Week 39 #52Ancestors: Map It Out

Where did James and Malissa Sutton live?  I have pondered this many times but began to try and locate their property once again after my return from this year’s Tennessee trip.  I was very intrigued after visiting the Wolfe-Bray Cemetery as it would seem they lived nearby.  Looking through some of my genealogy books was helpful as I discovered a hand drawn map of Thorn Hill in Ramblings from the North Side of Clinch Mountain, Pictorial History of Some Early Families of Thorn Hill by Betty White Martin.  Pam Epperson and I drove along Indian Creek Road a few times to get to our family cemeteries.  This area lies in District 1 of Hancock County as depicted in another photo of Hancock County.  

Indian Creek Road in Hancock County, Tennessee

According to the 1870 and 1880 census, the Sutton property was located in District 7, Hancock County, Tennessee and Peter Wolfe’s property was in District 1. I discovered an old map in the book, Hancock County Tennessee and its people, Volume II, 1994 that provides the location of its districts.  Going back to the lawsuit that occurred over James’ property, the description of the 50 acres in dispute says its location was near the top north side of the Caney Ridge and continued to the south side where the property line joined Isham Sutton’s land (his brother).  Unfortunately, I don’t see a Caney Ridge but I do see Caney Valley and believe to have a general idea of where the land was located.

Edited Hancock County map showing Districts 1 & 7

As I look at the terrain then I realize the Clinch River separates these areas.  How were the bodies transported to the Wolfe-Bray Cemetery?  Being curious about some burial practices, I discovered a thesis by an East Tennessee State University graduate:  Stansberry, Donna W., "Burial Practices in Southern Appalachia." (2004). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. Paper 965. https://dc.etsu.edu/etd/965.  I learned that McNeil’s Funeral Home was the first to be established in Sneedville and that wasn’t until 1936. Up until then, most families took care of their dead at home. Few people were embalmed so the body was bathed and dressed then laid out with a sheet draped over it until the coffin was completed.   Deaths involved the community and that included digging the grave.  Problems could occur due to the mountainous, rocky terrain and dynamite was sometimes used to break through the rock. Can you imagine? The body was loaded into a wagon where it was pulled by a steer or mules to the cemetery and family and friends walked behind the wagon.  Once they arrived at the grave some hellfire preaching would begin.  How did they cross the Clinch?  Perhaps by ford or ferry as the map below reveals some historical crossing information. 

Source: The Role of Ferry Crossings in the Development of the Transportation Network in East Tennessee, 1790 – 1974 by Tyril Gilce Moore Jr., University of Tennessee – Knoxville

Now I need to revisit Sutton Hollow and find out if James and Malissa's home was nearby.  Another day, another time.

Sutton Hollow Road near Sneedville, Tennessee

Week 38 #52Ancestors: Cousins

This year I dedicated to writing about my paternal ancestors and, thanks to many cousins that I’ve gathered along the way, discoveries have been made in East Tennessee.  Pam Epperson drove from Ohio to meet me once again in East Tennessee to do some research and meet more of the extended family tree.  Time was dedicated to the cemetery hunt for ancestors and this year I was determined to find the Wolfe Cemetery and cousin Pam was up for the hunt!

Find A Grave Site for the Wolfe Cemetery

Find A Grave is a website many use to find their ancestors' graves and I discovered several relatives buried in this cemetery.  A review of the information provided made me think it wouldn’t be hard to find.  Ha!  Actually I had been forewarned by Cousin Elsie Stewart that I would need a four wheeler to get to it. The website location information:  behind the Providence Church in Hancock County, Tennessee.  Well, there is more than one Providence Church so this isn’t helpful.  Luckily, Pam found one of the churches located off Indian Creek Road which was near the Clement Cemetery she planned to visit so I was hopeful that both of us would end the day with visits to ancestors' graves.  The Clement Cemetery was easy to find and we made photo stops along the way of the beautiful countryside.  As I strolled through the cemetery I noticed headstones for John McDaniel and Ruth McDaniel Postle so I photographed them for research when I returned to OKC.  As I suspected, John is the great-grandson of my 4^th great-grandfather, John McDaniel, and that makes him my second cousin three times removed.  Ruth is the daughter of John so she is my third cousin two times removed.  

Clement Cemetery

The Providence Missionary Baptist Church would be much further down Indian Creek Road but there was plenty of time in the day to make it there.  As we drove along this road, Pam noticed that the barn that once belonged to her Shockley grandparents was still standing and that called for a photo stop.

