I Don't Know If I Am Ready

 December 31, 2024, my step-father died. He was 87, and missing my Mother so much. She died just 14 months before him. The Coroner said he had a massive heart attack, which makes sense as his heart was broken. He was gone before he hit the floor.Thankfully he did not suffer.

It snowed and got bitterly cold after that. I love snow normally. This time was different. At one point there was somewhere between 10 - 15 inches of snow out my window. Today it is raining, but cold, and I think the snow that is still hanging around is icier than it was. We're waiting for another bitter wave of temps coming at us.

So, what might be the most disturbing and scary year of my life, and I am almost 71, has begun. I've always thought of the new year started on my birthday. I mean, technically that seems reasonable since it really will be a new year for me. So I have a few weeks before I count it. January is just a trial run. A window into my future.

How has this January new year started? A funeral, drones and aliens, bitter weather, fire, and now fear. Many of my ancestors fought and some died to make and keep this country free. Most of my family are all in and happy about what is coming. To me it makes for a lonely time as I have been on the other side of the situation. I have lost my faith in the people of this country. I am resolved to believe that in the end, truth, decency, freedom and justice will win. I hope I live to see justice done!

What have I done so far?  I grieve. I deleted my Instagram (Threads), and Facebook. I haven't had Twitter for a long time. There is no longer any news channels in my house. I look online for reputable news sources.  I do have Bluesky and Mastodon.  I BLOCK TROUBLE and it brings such peace.

I've also gotten all of my bag patterns made into books, making it so much less messy to create one project, than having pattern pages everywhere.

 In family history: I use Family Historian and have a different way of working. Better organized, thanks to Drew Smith ("Organize Your Genealogy"). I have a folder full of sources to do, a folder of sources to scan, a folder to transcribe, and WikiTree to work on. Want to make a dent this year. Let's see how it goes.                                          

 

 

 

An Explosion of Death

 

This is just another GenWeb story.  I've been trying to get new data on my newest adoption, Leslie County, Kentucky. The first thing I decided to tackle was the Leslie County Mine Fatalities. So, I always take a peek at how I did it in the other counties so that things stay uniform. First discovery of the day is: I misspelled fatalities on the other two sites. So, I was ready to begin after I fixed that dumb mistake.   

Coal was called "Black Gold". Leslie County is deep in Appalachia, real coal country. It really is "black gold" only to the mine owners. To the miners it was "black death".  If you could live to retirement age, there was the looming diagnosis of Black Lung.  At least 16% of miners suffer from that in their retirement years.  Most of the time mining was the only job around. 

I transcribe from the government list the names of the men that died in mine accidents up to about 2005 or 2006, date of death and cause of death. When I got to December 30, 1970, I just kept typing a different name, same date and same cause. Explosion. It went on for 38 entries. I could not leave that. I just googled December 30, 1970 mine explosion, not even saying where.  It was the Hurricane Creek mine disaster just outside the town of Hyden, in Leslie County, Kentucky. The mine was inspected in November and found to have so many problems it should have been shut down. But, jobs, you know. The inspector told the owner that it would be shut down if they did not have everything fixed by the December 22nd inspection. I could just imagine a wink, wink, nudge, nudge. That inspection did not happen. Not enough inspectors, of course. The men knew it was going to be a disaster at some point. They had etched their social security numbers on their belts so they could be identified. In the end, for most of the bodies, that was exactly how they were identified. In a court of law, the owner, Charles Findley, was found guilty of the deaths in the mine. He paid a fine and walked. There is a lot on the Hurricane Mine disaster online and it is easy to find, so I won't go on and on.

Sometimes, what I do is so emotionally exhausting. This was one of those days. The men are aged from 16 to 60. Several sets of brothers, including a set of twins. 

In some cases, and this was one, I make it a point to read aloud each name, so that for a moment they live again, and know they are not forgotten.

Walter Bentley

Billy J. Bowling

Grover Bowling, Jr.

Teddy Bush

Fred Collins

Kenople Collins

Lonnie Collins 

Alonzo Couch 

Holt Couch 

Howard Couch

Carl Ghent

Alfred Gibson

Lawrence Gray

Theo Griffin

Lester Harris

Delbert Henson

Price Henson

Walter Hibbard

George Holland

Ben Hoskins

Frank Hoskins

Kermit Hubbard

Jim Jones

Rufus Jones

James C. Minton

Lee Mitchell

Russell Morgan

Earl Phillips

Stanley Roberts

Arnold Sizemore

Wilbert Smith

Jeffie Spurlock

Albert Wagers

Armond Wagers

Arnold Wagers

Elmer White

Andrew D. Whitehead

Denver Young 

We're all family, really.

Ernest Cleveland Brock, Son of Frank

 In my descendancy research on the family of Francis Marion "Frank" Brock, I am learning more about him, as well as his children. His son, Ernest Cleveland Brock, my great-granduncle, born 12 August 1895 in McMinn County, Tennessee, was a tragic story that had to impact his father, Frank. Ernest served in the army in World War I, and as far as I can tell, never married. 

