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"The Life of Mary Thelma Kincaid Richardson" transcribed by Patricia Hiser,
grand-daughter
Born: 02.13.1914, Lawton, WV babtised 11.09.1980 Church of God, Mt Hope WV
marriage to Adam Wade Sr. 06.19.1934 Hemlock, Fayette County, WV
BIRTH: --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Grandma and Grandpa Richardson always had their own house. Grandma's dad died
the month before June Carol was born. These are some of her memories she has
given me: Place of birth, Lawton, West Virginia, Fayette County. I was born in
a little coal mining town they called Hemlock. My dad Theodore Givens Kincaid
was born May 9, 1879.Passed away May 6,1935. My mom was Eliza Ellen O'Connor,
born November 10, 1884, passed away October 18,1937. I had two sisters, Virginia
and Irene, four brothers, Virgil, James, Kenneth, and Leo Givens, who deceased
when he was six weeks old. I also had two half sisters, Martha (deceased) and
Ermie, one half brother Jennings. Erma was five years old and Martha seven years
old when I was born so we grew up together and they were so good to me always.
When I was growing up they could sew and made me clothes. I had a good mother
and father and we always had a good home. My dad worked on the coal tipple. He
weighed coal and raun the monitor that took the coal down to another tipple and
dumped in Rail road cars and it was houlded away to different places. My brother
also worked with my dad. My mother always made pretty curtains. She could do
embroidry work so pretty and made pillow cases out of feed sacks and pretty
scarves (that's who you take after to make such pretty things (to jaine)). We
lived in a big 6 room house, with three rooms up stairs and three down, two big
long halls. I can't remember to much about my little years. The one thing I can
remember most was hiding my mother's wedding band and another gold ring. She had
them on a shelf and I climbed up on a chair and got them, my Aunt and uncle
lived out the road from us and I hid them dug a hole in the ground, put them in
it and covered them up. I finally remembered where I put them the next day. We
went to a one room school that taught thru the eighth grade but we loved it. My
mother cooked mostly in a three legged iron pot, she would put it on the fire
place grate the way we heated our house she always cooked beans or something
everyday she also had iron skillets. She liked to bake sugar cookies and always
had us a big crock full covered with a clean dish towel. We had no paper towels,
toilet paper or napkins like we have now we had a cow and had our own milk,
butter and cottage cheese. I always helped my mom churn and fix the milk and
butter. We also had hogs and chickens and canned our meat and vegetables. No
refrigatars or anything like that. We had a phonograph and organ my Dad bought
me the organ and I would play. Everybody around came in and sang hyms. He played
the banjo. Also the "Wildwood Flower" my favorite The grown ups would visit each
other and sit on the porch and talki, the kids would play. We used to play hide
and seek. Hershaol, play in the sand house We had to carry our water no
electricily in the house we burned oil lamps. Caught our wash water in big
barrels washed clothes on a washe board and hung them outside to dry, had
outside toilets with a Sears Catalogue for toilet paper. In my teen years there
was lots of things to do, There was pie suppers where the girls would take a pie
and the boy would buy it and eat with them, usually the boy friend and he would
end up walking you home. We went to silent movies, roller skating and square
dancing. Ice cream suppers at the Neighbors house. A lot of our clothes were
like they are now. I always wore mostly sweaters and skirts I had a full pleated
skirt it was plaid they called them butterfly skirts that and a red sweater was
my square dancing outfit and black loafers. We always done house work for people
thats all the work there was, but me and my sisters always had pretty clothes. I
always had some boy friends that bought me pretty presents_ I had lots of
friends, male and female- I met Adam Richardson (your handsome grandpa) when I
was nineteen and that was the end of all the others. He came back from the Army,
his home was not far from mine but I had never seen him we got married June 19,
1934 when I was 20 and he was 25. Then we started our family. My baby brother
Kenneth and Irene came to live with us after our mother passed away. Helen was
born June 26 1935 She was a regular play pretty for all of us. In March 24-37
Shug was born, my mother also died that year when Shug was seven months old She
was pretty too Then in Dec 31-39 our first boy Adam Wade was born It was such a
joy he was so sweet Then in March 6-1942 Sylvia was born another great joy she
was also so sweet, Then in June 7 1944 my baby boy George was born he has always
been a joy when he was 5 mo. old he had polio. It almost broke our heart he God
was so good even tho he still has troubles he is still with me and so good to
me- we moved to Eccles WV another coal camp and Connie was born 6 yrs later
June 21-1950 the good ole years. Adam your Granpa worked in the coal mines there
finally we moved to Larado, then back to Lawton on to Glen Rodgers WVA finally
to Beckley, WV and we got our home here in Mt. Hope, WV- We had lots of hard
times and heartaches but we stuck together because we loved each other enough
Grandpa passed away from cancer May 27-79 so you see I have had good times and
bad times but I am still at Mt. Hope- 81 yrs old and still able to get around
good so I thank God for everything Lots of things you know I can't think of to
write maybe you can read it. I am no good with recorders. Now I have 17 Grand
Children and 23 Great Grand children. I love them all with all my heart you
Janie will always have a special place in my heart. I'm looking forward to my
Great Great Grand children. I want to add a few things about World War two. Two
of my brothers were in that war. Jim was in England in the Medical Care. Kenneth
was already in the Army stationed in Ice land, He went into Normady with the
first troops a light machine gunner. He was gone 5 yrs. before we got to see him
again we had a hard time during the war lots of things were rationed, we books
with stamps in them. Shoes, sugar, tea coffee, oleo were some of the things that
were rationed. The war started in Dec 41 and ended in June of 44 but I made it
with help of God. My wonderful husband who also provided for all of us and my
loving children whom we loved dearly and I still do- I love my Grand children
and Great Grand children my son in laws and my daughter-in-laws. So Jaine her
you have what I can remember most. February 18, 1995 Sat. Evening I love you and
hope how soon your book is published. Sylvia says it is a good one.
