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Month: April 2015

Two Men and a Passel of Huntin’ Dogs

I’m going back to the first week that I missed (two weeks ago). The theme was “favorite photo”. I knew right away that I wanted to write about my Papa- Troy Columbus BATES- and also about my paternal great-great-grandfather Alford Allen HUBBARD. Even though these two men were from opposite sides of my family and were born 34 years apart, they share a few things in common. One that I find intriguing is that they both owned the same piece of land in Delaware County, Oklahoma, but at different times. They also both had middle names that were handed down through generations in their respective families.

The other thing they have in common is that they both loved to hunt with their coon dogs. I have a photo of the men each with their own pack of hunting dogs. Those are two of my favorite photos.

My grandpa, Troy "Lum" Bates with one of his hunting dogs and 4 coons they got on a hunting trip.
My grandpa, Troy “Lum” Bates with one of his hunting dogs and 4 coons they got on a hunting trip.

^^ Troy “Lum” BATES with one of his hunting dogs and a nights’ worth of ‘coon hides.

My great-great-grandpa Alford Allen Hubbard and three of his hunting dogs.
My great-great-grandpa Alford Allen Hubbard and three of his hunting dogs.

^^ Alford Allen HUBBARD with several of his hunting dogs.

TROY COLUMBUS BATES

Troy was always called Lum. I never knew him to be called anything else. Columbus is a BATES family name that was handed down through the generations in Papa’s family. He was born to Albert and Dettie (GIBSON) BATES in 1912 in Benton County, Arkansas. He lived in Benton County until at least 1940. Sometime after the 1940 census, he and his wife Jessie, and their family would move to McDonald County, Arkansas. Lum and Jessie owned a grocery store and a cafe at different times throughout their lives. Lum once worked one day for the WPA during the depression. He walked off the job that same day because he wasn’t working and found it distasteful to draw a paycheck without working for it. He was very patriotic but never once voted. He had an extreme distaste for the government and was also very superstitious. He was known to go miles out of his way rather than cross the path of a black cat. He chewed Red Bull tobacco and always had a spittoon by his chair for as long as I can remember. He kept the house at least 100 degrees and always wore several layers of clothing even with the house that hot. He loved playing cards and he enjoyed watching Hee Haw when it was airing on television. But the one thing he truly loved to do more than most anything else was ‘coon hunt.

I remember when Papa BATES was keeping a young ‘coon in a cage. It sure was a mean little creature. If you got too close it would hiss at you like a cat. The only time Papa’s Georgia history came out was when he would yell at his hunting dogs. I never knew why he said “here” like that until I learned that his family was from Georgia and then it made sense why he said that word with the accent he did. Lum had lots of hunting adventures over the years.  Some recall a time he was out hunting and came across a huge marijuana patch.  My mom told me that Papa got so desperate to go hunting once that he actually took her and Aunt Mae with him so he could go hunting. That’s dedication- on their part and his! My dad recalled many hunting trips with Papa BATES including one where he got lost and ended up walking a couple extra miles because of it. Other family members threw in their hunting stories as well but my favorite hunting story is this one. When my son was about 9 or 10 we were visiting Granny and Papa. Papa took my son hunting with him, my dad, and my husband. I loved that my son got to share in that tradition while my grandpa was still well enough to do it with him. Derek talked about that hunting trip for years. Derek used to own a hat that looked much like the one Papa BATES always wore. When he wore it it always reminded me of Papa. Derek even had some senior photos taken with that hat on. I miss both of them deeply.  I was unable to locate any of my pictures of Papa Bates with his hat on, unfortunately.

One of DeReK's senior pictures. He wore a hat that reminded me of the hats my Papa Bates used to wear.
One of DeReK’s senior pictures. He wore a hat that reminded me of the hats my Papa Bates used to wear.

^^ DeReK with his “Lum” hat.

Portrait of Troy "Lum" and Jessie (Riter) Bates.
Portrait of Troy “Lum” and Jessie (Riter) Bates.