Shockley Barn Photo taken by Pam Epperson

Finally we arrived at Providence Road and turned.  I was very excited but as I pulled into the graveled parking lot my heart sank as no cemetery was in sight.  We decided to park and look around.  Pam had a great idea -- see if the church was open.  Indeed it was!  We looked inside to see if there was paperwork that might mention the cemetery but there was nothing.  However, there were copies of the Mulberry Gap Missional Baptist Association pamphlets so, as copies were plentiful, we took a couple to further investigate.  As we pulled away, we drove up Pawpaw Road to see if a cemetery was further up the way.  Not finding one, we headed back to Indian Creek Road and stopped to talk to a man working near the road. He gave us directions to a Wolfe Cemetery down Antrican Road so we turned around to hunt it down.  He was the sweetest man as he must have went over the directions seven times to make sure we would find our way.

Roads located near Providence Missionary Baptist Church

This cemetery would turn out to be a bust as it only had about four graves but they were Wolfe’s.  Sigh!  There was even another Wolfe Cemetery that we passed on Highway 131 as we drove back and forth to the farm.  Finally as we sat in the Clinch Mountain Lookout Restaurant waiting to be served, I followed Pam’s recommendation and contacted the Hancock County Historical Society.  The lady tried to be helpful but could only tell me that the cemetery was located on Kermit Winstead’s property.  She recommended that I contact the McNeil Funeral Home to see if they could direct me to its location.  Unfortunately, when the director said it might be in the Pawpaw district then my heart sank once again as I explained that I visited one near that area that wasn’t it.  He did not offer up more information so our conversation ended.

In the meantime, Pam contacted an East Tennessee Cemetery researcher who stated the Wolfe-Bray Cemetery was on Pawpaw Rd. about a quarter mile up the road on the right.  This was near the Providence Missionary Baptist Church but not behind it.  Off we went again down Indian Creek Rd. turning onto Providence Rd. and onto Pawpaw Rd. looking to our right.  Once again we could not locate it so Pam suggested we look to see if someone along the road was home that could give us directions.  Luckily as we drove back toward the church, a man was standing on his porch probably watching us drive up and down so we drove down his driveway to chat.  He was friendly but looked a bit weathered and had layers of medical tape across his nose.  Pam opened her window and asked him if he knew of the Wolfe Cemetery located on Kermit Winstead’s property.  He walked over to the car and said he of knew of a cemetery on the property but never heard it called that before.  I asked him what name he knew it by and he said, “nothin’.”  I laughed but he pointed the way and said to park near the gravel that was poured on the road for Kermit’s burial.  He said not to drive up to the cemetery as we could get stuck as the area had a lot of rain.  So I found the patch of gravel and told Pam she could stay in the car if she wasn’t up for the hike but she opened her door and said she wanted to see it.  Up the hill I sprinted but I had reservations as it wasn’t in sight then as I topped the hill there were headstones nestled amongst the trees. Finally!!

Wolfe-Bray Cemetery on Kermit Winstead's property

As I walked through the cemetery looking for relatives, I was so excited to come face to face with Malissa Wolfe Sutton’s headstone.  I must admit that I walked up and said, "There you are!" I scoured the area hoping to find James Sutton’s headstone. They are my 2x’s great-grandparents.  As I walked behind Malissa’s headstone, a gust of wind blew through the trees and I found myself being pulled backward.  Turns out a limb had caught me but I laughed and asked Malissa if she wanted me to stay a while longer.  The cemetery is in need of some tender loving care and tree trimming and I wonder if many people visit it.  I have to say that these Suttons, Brays, and Wolfes are well hidden. Another Tennessee genealogy adventure done and this was on my bucket list.  Now I need to research Kermit’s ancestral line to see if his farm was previously owned by one of my ancestors.  Thank you Pam for sticking with me on this search.  I truly appreciate it!

Pam Epperson resting up at the Dalton Farmhouse in Thorn Hill, Tennessee

Week 37 #52Ancestors: Mistake

Do I have to admit I made a mistake?  Well, I have made several but I correct them and move on hoping that others notice my updates.  Anyway, while researching my 2x’s great-uncle, James Marshall Sutton, I looked for sources that would reveal his wife’s maiden name. I couldn’t find a tree or marriage record that provided the information at the time and Oklahoma isn't the most genealogy friendly state (for certain records).  I stumbled on a California death index on a son thinking I finally had his wife’s maiden name.  It turned out to be a poor source as the informant gave the maiden name of the son’s spouse!  For a few years, I thought James was married to a Rosser so as time went on and more records became available then I discovered he married Louiasy Martela Purkey on February 17, 1884 in Tennessee.  In fact, his brother Peter also married a Purkey who was a first cousin to Louiasy.

