I became enamored with this series of black and white photos about a month ago. LOC’s Public Domain Image Collections is one of the sites I look for old photos to use in my work. The photos were taken circa 1940 in Kentucky by Marion Post Wolcott 1910-1990.
While looking for an old photo to use with my current reading of Jesse Stuart’s The Thread That Runs So True I stumbled on the last photo that shows three men, two women, and a young girl walking on boards to cross a small shallow creek before heading up the bank on the far side.
I was so intrigued by the photo. Where were they going? What was up the bank—a cemetery or the trail leading home? By the looks of their clothing I figured they were on a trip connected to church. After finding the other photos I decided the series showed various members of a church group going to and coming from a baptizing.
Since the day I first found the photos I’ve left the tabs open on my computer. Every day or so I look at them and wonder about the people. Thinking of what they felt that day, of what was going on in their lives, of the joy of fellowship that can be felt at a baptizing, and even the ingenuity of the boards to prevent them from getting wet. All that led to another question.
I’ve seen foot logs my whole life, but I’ve never seen sawmill boards used like in the photos. Did they lay them down every time there was a need and then store them near by? Or did they leave them in the water till they washed or rotted away and then replace them?
Photo from Mark Huneycutt’s video I walked to Chimney Rock for answers… Hurricane Helene Aftermath
Photo from Art and Bri’s video We’re ok but this is catastrophic. Helene update
Photo from Mark Huneycutt’s video I walked to Chimney Rock for answers… Hurricane Helene Aftermath
We have watched many videos about the destruction caused by Helene. If one looks closely there are many examples in the videos of folks reverting back to old ways of making it easier to cross a body of water or ravine or ditch.
I’ve always been fascinated with the footpaths of man. From the ones wore by our feet here in Wilson Holler to the ones that can still faintly be seen deep in the woods.
I can’t quite wrap my mind around what I’ve been studying since noticing the ladders and boards being used right now in Western NC and East TN to make travel easier. It might be that it makes me a bit hopeful. I’m beyond sorry for the folks suffering, but the tenacity of the human spirit can be seen in the make-do transportation aids.
Please continue to pray for the storm victims many of whom have lost their vehicles and their homes. Also pray for Florida. I know several Blind Pig readers live in Florida and I’m praying for you all as the next hurricane comes your way. And of course remember to pray for all those giving aid to the ones who are suffering.
Thank you for all the suggestions for the folks in Pennsylvania who are looking for a way to help the storm victims.
Last night’s video: Cornmeal Mush, Baked Hand Pies, Fresh Tomatoes, & Bacon for Breakfast.
Tipper
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Prayers for all the hurricane victims. I remember the foot bridge at my Gramps’ place. It was made with two large black locust tree trunks side by side. The tops were shaved down and the ax marks kept it from being slippery. He had put those trunks about a foot above the creek and embedded them into the banks on both sides. They were braced with good sized rocks into the banksides and somehow he had moved a couple of massive flat top rocks into the creek bed to support those logs in the middle. Black locust are really resistant to rot from water and last a very long time. It’s one of the reasons those old water mills you see around Appalachia were built from Black Locust wood.
Never have I seen a plank/board so low to the water. In ANY case, I am too large and clumsy and old to attempt to cross anything like that. I have crossed foot logs by holding on to a rail/wire. Also, have managed to make it across several swinging bridges in my area of southern KY. We have several. DO you all have any locally?
Sandi-not that I know of 🙂
Tipper, have you ever heard the song “Does the Pathway Lead Straight”? At least that is my memory of the title. I think you might connect with it at any time but especially now. It’s fine with me if you don’t post to the blog. It won’t bother me a bit. On another note – have you ever thought about whether you could/should or would do anything to be a ‘middleman’ to connect your members to each other? I know you most likely don’t need the concerns (distraction for one thing) that come with it. I guess I think of it now because of your asking for where people can donate, that is your network serves other reasons beside its initial one. Anyway, I hope you feel greatly blessed personally that your place is a blessing to so many.