^^ Lum and Jessie BATES

Troy "Lum" and Jessie (Riter) Bates with two of their sons - David and Butch.
Troy “Lum” and Jessie (Riter) Bates with two of their sons – David and Butch.

^^The only picture I could find of Lum with his hat on.

ALFORD ALLEN HUBBARD

Alford was born in 1878 in Harrison County, Missouri to John Allen and Nancy Jane (CHAMBERS) HUBBARD. Even though Alford’s official documents spell his name “Alfred”, older members of the family insisted it was spelled “Alford” and that is how they said his name.  The name Allen has remained a family name handed down through the generations to the present day. Unlike my BATES family, my HUBBARD family did not stay put for long periods of time. Sometime after 1880 they left Harrison County, Missouri. In June of 1900 Alford was working as a Teamster in the railroad tie industry in Shannon County, Missouri. He was living in Cordz-Fisher Lumber Company’s camp as a boarder in the home of William and Nancy WOODS. Later that year he married Laura BUTLER in Douglas County, Missouri.

Cordz-Fisher Lumber Company Camp, Shannon County, Missouri.
Cordz-Fisher Lumber Company Camp, Shannon County, Missouri.

Cordz-Fisher Lumber Company Camp.  Photo found at http://thelibrary.org/lochist/periodicals/ozarkswatch/ow601h.htm.  This website has some other photographs and some interesting history about the lumber industry in Missouri around this time period.

By 1902, when their daughter Rosa was born, the family lived in Christian County, Missouri. Alford was working in a sawmill at the time of the 1910 census and the family was living in North Marion Township in Christian County, Missouri.
Although he listed his employment as being at the sawmill in 1910 and his residence as N. Marion Township, on his 1918 World War I Draft Registration he stated he was a farmer and living in Seymour, Webster County, Missouri.  His physical description states he was medium height and medium build.  He had blue eyes and brown hair. (See below.)

Alford Allen Hubbard's World War I Draft Registration Card.
Alford Allen Hubbard’s World War I Draft Registration Card.

By 1920, they were living in Webster County, Missouri where their youngest child Anna was born. Alford was working as a Tie Inspector at a Tie Yard (railroad ties). They had two sons and three daughters including my great-grandmother, Edith HUBBARD. (See my previous post for information about Edith at http://happy-girl-24.livejournal.com/15638.html).

Railroad Tie Yard.
Railroad Tie Yard.

^^ Railroad tie yard photo found at Missouri Digital Heritage http://cdm.sos.mo.gov/cdm/singleitem/collection/msaphotos/id/477/rec/4.

By 1930 they were in McDonald County, Missouri where Alford was working as a railroad tie buyer.  Below is a 1932 Delaware County, Oklahoma school census record for the family.

1932 Delaware County, Oklahoma school census record for Alford & Laura (Butler) Hubbard.
1932 Delaware County, Oklahoma school census record for Alford & Laura (Butler) Hubbard.

In 1940 they were in Delaware County, Oklahoma where Alford and Laura were living with a cousin named Alice Gann. They were listed as Alice’s caretakers. Below is a World War II Draft Registration card for Alford from circa 1945.

Alford Allen Hubbard's World War II Draft Registration Card.
Alford Allen Hubbard’s World War II Draft Registration Card.

Alford died in 1950 and is buried in South West City Cemetery in McDonald County, Missouri.

I don’t have many stories about Alford. I just have the facts I’ve been able to gather from documents.  I have lots of stories about Lum, but then you probably have many of your own.  So I’ll leave you to reminisce about your own experiences with Lum and reflect on the life of Alford.  The next time you hear a hound dog barking, maybe you’ll think of these men and the lives they led.  When you’re done reading and reminiscing, don’t forget to check these other blogs: http://downintherootcellar.blogspot.com, https://recipesfromlena.wordpress.com/, and https://theologyformom.wordpress.com/.


