Reminiscences of T. J. Derryberry

Born 1861 in Maury County, Tennessee

Died 1954 in Nashville, Tennessee

Reminiscences of

Thomas Jefferson Derryberry

1861-1954

Dedicated to

Birdie Westmoreland Derryberry

My companion of more than sixty years;

whose moral support has been constant;

who has appreciated every success,

sympathized with me in every disappointment;

the mother of my six children;

to her this work is affectionately dedicated

Reminiscences of T. J. Derryberry

I am the youngest member of a family of nine children; my birthdate, December 17, 1861. Thus my earliest recollections and deepest impressions were of the sorrow, bloodshed, and destruction of the Civil War.

My father owned no slaves_, but suffered, along with his neighbors, the loss of livestock, farm products, stored food and other such things as appealed to those seeking supplies for hungry and discouraged soldiers. Destruction was complete and widespread.

I was not strong physically and being more than four years younger than my next oldest brother, I received, I suppose, more than the usual amount of petting and protection. Again, there was so much sorrow and sadness left by the struggle of the war years, that it may be I was welcomed to fill the void and receive the affection meant for others in our family connection, now dead and gone.

My parents were very industrious and resourceful; it was necessary that they should be. My father was a cooper by trade and was kept busy all his spare time supplying the much needed wooden ware such as water buckets, piggins, tubs, and churns, to the families in the neighborhood. He and an older brother made shoes for the family; my mother and icy two older sisters, Martha and Mary, from the wool of the sheep raised on our farm, wove the cloth and made clothing for the family. My father was also a veterinarian of more than ordinary ability.

The rearing of a large family under the circumstances of the times placed my parents largely upon their own resources; it was difficult to obtain the services of a physician. To offset this handicap, my father bought a large volume which as well as I remember, bore the title: "Howard's Family Doctor." Another book that I well remember was "Comstock's Chemistry."

It was one of the delights or my early childhood to accompany my father on his trips to the woods and vales of our farm to replenish his medicine chest, which usually contained roots, barks, and dried leaves of such popular herbs as Yellow Dock, Prickly Ash, Poke Root, Wild Cherry, Sarsaparilla, Yellow Puccoon Root, Lobelia, and others. From these and others my father formulated, by adding the proper amount or whiskey, remedies for such ailments as headache, neuralgia, rheumatism, lane back, indigestion, loss of appetite, general debility, or what have you.

One of the wildflowers which grew profusely in the shady places was the May Apple, so we called it. It had a peculiarly shaped white flower hiding under big green leaves; when the flower fell off, an apple shaped fruit appeared; the roots of this plant were stewed into a tea were used for indigestion, and in greater amounts, as a purgative; after I became a druggist I came to know this product as podophyllum, or "podophyllin" a drug widely used for some years by doctors as an ingredient in their prescriptions for a purgative; especially, the famous "C C Pills" (Compound Cathartic!)

The leaves of the Prickly Ash bush (not the same as the stately Ash tree,) were used in mixtures for bitters, and the tooth brushes made from the twigs were said to be useful in curing the toothache; but this, unfortunately, I did not find to be the case. The bark of the Wild Cherry Tree, when cooked in a syrup of sugar, honey, or "tree sugar", made an effective cough syrup, which my mother' always wanted to have in good supply daring the winter and spring months_. More stubborn coughs, such as whooping cough or asthma, were treated by a concoction made from the tops and leaves of the Lobelia plant, soaked in whiskey.

Bitters, to thin the blood and generally tone up the system, were brewed from the bark of the sarsaparilla plant, and others I don't recall. Poke sallet was also highly regarded as healthful spring dish, and I think rightly so. Sassafras tea was a delightful brew which we enjoyed in the spring time, and I still like it.

Worst tasting of all was the powder made from the dried root of the "Yellow Puccoon" plait, known to us as "Golden Seal." Some people made a tonic by dissolving a little of this in whiskey; but at our house this powder was used to apply to canker sores and fever blisters; and it was indeed a bitter dose. Years later, I came to know this plant by its botanical name, Hydrastis Canadensis.

Even as a small boy, all this was of special interest to me. In the Chemistry book referred to above, I found an illustration which showed the hemispheres of a hollow globe from which all the air had been pumped; one half was securely fastened to a post; a pair of horses was trying in vain to pull the other half; this, the book said, was a lesson in science known as air pressure; this was a great mystery to my childish mind, and I pondered long on it.