Louiasy Martela Purkey and James Marshall Sutton with a granddaughter.  Photo may have been taken in Park Hill, OK.

Six children were born to James and Louiasy.  A grandson, Johnie Lee Sutton, began researching the family tree and posted some inquiries on Ancestry’s message boards that I discovered in 2014.  Unfortunately, he had passed away in 2013 but his cousin, Shirley, was able to provide me with several photos of James’ family and descendants.

Hubert Bartley Sutton and Ada Rosser.  Johnie Lee Sutton's parents. Photo provided by Shirley Stanford.

It was the California death certificate of Hubert Sutton (Johnie’s father) that led me astray.  It turned out his wife was Ada Rosser and she was 1/4^th Cherokee according to her Native American enrollment card.  I mention this because another mistake was introduced to our heritage when my father was told that he needed to meet his Cherokee cousins.  Dad had not researched the line and, between all the family stories, he mistakenly thought the Native American line descended through an earlier Sutton line.  

Ada was born in Indian Territory in 1901 and appears on the Cherokee Nation roll along with her parents and a brother named Kipling.  Her father had been enumerated in the Illinois district while her mother was enumerated in the Flint district.  

Ada married Hubert Bartley Sutton on December 16, 1919 in Washington County, Arkansas.  He had been born and raised in this area.  The couple moved to Verdigris, Rogers County, Oklahoma by 1920.  There were nine children born to this union: Vica Marie, Bonnie Mae, Reba Emily, Lowhman Bartley, Warren Felix, Ladahlia Dora, James Charles, Louise Jane, and Johnie Lee Sutton.

Back row left to right: Reba, Louise, Bonnie, Ladahlia, and Vica.  Front row left to right: James, Lohman, Ada Rosser Sutton, and Felix.  Photo provide by Shirley Stanford.

Ada Rosser Sutton and son, Johnie Lee Sutton.  Photo provided by Shirley Stanford.

Johnie was the youngest of Hubert and Ada's children. It is too bad we didn’t meet and do some research together:

Funeral service for Johnie Lee Sutton will be 10 a.m., Fri., May 31, at the Musgrove-Merriott-Smith Chapel with Rev. Doodle Woodson officiating. Burial will follow at Woodlawn Cemetery. Visitation will be held at the funeral home Thurs. 1-8 p.m.

Johnie passed away Mon., May 27, 2013, at Claremore Nursing Home at the age of 74.

The son of Hubert Bartley and Ada Emily (Rosser) Sutton was born June 16, 1938, in Claremore. Johnie graduated from Claremore High School in 1957, and on July 1 of that year entered the U.S. Navy. He served during the Vietnam War and retired in 1982. He then went to work as a machine operator for Allegheny Ludlum. Johnie could be found at Starbuck's or Sonic on Friday mornings. He enjoyed his morning and evening drives, fishing, skeet shooting, wildlife, and photography.

He was preceded in death by his parents; brothers: James C., Lowhman, and Felix Sutton; sisters: Bonnie Sutton, Reba Evans, Vica Smith, Louise Decker, and LaDahlia Cunningham; and nephews: Ronnie Decker and Sonny Sutton.

Johnie is survived by his step-daughter, Annette Renee Sherman of Dallas, TX; nieces and nephews: Loranna Minor and husband, Bill of Claremore, Melissa Walker and husband, Andy of Tulsa, Robin Kindle of Claremore, Reva Hayes of Claremore, Rodney Decker and wife, Karen of Spring Valley, CA, Shirley Stanford, Sharon Clark, and James H. Sutton and wife, Holly of Claremore; and sisters-in-law: Margaret Sutton and Geraldine Brown both of Claremore (source: mmsfuneralhomes.com).

Thank you for your service, Johnie!

Johnie Lee Sutton

Week 36 #52Ancestors: School Daze

Reading, writing, and arithmetic isn’t something easily found for my East Tennessee ancestors.  Since many were involved in farming then I would think there was an emphasis on having enough education to get by as it applied to the business of farming.  All family members had responsibilities for the work to be done on the farm.  Some of my ancestors were educated as they also served as postmasters, lawyers, or church clerks but these occupations weren't reflected on the census.  Perusing old newspapers, I found many articles regarding education in Hawkins County.  This article was published in 1890 showing a breakdown of children eligible for free schools.

