{"id":36601,"date":"2016-08-11T23:48:06","date_gmt":"2016-08-12T03:48:06","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/staging.pinemountainsettlement.net\/?page_id=36601"},"modified":"2021-09-07T01:40:43","modified_gmt":"2021-09-07T05:40:43","slug":"1944-community-fair-day","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/staging.pinemountainsettlement.net\/?page_id=36601","title":{"rendered":"1944 COMMUNITY Fair Day"},"content":{"rendered":"
Pine Mountain Settlement School
\nSeries 16: Celebration: Special and Annual Events
\nBy Topic: Celebrations
\nCommunity Fair Day 1944<\/b><\/h5>\n

COMMUNITY Fair Day 1944\u00a0<\/strong><\/h2>\n
\n

TAGS:<\/strong> Community Fair Day 1944 ; Abner Boggs ; fairs ; foodways ; basket weaving ; gee haw whimmy diddle ; ballads ; pit barbecue ; Henry Lewis ; Oma Creech ; Uncle William ; Aunt Sal ; Gib Lewis ; Arwilla [Arwilly] Lewis ; Jim Browning ;<\/p>\n

\n
\n

COMMUNITY FAIR DAY 1944: <\/strong>As recorded by Alice Cobb<\/a> and printed in the 1944 issue<\/a> of “Notes from the Pine Mountain Settlement School”:<\/h3>\n
\"\"

Steve Hayes and ‘Kit’ (Christopher Rogers), Fair Day, 1947. [nace_1_076b.jpg]<\/p><\/div>\n

“The sun is a<\/em>–shining to welcome\u00a0<\/em>
\nthe day, with a heigh-ho, come<\/em>
\nto the Fair.”<\/em><\/p>\n

Fair Day anywhere is likely to be a gay time, but at Pine Mountain, it is one of the rare occasions, along with the spring \u201cgraveyard meeting\u201d, the occasional \u201cworking\u201d, and the fall stir-off, when widely separated families come and enjoy each other\u2019s company. It always begins, and did this year, with a protracted and delightful program of \u201cnorating\u201d. With no newspaper to send the news, we did it on foot and by grapevine, down Greasy Creek, and Big and Little Laurel, Turkey Fork, Isaac\u2019s Creek, and to far away Line Fork and Bear Branch, and lonely Puncheon holler, until every oldest and least one had word of the Fair.<\/p>\n

While this business of publicizing was going on, equally busy preparation was taking place on the school grounds. A platform was built on the playground, Dr. Keith<\/strong> from Eastern State Teachers\u2019 College who was secured for speaker, the largest hog and beef in the neighborhood were bought for slaughter, and the workers and students were initiated into the mysteries of \u201cpit barbecue\u201d. All day before the Fair the tantalizing smell crept down the valley. That night men and boys like druid priests\u00a0poked the coals, and turned the meat,\u00a0\u00a0preparing the sacrifice. Everywhere\u00a0down the creeks and up the hollows the women were polishing their jars\u00a0of fruit, domestic beasts were no doubt led by the practicing for the chicken and sheep calling contest, and on the school grounds there echoed from Big Log<\/a> to Far House<\/a> the old familiar song of the Fair.<\/p>\n

By ten o’clock on the morning, fall mists were lifting from the valley and with the first apologetic sunbeams, the neighbors began to come, afoot, on horseback, and in cars.\u00a0\u00a0By ten o\u2019clock on the morning, fall\u00a0mists were lifting from the valley and\u00a0with the first apologetic sunbeams, the neighbors began to come, afoot, on\u00a0horseback, and in cars. An open truck\u00a0brought some forty from beyond the\u00a0Line Fork<\/strong> woods, and another carried a crowd from Big Laurel. The sun\u00a0really \u201cwelcomed the day\u201d. The crowd\u00a0grew larger, merrier, and noisier.<\/p>\n

The flower table was lovely with Arwilla Lewis<\/strong><\/a>\u2019 famous dahlias\u2014a special triumph because the whole countryside had been debating on whether or not the frost would hold off long enough to leave them for the Fair. On the vegetable table we noted with interest Henry Lewis\u2019<\/strong> turnips which many of us had been watching for days as they swelled like balloons. This year\u2019s great red apples will probably not appear at our Fair soon again, because a bumper apple crop is very rare in our area. On the canned goods shelf perfect glasses of jelly stood in front of shining cans of beans and peaches, the jelly so clear that one could see the beans shining through.<\/p>\n

The exhibit of old-fashioned household gear is one of the most unique features. There was, for instance, the comforter, madder red on one side, black-sheep brown on the other, bound with indigo piping, made by Aunt Sal\u2019s mother. The same patient hand had fed and shorn, carded and spun and dyed, woven the cloth, and spread out the neat quilting in great even fans of\u00a0small hand-stitches. (The comforter belongs to Dr. Oma Creech<\/strong><\/a>, a grand-daughter of Uncle William, now overseas with UNRRA.)<\/p>\n

The iron pot on its tripod, Uncle\u00a0William\u2019<\/strong>s gun, the bed that Uncle John Shell<\/strong> made for Aunt Sal<\/strong> when they were married, maybe eighty years ago, the powder horn and the coffee pot, each tells its homely story of hard old days. Certainly, the Bible from Gib Lewis\u2019<\/strong><\/a> home, with its marriage and birth record from the early part of the last century, could tell us more than the printed “Word.\u201d<\/p>\n