I can hardly recall the time when I could not read. As before mentioned, I was rather frail; as the family began to recover from the distress and destitution of the war, the fireside scene assumed a more cheerful spirit; books and magazines became available once more; and it was soon understood by my family that I much preferred study to work.

Very different from my father and brothers, I had little interest in, and less ability for handling livestock. When I was small a horse on which I was riding jumped a small stream and I fell off, severely injuring a shoulder. This greatly decreased my interest in farm life in general.

But I was outspoken in my love of books, especially those treating of disease and its care or cure_. My father was proud of my ambition and gave me much encouragement; but my mother, it seemed, wanted to keep me a child. Since she was in poor health my older sisters, Martha and Mary, who were grown young ladies, took over, in a large measure, my bringing up from babyhood. They took special delight in every step of my progress.

But my happiness suffered a severe shock when the younger of the two girls married; sister Mary was a most lovable woman, a favorite in the family circle. I can still remember the bitter tears which trickled down my cheeks as I took refuge in my father's arms to witness the ceremony.

In a short time my oldest brother, Charlie, also married; but soon after this, before my sixth birthday, some-thing very exciting, to me at least happened: a neighbor who was a very close friend to our family, came to see us, his purpose to solicit pupils for a school to be taught by his daughter. My father agreed to send three children, as I remember - for at least a part of the session. I Joyfully received the announcement that I could attend.

I was given a Webster's Blue Back Speller, which had been carefully protected by a covering of blue and red home-woven cotton shirting; and so with this important and much used book which had seen service in our family for several years, I began my systematic quest for knowledge.

The house in which we assembled was an ex-slave cook's cabin in the corner of a large grassy yard; there was a fireplace and two doors; rough wooden slabs were arranged so as to provide seating space for about twenty or twenty-five children. The teacher spoke kindly to me. My first day at school was, to me at least, a brilliant success.

The teacher was a most refined woman - soft voiced, with a motherly tenderness that quickly won the love and esteem of all the children, she was known to us as Miss Mollie. Miss Mollie was a widow with a little boy about my own as.. Her parents were excellent people; her father, Elder D. R. Sowell, was one of the pioneer ministers of the Church of Christ in Middle Tennessee, and in its labors he toured Maury County and the adjoining counties during the summer months; he was very tall, with a long white beard which gave him a dignified appearance; but he was most generous and kind, allowing us school children the free run or the yard and big woodslot, with all surrounding territory.

But an unexpected event came to pass which closed the little cabin school permanently. "Uncle Billy" Lee, as he was familiarly called, a co-laborer with Brother Sowell, had a son who had graduated in medicine, and had been practicing for several years. After a brief courtship he and Miss Mollie were married. This terminated a very happy association of my childhood; her own little boy was grief stricken, which greatly added to my own burden.

My next school experience was very different_. An old-time "double-log" dwelling with a stack chimney, on a lot which later became the site of a new school building, was donated for a school by a large landowner in the neighborhood. The teacher in this school was a member of a prominent and intellectual family, Miss Sallie Pickens; she was reasonably "Fair, but Fat, and Forty." My first impression of her and of the new school was most unfavorable. I felt alone and helpless. Miss Pickens spoke with authority and determination; her voice struck terror to my heart.

There were more, and larger, pupils in this school, a fact which necessarily called for more rigid discipline; when occasion demanded, punishment was promptly administered. I had an increasing dread of the consequences. At home, now, my parents discovered that my enthusiasm for school was now at a low ebb; my older brother assured me that all was well. But a day or two later Miss Pickens peered behind my Blue Backed Speller and saw tears.

She spoke soothingly, (for once,) but the comfort was brief. A day or two later came the stern announcement that an improvement must be made in both behavior and lessons; this brought from me an outburst of tears. Miss Sallie demanded the reason, which I could not give; she then told me to get out in the yard, and when I had finished this "baby act," I could return to my place.

Through blinding tears I stumbled down the rickety steps; as I did so, some six or eight young pigs came noisily frolicking from beneath the old building; it seemed to me that they were putting on 'this hilarious play to show how happy and carefree was their life, as compared to the plight of a timid small boy under the iron rule of an old-maid school teacher.

In a few days, however, in accordance with popular custom, Miss Pickens came to spend the night in our home; she proved to be very gracious; my parents knew her brothers and sisters; and in a short time I felt more at ease in her presence, and my childish fears were removed.