Article published in The Herald (Rogersville, Tennessee), 03 Sep 1890. Source: Newspapers.com

By the early 1900’s families were leaving the hollers of Tennessee to seek gainful employment.  Many children of these families were attending school longer as families no longer farmed for a living.  My great-grandparents had moved away from Tennessee before 1900 but farming continued to be their main source of income in Fannin County, Texas and none of their children appeared to have attended beyond the 7th grade of school.  For the times they are a-changin' (oops that's a Bob Dylan song) my grandfather, Lewis Sutton, broke with tradition and began his career in the oil industry in Seminole County, Oklahoma.  Dad said they lived in a small community known as Snowmac; a town created by the oil boom and named after the developers, Snowden and McSwenney, who drilled a discovery well.  According to the American Oil and Gas History Society, Seminole grew from a town of 894 people to a boomtown of 25,000 to 30,000 residents around 1927 and became the world’s largest supplier of oil.  In fact articles refer to this area as "crude and lawless" and it became the "mecca of the fortune hunter and job seeker" (source: Bowlegs High School Yearbook, 1939).  I can’t fathom how the communities dealt with the radical growth and how it impacted every aspect of life from transportation, housing, food, and education.   A history published in the Bowlegs’ yearbook mentioned that there were hundreds and hundreds of children to be educated and my father was one of them.

Traffic jam in Seminole, Oklahoma.  Source: AOGHS.org

Wolf was another small town the family moved as my father said his brother and sister attended school there.  A school census verified that his oldest siblings, Doyle and Nina, attended Wolf School.  I had hoped to find some school photos of them but only discovered a group photograph at the Oklahoma Historical Society.  My aunt Dottie said Lyle Boren was one of Nina's teachers at Wolf. This teacher went onto to become a democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives for Oklahoma.  His son, David, would go onto to become an Oklahoma governor.  

 

Wolf Public School photo.  Source:  Oklahoma History Center

In 1940 the Sutton family was living in the town of Bowlegs, Oklahoma which is about 5 miles south of Seminole.  This was five years after my grandfather's death.  My grandmother had become a beauty operator (a short lived career for a reason, in my opinion, as she cut my hair once) and Doyle was a roustabout for Carter Oil. There are very few photos of the family during this time period because many were lost in a house fire.  To my amazement, I discovered photos in 2014 of my father and two of his younger siblings, Myrt and Dottie, published in The 1939 Yahnseh yearbook (unbeknownst to them).  This yearbook included a history of the Bowlegs school district’s development that I found interesting.  Just nine years earlier "Bowlegs had become the largest Union Graded school in existence with an assessed valuation of nearly five million dollars.  Enrollment had passed the 2,000 mark.  A teaching staff of 38 instructors offered work including a full four-year high school course with 26 units accredited by the State Department of Education.  Four school buses transported the students above the sixth grade to the central plant.”

Bowlegs School District's grade schools.  My father and sisters attended Taylor Elementary. Source: Ancestry.com

Dad disliked school and dropped out sometime after the sixth grade.  The school photo I discovered in this yearbook is most likely his last.  He had obviously fallen behind in school by 1939.  Dad mentioned that kids made fun of him there because he didn't have a father and whatever else would get his goat.  It was a blessing that his father had taught him how to shoot at a young age because his mother wasn’t a good money manager.  He found himself providing meat for the family by shooting squirrels and the occasional rabbit.  There was also mention of an occasional neighbor’s chicken that would go missing.  One of his first jobs as a teenager was making deliveries on a bicycle for the local drug store.

Paul Jones "PJ" Sutton

Myrtle Alice "Myrt" Sutton

Dorothy Jean "Dottie" Sutton

Despite dropping out of school, Dad found his way in life as a truck driver for various companies and settled with Safeway Supermarkets earning a steady income and retirement.  I believe three siblings completed high school – Nina, Myrt, and Don.  His youngest sister Dottie completed her high school equivalency by passing the GED exam.  I don't know about Doyle but I know he liked to write articles and had a few published in The Oklahoman newspaper.  My uncle Don would go one step further and become a college graduate.  

As I think about the various educational paths taken by Dad and his siblings, this John Dewey quote rings true, “Education is not preparation for life; education is life itself."

