Thanks Bonnie, You have given me an opening for discussion of one of my pet peeves. That is, I am concerned that we spend hours upon boring hours gathering or recopying the same, oft times unreliable, data that are already available from a variety of sources, and will probably be around forever, but ignore the area where we could make the best contribution to our family and community histories. I refer to the recording of our own personal life stories and life in our times as we perceive it. That's the history that will be lost forever if we don't record it. So, instead of Part 2 of my watermelon story, I will mount my soapbox. The watermelons will have to wait a day or so. How can we of our respective generations best preserve our heritage? How many of us have received requests from our children, grandchildren or perhaps great grandchildren, asking us to tell them about the old days. I can assure you that when my grandaughters said , "Papa, tell us about the olden times," they didn't have in mind the usual stuff we dig out of courthouse records and library stacks or pilfer from the internet without recognizing or caring about the source of the information. They want family history from my perspective, not a lot of statistics. Also, how many have heard a statement similar to the following: " I do the genealogy thing because when I'm gone our family history may be lost forever?" How often we delude ourselves as the type of information that we crave is in the records and will be for years to come. Although I love and have made a career involving detailed research, I can't think of anything more boring and less fulfilling than amassing huge files of statistics of questionable accuracy simply for statistic's sake. Don't take me wrong; to each his own. There is a measure of satisfaction in knowing ones roots, and, I guess, building the world's biggest data base, but my point is that we have a much more important contribution in seeing that life as we lived it remains a part of the local history. My apparent cavalier statements made earlier not withstanding, thats why I feel that the stories related by Shelby Burgess, my good friend Darrell Miller, and a few others about life in West Virginia in our own times, whenever that may have been, are priceless. Life on Coon Branch, where I grew up, was different from life on Berarhole, was different from life in Sabine, Gilbert or Logan. Life in the towns was different from life on the farm, was different from life in the coal camps. And, life of a farmer was different from the life of a miner was different from the life of a logger. There are many unique stories out there yet to be told. And, if they are not told by those who lived them, they indeed will be lost forever. And don't forget that today's current events are tomorrow's history. If you are really serious about your hobby, take lots of photos and keep a journal. And finally, its your story and mostly for your kin and friends. Tell it like you want to. And you don't have to post it on the Internet. Ladies seem more reluctant to tell their stories than men. I already know from some of your letters that, like my wife, your mothers and grandmothers were expert seamstresses, and that most every household had a Singer or Elgin tredle sewing machine. Many of you can remember wearing homemade "outing" nightgowns and "bloomers" and feed- sack dresses. My wife tells how she and her sisters spent hours thumbing through Sears catalogs selecting dresses that their mother (who, like most ladies of that era, was also an expert at turning a picture into a pattern) would make from feed sacks for them to wear to school. That's not all of the story. How many other ways did families "make do" with what was available to them and manage to survive? And what of the innumerable sacrifices parents made just to see that their children could go to school? Now that I have got you to thinking, what about it ladies? Thanks, STAN > Stan, > I have been rather quiet for awhile (recuperating from total knee > replacement) I just have to tell you how much I enjoy your stories. > During the winter > my 83 year young Aunt lives with me and anytime I can I get her to > talk about > the old days. I plan to get a tape recorder and tape them as she > tells them. > One day my children may be interested in the way I grew up, plan to > tape that > as well. > Bonnie > >

Stan, I agree 100% about the stories, I know dates etc are obviously needed but the stories are priceless. My mother and father who are both 82 and born in Logan,well actually Mudfork and Holden have told me many stories of "back then". My father just told me a story last week of visiting his Grandmother when he was about 7 so that would make it 1932 and sleeping on a bed made of corn husks and how they would have all day picnics in cemeteries with preachers taking turns up on a little bridge preaching all day long. The stories are what make all this become real for us and makes our ancestors real........Kathy in Michigan -----Original Message----- From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of STANLEY BROWNING Sent: Tuesday, November 13, 2007 3:26 PM To: [email protected] Subject: [WVLOGAN] One Man's Opinion Thanks Bonnie, You have given me an opening for discussion of one of my pet peeves. That is, I am concerned that we spend hours upon boring hours gathering or recopying the same, oft times unreliable, data that are already available from a variety of sources, and will probably be around forever, but ignore the area where we could make the best contribution to our family and community histories. I refer to the recording of our own personal life stories and life in our times as we perceive it. That's the history that will be lost forever if we don't record it. So, instead of Part 2 of my watermelon story, I will mount my soapbox. The watermelons will have to wait a day or so. How can we of our respective generations best preserve our heritage? How many of us have received requests from our children, grandchildren or perhaps great grandchildren, asking us to tell them about the old days. I can assure you that when my grandaughters said , "Papa, tell us about the olden times," they didn't have in mind the usual stuff we dig out of courthouse records and library stacks or pilfer from the internet without recognizing or caring about the source of the information. They want family history from my perspective, not a lot of statistics. Also, how many have heard a statement similar to the following: " I do the genealogy thing because when I'm gone our family history may be lost forever?" How often we delude ourselves as the type of information that we crave is in the records and will be for years to come. Although I love and have made a career involving detailed research, I can't think of anything more boring and less fulfilling than amassing huge files of statistics of questionable accuracy simply for statistic's sake. Don't take me wrong; to each his own. There is a measure of satisfaction in knowing ones roots, and, I guess, building the world's biggest data base, but my point is that we have a much more important contribution in seeing that life as we lived it remains a part of the local history. My apparent cavalier statements made earlier not withstanding, thats why I feel that the stories related by Shelby Burgess, my good friend Darrell Miller, and a few others about life in West Virginia in our own times, whenever that may have been, are priceless. Life on Coon Branch, where I grew up, was different from life on Berarhole, was different from life in Sabine, Gilbert or Logan. Life in the towns was different from life on the farm, was different from life in the coal camps. And, life of a farmer was different from the life of a miner was different from the life of a logger. There are many unique stories out there yet to be told. And, if they are not told by those who lived them, they indeed will be lost forever. And don't forget that today's current events are tomorrow's history. If you are really serious about your hobby, take lots of photos and keep a journal. And finally, its your story and mostly for your kin and friends. Tell it like you want to. And you don't have to post it on the Internet. Ladies seem more reluctant to tell their stories than men. I already know from some of your letters that, like my wife, your mothers and grandmothers were expert seamstresses, and that most every household had a Singer or Elgin tredle sewing machine. Many of you can remember wearing homemade "outing" nightgowns and "bloomers" and feed- sack dresses. My wife tells how she and her sisters spent hours thumbing through Sears catalogs selecting dresses that their mother (who, like most ladies of that era, was also an expert at turning a picture into a pattern) would make from feed sacks for them to wear to school. That's not all of the story. How many other ways did families "make do" with what was available to them and manage to survive? And what of the innumerable sacrifices parents made just to see that their children could go to school? Now that I have got you to thinking, what about it ladies? Thanks, STAN > Stan, > I have been rather quiet for awhile (recuperating from total knee > replacement) I just have to tell you how much I enjoy your stories. > During the winter > my 83 year young Aunt lives with me and anytime I can I get her to > talk about > the old days. I plan to get a tape recorder and tape them as she > tells them. > One day my children may be interested in the way I grew up, plan to > tape that > as well. > Bonnie > > ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message