1963

January

1. Temp 1 above. Clear. Sun out. Ate and cleaned up things. Read paper and stayed home all day. No one came. I watched football parade from 11:30 to 1:30 then football games till 7:45. Talked to Mrs. Lilly & Mrs. Vermillion. Dr. about the same. Mrs. Beulah Via feel and broke her hip yesterday – was with Mrs. Sisk when it happened. Temp in 20’s all day. No thawing.

2. Up at 7:15, Temp 13 & clear. Sis called for me to go to Hinton with her at 9:30. I did not go. At 10:30, Ethel called for me to go with her and Glady to Bluefield to see the Dr. about her arm. We left at 12:30 and got home at 5:15. Was eating supper and Dr. Withers knocked on the door. He came for me to go up and see Mrs. Withers. She is sick and Dr. Hale had been out to see her. Dr. took me up and we visited in the guest house – good fire in fireplace. At 9:00 Sis and Samps came and at 9:30 we came home. Boy, cold.

3. Up early and cleaned up things. Dressed and I went with Ethel and Glady to Bluefield. Ethel had to get shot in her shoulder. We visited Mrs. Via while – she is doing okay. We got home at 12:30. I watched my program till 2:00. Shumate put a new battery in my car - $17.50 - today. I went down to see Dr. Lilly - home at 3:45. At 5:30 I dropped a paper and picked it up and got a catch in my back & nearly get up straight. Garnet came up at 6:25 and left at 11:00.

4. Temp 22. Up at 9:00. Rolled out of bed and finally got breakfast over 7 washed dishes. Laid down for rest of day. Jesse came at 11:20 and called for Samps but he didn’t answer. At 1:15 Samps came and left at 1:30. At 1:35 Helen Caperton came and left at 2:45. Slept some. At 5:30 Sis and Samps came. Mrs. Rogers called and then they came up for a while. Sis and Samps left at 8:00. I listened to Princeton Hi basketball game - Princeton lost and Baileysville beat Athens Hi. John Skeens died yesterday in Vet Hospital in Beckley.

5. Up at 8:00. Rested better. My back is feeling better some. Cloudy. Temp 22. Ate and cleaned up things. I rested on couch after I called Mrs. Lilly, Rogers, Sis and Helen. Ate. Paid Princeton Times boy 1.55 to Feb 1st. Fred and Elvie Rogers stopped in for a minute. Sis and Samps stopped by as they came back from Princeton.

6. Sunday Up at 8:30. Cloudy and misting rain. My back is better. Bathed and dressed and read paper. Samps stopped in as they went to church - said for me to be ready and they would stop for me. I went down and had dinner and supper with them. Ethel and Shirley came for a few minutes hunting for me. Home at 7:00 as they went to church. It was cloudy all day. Temp in the upper 30’s. Back better.

7. Up at 8:45. Ate. Cloudy. Temp 34. Cleaned up things and read paper. Mrs. Lydia Caperton’s sister, Mrs. Eskew, died yesterday in Princeton. Jesse came at 10:45 a few minutes. At 12:00 I ate. At 1:00 I went over to see Mrs. Casto a few minutes. Dr. Withers came for me to go up and see Mrs. Withers a while. We left at 1:20 and visited with her until 4:00. She was more settled when I left. Ate supper and called Mrs. Lilly. They are okay. I called Sis and Mrs. Rogers. At 7:00 Mrs. Toothman came for a while. At 8:30. Bea Alvis came and paid Troy’s rent. Jean is back in hospital again. Temp 36. Cloudy all day. Back better a lot.

8. Up at 8:00. Temp 32. Ground is covered with snow and it is still snowing lightly. Ate and cleaned up things & read papers & cleaned up dining room table and straightened up things. Dressed and ate dinner. At 1:00 I drove up to Mrs. Withers and she is much better and we had a nice visit. She gave me a necklace – real nice. We had coffee and cake and home at 4:25. Snowing some at 5:30. I went over to Perry’s a few minutes and home at 6:00. Read the Times. Mrs. Lilly called and Fred Rogers called. He wanted to come up for me to go down and sit by the fire t=with them in the basement. I didn’t go and will go later. I called Sis & Ethel. She is about the same. Temp at 9:00 is 27. WVa U beat Davidson. Rod got 28 pts.

9. Up at 8:00. Ate. Temp 29. Cleaned up things and read paper. O went over to see Mrs. Casto a few minutes. . Home and ate dinner at noon. At 12:20 I went down town, paid water bill & got mail. I went down to Dr. Lilly’s and at 3:25 on down to see Ethel. Home at 5:15. Ate supper and just messed around. Sun out all day – not a cloud in the sky. A bear and her cub have been all over Athens – even over at Mr. Casto’s, Ben Wiley’s and in Dr. Lilly’s backyard.

10. Up at 8:00. Cloudy some. Ate and cleaned up things. Picked up rotten apples out of yard & read paper & watched TV. Ate dinner & went up to see Mrs. Withers at 1:00 and got home at 4:00 Ate supper and At 7:00 I went down and saw Alice Lee until 8:00. Then I went to a Hi School game with Iaeger – we won by 7 points. It was a fine day. Temp near 60. Back OK now. Raining late.