Until next week,
Lisa @ Days of Our Lives

My Granny

After a two-week hiatus I’m back and I brought a friend with me to write today. This week’s theme is “live long”. I knew right away that I wanted to write about my granny, Jessie Ann (RITER) BATES, for this week’s theme. Then my niece Ashley said she wanted to co-write a blog post about Granny and I knew this was perfect timing. There are many stories that can be told about Granny but I LOVE LOVE LOVE that one of our youngest up-and-coming family members wanted to write about Granny so much that she spent part of her spring break doing it. That’s dedication and love! So here is our blog post. We hope you love it. Please feel free to leave your memories of Granny BATES in the comments section.

Jessie (Riter) Bates and Troy "Lum" Bates.
Jessie (Riter) Bates and Troy “Lum” Bates.

^^ Granny and Papa right around the time they were married.

My grandma, Jessie (Riter) Bates.
My grandma, Jessie (Riter) Bates.
Jessie (Riter) Bates.
Jessie (Riter) Bates.

Few, if any, of us remember Granny as she was in the pictures above. But we all remember how much we loved her. These are Ashley’s memories of Granny:

When I was little I would go to my great grandma’s house with my grandma.

My great grandma had dementia and we got to look after her. We would go

to garage sales and play Yahtzee. Sometimes I would go pick apples off of

her apple tree in her front yard. Some days we would visit Aunt Mae before

we went to Great Nanny’s house. My Nanny Kay and I would also go

shopping and help Great Nanny shower. I will never forget the horribly sad

day when she passed away at 100 years old.

Jessie (Riter) Bates and her great-granddaughter (my niece) Ashley Drake.
Jessie (Riter) Bates and her great-granddaughter (my niece) Ashley Drake.

^^ Ashley and Granny.

Jessie (Riter) Bates at her 100th birthday party.
Jessie (Riter) Bates at her 100th birthday party.

^^ Granny at her 100th birthday party.  She always said she was going to live to be 100 years old.

I think Ashley captures Granny’s favorite pastimes perfectly. I also love that she said she “got” to look after Granny. Ashley already embodies the beautiful spirit of the BATES women who have always put family first and cared for their family members in all circumstances without complaint. She’s following a beautiful tradition of caregiving set by her parents, grandmother, great-grandmother, and great-great-grandmother. She also reflects the Christian spirit of caring for others. I’m so proud of her!

Here are a few more pictures of Granny for you to enjoy as you reflect on your own special memories of her.

My mom Kay, her parents - Troy "Lum" and Jessie (Riter) Bates-, and some of her siblings - Jerry, Mike, Troy, Dennis (?), Butch, and Paul.
My mom Kay, her parents – Troy “Lum” and Jessie (Riter) Bates-, and some of her siblings – Jerry, Mike, Troy, Dennis (?), Butch, and Paul.

^^ Granny with Papa and all her children except David and JD.  (By the way Ashley, behind them is the apple tree I remember when I was growing up.  Seems like Granny always had an apple tree.)

My grandparents - Troy "Lum" and Jessie (Riter) Bates-, and two of their sons - David and Butch.
My grandparents – Troy “Lum” and Jessie (Riter) Bates-, and two of their sons – David and Butch.

^^ Granny with David.

My mom and grandma - Kay and Jessie.
My mom and grandma – Kay and Jessie.

^^ Granny with Kay.  Love this one!

Jessie (Riter) Bates and two of her great-grandchildren (my children) - Shaina and Derek.
Jessie (Riter) Bates and two of her great-grandchildren (my children) – Shaina and Derek.

^^ Granny with Derek and Shaina.

Jessie (Riter) Bates quilting one of her quilts for the Christmas drawing.
Jessie (Riter) Bates quilting one of her quilts for the Christmas drawing.

^^ Granny quilting.  One of my all-time favorite pictures of Granny.


Don’t forget to check out Becky’s blog at http://downintherootcellar.blogspot.com/.  Also check out my friends’ genealogy blogs at https://theologyformom.wordpress.com/ and https://recipesfromlena.wordpress.com/.


Until next week,
~ Lisa at Days of Our Lives

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