Stoner's Crossing

By Gloria Fifield

Beginning with Hiram down the years to his great, great, great, great- granddaughter Sadie, this was one family and their lives lived in the Great Smoky Mountains of North Carolina. Theirs was a story like many others that settled that land. Men and women who were drawn to that part of Appalachia were a sturdy, self-reliant folk.
They knew well the meaning of community yet chose the life of a homesteader, trying to make a living on small hill farms and raised their families in the traditions brought with them from wherever they immigrated from. This is Beginning with Ol’ Hiram down the years to his great, great, great, great- granddaughter Sadie, this was one family and their lives lived in the Great Smoky Mountains of North Carolina. Theirs was a story like many others that settled that land. Men and women who were drawn to that part of Appalachia were a sturdy, self-reliant folk.
They knew well the meaning of community yet chose the life of a homesteader, trying to make a living on small hill farms and raised their families in the traditions brought with them from wherever they immigrated from. This is their story ...
palachia their story ...

• Language: English
• Publisher: Gloria Fifield
• Release date: Feb 15, 2023
• ISBN: 9798215856147

Gloria Fifield

I've always loved books. Even as a kid, that was my favorite pastime, escaping into the fantasy world of whatever book I was reading. Sorry to say, I started writing a bit late in life, but once I started, I couldn't stop. So far, I've tried writing what is sometimes called chic lit, family sagas, mystery, and sci-fi. My latest, is a real epic tale that is a historical fiction novel. Now, that was a challenge. I tackled it because my late partner was fond of telling me not to sell myself short. He said that if my mind could think it, I could write it and he was so right. At the moment, I'm living in sunny Florida with my two feline companions and enjoying working on a brand new collaboration with my brother Dean Fifield (who is also a writer.) Hopefully, we'll be presenting it to you for your reading pleasure real soon.

Book preview

Chapter one

Old Hiram hummed as he worked. Rebuilding this old cabin had become a labor of love for him and there were only a few finishing touches left to do. He mumbled softly as he potted some wild geraniums in an old clay cooking pot, I'm thinkin' she'll be enjoyin' these in the window. He found the old pot when cleaning out the rubbish that accumulated during the years he left this place abandoned. It brought back a memory of his mama growing flowers on the window sill too.

This hillside farm was rather isolated, but his mama lived happily there with his paw. Now, it was Hiram's hope to find someone who could be happy living up here with him. It got lonely living by himself and the time had come for him to do something about it. Though he was more than a little frightened of sharing his world with another, Hiram knew it was now or never.

Folks down in the settlement of Stoner's Crossing already called him Old Hiram, but Hiram Walker was only somewhere around thirty. He wasn't sure how old he was exactly because he'd never learned to read or write. His mother was the only one that had much schooling. She never got the chance to teach him because she died while he was very young. Hiram counted nearly thirty winters. That was close enough for him. After his mother died, his paw didn't keep track of such things all that well. All Hiram knew, was that his father said he was born in the winter and that he was around twelve when the War between the States broke out.

The war came as no surprise to Thomas Walker. There were grumblings for years even this far out into the wilderness. As long as his Jenny was alive, he didn't pay much attention. His first concern was for his family. With Jenny's passing he had a young son to care for, so again, he kept his political beliefs to himself and concentrated of caring for Hiram.

Then the War came. Still at first, Thomas stayed at home with his boy. Then one day in late spring, he could deny his feelings no longer. He'd taught Hiram well how to take care of himself, so he left Hiram with some supplies and his extra rifle, and rode off to join the Union army. Thomas Walker firmly believed that slavery was wrong. Having lived the free life of a frontiersman, he just couldn't see forcing another human being into servitude of any kind. He often told Hiram, Aint no sense in holdin' anyone 'gainst their will, 'cause they wouldna do much fer ye if'n ye did. Unfortunately, he was mistaken for a rebel and shot before he could explain that he'd come to join them.

The two other men that rode off with him that day, brought Thomas back home to the farm and helped bury him good and proper. When they asked the boy if he had kin to go to, Hiram said he did so they would leave him in peace. When the supplies ran out, he set out on his father's horse. Hiram figured it belonged to him now, just like the homestead. He lit out for the wilderness of The Great Smokies, to live off the land. His paw taught him how to hunt, trap, and trade for whatever else he needed. He even learned to make his own clothing from deerskin that he tanned himself.

The town folk never bothered with him much. Strangely enough, no one ever wondered where a young man like him could have come from, or why he would just show up at the general store at Stoner's Crossing only a couple of times a year. He usually came in the spring with winter furs and sometimes a few hand carved trinkets that the store's owner would sell for him. He held the money in an account until Hiram came in again in the fall to get his winter supplies to set out trapping again.

It may have been solitary, but it wasn't a bad life. Most of his time was spent alone in the forest, but lately, Hiram craved human companionship. He tried to come into town, but town folk avoided him. The few times he tried to attend their church, he was more or less ignored. The town's people weren't trying to be cruel, it was more like they couldn't be bothered with a wild looking man such as him. Eventually, he stopped going.

