Author: Dennis Ayers

The Great Wagon Road

January 2, 2012 Dennis Ayers No comments exist

Long before English Colonists arrived in North America, the Indians traversed a hunting trail from the North to the South through the Appalachian Valley called the Great Warrior’s Path. Much of the trail followed the river they called the Shenandoah or “Daughter of the Stars”. After the French and Indian War in the1750s, and as Colonists expanded into new territory to the South from Pennsylvania, they essentially followed the same route, and it became known as the Great Wagon Road. Most of the German and Scotch-Irish settlers pushing out of Pennsylvania to find new lands followed this road southward as they could not easily scale the mountains to the West. It was by far the most heavily traveled route to the Burke frontier in North Carolina.

The road began at the Schuykill River Ferry in Philadelphia, and ran west to Lancaster, crossing the Susquehanna River at Harris’s Ferry and then crossing the Potomac River at Williams Ferry (Williamsport, MD). The road took settlers down through the Appalachian Valley (now called the Shenandoah Valley) essentially following Route 81 in present day Virginia. At the present location of Roanoke, the road veered eastward through a gap in the Blue Ridge Mountain and once again turned south essentially following Route 220 today, crossing the Dan River and on into North Carolina.

Our DERRIE Lineage

December 26, 2011 Dennis Ayers No comments exist

It has been suggested by a number of researchers that the Derryberry family living in North Carolina by 1778 were descendants of Michael Dürrenberger who may have come by way of Virginia. There is also a possibility that they might have descended from Dürrenbergers who came directly from Alsace or Switzerland to the Carolinas by way of Charleston. There is no direct evidence to support which of these theories is correct. What is definitely known, however, is that DNA evidence now exists that proves the Derryberry line originated from the Alsatian/Swiss Dürrenbergers regardless of how they arrived in North Carolina.

After they first appear in North Carolina, it is difficult at best to determine which of the earliest Derryberrys are descended from whom. Records are scarce and the repetition of so many given names makes it necessary to use as much circumstantial evidence as possible to reconstruct relationships up through about 1850. However, thanks to the diligent work of other researchers like Don Cross and Bob Derryberry, a most likely set of family relationships has evolved and this is what I show on the Ayers-Derrie Family Tree website, and what forms the basis for the early years on the Derrie lineage shown below.

As with our Ayers lineage, I have used a timeline chart to show the life spans of each Derrie ancestor over the last three centuries. In the chart, you can see the New Jersey ancestors in green on the left side, and then the North Carolina and beyond ancestors on the right side in blue. I show a dotted line between Michael Dürrenberger of New Jersey and John Derryberry of North Carolina to indicate there are no actual records to tie them together, only DNA test results.

Timeline Derryberry — **Derrie Lineage Timeline — Click for a larger view**

Again to give a better perspective of when they lived across the three centuries, I’ve added major historical events. As I continue to describe family stories of this lineage, you might find it useful to refer back to this chart to get a feel for the time period in which they lived.

Peter DÜRRENBERGER, the Immigrant for the DERRIE Line

December 13, 2011 Dennis Ayers 3 comments

The British encouraged Protestant groups to settle in their American colonies, and in particular, Pennsylvania and North Carolina actively sought German and Swiss Palatines who were eager to become colonists.

Three Dürrenberger brothers, Hans Stephan, Hans Jacob and Hans Michael arrived in America on the ship Robert and Alice which sailed from Rotterdam, Holland making a call at Dover, England and arriving at Philadelphia on 11 September 1738. On board were 159 German and Swiss Palatines. Upon disembarkation, they were required to take the Oath of Allegiance to the Crown.

Passenger records of that time were not very complete or accurate. There is no record proof, but it is believed that the three brother’s father, Johann Peter Dürrenberger, along with his wife, Eva Catharina, and five of his other children probably also immigrated to the colonies at the same time, since they all disappear from Alsatian records after that. Therefore, this suggests that Johann Peter Dürrenberger was perhaps the first, or “The Immigrant”, of our Derrie ancestors to come to America.

