My Mom is 98 years old today. She was born Monday, October 7, 1912. During her lifetime many of the events we call “ancient history” occurred. During the year she was born, the Titanic met its demise (on April 15). The Fifth Olympic games took place in Stockholm, Sweden. Woodrow Wilson defeated Theodore Roosevelt for president. Other significant events have taken place. IRS began to levy and collect income taxes on March 8, 1913. Ford began its moving assembly line to manufacture the T-model Ford, the first in history. The first electric refrigerator was manufactured, and sold for $900 – a lot for that day. (It was years before she and Daddy could afford to buy one.) In October, 1929, the stock market crashed, taking all of her daddy’s savings. In 1939, TV was first introduced in the United States. She experienced World War 1 and World War 11, as well as the more recent wars we can name. During World War 1, she and her parents went to the train station in Greenville to greet the troops being transported from one station to another. She still remembers waving and shouting to the men as the train inched its way through town. And she learned to drive an A-model Ford when she didn’t have to have a license.
Lately, she has been remembering events that took place when she was a young girl. Her parents had moved from North Carolina to Greenville, S.C., to take advantage of the textile boom taking place. Jobs were plentiful and the salaries were good for the time in which they lived. Her parents, Zoie and Isaac Davis, worked in Woodside Mill and lived in one of the houses the mill provided for its workers. She remembers that they lived on Seventh Street. Mom was an only child, and as a result, she was very close to her uncles, aunts, and cousins, all of whom lived in the same mill village. Her mother had 8 brothers and sisters, and all of them lived in and around the area. They obviously visited among each other, frequently eating meals and just spending time together.
Her grandmother (Granny Bowen) lived with them and she and Mom frequently walked to places in the village to visit other relatives, etc. They often went to Uncle Will’s house, taking him milk and butter. Her mother always kept a cow, and they provided milk and butter for several of the families in the village. “Uncle Will” was her mother’s oldest brother whose wife had died at an early age. He had the responsibility for caring for several young children, and Mom loved to visit them. She became very close to his children – they became almost like siblings. Uncle Will always cooked big meals, and all of them, including Mom, were seated around a big table to eat. One of the things Mom remembers most is the big pan of cornbread he always made. As they got older, his boys learned to play string instruments, and they would sit on the front porch and play and sing for hours. One of their Saturday night excursions was to go down to the company store to get hot dogs. She believes that’s why she likes them so much now.
When Mother was a teen, she and her parents moved to Easley where her daddy and mother were given a job working for Alice Manufacturing Company. For Mom, a new part of her life was beginning. For a few years, she and her parents lived on Railroad Street, and then they had the opportunity to build a house on Park Street (where they lived when I knew them). She met my Daddy at church when she was 16 and they were married when she was 18. She and Daddy both worked in the mill and lived on the mill village for a while. In 1933, just before I was born, they bought a house near her parents. They both worked to make it a pleasant place for us to live. Mother remembers planting roses, planting and harvesting vegetables, gathering eggs from the hen house, and cooking on the wood-fired stove. They heated water for baths, and warmed the house with fireplaces.
In 1936 my brother was born, and I would freely have given him away if I could have found someone to take him. I learned to love him though, and we spent wonderful childhood days together. He and I became constant play partners, and practiced undying loyalty in case of misunderstandings with our friends. Mother was witness to several incidences of our sticking together. Mother and Daddy continued to work while we were children. Daddy worked on the first shift and Mom worked on the second shift. When Mom came home from work, she always brought us a surprise from the canteen. I remember running to her apron pocket to see what she brought us every morning. She remembers caring for us and working too, and that was not always easy. Daddy was always a big help and Mom’s mother and dad, as well as her grandmother (Granny Bowen) helped to care for us.
In 1947, my parents sold the house in Easley and bought a farm on Highway 178: a Liberty address, an Anderson telephone number, and Pendleton schools for us. My Mom thought it was in the middle of nowhere because she had always lived in town. The house was big and beautiful, and we each had our own room. It was cold in the winter and cool in the summer; we loved it though. Mom was able to quit work, and Daddy got to do the farming he loved. He continued to work in the mill until he retired. Both Mother and Daddy became involved with the church and loved the work there. They became involved in the community and developed friendships among the people that were lasting and meaningful.
Most of Mom’s memories now center around my Daddy. They lived together for 52 years. She very often says, “ I miss your Daddy so much”. She readily admits that her parents spoiled her, and Daddy continued it after they were married. He always gave her gifts and flowers, and did for her sometimes what she could have done for herself. I’m glad her memories are good; very few are harsh and unhappy. How good to live for 98 years and be able to say that!
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