Family History Remembrances...

When I took Papa to Bardstown, there were a couple of things I learned about my family history.

First bit of knowledge was this broad axe.

Papa has always talked to me about Grampa Duck (Carl Edward Lawrence), his father, having excellent skills with a broad axe.  The axe on the right is a broad axe like Grampa Duck would have used.  Papa tells me that Grampa was good enough with this axe and a tree that he could make a smooth board to use in building a house or table, etc. with just the axe.

The second bit of knowledge was this sign.

One of the homes we went in had a hallway running right through the middle.  This is the way Mimi's parents (Clarence Clifford Fisch and Laura Cordelia Clark Fisch) home was down in Starks, Louisiana.  

Their home had two bedrooms on the left side of the hallway, one on the front of the house and one on the back of the house. There was a doorway between these rooms and a doorway from each room that opened into the center hallway.  

The right side of their home had one long room that went from the front to the back of the house. It had one doorway that opened into the center hallway.  This long room had a pot-bellied stove for heat located in the center of the right wall. The front of this room had their sofa and chair and was used like a living room. The back part of the room had their bed and was their bedroom. 

To the right of this long room an add on had been built that was the kitchen and eating area with a big porch at the back of the house. There was a window from their bedroom that looked out on the porch. 

Along the front of their home was another covered front porch with a swing and several Adirondack chairs and an Adirondack love seat. There was also a wooden rocking chair. Loved that front porch.  Shelling peas, watching rain, reading a book, it was just the best for any of these and other activities.

The front porch ended with a little room on the right with a door to the porch and then a door to the kitchen on the other side. It was a pantry and was always full of bottled foods.

I don't think I ever heard of the home being called a 'Dogtrot' house.  But, evidently that is what it was.

I loved this home. Still dream about being there. I've blogged about it before, years ago. That hallway had big wooded double doors that would close at each end. As a little child, we were required to lay on a pallet (blanket) on the floor and try to take a nap.  I can still feel that gentle Southern breeze gently brush my face. Yes, I loved this home and hold many happy childhood memories from there.