During the years immediately following, my opportunities were more favorable; we had some first class teachers in our community, several college men among them, who were thorough instructors.

One of these whom I feel should have a passing notice, was a young man who had suffered the loss of his entire right arm and the fingers of his left hand; this accident had occurred when he was a mere boy on his father's farm: his right arm was drawn into the rollers of a sorghum cane mill, crushing it, together with the fingers of his left hand, before the horses turning the mill could be stopped. Thus handicapped, he was an object of sympathy for the entire neighbor-hood; schools offered him free tuition, which he accepted, and he proved worthy of every favor.

During a vacation period he came into our community and obtained the assurance of a number of students sufficient to give him a reasonable salary. To further encourage him, three or four of the substantial citizens promised him room and board for a month or more. It was during my association with this young man that I became impressed with the idea that "where there's a will, there's away."

Another teacher whose work I briefly mention, at the risk of boring my readers, was a Mr. Fuller of North Carolina. He was a graduate of the University of that state who had prepared for the ministry of the Presbyterian Church. Then came the Civil War, and he responded to the call of the Confederacy. When the struggle was over, he, like many another, had to begin life all over again. He came to Tennessee and to Maury County, where he met and married a cultured and refined spinster named Miss Kinnard. He proved to be a useful citizen of our county, engaging successfully in farming and lumbering. After a few years he was elected to teach our school.

From the first days of school an attachment began between us, which continued throughout the years. I had now reached the age of young manhood, in which my mental makeup was fully charged with ambition and ego. Professor Fuller encouraged both. He planned my school work, and assisted me in such a way that I made steady progress.

But, in the meantime, my cherished hope of one day becoming an M. D. was still prominent in my plan of life.

The years immediately following this pleasant and profitable association witnessed quite a few changes in the family: marriage had reduced the number of children left in our home to three: Brother William who never married; Sister Kate, my youngest sister_, and myself. My parents were still living, but not very active; My mother suffered from spasmodic heart attacks. Dr. J. G. Lee, the husband of my first school teacher, and our good friend, was our family physician, and was called to relieve her when these attacks were severe.

Then cane a hot dry summer, and a prolonged scourge of malaria struck our neighborhood. My brother, my sister, and I were victims. Dr. Lee rode night and day and yet at times was twenty-four hours behind in his calls. He was a large man of powerful physique and seeming endless endurance, going without sleep or rest, and riding in all kinds of weather.

We were fortunate, he lost no case in our family; but due, I think; to my imprudent eating, I had periodic attacks of chills and fever at intervals of every two or three weeks during the year and a half following.

It was daring this time that my father, being convinced of my lack of strength and of my indisposition to farm life, also my interest in everything pertaining to medicine, suggested that it might be well to investigate. Accordingly, when in a few days Dr. Lee came by to see us, the matter was mentioned. He gladly offered his assistance as preceptor and general instructor; knowing, however, my frail physical condition, he uttered the caution that I could never endure the hardships that had been such a large part of his own life during his entire experience.

For a moment, his pronouncement was a crushing blow to me. But Dr. Lee, seeing my discouraged face, suggested that I consider an allied profession: Pharmacy.

I knew this frank statement from our good friend was made in sincerity and for my protection against time lost in preparing for a life work which I was physically unable to do; for in addition to the handicaps already mentioned, I had received another injury by a fall from a horse, this time a crushed ankle, which proved to be a permanent hurt.

Time passed as I waited and wondered if there would be any development which would enable me to study medicine. Dr. Lee was a customer and friend of a druggist in Columbia who told him he might employ me later, but he could not promise any specified time.

In this connection I owe it to myself, if to no one else, to pay a brief tribute to the one who (with the possible exception of my parents) contributed more to whatever success I have achieved, than any other person.

This was my Brother William. In disposition and manner he was very much like our father. Being nearly fifteen years my senior, our intimate companionship was not established until after the other three brothers had married. Then, being together more, we became very strongly attached.

Now, he saw that I was discouraged; one night in our room he asked me if I was going to school the following year; I replied that I hoped I could. His advice was: "That is the best thing you can do for yourself, and you are the one to please".

Brother William never married; his opportunities for an education had been very limited yet he had a fine mind and was successful and generous. I never knew him to fail to extend a helping hand to anyone in the neighborhood black or white, from the time of his boyhood until his death.

