Tombstone Tuesday: Gladys M. Lane Schooler

Gladys Mayona Lane Schooler

Gladys Mayona Lane was the second child of William and Martha Pierce Lane.  Born on April 2, 1906, Aunt Gladie lived a wonderful 92 years before she passed away on January 15, 1999.  She is buried beside her husband, James A. Schooler, and their son, William J. Schooler, in Hurst Cemetery in Middlesboro, Kentucky.  Join me for my next few posts to find out more about this dear lady.

Headstone of Gladys Lane Schooler
Hurst Cemetery, Middlesboro, Kentucky

Edith Naoma Lane

Edith Naoma Lane

This is my favorite photo of my Aunt Edie. I love the huge smile on her face! Number 3 of William and Martha Pierce Lane's children, Edith Naoma was born on March 24, 1908, in Clairfield, Tennessee. By the time she was two, she and the family were living in nearby Anthras. Papaw was working in the coal mines, and Granny was taking care of three young children.

In 1925, when Edith was only 16 or 17 years old, she eloped with Clarence D. Mayes who was ten years her senior.  They remained in Claiborne County, Tennessee, where both of their families lived.  Clarence worked as a coal miner and Edith was a housewife.  All this information is verified in the 1930 United States Federal Census.  What I can't verify are the elopement stories told my mom, Betty, and my aunt, Ruth, Edith's younger sisters.  My grandmother would have been pregnant with my mom, and Aunt Ruth would have been only eight years old when Edith and Clarence eloped.  Both, however, often told stories about the night Edith snuck out of the house and met Clarence, and of how the two of them ran off through the fields, climbing over fences and rocks while my papaw yelled after them to stop.

Edith Lane with her second husband, Earl

Sisters Ruth and Edith Lane

At some point after 1930, Edith and Clarence divorced, and Aunt Edie moved to Cincinnati.  My mom often talked of visiting her big sister in the city and of what fun that was.  Aunt Edie would marry two more times.  Her second husband, named Earl, I know very little about.  Her third husband was Herbert William (Bill) Janssen who was born in Holland in 1899.  Bill had been married previously as well and had a son, Eric.  Aunt Edith never had any children of her own.

Aunt Edith and Uncle Bill eventually settled in Florida, and Bill passed away there in 1980.  Edith remained in Florida for a while, but shortly after my Uncle Nolan died, she moved to Middlesboro, Kentucky, to be close to her sisters, Betty and Ruth.  My cousin and Edith's niece, Betty Jo McManaway, moved Aunt Edie into her home in Harrogate, Tennessee, and took care of her when it became difficult for Edie to live by herself.  Edith died, according to her death certificate, of an "acute cerebral infection" on June 11, 1992, at age 84.

Edith Lane Janssen

Sources:

1930 United States Federal Census
Tennessee Delayed Birth Records, 1869-1909
New York Naturalization Records, 1897-1944
Commonwealth of Kentucky Certificate of Death #15409

Family Recipe Friday: Betty's Fried Corn

Betty Lane Lee's Recipe for Fried Corn

FOUND--the recipe my mom used to make her fried corn!  I knew how Mom made fresh fried corn, but I never knew she had an actual recipe for it.  While looking through one of her old cookbooks this week, I found this index card with a recipe from a newspaper taped to it.  This is indeed how she made it, and it was yummy!  Just thinking about Mom's fried corn reminds me of summer suppers in the mountains, and that's a sweet memory to relish on this icy February morning in the Bluegrass.

The old newspaper clipping is difficult to read, so here's a transcription of the recipe:

Fried Corn

6 to 8 medium ears of tender corn

1/2 C. bacon drippings

1 C. milk or cream

1 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. pepper

Cut kernels from cob. Scrape the ear to remove all the milk.  Have skillet very hot; add bacon drippings and corn.  Let the corn crust but not burn.  Stir constantly for five minutes, until thick.  Add milk or cream.  Season with salt and pepper.  Cover and let simmer for 15 minutes or until thick.  Serves 4-6.

Betty Lane Lee & Frank Welch Lee in their kitchen
Middlesboro, Kentucky, c. 1980

Mom would use an iron skillet, and I know she used more than 1/8 tsp. of pepper and probably more salt than the recipe calls for.  My dad would hope for Hickory Cane corn--his favorite.  He would often get it from friends and customers who would visit his drug store, Lee's, in downtown Middlesboro, Kentucky.

Jessie Bertie Lane

Jessie Bertie Lane

When I was a little girl growing up in Middlesboro, Kentucky, I LOVED going to my Aunt Jessie's house.  At that time (late 1960s and early 1970s), she and her family lived in Middlesboro, too, and only three or four miles from our house.  But while we lived in just a regular old house in a regular old neighborhood, Aunt Jessie lived on a farm.  Not a big farm, maybe not even a farm at all, but she had a barn and all sorts of animals.  Dogs, cats, chickens, a rooster, cows--and even apple trees. I thought it was great!