In old records the German naming convention was for sons to precede the given name with either Hans or Johann (both of which translate to John), and for girls to precede the given name with the mother’s name. So, Johann Peter would most likely have been called Peter. The family was from a region were the pronunciation (i.e.: D = T, and ü = erh, with silent r’s) makes “Dürrenberger” sound strangely close to “Terryberry.” Subsequently, as was common of the period, a wide variation in spelling ensued. Both family surnames, Dürrenberger and Terryberry are thus reported in colonial documents in a variety of spellings. Soon Derryberry was added to the mix. Thanks to recent DNA test data, a bloodline connection has been proven, and Derryberry, Derreberry, etc. are considered to be derivatives of Dürrenberger. Furthermore, as you will see in later posts, Derry and Derrie are also known derivatives of the bloodline.

After arrival in Philadelphia, the Dürrenbergers made their way up the Delaware and Musconetcong Rivers of West Jersey to the German Valley, now Morris County, New Jersey, where they settled rather than in Pennsylvania. As mentioned before for the Ayers line, records in northern New Jersey from that time period are scarce. From information available it appears that Peter probably died in Morris County sometime after 1749. Research has accounted for his son Stephen’s death in Morris County and all his descendants. Peter’s son Jacob died in New Jersey in 1794 with no children mentioned in his will. The whereabouts of the third son, Michael, after 1749 are unknown due to lack of records.

Other Gemans who immigrated with the Dürrenbergers in 1738 on the ship Robert and Alice, landing in Philadelphia, are known to have made their way south to western North Carolina. It is now thought by some family historians, that Michael also later made his way to western North Carolina perhaps by way of the Carolina Road (see post dated 31 March 2011), or the Great Wagon Road through the Shenandoah Valley to become the originator of the Derryberry families of Burke County.

The DERRIE Branch of Our Tree

December 1, 2011 Dennis Ayers No comments exist

So far the posts on this blog have concentrated on our AYERS line of ancestors which, of course, follows my father’s line of male ancestors. Now I will turn to our DERRIE line of ancestors which follows my mother’s line of male ancestors as shown in the chart below. The actual surname Derrie has completely changed over the last four centuries. As you will see in subsequent posts, it started out as Dürrenberger, with many spelling variations in Europe, then changed to Terryberry / Derreberry / Derryberry, with many spellings in the American colonies and Canada, and finally to Derry / Derrie for our most recent ancestors. None of the name variants are very numerous in the USA today, accounting for no more than several thousand persons total.

Derrie Line of Ancestors — **The DERRIE Line**

Recall that the DNA haplogroup for my Ayers line is R1b. Well, it turns out that the haplogroup for our Dürrenberger >>> Derry line of ancestors is R1b1b2, which is a subgroup of the R1b haplogroup. Although this may at first appear to be a strange coincidence, it is not really as it is well known that western Europe is home to a predominance of R1b descendants.

Ira Ayers and Helen Derrie Biographical Sketch

May 9, 2011 Dennis Ayers No comments exist

This is a short biographical sketch of the lives of Ira Ayers and his wife Helen Derrie. It very briefly describes where they lived, worked and worshipped during their lifetimes. Since they are my mother and father, I call them Mom and Dad in this post. I realize that I have already described some of Dad’s and Mom’s early days in previous posts, but I want to include some of that same information again in this post to have a complete summary for both Mom and Dad.

Walnut Mountain, Pioneer, TN

Ira Ayers (Dad) was born in a log house similar to the one shown on Walnut Mountain, in Campbell County, TN on November 14, 1913, and was raised there on a 42 acre farm. The property was located off Adam Hollow Rd off Stinking Creek Rd. The mailing address was RFD #1, Pioneer, TN. It was about 25 miles to LaFollette, TN by road, but less than half that across the mountains on foot or horseback.

As the oldest child, he worked many long hard days on the farm alongside his Father, and shouldered many other family responsibilities.

Seveirville, TN

Dad enlisted into the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCCs) in his early 20s. He was first stationed at the CCC camp in the Smoky Mountains National Park where he helped clear land for roads and campgrounds. He stayed at that camp from June 18, 1935 until March 16, 1936.

Norris, TN

After being in the CCCs for 9 months, Dad was transferred to the camp at Norris, TN which was much closer to home. At this location, he helped clear land for roads and recreation areas around the newly constructed Norris Dam. He worked there from March 16, 1936 until September 30, 1937 when he was discharged from the CCCs. During this period he was hospitalized for 3 months at Ft. Oglethorpe, GA due to a serious accident in which he almost cut off the front of his left foot with an axe.

Charlie Hollow, Stinking Creek, TN

After returning from the CCCs, Dad moved back home to the farm and worked with his brother Addison at the Charlie Hollow Coal Mines. He did not like the work.

