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I was
born April 3, 1943 to Turner McAbee and Myrtle Mae Thompson
McAbee. I was the
third child with an older brother, Kenneth (Bud) McAbee and a
sister, Janet (Rachel) McAbee Mason. A forth child, Jimmy, would
come later in Wellford.
I
remember Jane used to take me to the movies and Abb’s
Corner for candy. I
remember a horror movie (at least to me) called the
Wizard of OZ. I
had bad dreams for days after about the Wicked Witch.
I
was actually born on
Popular Street
, but moved to
17 Oak Street
as a little blond–haired baby. Our house on
Oak Street
had an outhouse, but later, Bull Mason and his plumber
helper, Elmer, along with Joe Love, carpenter built our
indoor bathroom.
I
was lucky since to go to my MaMa’s and PaPa’s house
was just 3 houses up
Oak Street
on the opposite side. I
usually tried to be close to their house in the summer,
so when the Ice Cream man came, I could run in to get a
dime from my MaMa!
I
remember my neighbors on
Oak Street
. On my side
of the street were the Dobbins,
Berry
and Loree, who were like my adopted grandparents; Louis
and Bea Parks, and the kids, Kenneth and Barbara Parks.
My best memory of the Parks was their tubby white
dog, Jennie. If the dog was outside and it
thundered, Jennie would head for the first open door,
most times it was ours, and go under the bed.
Below
our house was Doc and Bonnie Freeman, with their kids,
Huey and. I
remember Mr. Freeman would drink a medicine called
Capadine in a small brown bottle, and throw the bottles
out to the back. We
kids would pick them up, wash them out and put water in
them and drink the water.
I
recall a old man, Dad Glassen and his wife who lived
below the Freemans. He
was an avid gardener and grew turnips and other
vegetables. I
can recall myself and Tommy Morton slipping down and
pulling up turnips, washing them and eating them…tummy
aches would follow. He
also grew Kudzu on strings to shade his front porch. He
talked funny…with an accent. We
would try to talk like him.
He was also a turtle fisherman and would eat
them.
Directly
across the street from our house, were the Bryson girls.
I remember
going over there and watching TV. I
would go over around 6:30 to watch the 30 minute Eddie
Fisher Show. They
would give me a small bottled Coke, and cookies, so I
was a big fan of the Bryson girls. (Ester, Minnie, Ethel
Nell)
Then,
there was our version of ‘Our Gang’. Jimmy
Bright lived at one end of the street and Ernie Southern
at the other. Then
in the middle was myself and Tommy Morton and his older
sister Judy. We
were a mischievous bunch. Claude
Pettis had game chickens and he would run us off from
his chicken houses on occasion.
The
mill had a lumber yard down behind the school and Jr.
West had a horse called Red Devil and we would sneak
down there and throw rocks to make the horse run and
kick up his heels. That
came to an end when he caught us down there.
I
grew to hate those privet shrubs around our house
because of all the whippings I got.
I
remember O’Shields’ fishing lake, The Community
Cash, Fred’s Service Station, Romeo Phillips car lot,
where my Dad bought and traded cars. Mr.
Olchtree and his shoe shop. Nora
Mason and her beauty shop.
I
remember
Vacation
Bible
School
and Ms. Carter, our teacher at the
Methodist
Church
. I remember haircuts at
Gary Lane
’s Barber. Going
to the Mill Store for school clothes, groceries and Mr.
Dink Davis, who was the manager. And
there was Clyde Cox at the service station and the drink
machines.
I
remember Sunday dinners at my MaMa’s house, with Aunt
Betty Brown, Uncle Walt and their kids. My
Uncle Lewis Thompson and his wife Aunt Ruby, and
sometimes Uncle Lewis’ daughter Peggy Jackson, and her
husband, Albert. He
was a peach farmer from
Holly
Springs
, so often there was peach cobbler on the menu.
Then,
when I started in the seventh grade at D.R. Hill, my Dad
had finished our house on
BoBo Road
in Wellford. So
I bid farewell to my beloved Startex.
Boy, was I lost! Living on a dirt road in
Wellford. Quite
a change.
But
I’ll always remember my youth and the people of my
neighborhood of
Oak Street
and Startex.
Doug
McAbee |