11. Up at 7:45. Rained and thundered and lightning around 6:30. Ate and cleaned up things. At 10:30 I went over to see Mrs. Casto a while and she is doing fine. Marge is going home this afternoon. At 2:00 I went up to see Mrs. Withers. She is fine and improving a lot. Home at 3:30 and watched my programs. At 4:00 I went to store for groceries and mail. Home at 4:25 and read the Princeton Times, ate supper and dressed and went to the Hi gym: Athens vs. Welch. Welch won. Raining when I went and temp in the upper 50’s.

12. Up at 7:30. Temp 46. Sun out and a nice day. Ate, cleaned up things and read the paper. Baked a custard pie. Went over to Mrs. Castos a few minutes at 11:30. At 12:05 Ethel called and at 1:00 we left for Hinton to see Dr. Meador a while and on down to see Roy a minute. On downtown and shopped til 4:30. Ate at the diner and everything was closed when we came out. Home at 6:20. I drove back. Raining at 7:00 and temp dropping - 40 at bedtime. I listened to the WVa game – 100-97.

13. Sunday  Up at 8:30. Ground covered with snow and snowing on and off all day. Temp 26. Read papers and at 1:00 I went up to see Mrs. Withers. She came down yesterday afternoon while I was gone. She was dressing to go out. Home at 1:30. Fred Rogers called this morning. At 3:20 I went down and got Ethel and we went up to restaurant and ate dinner. Home at 4:00 to watch east and west pro bowl game. East 30 and West 20. Called Mrs. Lilly and they are okay.

14. Up at 7:00. Temp 4 above zero. Clear. Ate, cleaned up things, and read paper. At 10:30 I went over to see Mrs. Casto a few minutes. Back some better. I listened to Kennedy’s address to congress for 45 minutes. Cindy Combs buried today at Elgood - died Saturday. I washed this afternoon and took my time. Temp 22 all day – no higher. Temp 12 at 8:00. Sun shone all day. Back some better.

15. Up at 7:30. Ate & cleaned up things. Clear and sun out - temp 10 above. I sprinkled my clothes down & read paper. At noon I ironed all of my clothes. At 2:00 I went up to see Mrs. Withers a while. Home at 3:30 and watched Dr. Malone program and dressed and went down to Dr. Lilly’s at 4:00. Home at 5:15. Very nice day. Ate supper and at 7:00 I went over to sit with Mrs. Casto a while. Warmer some.

16. Up at 8:00. Ate. Temp 16 above. Clear. Sun out. Cleaned kitchen cabinet and worked in the kitchen all day. Ate dinner. No one came. At 8:00 turned on radio and listened to WVa basketball game - won good game. No Princeton Times tonight.

17. Up at 7:00 Ate. Temp 30. Clear. Sun out. Read paper and started cleaning out sink cabinets and drawers & all - finished late in the afternoon. Dressed at 4:00 and went downtown for mail and groceries and home. At 4:30 ate and ran sweeper in kitchen and living room. Read Princeton Times. At 7:10 I went over to Mrs. Casto’s. She is doing fine, up and going - doing little things. Temp 30 at 8:00.

18. Up at 8:10. Raining and freezing. Car covered with ice Temp 30. Ate and cleaned up things. Read paper and watched 10:00 TV program - says that there are so many wrecks from ice covered roads this morning. My back is better. I went down to store for groceries and ate supper up at the restaurant with Sis and Samps at 5:00. Raining.

19. Up at 8:00. Raining. Ate and cleaned up things. Cleaned kitchen and got it ready to wax. Dressed and went down to Dr. Lilly’s a while. Back to store and got wax and groceries, Home, ate, and waxed kitchen floor and later baked a cake. At 5:30 Jesse called and said that Jimmy Alvis, Daphna’s son was killed in a car wreck over at Fred Ball’s. Richard Alvis was in the car with him, ran out of the road into fence and was thrown out of the car and died soon after before the ambulance could get there. Rain at 5:30. Went over to Perry’s a few minutes. Temp 40.

20. Up at 8:30. Ate. Raining some. Cleaned up things. Read papers. Dressed and at 12:30 Sis and Samps stopped by. We ate dinner up at the restaurant. Home. At 1:30 I went to Daphna’s a few minutes. Jimmy’s wife took his body back to Ohio this morning early. Home and watched TV. Ethel came and visited a while. We went up to restaurant for hot dogs and French fries. Home at 7:30. Boob and Eula came calling and left at 9:30. Colder. Temp 28.

21. Up at 7:45. Temp is 6 above. Blue cold all day. Ate and cleaned up, read paper and watched TV. Ate dinner at 12:15. Dressed and at 1:15 I went up to see Mrs. Withers a while and found out a lot of things from her. I came home at 5:30. Temp 14 above. Boy out west it is terrible weather & snow. Ate supper, baked pone bread and loafed around. Snowed just a little today at 8:00. At 8:00 temp 10 above. Today John Steele died.