Jacksboro, TN

Helen Derrie, (Mom) was born in Jacksboro, TN on March 7, 1923. She was a middle child in a large family. Jacksboro is the Seat of Campbell County.

LaFollette, TN

Mom moved with her family to LaFollette, TN when she was only 6 months

old. When she was 14, the family moved to a house on Hwy 25W at Coke Oven Hill. Part of the unpainted house can be seen in the picture of her father. They were extremely poor and Mom had to drop out of school and lie about her age so she could get a job in the local shirt factory.

As a young teenager, Mom worked in the shirt factory in Lafollette. There she was paid by the number of pieces sewed in a day. It was called “piecework”.

She met Dad at a square dance. They got married on January 2, 1942 and moved to Baltimore, MD for only a few months until Dad was drafted in the Army. When he went into the service, Mom moved back home with her family in LaFollette, TN. She continued to live there until their first child, Dennis Ira Ayers (me), was born on December 28, 1942.

2112 Coker Ave., Knoxville, TN

Den 1yr & Mother — **Helen and Dennis 1943**

After I was born, Mom soon moved with me to live with her older sister, Lillian, at her house at 2112 Coker Ave. in Knoxville, TN. Aunt Lilley had made the invitation to make sure that Mom and I had better living conditions while I was still a baby. Mom lived there from about January 1943 for a year.

911 N. Calvert St, Baltimore, MD

Before the War, Dad had actually moved to Baltimore with his cousin Leonard Ferguson in May 1941, and worked in a body and fender shop. (Don’t know where he lived during that time.)

1st 911 N. Calvert St in 2009 — **2009 View**

After the bombing of Pearl Harbor on Dec 7, 1941, he returned to LaFollette and married Mom on Jan 2, 1942. Together they returned to Baltimore for a short time in early 1942 and he got a job with the B&O Railroad. When he was drafted in April, he and Mom traveled back to LaFollette. After the War, they again moved back to Baltimore where the B&O had held his job for him. They first lived in an apartment at 911 N. Calvert Street from January 1946 to March 1948, and acted as superintendents for apartments in two large 3 Story townhouses. Mom collected rents and Dad kept the coal furnaces fired up for heat to all the apartments. They received a reduction in the rent of their own apartment for their efforts.-

107 N. Carey St., Baltimore, MD

They rented an apartment at 107 N. Carey Street from March 1948 to May 1948. The townhouse was across the street from a small park and was the first and only house they ever lived in that had a bathroom shower. Not sure why they lived here only two months except perhaps it was the opportunity to buy their own house which caused them to move again quickly.

2235 Guilford Ave., Baltimore, MD

3rd 2235 Guilford Ave 2009 — **2235 Guilford Ave in 2009 Rebuilt After A Fire**

They bought a 3 story townhouse at 2235 Guilford Avenue in May 1948, and lived there until March 1950. They rented out an apartment on the top floor. On Saturdays, I was allowed to go with some older kids to the movies several blocks away on Greenmount Ave. They were comfortable in this house, but Dad yearned to move to the country.

This is where their second child, Helen Carol Ayers, was born on February 18, 1950.

During the years they lived in the city, they always used public transportation. They bought their first car, a 1947 Gray Pymouth, when they got ready to move to the country in 1950.

Baltimore City Church

In the 1940s, Mom and Dad became devout Christians. They attended the Christian & Missionary Alliance church for most of the time they lived in Baltimore City, and for several more years even after moving to the country. It was located at the corner of Guilford Ave and Lanvale Street. I remember many long rides on Sundays to this church, sometimes twice a day from out in the country. Mom always liked to round up as many neighbor children as possible and take them to Sunday School.

1676 Woodstock Rd., Woodstock, MD

In November 1949. they bought a 7.5 acre farm on Old Court Rd, Woodstock, in Howard County MD.

The property contained a small three bedroom, one bath house with a coal fired furnace. The house had been built in the late 1920s where an old one room schoolhouse once stood. A flagpole in the front yard and and remnants of an old seesaw in the side yard were reminders of an earlier era. However, Mom was pregnant with Carol and needed frequent attention at Lutheran Hospital in the city. So, they didn’t move to this property until April 1950, after Carol was born and the weather had begun warming.

This is the house where their third child, Annette Arlene Ayers, was born on January 11, 1959.

