My papa was Charles Spitler, Sr. Papa and uncle Jim (James W. Huffman ) owned 450 acres of mountain land called the Pinnacles. They would take cattle up to the mountain in May and leave them until fall. They would leave home about daylight and meet each other on the mountain. They would ride horseback up the mountain every two weeks to take salt and feed to the cattle. They had a cabin up there. The Appalachian Trail people wanted a trail through there, so they built a stone house near the spring and the property owners could use it. The government eventually took over the land for the park.
Uncle Jim's first wife was papa's sister aunt Kathryn (Katie) Spitler. I remember her as a very good person, who was friendly and a devoted mother of nine children. They were a very close family. She died at the age of 45 when her youngest child Kathleen was only 10 months old. After about 7 years uncle Jim married Fannie Hoak who helped raise the younger children.
Uncle Jim was a good Christian man who sat in the same church pew every Sunday. I believe his favorite seat was in the second row near the front of the church. He was a hardworking quite man and also a good mediator in solving conflicts. Uncle Jim was a stout man and hardworking farmer who liked horses, made brooms, and ran a molasses mill.
The molasses mill was down near the creek behind the farm house in Ida. The concrete block is still there today. My brother Clark who was a horse lover would stay with the horses that were used to walk around in circles to run the press. The sugar cane stalk was pressed between two round rollers. The rollers kept going as the horse walked in circles. The sugar cane juice was put in pans and then cooked.
Uncle Jim had cattle, work horses and raised grain. Old Dan was one of their most faithful riding horses. Dan is the horse that Melvin (Mike) rode to school. Mike and uncle Jim took the kids to school in a hack. The hack was like a wagon with a bed on the back with seats and was pulled by two work horses. Mike was the main one who drove. He liked to let someone else drive so he could shoot his slingshot along the way. One time coming through Stony Man he hit the telephone wire of old Mr. Andrew Comer and knocked out his phone service. I think Mr. Comer got after him for that.
Old Dan lived long enough for Harry, Ray and Mike to ride. One time Ray was up at Stony Man where we all gathered on Sunday. By golly, he would always bring old Dan who didn't like for two people to ride him. This Sunday evening Doc Spitler's daughter Melva and Mary Varner were there. Ray put both the girls on Dan and he started kicking up and threw Mary off. Melva was kind of a tomboy and she stayed on, but Mary couldn't stay on. I never forgot old Dan.
Brooms were made from broom corn which was grown on the farm. The seeds were cleaned from the stalk and put in a broom machine. The handle was attached to the broom corn and uncle Jim would sew it. I have two original brooms that have never been used.
Vernon Huffman lived at the home-place of uncle Jim. Aunt Essie, uncle Jim's sister married Newt Varner, who was my wife Marie's brother. Aunt Essie and uncle Newt built a second house there near the home place.
The Varner sisters aunt Kate, Ellen and Becky lived across from the Ida farm. The old farm house had a long front porch and a cool spring house.
Growing up we used to play a game called Hidee Hoop (hide & seek) one person would hide their eyes while everyone else hid. The first person found was next to hide their eyes.
We had a General Store in Stony Man where we bought clothes and food. That was where we would hang out. We went to school in the old two room schoolhouse in Stony Man. We drove a pony and cart to school and carried drinking water for the school. We had a very strict teacher who walked very straight. Some of us called her old lady Biggerstaff. She lived on Doc Spitler's property. I understand Kathleen also remembers this teacher.
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