Historic Union County

The Cradle of Country Music

So you think you don't have enough memories to write your life story? You are wrong. They just need to be brought out to the here and now. There is an excellent way to do it, take notes. It will take time, but you will see results.

There is nothing to stop you from writing your memories down on a note pad or in an exercise book. But memories rarely arrive in chronological order and when you start writing your book of life stories, you will be forever flicking backwards and forwards through the pages trying to find the note that you want.

Robert Kato, a Longhunter reenactor, speaks at the June 9, 2018 meeting of the Nicholas Gibbs Historical Society.

Groups called Longhunters [18th century explorers and hunters] were the first to blaze the trails into the American wilderness across the United States. Elisha Wolfe led a group of Longhunters as early as 1761-1765.

Years before Harry Potter inspired older children to keep reading, Augustus inspired me, late in the primary grades, to keep reading. We were about the same age when we met at the school library. Eventually I grew up, but I never forgot him. In my imagination, he will always be out there somewhere on the Mississippi River with his kind, well meaning, but somewhat dysfunctional family.

Augustus' family not only lived in a houseboat on the river, but also lived off the river. What could be more exciting to an eight-year-old boy?

Mincey’s Musings
Year One, Week Twenty-Four

It is so often easy to see faults in others, but often how difficult to recognize our own. Sometimes those of us who have done the greatest wrong are the first to pass judgement and be blind to justice.

As an amateur naturalist I have a curiosity to know how things work. In college I once saw the chemical reactions involved in photosynthesis laid out on a large poster. This all-important method plants use to make food for themselves (and ultimately us) was incredibly long and complex. It is so complex that it’s tempting to simply say that plants bring in carbon dioxide and water, add sun energy, then a miracle happens and out comes oxygen and food. While there is truth there, let me elaborate on the miracle part.

A large percentage of patients with knee, hip and spine osteoarthritis use opioids to manage their chronic pain, especially those who are younger or have symptoms of depression, according to new research findings. Osteoarthritis, or OA, is the most common joint disease affecting middle-aged and older people. It is characterized by progressive damage to the joint cartilage—the cushioning material at the end of long bones—and causes changes in the structures around the joint.

We all have that one special treat that we look forward to having. For me, it’s a tossup between something chocolate and somebody doing the laundry. My Mamaw Jo had a treat that I could never understand: milk and cornbread. In all fairness, I did try it, but I didn’t like it. For one thing, milk and I don’t get along.

I spent my early years in Michigan. The last thirty years I have been here. If I had known how wonderful Tennessee was, I would have been here long ago. Don't fault me for being from Michigan. We all have to be from somewhere. I will try to keep the secret of how wonderful East Tennessee is. After all, there is only so much room for former Yankees down here.

Passing a budget and setting a tax rate in June has now become best practice in Union County. For two consecutive years, Ann Dyer, County Finance Director, and County Mayor Mike Williams have diligently worked with County Commission led by Chairman Gary England and the Budget and Finance Committee to complete the budget process before the beginning of the new fiscal year on July 1. Their combined efforts have solidified the budget process into a transparent, accountable, and responsible fiscal practice that has set Union County on a course toward improvement and maybe even prosperity.

Local author Cyn Taylor was recently vetted by the Authors Guild of Tennessee and welcomed as a new member of the group in May.

A Knoxville native, Taylor writes Southern Contemporary Romantic Suspense staged in the Smoky Mountains and surrounding area. Smoky Mountain Mist is Taylor's first series. Blue Mountain Sky, Red Morning Glory and Dawn's Gray Light are the three books completing that series.

Recently my daughter labeled her father and me as curmudgeonly. She said it lovingly but I was instantly offended, even after she explained her reasoning. She claimed we were set in our ways and did not deal well with change or having anything out of place in our home. Nor did we like being away from said home. I calmed down. Sort of.

Precious Jewel is a song written by the late Roy Acuff about his sweetheart to whom he was engaged to marry. Before they married something happened, and one night she died. I am hoping someone can provide more detailed information–what was her name–what caused her death. Isn’t it interesting that in our sorrow we can do great work. This song is known wherever Roy Acuff is known and remembered . Again, I hope to learn more about this story. The following is Precious Jewel as written by Roy Claxton Acuff:

Rainy weather has long been blamed for achy joints. Unjustly so, according to new research from Harvard Medical School. The analysis found no relationship between rainfall and joint or back pain.

The visual, sounds, physical contact, aromas, odors, and even flavors that on occasion we taste upon our tongue can roll back the pages of time without the opening of a book. Obviously, we take photographs, often organizing them into albums, to preserve and reinforce our memories. A familiar song, unexpected, all but forgotten and obscured by time, may carry us back to the days of our youth. An experiential learner myself, running my fingers across the texture of practically anything directly linked with the past makes history all the more tangible.

There was a day when spring cleaning was a real chore with a capital “C.” Let's start with the windows. After the house had been shut up all winter and the wood stove in the parlor and the cooking range in the kitchen spewing out smoke and soot all winter, the windows really needed attention.

Mincey’s Musings
Year One, Week Twenty-Three

Have you ever thought about the lives our ancestors lived? Once our forefathers boarded ship in the Old World, there was no opportunity the next day to decide, “I don’t think I want to make this trip after all.” I’ve never read of any lifeboats or rafts on the Mayflower.

Blackgum (Nyssa sylvatica), also called tupelo gum and sour gum, can be found in almost any woodland in our area. It grows on a wide range of conditions, from wet areas to dry ridge tops.

My Papaw E.O. was quite the character. He was rather fearless; in fact, there were times he was too fearless.

I experienced it firsthand back when I was in my early 20s. I was riding with my Mamaw and Papaw as we drove on I-40 through downtown Knoxville. We were in Papaw’s nice farm truck. It was the one without cow stuff on the tires and wheels. He drove it everywhere except to church or the funeral home.

The Pizza Parlor in Maynardville made good pizza. I worked there for a while as short order cook when they first opened. I prepped and made the salads as well as the spaghetti sauce. It was a time of learning for me. I had never before cooked ground beef in water, stirred to separate it and then drained before adding to tomato sauce to make a spaghetti sauce. Made that was, there was very little oil to skim off the finished sauce. Not enough to bother with.

With the steep costs associated with prescription drugs, chiropractic’s conservative approach makes economic sense as well. A 2012 study found that spinal manipulation for neck and back pain was cost-effective, used either alone or combined with other therapies first.

Another study based on Washington state workers found that 42.7 percent of people who visited a surgeon first for work-related back pain eventually had surgery, compared to only 1.5 percent of those who visited a chiropractor first.