The mailing address was at first just Rt #1, Woodstock, MD, but it was changed around 1970 to 1676 Woodstock Rd. After living there for 53 years they were forced to move for health reasons in April 2003.

Ellicott City Church

Seven years after moving to Howard County, Mom and Dad finally transferred to the First Church of God in Ellicott City. They attended church there from around 1957 until the mid 1980s, over 25 years. Attending church functions was their primary social outlet, and they continued taking neighborhood children to Sunday School.

Rogers Avenue Church

Helen & Ira Ayers 1989 — **Ira and Helen ca 1989**

In the mid 1980s, Mom and Dad left the small church in downtown Ellicott City to join the much larger Crossroads Church of the Nazarene located closer to home on Rogers Avenue. This church offered them many more opportunities for fellowship in their older years. They really enjoyed being in the Primetimers senior’s group.

Camden Yards Rail Yard, Baltimore, MD

Dad first went to work for the B&O Railroad on March 5, 1942, but after only one month of service he was drafted into the Army. The B&O held his job for him until he could resume work as a Brakeman after the war was over. His primary base of work was the Camden Rail Yard in Baltimore City. This site is where the Oriole Baseball Park at Camden Yards is located today.

Locust Point Rail Yard, Baltimore, MD

Dad also worked months at a time at the B&O Locust Point Rail Yard located near Ft. McHenry in Baltimore. He was a member of the Railroad Workers Union and over the years gained considerable seniority in the Union. As a result, his job was secure and he always was able to “bump” workers with less seniority to work shifts and locations which he preferred. For example, he almost always worked the 3:00PM to 11:30PM second shift which allowed him to do farm work in the mornings.

Dad retired in August 1978 with 36 years and 5 months service. His last position was Yard Foreman. He was 65 years old.

Spring Grove State Hosptial, Catonsville, MD

After working at home to pass her GED test, Mom took a job with the State of MD in a nurses training program at the Spring Grove State Hospital located in Catonsville, MD in 1965. Under this program she eventually became a Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN), and worked with mentally handicapped patients. She worked at this hospital until about 1970.

Springfield State Hospital, Sykesville, MD

Sometime around 1970, Mom transferred to the Springfield State Hospital in Sykesville, MD which was an easier commute from home. At this facility she was trained and assumed the duties of an Industrial Therapist. In this job she assigned handicapped patients to various jobs around the hospital campus to develop skills for employment after leaving the hospital. She really liked this job and took great pride in her work.

Mom retired from the state of MD in June 1983 after 18 years of service. She was 60 years old.

LifeSpring Assisted Living Home, Catonsville, MD

Over the years, Dad developed severe arthritis in his hips and ankles and had a hip replaced in his early 80s. Mom had a severe hearing problem and developed Parkinson’s Disease in her 70s. So, in April 2003, due to failing health, Mom and Dad moved together into the LifeSpring Assisted Living Home in Catonsville, MD. At first they were very apprehensive, but they soon learned to like the facility, which was a converted old mansion. They were able to share a large bedroom together. Their strong faith always remained and strengthened them.

Helen 81st BD — **Helen’s 81st Birthday**

However, In the following months, Dad’s health took a turn for the worse, and it was necessary for him to move to a Nursing Home in November 2003. In addition to dementia, Dad suffered from mini-strokes that caused trouble swallowing. This led to severe malnutrition.

Mom continued to live at LifeSpring for almost another year until she fell and broke her pelvis in October 2004. Already suffering from Parkinson’s Disease, the use of morphine to relieve the pelvic pain at the hospital caused her to slip into a semi-conscious state from which she never recovered. At that time she too needed to move to a Nursing Home.

St. Elizabeths Nursing Facility, Baltimore, MD

Dad went first to St. Elizabeths Nursing Home in November 2003 and was well cared for until he died on December 31, 2003 at age 90.

Mom went to St. Elizabeths in October 2004 and was well cared for until she died on January 12, 2005, a little over a year later than Dad. She was 81 years old.

Crestlawn Memorial Gardens, Ellicott City, MD

Mom and Dad are both laid to rest at Crestlawn Memorial Gardens Cemetery on Sand Hill Road in Ellicott City. This is the final resting place for their tired bodies as I know their spirits are at home in Heaven.