I think tenacity and making do, finding a way through, over, or under an obstacle is in the heart of all mankind, not just mountain people – survival instinct – and if one looks closely, even some critters or other animals display this same ‘inventiveness’ to obtain something difficult to accomplish. The first pictures seem to depict a more peaceful time while the lower ones bring sorrow & heartache, knowing the ‘why’ behind the ‘making do.’ I am from a Canadian West Coastal waters Indigenous people and come from a people who know well how to ‘make do.’ I remain in prayer for those suffering now from Helene and for those who will be facing Milton.
The first thing I thought when I saw the pictures was that the folks were walking to a cemetery but then I wondered if they may have been walking to a house where a death had occurred. I’ve crossed a few foot logs myself when I was young, but I was always afraid I was going to fall. Husband and I have also been watching Mark’s videos and it just breaks our heart. We went to Cracker Barrel yesterday around 4:30 and while we were sitting there waiting for our food, we saw a convoy of utility trucks heading down I95 to Florida no doubt. It just is so sad. We also have family and friends there and will be praying for them and all of Florida and are continuing praying for everyone affected by Helene.
Prayers continue for hurricane victims, rescue workers, volunteers and now praying for Florida residents facing another hurricane. May God have mercy, heal and protect our country.
Morning Miss Tipper and family. Thank you for the continued support for the people of the storms. Past and for the all forthcoming storms. It’s hard not being able to physically help them , but praying and supporting them this way is a bit of comfort for me. So many are hurting right now and I hope they can feel some peace and comfort from everyone’s prayers and know we are thinking about them most always. Haven’t had much need for any foot bridges in my life, but can understand how they could come in handy. The human spirit is very resourceful and every problem does seem to have a good solution, thus the foot bridges. Everyone have a blessed day and rest of the week. May God be a comfort and blessing to each and every one of y’all today, tomorrow and always.
Footlogs of my bygone days were the trunk of a good sized tree either cut or placed across a fair sized stream. The top side would adzed flat to give the user a more stable place to walk. I don’t know if it is the correct termonology but we always called those boards, used to span shallow streams and damp places “walk planks”. They could be taken up and stored or used for other purposes.
To those who don’t know, an adz is an axe with a curved blade turned perpendicular to the handle. Its primary use is to flatten round things.
While I am temporarily safe in Fort Lauderdale, most of my friends in Sarasota are battened down inland or have gone north. Helene’s storm surge brought water right to my door. Milton will be worse, but everything will dry out eventually. Or can be replaced. Or I can get along without it. This morning the sun is shining and the local rooster has woken up. Wonders are happening all around us and we should be thankful. May everyone under threat be safe.
Yes. Continuing to ask God to heal and restore those who have been harmed by Helene.
I, too, have noticed all the foot logs and improvised ways of crossing creeks while watching videos after Hurricane Helene. It’s knocked back the whole area 100 years. Yes, the tenacity and ingenuity of the mountain people, their spirit and deep faith are what will see them through these trials.
My first impression of the first picture are people visiting a family that has had a death in the family. In the center top there appears to be two sheets hanging on the clothes line or maybe a fence, possibly washed after a body was covered with them. It is very interesting that every one is dressed with probably their very best clothes. There is a utility pole near the house but I don’t see a lead in to the house leaving an impression they didn’t have electricity. Probably our raising gives each of us a different prospective. Thanks for your hard work to preserve former years.
Those photos you’ve shared of Helen’s aftermath are hopeful. They show folks are working to find a solution to a problem. They haven’t been completely defeated. When there seems to be no way the Lord will find a way.
My Mothet and Dad always said “If there’s a will, there’s a way!”
Thank you to everyone praying for my friends in Bakersville NC. They have electricity and cell service now but their son and his family do not. My dearest friend is a firefighter helping in Florida. Please pray for the safety of the people who live there and for the volunteers helping them as well.
I’m like you, Tipper, in loving the old photographs. Marion Post Wolcott was a roving photographer in the Works Progress Administration. There was a Russian-born emigree also in the WPA doing the same work. I can’t recall his name just now. (He Anglosised his birth name to Paul ___?____ I believe.) Those photographers evidently had an almost totally free hand of what to photograph. So they took pictures with wide-ranging subject matter: land use and condition, recreation, folkways, housing, education, transportation, etc. They are fascinating to me. There is something in them for everybody who likes history. I agree with you about the pictures; an important “dress up” occasion for sure. Going to a baptizing would fit all the conditions just right. And there is something about life reduced to its bare essentials that affects mind and heart in unusual, but mostly good, ways. As you mention, one of them is dawning hope that maybe we are not so far gone as mass media would have us think?