22. Up at 7:00. Temp 4 above. Sun out & clear. Cleaned up, ate and read paper & watched 10:00 TV – Say When. Washed picture frames. Mrs. Withers gave me several days ago. Ate and dressed and went down and got mail & had a check from affiliated fund - $29.64. Cashed it and deposited $200 on checking account. Home and watched my programs. At 5:30 ate and Mrs. Lilly called to see how I am feeling. They are doing okay. Temp went up to 38 today and sun out all day.

23. Up at 7:00. Temp 36. Red sunrise & cloudy. Ate, cleaned up things and dressed. At 9:20 I went down town for groceries and mail. I went on down to Dr. Lilly’s. Raining as I went down and snowing as I came home at 12:10 – just poured for a while. John Steele was buried at 2:00 this afternoon – did not get to go. Wind high and temp dropping fast. Watching cars trying to go. Ate supper and just messed around. Talked to Mrs. Rogers. At 11:00 temp is 4 degrees and going down fast – windy.

24. Up at 7:30. Temp 20 below zero. Boy, blue cold. Sun out & clear. Ate. Talked to Sis – no school in Mercer Co today. Mrs. Lilly called and also talked to Mrs. Rogers. Not as much snow as predicted – not a cloud in the sky. Lots of water froze up in town. Fred Rogers called. At 11:00 Temp 2 below zero & clear – no wind.

25. Up at 5:40 to check temp – 8 below zero. Went back to bed. Up at 7:50. Ate & read paper and cleaned up things. Washed my hair and done it up. Mae came over and said that her water was froze up. I called the men for her. Stayed in all day. Warming up late in afternoon. I went downtown at 4:00 and visited with Mrs. Jennings for a while and back home. Temp 26.

26. Up at 8:00. Ate. Temp is 22 above – clearing up some. Went down to pay taxes at bank upstairs and on down to Dr. Lilly’s a while. Home and ate dinner. I went over to see if Perry wanted to come over and watch WVa play Duke on TV. Home and I watched the game – Duke 111 and WVa 71 - What a beat. Rod Thorn 11 points only misting rain late & freezing.

27. Sunday Up at 8:00. Temp 116. Snowing and oh boy windy. Temp dropping - a bad day. At 2:30 Mrs. Casto sent me over vegetable soup for supper. Bot was it good. Temp dropping. Sis called, talked to Mrs. Lilly and Fred Rogers. No one came. At 6:00 temp 10 above. At 10:00 temp 3 below. Wind laid.

28. Up at 7:00. Temp 8 below. I ate and cleaned up things & read paper. Clear and sun out. Perry’s water is froze up again. Had to dig in above gate on pump lot. Tried to get Gene and Tracy to eat dinner with me. They said that they had more to thaw out. I went over to Mrs. Casto’s a few minutes. At 2:30 temp 17 above. Boy it was cold. No one came. Washed out panties in basement. Ran sweeper and was tired. Ate supper and watched news. I listened to WVa basketball team get beat by Furman 59 to 58 – low score.

29. Up at 7:00. Temp 2 above zero. Sun out clear and calm. Ate & cleaned up things. Dusted everything, watched my programs and read the paper. Ate dinner and dressed. At 2:00 I went up to see Mrs. Withers awhile. Home and went down and got mail and almanac and calendar at Jennings Drug Store. Home at 3:35. At 4:30 went over to Mrs. Casto and took her can home. Ate supper. Fred Rogers called and later Sis called. I have had a runny nose all day.

30. Up at 7:30. Temp 33. Cloudy and raining some. Ate and cleaned up things. Read paper and watched TV. Mrs. Lilly called and said that they were okay. Mae Martin came in a few minutes. I called a Mr. Nice (Rice) Vet man in Princeton for her about Henry’s teeth. I tried to get the ice off of front steps. I had to use hot water to get it off & also washed off back porch & just messed around. WVa 114 vs. Florida 67 played at Charleston Mrs. Rogers called at ½ time. Temp at 9:00 – 32.

31. Up at 7:00. Temp 22 & clear. Ate and cleaned up things. At 9:35 Dr. Lilly called me – first time in months and months - for me to come down and stay with him till Mrs. Lilly gets back from Princeton shopping. I went at 10:30 and got home at 3:15. It was a nice day. I got the rest of the ice off my walk and front gate. Ate at 5:30 & read paper - The Times. Temp up to 32.

This is the last entry. Verlie passed away 3 years later on April 1, 1966. She died suddenly at home of an apparent heart attack. Jesse and Ennis found her in her living room after not being able to get her on the phone. After she passed away, the farm at the end of Broadway was sold to Jesse’s brother-in-law, Jack Fain. The farmhouse and buildings were torn down and a trailer park was built and is there today.

While transcribing these journals has been difficult to do, I believe that Verlie would want her little window of history to be preserved. Her journal entries appeared to be written as though she expected someone to read them and I am glad that I took the time to do so. I believe that sharing them with the reader will make Athens come alive once more as it used to be.