I've been trying to find as many obituaries as I can while I have a sub to Newspapers.com. The following articles were found there, and I'm adding further source material to each separate article.  Transcribed articles are in italics.

The first one is: 

Nashville Banner

Nashville, Tennessee

Wednesday, 8 July 1931

Page 16

Train Kills Ernest Brock

Benton, Tenn., July 8 - (AP) - A section crew of the L. & N. Railroad Wednesday found the mangled body of Ernest Brock, 20, on the tracks south of Ocoee. He was identified by his picture and receipts in a pocketbook. He was the son of Frank Brock, formerly of Benton.

It seems it was quite a story, as others also reported it.

Kingsport Times

Kingsport, Tennessee

Thursday, 9 July 1931

Page 1

FIND BODY ON TRACKS

BENTON, Tenn., July 8 (AP) - A section crew of the L. and N. Railroad today found the mangled body of Ernest Brock, 20, on the tracks south of Ocoee. He was identified by his picture and receipts in a pocketbook. He was the son of Frank Brock, formerly of Benton.

And this:

The Knoxville Journal

Knoxville, Tennessee

Thursday, 9 July 1931

Page 2

SHOE OFF

Removing Cinders When Killed By L & N Train.

(Knoxville Journal Special)

BENTON, July 8 - Struck by a train presumably when he had sat down on the tracks of the L & N to remove cinders from his shoes. Ernest Brock, 37, of Polk county, was killed about 8 a.m. today at the junction with the Parksville railroad two miles below Ocoee. The severed body was found beside the tracks an hour later, with one shoe off. It is supposed he was sitting on the tracks when the train rounded a sharp curve. Surviving are his father, eight brothers and three sisters. Funeral services were held today.

And then there was this:

Chattanooga Daily Times

Chattanooga, Tennessee

Thursday, 9 July 1931

Page 14

TRAIN KILLS VAGABOND AT PARKSVILLE JUNCTION

Chattanooga Times Special.

BENTON, Tenn., July 8 - Ernest Brock, 35, a vagabond, was killed early this morning by a Louisville & Nashville train at Parksville Junction, south of Ocoee. His body was badly mangled. 

The body was found this morning, but it was several hours before identification was completed. He was identified by receipts and photographs found in his pockets. He was the son of Frank Brock, formerly of Benton, who now resides near Cleveland.  For several years, it was said, Brock had been restless and traveled from one town to another, never staying long at one place.

Funeral services were held this afternoon at 3 o'clock at Cookston Creek cemetery, with the Rev. R. A. Presswood officiating.

Oops! The injustice is dealt with swiftly!

Chattanooga Daily Times

Chattanooga, Tennessee

Sunday, 12 July 1931

Page 17

INJUSTICE DEALT MEMORY OF BROCK

Benton Man Was Respected Citizen-Legion Decries Term "Vagabond."

Chattanooga Times Special.

BENTON, Tenn., July 11 - Expression of regret over the use of the term vagabond as applied to Ernest Brock, former Benton resident, in an obituary in The Times July 9 was contained in a resolution passed by the American Legion post here last night.

Brock was killed by a train at Parksville on July 8.

The resolution stated that Brock was a member of the Polk County post of the American Legion in good standing and that he was an honorably discharged soldier of the World War, having served in Company E. Forty-sixth infantry, with other members of the local post. He was given a good character and reputation by the local legionnaires.

Reference to Brock as a "vagabond" was declared to have been a "gross misrepresentation."

"He spent his entire life in this community and was always self-supporting and generally had a regular job" the resolution stated. It is known that he was a hard worker. He was carried to the cemetery at the grave the flag was presented to his nearest kin in remembrance of his military service.

"Post No. 169 of the American Legion desires The Times to publish this letter and make corrections of this news item so that justice may be done in the memory of this deceased legionnaire and his family."

The resolution was signed by Winston H. Prince, chairman of the committee appointed to make the correction.

                                                                 -------------------

The Times regrets the inappropriate and erroneous use of the term "vagabond" in the story of the death of Mr. Brock. The expression was in correctly used in a revision of the notice submitted by the paper's correspondent at Benton due in a misinterpretation of the information. Apology is hereby offered to the family of Mr. Brock and to his friends of the American Legion.

The death certificate states that Ernest was 34 years, 10 months and 26 days old. His younger brother, Dewey, is listed as the informant, but his father was unable to read or write, so I believe that played a large role in Dewey, George Dewey Brock, handling things that might require reading and signing things. 

This had to be a horrible time for the family. Not just losing a son or brother, but how they lost him. Then the newspaper tries to sensationalize the tragedy. Somethings never change. I only wish I could have found more about his life.

Sources: 

Newspapers.com (more with article)

FamilySearch.: Tennessee Deaths, 1914-1966

"Tennessee Deaths, 1914-1966,"
database with images,
FamilySearch
(https://familysearch.org/ark:/619
03/1:1:N9LY-33N : 1 March 2021),
Earnest Broch, 18 Jul 1931; Death,
Polk, Tennessee, United States,
Tennessee State Library and
Archives, Nashville.