Hiram finally decided to go back to living on his old homestead. The cabin roof had long since fallen in, but that was fine with him. He fixed up a small shelter for his horse in the barn, and lived there with him. Hiram didn't know much about being a farmer, but remembered how his Mama always kept a garden and a few animals for most of the food they needed. His paw hunted for the rest.

What Hiram really needed was a good woman like his mama was; one who was strong and willing to make a life with him out here away from most folks. He looked around at the broken down cabin and ruined fields and wondered if that were even possible. No woman in her right mind would want to come here to live like this, so Hiram began fixing up the old place.

First thing he did, was to fix up the old barn. The timbers were still good, but the walls and inside needed a lot of work. Hiram was no stranger to work. To get the money and tools he needed, he hunted deer and sold the meat in the settlement. His fox pelts also fetched a fair price at the traders store since his were known for their quality. He learned how to make the pelts soft and pliable from a Cherokee family when he was a boy.

His wood carvings were also in demand, especially around Christmas time. The Nativity scenes Hiram carved depicted the Christmas story just the way his Mama so often read it to him from her Bible. She would sit by the firelight with him on her lap and read him stories from the Bible before putting him to bed. She also sang to him some of the old hymns she learned in the church where she grew up. He often fell asleep while she sang and was tucked snugly into the trundle bed his paw made for him.

All that ended when Mama took sick. She died never having seen a doctor. There were none in their part of the mountains. Folks doctored themselves as best they could, and when that wasn't enough, they died. He and Paw were on their own. There were no more hymns or stories after that, at least not the kind of stories he remembered Mama reading.

Paw taught him well how to take care of himself. They traveled together all over these mountains in search of enough pelts to trade with. They sometimes purchased goods for trading with the Indians further west, but usually, they came back to this old place when the winter trapping was done. For a while Hiram would sleep in a real bed with a roof over his head.

Until now, that kind of life was enough for Hiram, but he wasn't getting any younger and if he were ever going to have a family of any kind, it couldn't be put off much longer. How he'd love to have a son or two to teach all he had learned. First, he needed to find himself a wife. If'n all goes well, that'll be real soon.

Hiram finished hanging the front door on its leather hinges, then stood back to admire his handiwork. He repaired the barn, but when it came to the cabin, he had to start all over from scratch. He knew there was no use in mixing new logs with old, for the walls would never keep out the winter cold if he did. Sturdy logs of ash and yellow pine abounded in this part of the forest. It was a huge undertaking for a lone man, but Hiram was determined to complete the cabin by the time it came for spring planting. He even built a new chimney.

Well, he had a bit of help there. One day, a couple of months ago, a stranger happened by that stopped and gave him a hand. The man said he was heading out west to somewhere in the Rockies where he could live a free life without neighbors or taxes. Hiram grew up like that with his father but for some reason, he no longer had the urge to set out toward the setting sun. Staying put was what he wanted now … that, and a family.

It had taken the better part of a year, but Hiram had the house and the barn finished. He mended the fences around the barnyard for there was no sense in planting a garden if you couldn't keep the animals out of it. The time finally came when Hiram did all he knew how to do to make the place inviting enough for a wife. It was time to make himself presentable.

Hiram began by setting up the old washtub his Mama once used for him, filling it with water heated in the fireplace. It wasn't big enough for an all over bath, but he managed to wash away most of the long winter from himself and his clothing. He contemplated what he was about to do while wrapped up in his blanket. His one set of long johns were drying by the fire. He took a long, hard look at himself in a cracked old mirror and wondered if there really would be someone willing to marry him. That would certainly take a leap of faith.

A leap of faith was exactly what he planned on asking for. He figured that tomorrow, being a Sunday, would be a good time to do his asking. Common sense told him that he would have to go into town, to the local church to find what he was looking for. After all, that's where his father met his mama. She left her life in the village and went off with his paw to live in the wilderness on this homestead his grandfather originally built. He figured if his paw found a good wife there, he could too.

Sunday morning dawned cold, but filled with the beauty of early spring. He fixed his usual solitary breakfast, the last, he hoped. After cleaning up, he took one last look just to make sure everything was as neat as it could possibly be. Hiram placed his old hat on his head then mounted his horse. He hurriedly rode into the town, he didn't want to be late for services.

Although he wasn't the first to arrive, Hiram found a vacant seat far in the back. He sat through the preacher's sermon and listened to the scriptures that were read. He even remembered bits of one of the hymns his mama once sang to him. As soon as the service was over, Hiram rose from his seat and made his way down to the front of the room. After being given permission to speak, Hiram stood before the congregation and clearly announced that he was in need of a wife.

He described the kind of woman his mama was, and asked if some kind and loving woman like her, would consent to be his wife. People listened as he told of how he rebuilt the cabin they would live in. He then said that he didn't know much about farming, but that he'd made up his mind to learn and would need someone to help him. Lastly, he told them that his mama was a God-fearing woman and that she was the light of his paw's life. That was why he was here. Sides, he added, it'll be hard livin' up there on our own, an' it wouldna' hurt t'have Him on our side.