My parents were now old and entitled to any comfort a son could give them; my mother failing rapidly, or so it seemed to me; I could sense her feeling that I should stay at home; I was torn between a feeling of duty toward her, and my own ambition. But suddenly there appeared on the horizon, a faint star of hope.

A successful country merchant from an adjoining county had selected a location for a new business within a mile of my home, a store building had been rented. A brother-in-law who knew him advised me to apply for work with him, which I did. My application was favorably received and most of the details concerning my work and salary were understood between us.

I returned from my visit with Mr. Davis with a report which met with general approval in my family circle. Mr. Davis proved to be a very congenial man in the community, in addition to his store, he operated a kind of huckster service, making a trip to Nashville every other week for his supplies.

My duties embraced those of General Manager of' the store, bookkeeper_, salesman, stockman, and janitor. For exercising these duties I was to receive from the date of the opening of the store, January 22, to the close of the year, the sum of one hundred dollars and my board. This would seem impossible in the present age; but it was generous enough for that day and time, and afforded me the experience from which I gained knowledge I could not have obtained elsewhere.

I was to sleep in the store, a bed having been provided in the back, near the stove, for that purpose. Mr. Davis had rented for himself and his family a home two miles distant. Now, as the darkness of a cloudy winter day came on, he made ready to go home. I asked if there was anything more he wanted me to do; he replied "Look after things and keep up the fire."

When I was alone I decided I would make a survey of the stock that remained to be put on the shelves; and to my surprise and delight, I discovered some boxes containing quite a number of real drug store goods: fluid extracts, tinctures, and so on. This I considered great good fortune.

After a while I decided to retire, to be ready for a busy day on the morrow, but when I went to lock the front door, to my surprise and dismay there was no key! Now, I was not especially afraid, but I did feel lonesome. I pushed some heavy, wooden packing cases against the door, and retired; but my sleep was somewhat disturbed; partly on account of my new environment, and partly from the consciousness that I was alone in a building filled with valuable merchandise, without even a latch on the door.

I arose early next morning and started the fire; when Mr. Davis came in and I told him of having no door key, he merely laughed and said: "Yes, I must leave you a key:"

Arrangements had been made for me to take my meals with a relative whose home was some three hundred yards from the store; this was my father's cousin, John T. Derryberry, his wife, cousin Cornelia, and large family; I had attended school and visited with the younger boys all my life. Cousin Cornelia was one of the best women I ever knew, and I felt very much at home there. After some weeks, however, Mr. Davis said to me that my board was rather expensive and would I be willing for him to send a supply of food from his home every day? I agreed to this arrangement, which proved to be fairly satisfactory, Mrs. Davis was a good cook and never stinted on anything; however, the two boys, aged about ten and twelve, respectively, would have meats, vegetables and dessert pretty well mixed by the time they rode rapidly from their home to the store each day!

Mr. Davis was absent from the store several days at a time on his bi-weekly trips, leaving me in charge; in my spare time I took stock of the drugs and medicines and ordered as much in that line as I thought we would sell; later I bought a copy of the U.S. Dispensatory, a Medical. Dictionary, and Parrish's Treatise on Pharmacy. Many a spare moment I spent studying the drugs which came under my rather limited observation. In addition to remedies for human ills, I acquired a thorough knowledge, or so I thought, of such chemicals and compounds as the good housewives of the neighborhood used for dying the wool sox and stockings for the boys and girls of the family; these were cochineal, copperas, Dutch madder, indigo, extract of logwood, and others that I cannot now recall. All of these I would fully explain (providing my customers had time to wait and listen,) both as to the source of supply, and the best method of use.

A little piece of asafoetida the size of a thimble was sewed securely into a small piece of thin cloth and tied under the throat; this was considered sufficient to give protection against the child's "catching" whatever disease was going around.

Now, the gum asafoetida on the market at that time came in hard lumps of various sites and shapes, and was very difficult to break into any desired bit; but day after day I struggled with it. At certain seasons, the demand was heavy; and by the time I had prepared preventative measures for several small patients, I felt sure that I myself, anyway, must be immune!

I recall another experience that happened to me about this time. The hoop skirt as an article of feminine adornment, was then in popular demand; we had but recently added them to our stock. Now on a quiet summer afternoon some young ladies visited the store, made a few small purchases, and when they turned to leave, spied one of these new items of fashion hanging from a hook on the wall.

At their request I reached up and got the object, carefully placing it on the counter.