Famous Ayers Relations

May 3, 2011 Dennis Ayers No comments exist

Most Americans are related to someone famous. In fact over 100 million of us are related to at least one President of the United States. We Ayers who descend from John Ayre, the Immigrant from 1635 (see post of 16 March 2011), can claim at least two that I know about. Gerald R. Ford, the 38th President, had Ayers connections on his mother’s side reaching back to Robert Ayer, son of John Ayre. William Jefferson Clinton, the 42nd President, has Ayers connections on his father’s side through his grandmother, who descended from Nathaniel Ayers of Pittsylvania County, VA like us. Also of interest, Laura Ingalls Wilder, the author of the “Little House on the Prairie” book series was a descendant of Thomas Ayer, son of John Ayre, the Immigrant.

Ayers Brothers and Sisters

May 2, 2011 Dennis Ayers 2 comments

As mentioned before, Martin Ayers had four children with his first wife, Hannah, and five children with his second wife, Eullalia. I’ve never seen a picture of the whole group all together. The picture below is the closest with all the offspring present except Addison who had joined the CCCs, and Geneva who was not yet born. It must have been at a special family gathering, since Rose and Mary were already married and living away.

Although growing up they lived in an isolated mountain environment with few material possessions and with no transportation and none of today’s conveniences, the children had normal childhoods, and were close to one another. They had pet dogs and cats, went to school and church, and grew up like everyone else in the mountains…strong and independent. They attended the Flat Rock School located about 3 miles away, which meant a lot of walking. It was a one room schoolhouse with a big pot-bellied stove for heat and a long coatroom in the back. The teacher taught all grades 1 through 12. One side of the big room was for the higher grades and the other side was for the lower grades. They attended church at the Broyles Church of God near Adam Hollow, with the whole family sometimes walking to service. Then as they got older, some ventured off the mountain to find jobs elsewhere.

Unfortunately, due to overall poor economic conditions in the county, in the 1940s Ira, Rose, Addison, Aileen, Bill and Hannah left Tennessee for better opportunities in the North, as Mary, Tom and Geneva stayed behind. While relocating proved to be the right thing for those individuals that left, the result was a fractured family with members living far apart in four different states. Family love was always still there, but opportunities for the brothers and sisters to be together grew fewer and fewer over the years. Now 65 years later only Aileen and Geneva remain. For the benefit of those who didn’t know them, below is an introduction and short summary of how each of the brothers and sisters’ lives evolved from the oldest to the youngest, with some old pictures thrown in for fun. Remember to click the photos to enlarge them. All facts may not be totally correct, so readers please let me know when I need to make corrections.

Ira Lawson Ayers (1913 – 2003)

Ira, born in 1913, married Helen Derrie in 1942 and they moved to Baltimore, MD in early 1946. He worked for the B&O railroad as a brakeman, but he also worked just as hard as a part-time farmer. He and his wife had three children: Dennis, Carol, and Annette. Ira had a serious and stern disposition along with a short temper, probably like his great-grandfather, Elihu. He worked very hard for his family. Only after retirement, did he mellow and become more relaxed. Ira died in 2003 at age 90 after suffering several mini-strokes. See more about his life with Helen in a following post.

Rose Elizabeth Ayers Jordan (1915 – 2001)

Rose, born in 1915, married Vurl Jordan in 1937. She was working as a housekeeper in LaFollette, and she and some other young women like to go watch the men in the CCCs constructing Cove Lake. There she met Vurl who was a bulldozer driver. Rose and Vurl had three children: Jack, Bob, and Carolyn. They moved to Baltimore in the late 1930s where Vurl got a job at the Baltimore Shipyards, and where he continued working during WWII. After the war, he became a partner in a sawmill operation, and later owned a successful hardware & lumber store in Glen Burnie, MD. Rose had a sweet and gentle disposition and always wore a smile. She was a homemaker and the family attended the Nazarene Church. In the 1970s, Rose and Vurl moved to Florida, first to Homestead and then to North Ft Myers, where they spent the rest of their years. Vurl died in 1988 at age 71 and Rose died in 2001 at age 85.

Mary Lou Ayers Myers (1918 – 2007)

Mary, born in 1918, married John Myers in 1935. She was working as a housekeeper in LaFollette, when she met John who lived on a farm nearby. Mary and John had four children: Sue, Janice, Glenn, and Joan. John also came to Baltimore for a time in the 1940s to work in the shipyards, and brought his family to live in Glen Burnie, MD from about 1948 to 1950. Then they returned to live in Tennessee, and never moved again from their farm in LaFollette. In addition to farming, John worked as a carpenter for many years at the Oak Ridge National Laboratories established during WWII in adjacent Anderson County, TN, as part of the effort to produce materials for a nuclear bomb. Mary was a homemaker and was a very quiet spoken lady with a quick smile. The family attended the Independent Baptist Church in LaFollette. John died in 1992 and Mary died in 2007 at age 88.

