My branch of the ESTEP tree is rooted deep in Appalachia. My father
was born on the Upper Elk Fork of Knox Creek.The homeplace was physically located in Virginia but the closest post office at the time was
at Argo, Kentucky. So most of the births were recorded as being in Kentucky.
My grandfather logged and worked on
the railroad. He often had to "board" away from home, Usually in Grundy, Virginia. He would
stay there during the week and return to Upper Elk on Friday, working as a logger on Saturday and
Sunday, then return to Grundy to work on the railroad during the week. Granny had the responsibility of
raising the children, keeping house and taking care of the farm. According to my father,
each child had assigned chores. His chore was to gather the cows in from the pasture in the evenings
in time for Granny to milk them and then he put them in the barns for the night. The following morning,
it was his job to put them back out to pasture for the day.
It was his older brothers
responsibility to take care of the working animals, the horses and the mules, which were used
for logging. The younger children had the job of feeding the chickens, gathering eggs, putting
water out for the animals.
I remember seeing my Grandfather once when I was very
young, and feeling somewhat intimidated by his presence. He had deep green eyes
that seemed to look into your very soul. The times I remember seeing Granny, I thought
she was such a "lady" with her prim and proper attire, and that white hair pulled neatly
into a bun with little waves on the sides. However, I am not sure smoking a pipe was
very ladylike! which she did on occasion! She had an air of sophistication about her,
an appearance of class and spoke with such diction that sometimes it was hard for this
country girl to understand! I have always wondered about her speech, as she never lived
outside of Appalachia, yet she did not have the twang that so easily identifys us.
My Mothers branch of this tree, the ETTER branch, is also rooted in the heart of Appalachia.
My Mother was born on the "gun rack" at the head of Long Branch, which empties into the Tug River, on
the Kentucky-West Virginia border. The closest post office was Oppy, Kentucky.
My maternal grandfather taught music in area churches and schools. They lived on the farm
given them by my grandmother's family for many years. My grandmother's family were
hard working people who owned a vast amount of land in the county. They logged
and farmed. My maternal grandfather's family migrated to Appalachia from what is now NYC, with
part of them remaining there, and part of them traveling on out west,
and eventually settling in Texas and Oklahoma.
I am sure
life on the farm was hard around the turn of the century. If you think about no power driven
tools or machinery, no electric lights, no refrigeration and transportation was by horseback!
Yet the stories etched in my parents's memory were of love, dedication, hard work and family.
These stories they passed on to their children and grandchildren. They are stories of life, stories
of lifes experiences. Stories I want my children and grandchildren to hear and to remember.
It was these memories from my parents that got me interested in genealogy. Their stories that made me
want to dig for my roots, to search every tree and every branch, looking for one more ancestor,
with a story of his own! If you are also digging for your roots, I hope you will find
something useful on my pages!
I would like to say THANK YOU to Gwen Boyer Bjorkman, Carroll Hurley Ullrich and Margie Bell Etter for their
help in my search, and for their undying patience with my endless questions. So many times one or the other has set the facts straight for me! I am forever grateful!
My branch of the ESTEP tree is rooted deep in Appalachia. My father
was born on the Upper Elk Fork of Knox Creek.The homeplace was physically located in Virginia but the closest post office at the time was
at Argo, Kentucky. So most of the births were recorded as being in Kentucky.
Cyndi's List of Genealogy Sites