My Aunt Jessie, full name Jessie Bertie Lane, was the fourth child of William and Martha Pierce Lane.  She was born on September 18, 1909, in Clairfield, Tennessee.  With three older siblings and four younger ones, Jessie grew up as one of the middle children in this big family.

Jessie Lane and Wallace Greene

Jessie Patricia Greene
2 months

Jessie married Wallace Wesley Green on February 23, 1932, in Hickman, Tennessee. At age 22, this was Jessie's first (and only) marriage.  Wallace, 30 years old at the time, had been married before and had two children.  In the early 1940s, Jessie and Wallace had their one and only child together, my sweet cousin, Patsy, or Jessie Patricia Greene.

Jessie and Patsy Greene

For a while, Aunt Jessie and her family lived in Cambria, Virginia, and then they came to live for a while in Middlesboro on that wonderful farm that I loved to visit. Sometime in the 1970s, the Greens moved back to Virginia, settling in the town of Rocky Mount in Franklin County.  Wallace died in 1975, and Aunt Jessie died in 1982 at age 72.  Both are buried in Rocky Mount.

Wordless Wednesday: Some Lane Cousins

Cousins
(l to r)  Elizabeth Lane Lee, Pamela Reedy, Tim Patrick, Terry Keith Reedy, Jim Patrick
Middlesboro, KY, c. 1963

Roy B. Lane (Uncle B)

When I began this blog, I really didn't know where or how to start.  I knew, however, that if I didn't just jump right in and do it, I would worry myself to death trying to plan and make everything perfect--and the blog would never have come to life.  So I began with one of my favorite photos of my mom and that led to some recollections and details about her life.  Thus, my first blog post.  Since then, the blog has just evolved, and I guess it will continue to do so.  That's what's working for me, and I hope it will work for my readers, too.

Roy B. Lane

So, it seems I'm working my way back, youngest to oldest, through the eight children of William B. Lane and Martha Ann Pierce.

8.  Betty Jewel Lane--check

7. Myrtle Ruth Lane--check

Today, let me introduce you to #6. Roy B. Lane, my Uncle B.

Betty and Ruth's older brother, Roy, or "B" as he was always called, was born on October 20, 1914, in Anthras, Tennessee.  Yes, Anthras was yet another coal mining community my grandparents settled in so my papaw could find work.

Roy B. Lane
c. 1915

Growing up, B moved with the family from Anthras to Eagan to Pruden, and then finally into "town" in Lafollette, Claiborne County, Tennessee.

Roy B. Lane with baby sister, Betty Jewel
Pruden, Tennessee, c. 1926

As a young man, B went to work in a steel mill, and he married the beautiful Mildred L. Wagner (1921-2000).  B and "Millie" had their first son, Richard M. Lane on August 27, 1939, in Middlesboro, Kentucky.  By 1940, according to the U. S. Federal Census, B, Millie, and baby Richard were living with B's parents in Middlesboro.  Uncle B had developed tuberculosis, and he and Millie were expecting their second child.  Phillip David Lane was born in Middlesboro on October 1, 1941.  Sadly, B died only a few weeks later on November 26.  He was buried in the Lafollete (TN) Cemetery.

Roy B. Lane and son Richard
c. 1940

Mildred Wagner Lane
c. 1935

Tombstone Tuesday: M. Ruth Lane Williamson

Gravestone of Ruth Lane Williamson
Hurst Cemetery, Middlesboro, Kentucky
Photo taken c. 2004

As I'm sure you've guessed by now, the focus of my blog this week is my wonderful Aunt Ruth.  She developed Alzheimer's Disease in her later years, and her daughter, Betty Jo Williamson McManaway, brought  her to live with her at her home in Harrogate, Tennessee.  Aunt Ruth died on July 11, 1997, due to complications from Alzheimer's.  She is buried in the William B. Lane family plot in Hurst Cemetery in Middlesboro, Kentucky.

Tombstone Tuesday: Betty Jo Williamson McManaway

In my last post, I talked a bit about my cousin, Betty Jo Williamson McManaway. Today's post is a brief follow-up about her grave site which is located in Middlesboro, Kentucky.  Betty, who died in 2006, is buried in the William B. Lane family plot in Hurst Cemetery.  Her headstone, to be shared one day with her husband Michael, is located directly in front of the Lane family marker.

Headstone of Betty J. Williamson and her husband Michael McManaway

Detail of  Headstone (above)

Remembering Betty Jo Williamson McManaway

Betty Jo Williamson, c. 1947

Today my beautiful first cousin, Betty Jo Williamson McManaway, would have turned 71.  Like me, Betty Jo is the granddaughter of William B. and Martha Pierce Lane.  She's the daughter of M. Ruth Lane and Joe Williamson, the mother of Joy J. Goins Lewis and L. Joe Goins, and the grandmother of Megan Goins, Matthew Goins, and Olivia Johnson.

