscaloosa High School announced it could take no more out-of-town students, I was accepted by Snead Seminary in Boaz. Business was not too good then with Papa. One day I over heard him say to Mamma, “I don’t see how we can send Eula t school.” Mamma almost shouted out to him, “Yes we can! She’s going if I have to take in washing to send her.” Papa sent me a $20.00 check each month for my board and Mamma sent me little love gifts when she cold. Once at Commencement time I wrote Mamma that I needed a party dress. I didn’t hear from her .As time drew near, I planned to borrow a dress from my best friend who lived in Boaz. On the morning of the day of the party, the beautiful white silk dress arrived. It was trimmed with Irish lace and had all the pretty under things to go with it. Mamma and Papa where true friends to everyone. Their house was a haven to Papa’s three brothers (Tony, Charley, Jesse) whose father had died and two sisters (Mary and Grace) whose husband had deserted them or who needed a home. Their home seemed to have room for their own children when they needed a temporary home. Mamma Preasha was an angel of mercy to friends who were ill and needed constant care for a period of illness. I remember how she tied sacks around her feet and waded deep snow to care for Mary Lee Barton who was ill with pneumonia. 　 It was Papa who added the spice to our family living. He was always acting a clown, playing tricks, or contriving surprises. During my senior year in high school in early December, papa called me to come home. He thought I might need some new clothes. With Christmas holidays less than a month away, I could not imagine why I should take such an unnecessary trip. I worried all the way home. When I arrived, I was greeted by a brand new beautiful baby sister, Sarah! I didn’t even know Mamma was expecting. Papa was so very proud of all his children. I used to slip around, when I could, and read his letters that he often wrote to Aunt Grace in California and his cousin, George Julian, in Missouri. He never failed to mention each of the children, telling what each was doing and how he was prospering. Often he exaggerated, but it made me burst with pride to realize how much he loved us. I thank God every day for allowing me to be a part of my wonderful John Graham Family. Eula Graham Vaughn

REMEMBERING PAPA

By Annice Graham 1913-2001

Papa saved his prettiest corn for seed to plant the next year. Some pretty corn was saved to take to the grist meal where it was ground into meal for cooking. We would shell the smaller grains off the ends for the hogs and cows. We used the corn sheller to shell the best grains off the cob to make corn meal and dropped the grains into a long wooden box. Mama kept a clean cloth sack to measure the corn into to take to the grist mill.

To keep rats and mice out of the corn, Papa kept a big rat snake in the crib. We weren’t afraid of it and it wasn’t afraid of us. Nobody was allowed to throw corn or anything else at it.

Papa went to town in a one horse wagon each week. He carried eggs and chickens and extra vegetables, too. Mama made butter, molded it into half pound circles, wrapped it in waxed paper, and kept it in a bucket in the well to keep it cool and fresh. It was then wrapped in quilts to keep it cool on the way to town. A trip from to Tuscaloosa in a wagon took all day. He left about 2 am and returned about 10 pm.

After he sold the produce in town he bought coffee beans. Mama would roast them and grind the coffee. Coffee was boiled in a coffee pot without a basket. She added on teaspoon for each cup and one for the pot.

We made our own syrup from ribbon cane or sorgum and found honey in the woods in hollow trees. When bees came to the yard for water and nectar from flowers, we watched them to see which direction they went. Then Papa and L.C., my brother, would search for the bee tree. In the late summer he raided the bee trees and collected the honey and combs. We shared the honey with friends.

Papa was talented in many ways. He was a carpenter who could build a house from the ground up. He split his own shingles to roof all the buildings on the farm. Houses, barns, and sheds were built with a steep roof so that water ran off and the shingles lasted longer. He built chimneys from rocks or clay and straw.

Papa was ruptured. He built the last chimney when he was in his seventies. He was working about 8 miles from home when he had to be rushed to the hospital for emergency surgery. Although 20 inches of intestines were removed, he remained active and lived about 20 years longer.

When he was about 85 he fell and broke his hip. He recovered, walked again, and lived until he was 95. His last years were spent in Dr. Peake’s nursing home. He was happy there and entertained many visitors. He loved Dr. and Mrs. Peake. Lou Lackey who had married one of Papa’s nieces shared Pap’s interest in politics and carried him riding to see many of his political allies.

His mind remained clear and his memories sharp. The Friday before he died on Saturday he told daughter, Florence Quarles, “I have only enough money left to put me away, so I will die soon.”