Addison Lee Ayers (1919 – 1986)

Addison, born in 1919, married Doris Rauhoff in 1940. Addison met her when she was working in a small grocery store in the Stinking Creek area. According to their daughter, Wanda, they were married by a preacher, who was also a postman. One day Addison and Doris were waiting by the mailbox and asked him to marry them! They moved to Milford, Ohio, near Cincinnati in the 1940s. Addison and Doris had six children: Troy, Glenna Faye, Don, Wanda, Ricky, and Debbie. Addison worked at a paper mill where he fed the pulp beaters. He and Doris also liked to build houses, sell them, and then move on to the next house project. Addison was a quiet man, with good humor and a twinkle in his eye. He died in 1986 from cancer at age 66. Doris later moved back to LaFollette, TN where she remarried an old acquaintance. She died in 1994.

Barbara Aileen Ayers Huckelby (1930 – present)

Aileen as she is called was born in 1930. She married Gene Huckelby in 1947 and they moved to Cincinnati, Ohio, soon afterwards. Aileen and Gene had two daughters: Brenda and Marsha. Aileen was always a homemaker while Gene worked in the same paper mill as Addison Ayers. He drove a fork lift. After being married for 62 years, Gene died in 2010. He was a quiet, gentle man, and had a strong religious faith. Aileen is very talkative and has a wonderful sense of humor, and she too is very religious. She has a strong memory and has been a great resource of family information. Aileen and Gene liked to spend winters in Florida, and Aileen still returns there with her daughter, Brenda.

William Riley Ayers (1933 – 2003)

Bill was born in 1933 and named after his grandfather. He married Rose Sharp in 1952 and they moved to Milford, Ohio also. He worked for a company that makes heaters. He and Rose had two sons: William and Timothy. Bill was a prankster and a cutup, and always liked to have fun. He loved bluegrass music and played the guitar and banjo as much as he could. He died of cancer in 2003 at age 70. Rose continued to live in Milford, but later died in December 2012.

Hannie Evelyn Ayers Chadwell (1935 – 1993)

Hannie, born in 1935, married Henry Chadwell. They moved to Indianapolis, Indiana in the 1950s. Henry worked for the railroad while Hannie was a homemaker. They had four children: Angie, Paul, Terry, and Tony. Hannie loved music and loved to laugh. She too died of cancer in 1993 at age of 57. Henry also died in 1996.

Aaron Tommy Ayers (1937 – 2008)

Tom, as he was called, was born in 1937. He never married and always stayed close to home, except for a tour in the Army in the 1950s when he was stationed in Maryland and in Germany. He was an MP in the service. Back home in LaFollette, Tom had a variety of jobs over the years including working at a shirt factory and working at a food store. He tended to have various physical ailments that mostly kept him from full-time work, and he continued to live with his mother until she died in 1994. He then continued to live in her house until heart trouble caused him to move in with his sister, Geneva in 2006. Tom was a laid back, easy-going individual who liked to read books. He was a great storyteller, and enjoyed watching television. He died of a heart condition in 2008 at age 71.

Alice Geneva Ayers Collingsworth (1941 – present)

Geneva, born in 1941 was the last child of Martin Ayers and Eullalia Hatmaker. She Married Frank Collingsworth, Jr. in 1959, and she always calls him Junior. Geneva and Junior have lived in LaFollette ever since they were married. They do not have any children. Geneva is a homemaker and Junior worked in construction and also later as a school janitor and maintenance man. Geneva is quiet, soft-spoken, and has an infectious laugh. They attend the Independent Baptist Church in LaFollette.

Ira Ayers Joins the “Tree Army”

April 23, 2011 Dennis Ayers 1 comment

Ira Lawson Ayers was born in 1913 and raised on Walnut Mountain in Campbell County, TN, in an area called Stinking Creek which later came under the Pioneer, TN post office. He was the oldest son of Martin Ayers and Hannah Depew. His middle name supposedly came from the doctor who delivered him. This is probably true since there was a Dr. Alonzo Lawson living in that same district in the 1920 census. Where his given name came from is a mystery since Ira was not a common name in the South. Perhaps it was a mistake of some kind since all his folks called him “Arie”. No original birth certificate was ever recorded.