The stunned congregation said nothing at first. Hiram feared he would be rejected once more. Then from somewhere near the back, a slight movement caught his eye. A young girl named Elizabeth Townsend stood, picked up her Bible and her shawl, and slowly walked forward to meet him. If'n, as ye say, you've built a warm house to be lived in, an' you are truly wantin' a wife t'help ye live there an' raise a family, then I've a mind to accept your proposal.

No one was more surprised than Hiram. This was exactly what he had asked for but somehow, he hadn't truly believed it would happen. For what seemed like an eternity, neither of them spoke. Hiram finally managed to tell her, I want ye to know jes what you'll be gettin' from me. I'll take ye to see the cabin and I'll work as hard as I kin t'give ye a good life in it. It willna' be easy for either of us, but if'n you mean what ye just said, I promise t'try an' make ye happy.

I want t'be honest with you as well, Mr. Stoner. I'm not an easy person t'git along with at times. As my aunt kin tell ye, I'm stubborn to a fault … when I think I'm right. But, I promise I'll try hard t'be a good wife t'ye. To the amazement of all, she left, determined to ride out to the homestead with Hiram. Once she saw for herself he had indeed built a good home for them, she quickly agreed to the marriage.

Elizabeth rode back to town with him to make arrangements for their wedding. There weren't many to make. The preacher was more than happy to marry them since they both professed their willingness to live together as man and wife. As he well knew, marriages that began in this manner were often stronger, happier ones than those which were based on physical attraction alone. There was plenty of time for the love to come. The way he saw Hiram looking at Elizabeth, he had a feeling it wouldn't take long at all.

Elizabeth was not at all afraid of starting a new life as a farmer's wife. Since being orphaned during the war, she’d been living with her father's sister. This aunt treated her badly and wasn't at all happy about losing the income from Lizzie's work, but grudgingly gave permission for them to marry.

She had no other kin, so there weren't any others who attended their impromptu wedding. Hiram picked her a large bouquet of wildflowers, and Lizzy was already wearing her one good dress, so they were married late that afternoon at the parsonage. Preacher Johnson, and his wife, Tilly, offered to have the new couple stay for a wedding supper, but Hiram said he would rather take his bride safely to her new home before dark.

After collecting her meager belongings, they rode together toward home. Hiram never made this long ride with more anticipation or trepidation. He suddenly realized what he had done. He was now responsible for taking care of another person besides himself. Having lived alone most of his life, poor Hiram wasn't too sure just how to do that and worried he would somehow fail. Questions he hadn't considered before now plagued him. What if she finds living with me more than she bargained for? What if I only make her miserable and we can't get along? What if...

Lizzy had after thoughts as well, but of a much different kind. She was terrified of what might happen when Hiram discovered that he wasn't the first man she'd been with. Until today, she was able to block that horrible day from her mind but today, it came back to haunt her. She relived it all the way to her new home. She wondered if he'd still want her when he knew she was … damaged goods. She prayed with all her heart he would believe her and not send her away.

Lizzie was only about fifteen at the time. To help make ends meet, her aunt got in the habit of hiring her out to work in the town. One day she sent Lizzie to work for a man who thought the money he paid the aunt entitled him to more than just house cleaning. Lizzie returned home that night, badly beaten for resisting him. Her aunt was furious. She assumed Lizzie was most likely beaten for being insolent or for not completing her chores. She wouldn't listen to the poor girl.

After that, Lizzie refused all work except her chores at home. She was beaten regularly for her refusal, but remained adamant. Instead, her aunt put her to work taking in laundry from the village. In the nearly three years since, her aunt had been unrelenting. Hiram's offer of marriage and a home seemed like the answer to all her prayers. As she rode along in silence, Lizzie wasn't so sure.

Mercifully, it was nearly dark when they arrived at the cabin. Hiram was apologetic that she wouldn't have a fancy wedding supper. The simple fare he had on hand would have to do. He led her inside and showed her where everything was, then left her to it. By the time he bedded down his horse and cleaned up, he found her busy fixing their supper of cornbread with a thick slice or two of wild hog bacon. It was the best she could do until she had time to take stock of things in the morning.

They both sat in awkward silence for a while, just staring at the fire, until Hiram got up the courage to speak. Lizzie, I'm goin' ta have ta tell ye right off, I'm a plain man with plain ways. Pretty set in 'em too. I'll try t'make yer life here a good one, and I'm hoping you'll not be regrettin' what we done today.

Lizzie looked at him a little shyly, and answered, Don't worry Hiram, I'm used to plain ways an' like 'em. I don't believe I'll be regrettin' a thing. With that said, she held his hand and told him she was a bit tired and would be to bed directly. After cleaning up after their meal and banking the fire for the night, she undressed shyly and quickly got under the covers beside him.

If he knew there was any other reason for her shyness besides her youth, he never let on. After all, he didn't have the experience with women that men his age usually bragged about. He was aware of sex from an early age, but didn't experience