Week 35 #52Ancestors: At Work

Many of my ancestors worked as farmers so discovering someone who chose a different path was surprising.  This would be James Franklin Epperson who was the eighth child of James Nelson Epperson and Martha Barnard.  It was amazing to see this man and his wife, Minerva Lovin Epperson, in photos taken at the Sutton farm in Fannin County, Texas as they lived in Wise County, Virginia.  

L to R: Minerva and James Epperson, Allie and Noah Sutton, Charley Epperson and girl could be Nina Sutton circa 1935.

As Susie Kelley Clarke and I began to research the individuals in her family photo collection then I couldn’t help but try to learn more about them.  Jim's first wife was Mary Lawson and they had two sons named Willie H. and Louis Clay.  She must have died as he married Minerva in 1897.  This marriage would be blessed with five children: Mary Elizabeth, Virginia Myrtle, Ella C., Paul F., and Dana Herman.  Jim followed in the path of farming until 1900 or so and then, by 1910, he was a retail merchant of dry goods in Hancock County.  Turning to newspaper articles, I learned that the family was planning a move to South Dakota in 1915 but they were back in Hamblen County, Tennessee by 1920 and Jim was a merchant of a general store. The family moved again in 1930 to Gladeville, Wise, Virginia and he was still working as a merchant but now in a retail grocery store.  His daughter, Ella, would later reveal in a newspaper article (that's another story) the family had a medicinal recipe so I believe it was compounded and sold in his store. Ella later marketed it as “Epperson’s Compound”.

Ad in Kingsport Times,  20 Apr 1965, p. 5 (Source: Newspapers.com)

In 1940, Jim is 73 years old and must have stopped working as no occupation is listed and he passes away in 1943.  He was buried in the Creech Chapel Cemetery in Whitesburg, Tennessee.  In fact, his wife and several children are buried there as well.

Published in The Bristol Herald Courier, 31 Jan 1943, p. 2 (Source: Newspapers.com)

Is that the end of this story?  No!  His wife, Minerva, passed away 10 days later and her obituary provided much more information about their time together.

Published in The Bristol Herald Courier,  11 Feb 1943, p. 2 (Source: Newspapers.com)

My research on the orange grove in Boloco, Florida has been disappointing as there isn’t a town with that name. However, J. F. Epperson was also a magistrate in Wise County so I found an interesting article.

Squire J. F. Epperson takes confession published 24 Feb 1929 in The Bristol Herald Courier (Source: Newspapers.com)

This ends my story on Squire J. F. Epperson and it would seem that he was a man who wore many hats.

Photo of James and Minerva Epperson provided by Steve Laster on Ancestry.com

Week 34 #52Ancestors: Tragedy

Although the Epperson tragedy was the topic in Week 9, I couldn't help but write a part two of sorts on the trial that would transpire. The emotional toll this had on my great-grandmother, Allie Epperson Sutton, and her siblings must have been horrendous.  The eldest brother, John A. Epperson (age 25) would be charged with the murder of his father.  John’s younger brother, Thomas Epperson (age 20) would act as prosecutor and principal witness for the State despite using the weapon that caused the deaths of his mother and sister.  Reading through summary of the appeal filed by John A. Epperson saddened me but also helped to visualize how angry two brothers were during the tragic day.  It seems like enough sadness had occurred in the family but now their pain would be revisited again in court.

John A. Epperson v. The State, p. 291

Newspapers had written that John was a one-armed man and I was shocked to discover that this was confirmed in the legal documents.  His right arm had been lost to an accident.  After reading testimony indicating that his father had accosted him and encouraged Thomas to join in the fracas, it seems odd that there wasn't more sympathy given that he was handicapped.  Seems he had a right to defend himself but we will never know what the true relationship was between father and son but John was very determined to defend his mother.  Two siblings were witnesses for the defense – George (age 23) and Mary Epperson (age 14).  The Knoxville Daily Chronicle published an article on September 26, 1880 regarding John's conviction.  The writer indicated that the deaths of his mother and sister were a result of John's actions; however, the legal summary indicated that it was Thomas.  He pointed a gun at John and George grabbed his hand resulting in a struggle and the weapon fired.  The bullet's victim was their 15-year old sister Gracy who later died of her injuries.  As George and/or John walked out of the room, Thomas fired the gun once again in their direction but shot his mother instead! 

