Saturday, July 17, 2010

Evelyn Herndon Abbott--born 1904

My grandmother was born and raised in the country on a small farm in rural Georgia.  When she was around 12, she met a gorgeous young man (think a young Glenn Ford) named Ellis Abner Abbott.  He was eighteen and about to move some miles away to homestead his own patch of grass (and tobacco, corn and cotton).   "Would she go with him?" She did and had her first child, a boy, at thirteen.  In this time, and this place this was only a little unusual. 
My mother, Sara Maud Abbott, was born on July 7, 1921 on her father's farm outside of Hazelhurst, Georgia.  She was the middle child and only girl.  She was considered the local beauty.  In those days a trip of twenty miles was a long day's journey with an overnight stay before the return trip. 
My grandfather went to school all the way to the 8th grade at the typical little red schoolhouse, and my grandmother only made it to the 3rd grade before having to stop and help out at home.  The thinking was what did a farmer need to know other than to read the weather and crop prices?  What did a housewife/farmer's wife need to know other than to help her husband and take care of her children?   When my older brother graduated from high school in 1957, he was the first of my family to do so!!  My grandparents read, but only the newspaper.  I learned to read at an early age by sitting on my grandfather's lap reading the Sunday Funnies.  Lil' Abner, Archie Andrews, The Katzinjammer Kids, etc.

1 comment:

ChaChaneen said...

Oh my stars, they were just KIDS! Crazy to think this was the norm huh? Great memories!