As expected, Ira grew up working on the farm and attending school, but after his mother died of TB when he was 12 years old, he had to quit school to help take care of his two sisters and brother. Even after his father remarried and had still more children, Ira was heavily depended on for help with the younger ones. He developed a stern temperament like his father. His youngest sister, Geneva, likes to tell the story about the time their father went to town and left Ira in charge of the others. The children had a pet chicken named “Dooty Hicks” which they took into the house and put in the room where Ira was napping. The chicken jumped on the bed waking him which made Ira very angry, much to the amusement of the children.

Ira had brown hair and brown eyes. He eventually grew to be 5 ft. 10 in. tall and was very slender as a young man weighing about 155 Lbs. Strangely, his friends in the area nicknamed him “Hoss”, perhaps because he was such a hard worker.

In the 1930s, America was in the grip of the Great Depression with over 25 percent unemployment. As one of President Roosevelt’s New Deal programs, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCCs) was established in 1933 to give employment to young men and to help develop and preserve natural resources. So, in June 1935 when he was 21, Ira left home for the first time and joined, along with two and a half million other young men, the CCCs which some called “Roosevelt’s Tree Army”. In the CCCs he earned $30 per month plus room and board. The government sent $25 of his pay home to the parents, but his father saved half for Ira to have when he returned. After the first issue of free clothing, he had to buy any replacements needed. It was a military style life with barracks, mess halls, exercise and work.

Back on the farm, Ira had cut down many trees and split a lot of logs. As a result, he had become skillful wielding an ax. This despite an accident one time in which his swing got misdirected by a tree branch, causing him to cut into his left calf muscle rather deeply. So in the “Tree Army” he was naturally put to work using an ax. His first nine months were spent in the Smoky Mountains National Park near Seiverville, TN where he helped clear land for roads and tourist areas. He then got transferred closer to home to the CCC camp at Lake City, TN near the Norris Dam which had just been completed in the previous year. There he spent seven months clearing land for campgrounds around the Dam. However, once again he fell victim to a similar accident with the ax as before, and severely chopped his left foot. He was sent to the Army hospital at Ft. Oglethorpe, Georgia (near Chattanooga, TN) for recovery which took about three months. He then returned to the camp at Norris Dam for the last eight months of his tour and was honorably discharged from the CCCs in Sept 1937.

Looking back, Ira always said he enjoyed his time in the Tree Army. The thing he remembered most……. “they always had plenty of food to eat”.

Later after coming back home, he and his brother Addison worked for a time in the coal mines at “Charlie Hollow”. Aileen remembers Ira onetime getting frost bite on his ears walking to the mines early in the morning in the winter. They paid some board to their father and saved most of the rest of their pay. Their brother Tom remembered them counting their savings on the kitchen table.

James LaFayette Ayers and Betty Ayers

April 21, 2011 Dennis Ayers No comments exist

The only other name as popular as William in the Ayers families of Stinking Creek was James, and again middle names were often used to help separate individuals. James LaFayette Ayers married Elizabeth (Betty) Ayers who was Martin Ayers’ sister. They were second cousins. Although James and Betty are not bloodline ancestors, their tangled love story is worth telling.

Born in 1873, James was the son of William Bailey Ayers and Nancy Jane Douglas. He grew up on a farm, but as a young man he moved from Stinking Creek and became a teamster (a driver of a team of horses). He was 5 ft. 11 in. tall and had dark hair with blue eyes, and a big black mustache. He first married Sarah Boshears in 1892 and they had two children.

In February 1898, the mysterious sinking of the American battleship The Maine in the Havana harbor killing 266 sailors, quickly led to armed conflict between Spain and the U.S. Although the main issue was Cuban independence, the short Spanish-American War was fought in both the Caribbean and the Pacific. The Navy was ready, but the Army was not well-prepared. In the spring of 1898, the strength of the U.S. Army was just 28,000 men. The Army wanted 50,000 new men, but received more than 220,000, through volunteers and the mobilization of state National Guard units.