By noon the barbecue was practically done. It was the first in our\u00a0neighborhood, and everyone had to\u00a0have a taste. When along with that,\u00a0the coffee and ice cream were also devoured, the crowd gathered at the\u00a0platform and the program began. The\u00a0very fitting patriotic talk of the speaker\u00a0was followed by a hog calling contest,\u00a0won hand over by Jim Browning<\/strong> from\u00a0Little Laurel. We half expected to see\u00a0all the hogs on Little Laurel come tearing over the mountain in answer to his call which shook the valley. Abner\u00a0Boggs<\/strong> sang \u201cLolly Toodum Day\u201d, (for\u00a0without that song, and Abner, we could\u00a0hardly call it a Fair), and then the\u00a0children from district schools sang their songs and there was a dramatization of the “Old Woman” ballad.<\/p>\n

With the last verse of the song the rain which had been wanting to come earlier, began to fall. There was a mad scurrying, the crowd melted like magic, and in ever so short a time they had all disappeared down their different creeks.<\/p>\n

Abner Boggs<\/strong>, the ballad singer gave us in the dignified, Biblical style characteristic of his speech, this gracious comment on the Fair:<\/p>\n

\u201cHit\u2019s always right and good for men folks and womenfolks to have conversation one with another. On this day they were things to eat and folks to eat \u2018em. They were interestin\u2019 things to look at and folks looked. They were a fine educated man to speak, and I reckon most folks got some benefit out of hit. Them that done the best in any manner of means such as callin\u2019 a hog or raising a turnip got notice took of hit. They weren\u2019t no discord nor willful killin\u2019 and shootin\u2019 to interrupt.\u00a0 Hit were a good Fair.\u201d\u00a0 . . .<\/em><\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

Back To: <\/b><\/p>\n

GUIDE TO COMMUNITY FAIR DAYS<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

See Also:<\/b><\/p>\n

ABNER BOGGS<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n

COMMUNITY CELEBRATIONS<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

COMMUNITY FAIR DAY<\/b><\/a> \u2013 History<\/b><\/p>\n

COMMUNITY \u2013 WHAT IS COMMUNITY?<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

GUIDE TO SPECIAL AND ANNUAL EVENTS<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Pine Mountain Settlement School Series 16: Celebration: Special and Annual Events By Topic: Celebrations Community Fair Day 1944 COMMUNITY Fair Day 1944\u00a0 TAGS: Community Fair Day 1944 ; Abner Boggs ; fairs ; foodways ; basket weaving ; gee haw whimmy diddle ; ballads ; pit barbecue ; Henry Lewis ; Oma Creech ; Uncle […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":36515,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"page-templates\/full-width.php","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-36601","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\n1944 COMMUNITY Fair Day - PINE MOUNTAIN SETTLEMENT SCHOOL COLLECTIONS<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"COMMUNITY FAIR DAY 1944: Alice Cobb's description of preparations, exhibits, food, programs, competitions, music, at this quasi-annual event.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"http:\/\/staging.pinemountainsettlement.net\/?page_id=36601\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"1944 COMMUNITY Fair Day\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Pine Mountain Settlement School Series 16: Celebration: Special and Annual Events By Topic: Celebrations Community Fair Day 1944 COMMUNITY Fair Day 1944\u00a0\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"http:\/\/staging.pinemountainsettlement.net\/?page_id=36601\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"PINE MOUNTAIN SETTLEMENT SCHOOL COLLECTIONS\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/pmsscollections\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-09-07T05:40:43+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/staging.pinemountainsettlement.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/07\/nace_1_076b-674x1024.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@pmsscollections\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/staging.pinemountainsettlement.net\\\/?page_id=36601\",\"url\":\"http:\\\/\\\/staging.pinemountainsettlement.net\\\/?page_id=36601\",\"name\":\"1944 COMMUNITY Fair Day - PINE MOUNTAIN SETTLEMENT SCHOOL COLLECTIONS\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/staging.pinemountainsettlement.net\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/staging.pinemountainsettlement.net\\\/?page_id=36601#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/staging.pinemountainsettlement.net\\\/?page_id=36601#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/staging.pinemountainsettlement.net\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2014\\\/07\\\/nace_1_076b-674x1024.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-08-12T03:48:06+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-09-07T05:40:43+00:00\",\"description\":\"COMMUNITY FAIR DAY 1944: Alice Cobb's description of preparations, exhibits, food, programs, competitions, music, at this quasi-annual event.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/staging.pinemountainsettlement.net\\\/?page_id=36601#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/staging.pinemountainsettlement.net\\\/?page_id=36601\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/staging.pinemountainsettlement.net\\\/?page_id=36601#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"http:\\\/\\\/staging.pinemountainsettlement.net\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2014\\\/07\\\/nace_1_076b.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/staging.pinemountainsettlement.net\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2014\\\/07\\\/nace_1_076b.jpg\",\"width\":935,\"height\":1420,\"caption\":\"Steve Hayes and 'Kit' (Christopher Rogers), Fair Day, 1947. 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