The next morning the nursing home called the family in because his heart was failing. When family members arrived he looked around at the family members and said,

“I guess this is the day I will kick the bucket. Don’t know of anything else to get so many here at one time.” He continued to joke until his breathing was difficult, and died peacefully surrounded by family.

Weeks before he had told a grandson, “Years ago when your Granny begin losing her mind, I knelt by our bed and asked God to let me live long enough to take care of her. If I’d have known I’d live this long, I wouldn’t have prayed so hard.”

Raymond L. Graham Retires after 41 years Federal Service

by Winnie L. Smith

Brookley Air Force Base, Alabama

On March 2, 1967, Raymond L. Graham completed his third retirement, leaving Brookley Air Force Base with 41 years of federal service on his record. He already retired from the Navy with 23 years service in 1945 and he worked long enough between Naval and civil service to have social security retirement also.

A native of Piedmont Mo. Graham moved to Alabama as a child when his father went there with a lumber company in 19005. After a year or so at McShan and Gordo the final stopping place was B uhl, Alabama, where he remembers his first days in a one room school house.     They end at Romulus where his father finally settled in 1915. He grew to manhood with a great desire for a navy career—old age security, he said.

He enlisted at 18 and remained to the end of World War II—October, 1945 and what he recalls is a “very adventurous life.”

At the time of his retirement he was a chief machinist’ mate. If he had been willing to go on for 30 years there would have been a commission, But Graham had set his sights on 20 years and the war had already kept him overtime and each year when recommended he declined the offer. He says the recommendations he has in possession are still mighty nice to look at.

Graham’s navy career brought him a wide variety of experiences, from teaching Diesel Engines at the Navy Diesel School at Champaign, Ill. University of Ill. 1942 to keeping the lights burning on the island of Saipan 1947-48. In civil service after retiring from the navy he was an “Engineman Snapper”, diesel maintenance man on Saipan which he helped keep the big diesel power plant in operation there.

In 1943 and 1944 Graham had his only assigned years of shore duty in his 23 year career. He was stationed at the navy repair at San Diego, Cal and after 3 months given the position of     “leading chief” in charge of repair and overhaul of submarines. He held that position until his shore duty expired in November, 1944, after which his remaining years in the naval service were served at Pearl Harbor as a gang leader repairing and overhauling Surface Craft Diesels. Graham served on many types of navy ships. The longest time was on the battleship New Mexico over six years. Two cruisers, Huron, and Vincennes, aircraft carrier Saratoga, Aircraft tender Huholdt, destroyer tender, Melville, and the smallest boat of all at Washington, DC a 75 foot two stateroom yacht commonly called Barge. It belonged to the Honorable Henry L Roosevelt, Asst. Secretary of the Navy.

Graham was chief engineer from commissioning of the boat January 1934 to June 1936. When he secretary died.

Graham requested new construction and was assigned to the new cruiser Vincenne for fitting out and on board for duty when commissioned. On this he served 4+ years. It was on this heavy cruiser Graham recalls two pre-World War II trips in 1940 to Casablanca and Capetown for French gold, delivered to the Brooklyn Navy Yard and from there carried to Fort KNOX BY ARMORED TRUCKS. Graham’s years at Brookley   in the machine unit have been quieter and less exciting than his years in the Navy. They have been satisfying ones however and have contributed to his long range goal set before he came here in 1951 to prepare for the future.

Letters from John Crawford Graham to niece

Buhl, Alabama

February 26, 1943

Mrs. Eunice Lee

If you are Eunice Graham Lee then I am your Uncle John Graham. I left Piedmont, Missouri in 1905 to come to Alabama. After father died I brought the other children down. There are four of us living now, Charley, Jesse, Grace and myself.  I have a large family. They are all married. Charles has nine or ten;Jesse has three. Grace has none. If you are my niece please write us and I will tell you all about ourselves and how we are getting along.

Your Uncle, John C. Graham, Romulus Alabama

Sunday Afternon.

Dear Eunice,

I am writing a little more. I didn’t tell you how glad to get your letter.  We were all tickled pink and you didn’t realize you were writing your first letter to me on my 66^th birthday. 9THE 3^RD OF March)I HAVE 3 HOLIDAYS A YEAR. Christmas, Father’s Day and my birthday. I get lots of presents. Grace sent me a fine wool sweater this birthday and the rest all sent money. We are living in a good community with lots of people, two churches within a mile and a 5 teacher school just back of our house. . We have electricity in our houses and have good gravel roads. We raise cotton, corn, hay, and everything anyone would want. Daughter Lucille and James and their family have just been here and have gone to see the river. It had a 55 foot rise on. Preasha went with them.