Although James Ayers had a young family, at age 25 he left home to be one of those who volunteered from Tennessee. He was probably seeking adventure. In July 1898, he mustered in as a private in the 6th US Vol Army at Camp Wilder in Knoxville, TN. From there the regiment was transferred to Camp Thomas near Chattanooga, TN which had horrific living conditions. The camp

had rapidly grown to a city of over 30,000 men with inadequate supplies and sanitation. Disease and illness were rife. The 6th would remain at this camp longer than any other unit, and while the regiment was there in August 1898, an armistice was reached between the U.S. and Spain ending the war’s fighting. Although the war ended abruptly, the 6th Volunteer Army was ordered to serve as an occupation force and raise the American flag on the newly acquired island of Puerto Rico. They served on that tropical island from October 1898 until February 1889 when they were ordered back to the continental U.S. Most of the men wanted to stay in the Army, but the whole regiment was mustered out on March 15, 1899 at Savannah Georgia, at which time James returned home to Campbell County.

Then his first wife, Sarah, died in 1902. Their children went to live with James’ parents. In July of 1905, James and Betty Ayers, one of Martin Ayers’ sisters, fell in love and were married.

Around 1908, James and Betty moved to Monroe County which is between Knoxville and Chattanooga, TN. The Babcock Lumber and Land Company that was formed in 1907 performed logging operations on more than one-quarter million acres in the Smokey Mountains of Tennessee and North Carolina. A logging railroad was built, and James became a section foreman for a track crew. He and Betty also operated a boarding house for about a dozen railroad workers.

By the time he registered for the World War I draft in 1918, James was too old to serve. However, his registration shows that he was then working as a track foreman for the company in Blount County, TN. Also, in the 1920 census he and Betty lived together in Blount County. They had no children together. Then sometime after that, the family story goes that James just left the house one day and never returned. Betty never heard from him again and she sadly returned home to stinking Creek.

What happened to him? One the one hand, some researchers believe that James then married a widow named Elllen Riggs (Akins). However, there doesn’t seem to be any record of such a marriage, but she did change her name to Ayers by the 1930 census when she lived in Blount County with 2 children but no husband.

On the other hand, there is proof that James LaFayette Ayers was admitted into the National Homes for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers system (probably much smaller versions of today’s Veteran’s Hospitals). He was diagnosed with a number of seemingly minor disabilities such as hemorrhoids, muscular rheumatism, varicose veins, etc., but was accepted nonetheless. Perhaps his rheumatism was severe. He first was admitted at the Central Branch home located in Dayton, Ohio for the period from November 1921 to November 1925. He was readmitted a second time at the Mountain Branch home located in Johnson City, TN from March 1929 to Sept 1932. His papers show that he listed his wife as Betty Ayers. James died in August 1936 in Johnson City at age 63.

Did James Lafayette Ayers leave his wife Betty for the widow Ellen Akins or did he leave to go off to the Veterans Home without explaining? There is the very strong likelihood that he did both, and it is clear he spent over seven years in the Veterans Home. Whatever the real story, after he died Betty Ayers was able to draw a widow’s pension for his service in the Spanish-American War for the rest of her life until she died in 1959 at age 79.

Betty Ayers was a wonderful, caring woman and deserved better from her man. She lived out the rest of her life in the old log cabin on Walnut Mountain that she inherited from her brother Matthew

around 1918. She worked tirelessly in her garden and helped with Martin’s family when his first wife died. At times she had her father and mother and her sister, Lucy, live with her, but they all eventually moved on or died. She never seemed afraid to live there by herself….except for one instance. One of her neighbors had some cows wearing cowbells that must have roamed free, and they would come around at night and wake her up. So, one time she got up irritated in the middle of the night and went outside to shoo them away. After she got them moved on, she heard a panther scream nearby. She was so frightened that she couldn’t run back to the cabin fast enough! Scared her half to death!

Aunt Betty, as everyone called her, never had a family of her own, but she was remembered very fondly by her nieces and nephews. In the end, she died alone in her old log cabin.

Years later, a man named Harold Phillips, cousin to Frank Collingsworth, Geneva’s husband, went to considerable trouble to disassemble and rebuild Aunt Betty’s old log cabin down in LaFollette. He had an interest in old structures did the work mostly by himself. The only part worth saving was the kitchen half which is pictured below. Unfortunately, it is now being used only as a shed. No stashed away money was found.

Kitchen part of Aunt Betty's Log Cabin — **Kitchen part of Aunt Betty’s Log Cabin**