A careful inspection of the wire hoopskirt followed; one of the young ladies, after a whispered conference with her companions, said she would take it.

Now, indeed, did I come to grips with a problem: for the only wrapping paper we had in the store was a heavy dark brown paper in sheets about 18 by 32 inches, and the wrapping twine was also of paper.

I had seen very few hoopskirts, wrapped or unwrapped, off or on the human figure; but I tackled this job like a veteran.

I carefully brought the sides of the wrapping paper together, holding them with my left hand, at the same time trying to bring the wrapping twine in place to tie; but as I relaxed my grip slightly the lively hoop skirt gave a great swish and sailed from the top of the counter into the center of the store!

Her companions aid I were very much embarrassed; but she soon emerged, cool as a cucumber, paid me, and walked out of the store and down the steps with her skirts billowing out in the latest style!

My first year in business was worth much to me in many ways; handling and selling a variety of merchandise to people showing an even greater variety of human nature, gives a knowledge which can hardly be obtained from any other source. This was my daily experience.

Mr. Davis left me largely on my own as far as the management of the store was concerned, while he was away trading through the country round about. I kept busy with customers during the day and stock arrangement and bookkeeping duties at night. I still had it in my head to study pharmacy- but now I began to experience a handicap toward achieving this ambition, thrust on me from the social side!

I had a very good natural talent for music; during my recovery from being thrown from my horse, I had begun a limited study of the violin. When some members of the family congratulated me on my progress, I remember my father saying, rather jokingly, that he had no objection to my playing, but that he had never known a good "fiddler" who was any account for anything else!

In my case, however, I only kept it up a few years; still, it took valuable time from my study of pharmacy.

Having been reared in a large family and accustomed to many visitors, now, my nights in the store were lonely. Mr. Davis noticed this, and one day he brought me his own violin, a very good one, and left it at the store, telling me to use it. This was the beginning of my brief, if not brilliant, musical career.

The family with whom I had taken my meals when I first came to work in Mr. Davis's store, Cousin John T. Derryberry and his wife, Cousin Cornelia, and their children, was, I think, the most musical family I ever knew. One of the sons was a bachelor who had clerked for several years in a large commissary in Alabama; he played the guitar; he had taken part in the social life of the Alabama town, and had a repertory of many vocal selections, as well as his skill as a guitarist. When he found out that I could play the violin, he brought his guitar to the store and we began to practice at night; he was also a capable promoter, so we soon became in great demand at social affairs in the neighborhood.

Other instruments were added to ours, which gave us plenty local popularity; after several months, however, we reached the height of our glory; personal interest in other matters of more importance served to bring our enthusiasm to a low ebb; and "The Lone Star Band" passed slowly into oblivion.

Mr. Davis's business was expanding, and now he suggested that we form a partnership and build a new and larger building on land which he had purchased nearby. I had saved some money, but not enough to meet this demand; but my elder brother, William, cane to my aid, and we soon had a good building ready.

The doctors in our rural community encouraged us to put in a stock of drugs; for we were some miles from Columbia. Dr. Lee, my friend of many years, offered many valuable suggestions. And a new doctor in the neighborhood, who had come from North Carolina, a graduate in both medicine and pharmacy, added his approval to the venture.

A room was planned and built in the new store especially for the drug department; proper shelving was put in, and from a druggist in Columbia we obtained a second hand prescription case, complete with pharmaceutical scales, or balances. I made a trip to Nashville where I bought, in small quantity, an assortment of prescription drugs which were most in demand.

Soon the day came when I was proudly inviting friends and neighbors to come in and visit our new DRUG DSPARTMENT. Many cane, and were lavish in their praise. As for me, I was elated: a dream had come true.

Now it was possible for my work to expand along various lines; I got many requests for the old standby cures, as well as for the advertised remedies popular at that time such as Groves Chill Tonic, Scott's Emulsion of Cod Liver oil, Jayne's E'xpectorant, (for whooping cough and croup, and Wine of Cardui.

I also by necessity began to practice as a veterinarian. The farmers came in to have compounded some of the several liniments then in use for fistula, "Sweeny", and a hidebound condition in their horses and mules. The good women in the surrounding farms were anxious to have help in combating chicken cholera, roup, limberneck, and other diseases which destroyed their flocks. I soon became familiar with the tried and true remedies for all these conditions, and thought myself an expert in compounding them; I tried to avoid any incompatibilities, but one day I was caught off my guard.