While reviewing the summary of the trial, I realized that I had not documented John on the 1880 census.  I discovered him living in the County Jail in Hawkins County.  This census was dated June 23, 1880 so this must have been where he was held before the trial:

The enumerator also indicated that John was married.  Could he have children from this union?  Luckily, information provided on Find A Grave revealed his spouse as Sarah Elizabeth Lea and there was indeed a child -- a daughter named Laura.  

John A. Epperson's death record. Source: Tennessee, City Death Records 1872-1923

It saddened me to realize that Laura was born after her father's death.  According to the information on Find A Grave, Laura was born on December 31, 1883 and her father had died from tuberculosis in the State Prison located in Nashville on March 22, 1883.   Could her birth year or birth month be incorrect given she was born nine months after his death?  John may have gone to his grave unaware that he was going to be a father.  He was laid to rest in Mt. Ararat Cemetery and that is curious given it is a historical African-American Cemetery located in Nashville.  I doubt there is a headstone but his death and burial location was recorded: 

Source: Tennessee, Deaths and Burials Index, 1874-1955 -- Ancestry.com 

After John’s death, Sarah remarried in Hamblen County on February 23, 1891, to Harbert Cooper with whom she had several children.  Daughter Laura was wed to Benjamin Franklin Moore on March 20, 1898 in Hamblen County.  To this union, nine children were born and in reading Laura's obituary, it sounds like she had a wonderful life.

Source: Elizabethton Star (Elizabethton, Tennessee) 29 Dec  1963 -- Newspapers.com

Now as each generation discovers this tragedy, it re-opens the wound that has been felt through the years:

“It has been said, 'time heals all wounds.' I do not agree. The wounds remain. In time, the mind, protecting its sanity, covers them with scar tissue and the pain lessens. But it is never gone.”
― Rose Fitzgerald Kennedy

Week 33 #52Ancestors: Comedy

Mr. Guitar

Chet Atkins' 51st studio album and second Christmas album issued by Columbia Records in 1983

Given that I have yet to discover a comedian in my family tree (and no Frank Sutton of Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.is not related despite some who think he is), I decided to find someone from East Tennessee to feature. After discovering that this individual not only had roots to East Tennessee, I learned his 2^ndgreat-grandfather, Lewis Atkins, actually lived in Grainger County many years and married there in 1804 to a woman named Elizabeth Monroe.  I have a DNA match to an Atkins who descends from this line and it is none other than Chet Atkins (if you didn't notice the name already). 

Chet Burton Atkins photo source: Wikipedia

My dad had a love of many types of music and we spent a lot of time listening to his favorite artists and this man was one of my dad’s favorites. My sister said Dad would buy albums from Sears to save money on his music collection.  I still remember him removing the vinyl record from its sleeve and placing it on the turntable and thoroughly enjoying the music.  When my Uncle Doyle visited (dad's older brother), they would sit down with their guitars and strum along.  Dad just picked at the guitar but Doyle really knew how to play it.  Dad would be so excited to learn that he might possibly be related to Chet!

Chet was born in 1924 in Luttrell, Union, Tennessee near Clinch Mountain.  Luttrell only has a little over 1,000 residents.  He was a high school dropout who went onto make country music history creating the Nashville sound, receiving 14 Grammy awards, and nine Country Music Association awards for Instrumentalist of the Year (source: Wikipedia).  

Map showing Luttrell and surrounding towns

Apparently Chet had a love of rural humor (source: Country Music Humorists and Comedians by Loyal Jones) and country music comedy. According to this book, if a car backfired during one of his concerts, Chet would yell, “Shoot him in the legs. That coat belongs to me!” Another story told to his audience is about the purchase of bifocals and how he was observing a dog through them: “While I was admiring the big one, the little one peed on my shoe.”

Source: Chet Atkins photo shared on Twitter discussion

Chet Atkins died in 2001 and was eulogized by Garrison Keller on “A Prairie Home Companion,” sharing another humorous story:

This duck walk into a bar, umps up on the counter, and says, “You got any corn?”  The bartender says, “No, we don’t have any corn, and furthermore, we don’t serve ducks, so get out!”

The next day the duck comes back, jumps up on the counter and says, “You got any corn?”

The bartender says, “I told you we don’t have any corn, you flat-footed idiot, and ducks are not welcome here.  If you come back in here, I’m goin’ to nail your feet to the counter.”

The next, day the duck comes back in, says, “You got any nails?”

The bartender says, “No, I don’t have any nails.  This ain’t no hardware store.”

The duck says, “You got any corn?”