Tipper, Footpaths of Man would be a great book title! Its not so terrible too try the old ways is it?
We’ve got so much to pray about today and every day.
Watching Mark’s video is heartbreaking-no words
Looking at those pictures and the way those people are dressed sure made me think my Grandaddy was right there walking with them. He was tall and thin and would be wearing a white shirt and always a hat. I’ve seen logs across creeks in my growing up years and I’m so glad I didn’t have to use them cause I’m not as agile as my Mother and Father were so I probably would have ended up in the creek.
Still praying for all helping those affected by Helene and those needing the help and for Florida now with that hurricane coming in.
So many has been impacted by this horrible flood. We live in the East of TN. Not far from where we live, people lost everything and I mean everything. We went and fed some people but We passed this church, and it was filled with mud and gunk. The pastor there is just devastated. Him and his wife would feed people on Wednesdays. They would serve hot meals there but now they can’t. You pass and see roof tops of houses and barns , no bridges. light poles down. Cars, trucks everywhere. I even seen a little pink chair way up in the top of a tree. That tells you how high the waters were. That really caught my eye.All this is in Limestone TN. So so sad.
Gigi, my heart goes out to all you all. We love to visit the Limestone area. We were at Elizabethton the week before the hurricane and to Troyer’s and Davy Crockett. Never have had a bad experience of any kind and folks are so friendly. In times like these, we believers understand what Paul meant when he wrote, ” I have you in my heart ..” in Philippians 1:7.
I heard from my email friend and BP&A member, Gene, last night. He said he has prepared as well as he could for Milton and will be on the left side of it unless it changes it’s path. He is real concerned about flooding from the heavy rain he will probably get. He lives in Daytona Beach.
Hi Tipper . I’m beyond stressed and saddened for the folks that have lost so much . I’m in S.C. but feel a deep Kinship with N.C. I saw a YT video of some men that used their flat bed trucks together to form a bridge for crossing & instantly wondered if Matt has seen it because I always say “ mountain men & women’s tenaciousness will always get the job done ! “ I wonder what your Mama & other elders there think of this ? I’d imagine it’s a first for them . Saying prayers , wishing I could help & prayers now for Florida . May Winter bring us all peace, hope and harmony. ♥️
My son told me he either saw a video or read where large flatbed heavy equipment trailers are being used for bridges. Several days ago I wrote that some of the off road clubs are taking their jacked up, big tire, off road vehicles and delivering supplies with them. Someone had left this comment “one redneck is worth 10 PHD’s. Seems like mountain or true farmer type country folks can find a way to “get er done.”
my friend’s Darlene and Mark Russo live in Sarasota Florida, hurricane Milton is coming today, God bless them with love care and protection I pray in Jesus mighty name
I’m continuing to pray for all involved with the last storm and those fixin to get hit. I have a lot of family and friends in Florida and I pray for all of them too.
My grandfather used a sawed board across his creek. I was very concerned about how I would traverse the board. He had a chain at one end and would place it to one side of the creek when the creek would rise to keep it from floating away.
These still make me nervous. I have never been very coordinated to cross over these even as a child.
I follow Mark on YouTube and saw the video he shared about Chimney Rock. I’m so sorry for all the heartache right now in the world. Seems a body can hardly take any more heartbreak. We who love the Lord know the signs of the time. May God bless each and every one who are in need in the mountains and who are in the path of Milton. We are waiting to hear from family and friends once this moves over. They didn’t, or couldn’t, evacuate which makes it so scary. God bless all y’all!
I have never seen boards used for foot logs. Grandaddy owned property on both sides of a creek on his property and had a foot log over the creek, it was a round log. He could walk across this log with things in his hands. I would always sit down and straddle the log and scoot myself across it with my hands.
Still praying for the victims of Helene and now for the ones that will be effected by Milton.