It's Thursday and I don't usually post on Friday's, so I thought we needed to end the week on a lighter note. This is abstracted from a column I did for the Glasgow Daily Times 5 Jan 1994 and I thought you might enjoy it. "Recently as I was working with the old tax lists of our county, I got to thinking, in a nonsensical sort of way, about the surnames found in the oldest pages of our history. This article is definitely NOT going to be one of any great genealogical or historical depth, but, if you will allow me a little "pllay on names", you might learn many of the settler's names who were here before the year 1810. "We had abundant vegetation and beautiful scenery in those early days. There were ACRES of beautiful land. We had ASH, BERRY's, BROOKS, BUSHes, CHERRY's, CREEKS, DALE's, FIELDS, FOR(r)ESTS, HIGH HILLS, LEMONS, MOSS, OAKS, PARKDS, POOL(es), REEDS, rivers to WADE that trickled along, ROCK's, ROSE's, ROUNDTREES, SNOW, SUMMERS, VINEYARDS, WEBBS and WOODS. "The wildlife was abundant. We had BASS, BIRDs, CAMELs, CROWs, DRAKEs, HOG(g)s, LAMBS, LIONS, MARTIN's, PEACOCK's, ROACHes, SPARROWs, WOLVES, and WRENS. Just about every BREED. "Our occupations were varied. There were BAKERs, BARBERs, BISHOPs, BUTLERs, CARPENTERs, CARTERs, CARVERs, CASTLEMEN, COALMEN, COOPERs, DRIVERs, DUKEs, FORRESTERs, HUNTERs, KINGs, MILLERs, PIPERs, MARSHALLs, PAINTERs, RIDERs, SHIPMEN, TANNERs, WAG(g)ONERs, and WARDENs. There were, of course, many varieties of SMITHS. "Many structures and implements came from those early days and are still in evidence. ALLEYs, BARN(e)s, BEAMs, BELLs, BOWLes, BRIDGES, BUTTONs, CARRs, CHAMBERS, COMBs, COURTs, CUPs, GATES, HALLs, HARBOURs, HOMES, LANEs, LOCKs, ROADs, PICKET(t)s, PILES of RATTLES, STEEL, TEMPLEs, WELLS and WHETSTONEs. "Our early settlers could easily be described by their appearance or personality. There were those who had BROWN BEARDs, wore GRAY BIB(b)s, those embarrased BELCHERs, schoolgirls with GREEN COATS with HOODs on them; ladies with locks of BLACK CURLS, those brave citizens who were not afraid to venture FORTH and GOFORTH. Some were HANDY; some were HARDY. There was the housewife known as the HARPER. The men worked DAY and (K)NIGHT. Some were as mischievious as the DICKENS. They had their ups and DOWNs. The THRASHERs worked hard in the field. James was always JOLLY; William was nicknamed the LEAPER. They never seemd to feel LOW(e). They believbed in good LUCK. "The POINTERs could never been classified as ROTTEN. The city officials were always the one who RUSHed. They protected their families from the SAVAGEs. The citizens were SHARP - very SMART. You could see the SPRINGERS outrunning the WALKERs. They were WILEY and LIVELY. Many CREWS of men, SHORT and tall, LITTLE and big. They had lots of LOVE for their country, yes, they were very LOVING. They were never PETTY. They were TRUE to their BOND; like BROTHERS in the wilderness. The pioneer was known as a GOODMAN; a JEWEL(l). They could be AUGUST and BRIGHT; LE(a)VEL headed. Even though they had very meager MEANS (some had only had a few PENCE), they were the real McCOY. They celebrated the HOL(l)IDAY's and loved good simple MUSIC(k). Many were known to go to the fancy BALL's. "This is just a SAMPLE of those who SETTLE(d) here in Barren County in those early days. George BUSH was here long before he became Prtesident, and Tom DOOLEY was often seen hanging dwon his head. Whether they came from Virginia, Tennessee, deSPAIN or points out WEST, they blended together into a community with the ENGLISH, FRENCH, and with all the SCOTT's. Why, one newcomer came all the way from MAR(r)s. "Put all these togethere with the GARNETTS, MATTHEWS, EDMUNDS, ROGERS, GORINS HUFFMANS, JONES, JOHNSONS, RENNICKS - and that is what made Barren County the greatest county in Kentucky." Now the reader knows most of the names in Barren Co in 1810! Hope you got a chuckle, Sandi Sandi's Puzzlers: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~gensoup/gorin/puz.html SCKY Links: http://www.public.asu.edu/~moore/Gorin.html GGP: http://ggpublishing.tripod.com/