My Mountain
Lord,
I have a mountain in my life you know which one, the one I keep trying to climb.
Time after time and keep sliding back down. Humble and discouraged, this
mountain is so high I can't even see the top, looking back though, I see so
many mountains I have climbed only by your strength and wisdom. Even tho this
one seems to be the worst one yet. Help me to trust and someday I'll look back
and wonder as with all the others where "my climbing faith was". Amen Jaine with
Love Grandma Sunday Nite Feb 5- 1995 Twenty Min. till nine o'clock
BIRTH: Memories of my Childhood
I was born in a coal mining town in a Fayette Co. mining town in West Virginia.
My father's name Theodore Givens Kincaid. My mother Eliza Ellen O'Connor Kincaid.
There wasn't too much to live on, but we always had enough to eat and wear and a
good bed to sleep in my ad worked on the coal tipple. He weighed coal and run
the monitor running coal down the mountain, where it was dumped in the railroad
cars and hauled to different places. We always had a pretty and clean home. My
mother could embroidry so pretty. She also made our clothes. We didn't have very
much to entertain ourselves. There wasn't many places to go. We went
rollerskating, silent movies as we grew and after that we went to square dances.
There wasn't any real work except doing house work thats what I done to buy my
clothes when women had their babies I stayed with them. I always helped my
mother take care of my brothers and sisters. I had three sisters and four
brothers also two step sisters and a step brother. We had to work hard, we had
to carry our water about 1/4 mile and also carried our coal from the tipple we
caught our water in big barrels to wash clothes we had a coal stove to cook on
and open grates to heat our house. My mother cooked in mostly iron pots and
kettles. She had a iron pot with legs on it she always cooked beans in it. We
had chickens, hogs, and a cow and always raised a big garden. We had to can
every thing in glass fruit jars for there wasn't any refrigators back then. We
had to bathe in a wash tub and we washed on a wash board and hung our clothes on
a clothes line to dry them. We went to school in a one room school house that
had only one teacher, but it was a good life and we enjoyed it. After I grew
up, I got married to Adam Richardson. I met him when he came back home from the
Army. We went to a movie in Rainelle, WVA and we got married the next year June
19-34 We had six wonderful children. four girls and two boys. Adam workied in
the coal mines, the same place my Dad and brothers worked. We lived close to my
mom and dad and every morning I would get Adam off to work I would go down to my
Mom and Dad's house and build the fires and get breakfast. We always had a cow
but I never could milk her. We always had chicken, hogs and dogs. We bought our
first refrigater in nineteen forty one- I always churned and had our milk and
butter. made cottage cheese. our favorite cake was a sheet cake cut in half and
bananas and white seafoam icing between the layers. We lived on a farm in Danese
WV close to Adam's home when Helen was four yrs old and Shug Catherine was 2
yrs old. I always helped Adam's mother can fruit and vegetables we made apple
butter under a big maple tree and made it in a big brass kittle, we stired the
apple butter with a home made stirrer. we mad 15 gal at one time. She always
made it with transparent apples, flavored it with lemon, oranges cut up and
plenty of cloves to make it good. then we put it in jars and sealed it. We moved
from the farm back to Hemlock in Dec. 1939 when Adam Wade was born on Dec 31-39
we moved around a lot just in different houses. Sylvia and George were also born
there, but we finally moved to Eccles, WV in Raliegh Co. and Connie was born
there.
transcribed by Patricia Withrow Hiser Oct. 5, 1998 from grandma Richardson's
notes she sent to me.
copyright@ Patricia Hiser 02.07.2000 jmhiser@yahoo.com
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