I did not even rinse out the bottle, but dropped in the Mercury; then when I added the sulfuric acid, the reaction was pretty strong - suffocating yellow fumes blew out of the bottle; the bottle itself was changed from, a green to a nice orange color, but as it was made of heavy flint glass, it did not break The farmer and I retreated to safety and waited nervously for the reaction to subside.

From this exciting experience I learned a valuable lesson, which I have retained.

Summer came, and there were many cases of chills and fever, which made the demand brisk for Quinine Sulphate; as well as for the popular "patent" Chill Tonics which at that time flooded the market. A few of these possessed some merit; many more were worthless, but advertising had created a demand for them.

But it was the babies, poor little helpless things, who suffered the most constant and endless medication, for such things as "hives", "Thrush," and "three months' colic." There was no Pure Food and Drug Law in force at that time, so baby doctoring was a fertile field for the' patent medicine manufacturer and the quack nostrum vendor.

Every merchant was sent a free supply of attractive booklets with pictures and jokes, also the suggestion on every page, that if your baby cried at night, and you could not rest, all you needed to do was to buy and use a bottle of Dr. -_______Baby Panacea.

Yes, it would make the poor little fellow rest, all right; for in most cases it contained liberal portions of paregoric or some other opium derivative, which saw to that.

About this time I was called upon to do some commercial compounding, in a small way; it came about in this wise: I had a relative who had taken his family to the swamps of Arkansas a few years before this time; he had gone to settle permanently, but the overflowing Mississippi River and the ever present malaria so discouraged him that he returned to his native home. But during his lonely isolation in the swamps he had formulated a liniment to which he gave the high sounding name of "Mountain Herb Oil."

He now called upon me to make him up a quantity of this liniment, which he planned to sell, I believe. I have forgotten the exact formula, but it was a mixture of a small quantity of each of a half dozen rubbing oils then in popular use in the homes over the country side. All these were carefully measured and mixed with alcohol; it made a very nice looking preparation, and contained enough of oil of cloves, oil of wintergreen, and others of like pungency to cause the patient to realize that something was being done for him. After the heat subsided, the patient invariably felt better - thanks to Mountain Herb Oil.

This young lady, Miss Birdie Westmoreland, was educated for a teacher, and had to teach the school near our store; later on she taught another rural school, during which time she boarded with my sister Mary, who had married John Hinson and lived at Rally Hill. As a result of this attachment, our marriage took place on December 6. 1888 at the home of her uncle and aunt, Mr. and Mrs. W. W. Lee of Lynnville, Giles County, Tennessee. Next day we came to my home in Maury and were cordially received by my family.

Now again my bachelor brother showed that kind and magnanimous spirit which characterized his life. I had some money saved but not enough to build us a home. We were graciously given room and board in the family home while brother William took charge of supplying and having built a neat little cottage near the store.

Here we established our first home.

By this time I was enjoying a very good reputation, not only as a pharmacist, but in cases of minor surgery, as well. Since the last of the sisters in the family had married,

(sister Kate having married Will Blair,) and my mother was not well, my father and brother William had employed an old colored woman as a cook. She was a very aristocratic old darky, Aunt Sarah Hancock, of the Hancock family of political fame. Aunt Sarah was an excellent cook, but past middle age herself, and at this time she was suffering with what she described as a "wen" on the side of her neck.

One Sunday afternoon when my wife and I were visiting my father and mother, Aunt Sarah, having an exaggerated opinion of my skill as a doctor, asked me to examine her neck. With a most professional air I made an examination of the small cyst; then quietly I took out my small pocket knife, which had a very sharp pointed blade, and made a small incision at the edge of the "Wen". My victim uttered a little startled outcry, but I assured her that all was well, and advised her to go to her room and lie down. She did so, and soon recovered from her operation and was very grateful to me.

We were very happy in our little home; two children were born to us there; Hazel Lee, born June 12, 1890, and James Laban, born May 10, 1892. My mother died in December of 1890; my father, although old, was in good health and well cared for at home by my brother William, now joined by sister Marthy, who had lost her husband.

It was hard indeed to say goodby to our friends and our many, many, relatives. Our baby boy we had always called Russ as there were several in the Bear Creek community named Jim or Jimmy Derryberry. Now my father, as we said goodby, took the little fellow in his arms; and with tears in his eyes, said: "There won't be any other Derryberrys living in Centerville, so when you get to your new home, call the baby Jim for me" And this we did.