Born in Middlesboro, Kentucky, on January 13, 1942, Betty Jo spent most of her life in Bell County, Kentucky, and just over the mountain in Claiborne County, Tennessee.  Growing up, I always envied her gorgeous dark hair and lovely blue eyes.  It was always a joy to hear her laugh or to eat a meal that she cooked, and she was one of the hardest-working people I've known.  More than anything, though, I think Betty Jo loved being a mom to her two children and a grandmother to their children.  She died of a massive stroke on November 15, 2006, and is buried in the William B. Lane family plot in Middlesboro's Hurst Cemetery.

Betty Jo & Ruth Williamson
c. 1952

Betty Jo Williamson
c. 1960

Betty Jo W. McManaway & Joy Goins Lewis
2006

  

Tombstone Tuesday: William and Martha Lane

My grandparents, William Bowman Lane and Martha Ann Pierce Lane, are buried in Hurst Cemetery in my hometown of Middlesboro, Kentucky.  My mom, Betty Jewel Lane, the focus of my first couple of blog posts, was their youngest child.

Lane Family Tombstone, 2004

My grandmother died of a massive stroke in 1954, and was the first to be buried in this family plot.  My grandfather died in 1964 and was buried beside his wife of more than 50 years.

Martha Ann Lane's Headstone

My grandmother was seventy years old when she passed away.  Her children chose to have a verse from the 23rd Psalm (Granny's favorite) inscribed on her headstone:  Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.

William B. Lane's Headstone

I'm not exactly sure how old my grandfather was when he died, but I'm fairly certain the birth date on his headstone is incorrect.  My Papaw, you see, was so eager to be like his big brother, Andy, and join the Army, that he lied about his age when he signed up for service.  He served proudly in the Spanish American War, and he would have been so pleased with his army-issued headstone.

To find out more about Hurst Cemetery, go to http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=cr&CRid=74540.  Hurst Cemetery is located in front of and adjacent to the larger Middlesboro Cemetery.

Betty Jewel Lane (1926-1992)

Red hair, blue eyes, an easy laugh, and sometimes a fiery temper, Betty Jewel Lane was the youngest of William Bowman Lane and Martha Pierce Lane's eight children.  My mom was born in Pruden, Tennessee, where her daddy worked as a coal miner and where the family lived in a company-owned house beside the railroad tracks.

Betty Jewel Lane (r) and her nephew Billy Schooler
Pruden, Tennessee, c. 1932

Her siblings were Gladys, Leland, Edith, Jessie, Nolan, Roy, and Ruth.  Mom always said that even though they were a poor family, they were happy.  Mom adored her parents and her brothers and sisters, and she was especially close to Gladys, who helped raise her, and to Nolan and Ruth.  With her family, she later moved to Lafollette, Tennessee, where she graduated from high school, and then to Middlesboro, Kentucky.

Betty Jewel Lane, c. 1945
Lafollette (TN) High School

In Middlesboro, Mom worked as a clerk in Lee's Drug Store where she met my dad, Frank Welch Lee.  They married in 1959, and I came along in 1961.  They also had another child, my little brother, Frank Lewis Lee II, who was born in 1962.  It was a difficult birth and my brother died when he was only two days old.  I don't think Mom ever really got over the loss of my brother, but I do think she loved being my mom.





1959 Marriage Announcement of
Betty Jewel Lane and Frank Welch Lee



Just Married, August 5, 1959
Betty Jewel Lane and Frank Welch Lee
Rose Hill, Virginia

When I started first grade, Mom, at the age of 40, started college.  Four years later, she graduated magna cum laude from Lincoln Memorial University with a major in sociology.  She worked for a number of years as a social worker in Bell County, Kentucky.  Mom passed away much too soon in 1992 from acute plasma cell leukemia.

Betty Lane Lee, 1971
Graduation from Lincoln Memorial University
Harrogate, Tennessee

Mom was a voracious reader, she loved to play golf, and she was an avid Tennessee Vols fan.  She liked to talk, she laughed until she cried when watching Steve Martin's movie The Jerk, and she hated people who acted as if they were better than others. What I remember most about Mom, however, is how much she genuinely liked people.  She especially loved being around young people, always welcoming my friends and our neighbors into our home.  She was fiercely loyal to her family and her friends, and she was so proud of her heritage.  So I dedicate this blog to my beautiful mother, and I look forward finding out about my Lane family roots.  I also look forward to hearing from anyone who wants to connect and share information about our family.

Betty Jewell Lane, c. 1945