So I must thank you for the letter and you must write again when you feel like it. JCG

Buhl, Alabama   March 21, 1943

Dear Eunice and all,

I received your last letter 2 weeks ago but have been so busy just put it off and now I have so many letters to write that we run out of news sometimes. You see, our kids are so scattered out. I will give you a list of them and where they live and the number of kids they have, so you can see it’s a man’s job keeping up with all of them.

Eula, 43,was born in Missouri has 2 girls. She lost her first husband and is married again with 3 stepchildren. She lives at Hold and has been teaching for 22 years.

Raymond, 41, was born in Missouri           and has been in the navy 23 years. He is an ensign Instructor and taught Navy boys Engineering at the University of Illinois last year. But lives in California now. He has a girl and a boy.

Lawrence, 37, was born in Alabama  but lives in Pascagoula, Mississippi where he works in a government shop. He is married with 3 kids.         Loyd, 35 has been with the government 15 years, He was inducted din the Army last fall and is now a Leutentant . He is an instructor at Swift Camp in Texas, is married but no children/

Lucille, 31 is married, lives close and has 2 boys and 2 girls. She taught school several years. Her husband is a mule dealer.

Freda, 28 is married, has 2 girls and lives in Mobile where her husband is a welder.

Estelle, 24, married but has no children. HUSBAND WORKS IN A SHIPYARD.

Sara, 21, Married, lives in Mobile where he is an airplane mechanic, they have no children yet.

Brother Charley lives in Tuscaloosa, that is our home town but we  get mail from Buhl, Jesse lives close, Toney died 7 years ago.They have 4 children..Sister Grace who was the little cripple, is well, now big and strong and lives in California.

So you can see wee are pretty well spread out. Just us two here and we are very busy all the time raising chickens and farming. We have a Negro servant here that does the rough work and we go to the curb market.

Last week we had a cold spell and lost 95 chicks, but we have the brooders full again. I have not worked for12 years though I am well and fat. I spent 31 years in the sawmill business and I will give you a good idea of a business man. I went into the sawmill business on my own in 1909. In the year 1912 I cleared $13,000 then I bought another mill, then a store, then a lot of mules.

While we lived at Buhl, I owned a store, 2 sawmills, a barber chop, soda fount, pool rooms, a good farm and about 15 houses.

Then in 1914 I drifted down here to Romulus 8 miles south of Buhl, bought 4 good farms and a world of timber. I had a store here and one in Tuscaloosa. Then I bought a house in Tuscaloosa, then a filling station and garage, and bought and sold cars at the same time. I owned a Telephone 16, helped a central girl and made bushels and bushels of money.  I helped my kids off to school until every one graduated.. Now they love me for what I done for them, so when the timber was gone I quit.

During that time I wore out 29 cars and trucks, then the depression came and we all had to help each other so I am about like I was when I started.  Only we have a fine bunch of kids, raised them all, and now they have homes of their own. When one handles all the business I had he can say that he had his hands full and to start with nothing, too. I leave it all to good health and hard work

.You and my wife are about the same age. She is my second wife. She was Preasha East. We married near Williamsville, Missouri in 1905. Came down here the next year and have been back many times.

We live close to the Warrior River that runs through Tuscaloosa, Get a map and you can locate us. Buhl is gone, just a school, post office, and a few stores. I put the first mill in Buhl, layed off the streets and planted shade trees. Now there are about 16”   through. At one time there were 600 houses there. Now they are gone. Only two are there. Write us again soon, Come to see. Us.

Your Uncle John Graham

http://www.bartondatabase.com/getperson.php?personID=I3588&tree=gbtree

Elias Wilburn Barton

born 17 Nov. 1799 in Pickens County, South Carolina Died Aug 1872 in Ralph, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama and was buried in Bethel Baptist Cemetery at Ralph,Alabama.

Father was David OLDHAM BARTON 20 DEC 1770-1 MAR 1842 Married to Margaret (Peggy)Loney 30

Sept 1775-3 July 183 South Carolina. Elias married Katherine Hunnicutt 17 Jan 1808 Pickens County, S.C died 6 Aug. Fayette Co. Alabama