| Family History |
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- Notes:
- Comments from Catherine Kilgore Flury Of
Tracy City
In 1897, there was a court case where Tennessee Coal and Iron, Co.
claimed the land that had been given to Steven Kilgore. When the trial
was over it was left pending and no decision was made but
T.C.I. took over the land and when Steven was on his deathbed, his
lawyer came to see him and told him that he did not want him to die
without knowing that he had sold him out. My grandfather lived just
down the hill from the Steven Kilgore home place. Through the years he
and my Dad bought a lot of land back that was taken from
Steven. When Grandpa (George) died his part was sold and divided among
his heirs. Before Dad died, he sold his land as he was not able
of it and people were cutting timber, etc. on it. None of my brothers
were around to help him take care of it so they sold it.
It is where I spent a lot of my childhood. I loved going to Grandpa's.
Some of my happiest times were spent there. My grandmother died when
Dad was 7 and at the time of her death, she had a sister living
with her so she just stayed on and helped the older girls with the
family. She was like a grandmother to us. Taught us to milk the
cow, churn milk; she would let us help her gather eggs, take us walking
in the woods, pick berries and told us stories about the family. I wish
I could remember all of them. It was so much fun as they had no
electricity and I loved the oil lamps and feather beds. I suppose all
of Steven’s family was raised there in Lankford Town, as I have not
found out anything different. He was there in 1835 and also in 1897.
- Notes:
- Canzada's Brothers were Ore Miners at
Shaw, Georgia
Perhaps having learned the mining trade in Grundy County, as did
Grandpa William T. Dickson Grandma Canzada's brothers also
were miners. They worked mines operated by the Estelle Mining
Company at Shaw, Georgia in Walker County. At the height of its
operation this company employed 235 men. This mining community
provided over 175 homes for the miners and their families. A
commissary provided for all the needs of the employees and
their families from furniture to clothing, groceries and household
goods. There were two schools with an enrollment of 190 children. The
County maintained both of the schools and the men at Estelle subscribed
to over 70% of the cost and retained a doctor for medical attention.
The Estelle property consisted of 1600 acres and had a
blacksmith shop, machine shop, and carpenter shop, steam plant,
sawmill and a supply house. There was a 6-mile narrow gauge
railroad called the "Dinky" which began at the crusher and ran
through 7 tunnels to the mines. Ore was hauled from the mines
to the crusher on this railroad. As the demand for ore started
to wane, operations at the mines began to slacken and finally
ceased in 1924. At the height of its operation and due to a shortage of
qualified miners, boys as young as seven would help load ore.
Ten-year-old boys worked at the crusher and at the age of 12,
the boys could go underground as "mule" boys. The mule boys
would leave home by 6:00 a.m. to get the mules ready to enter
the mines at 6:30 a.m. The mule boys worked 10 hours a day for
20 cents per hour. Push boys, crushers, firemen, engineers and
breakies were some of the other jobs available to the men and
boys who lived in the area. Sunday was the day off and was the
day for recreation. If the miners weren't fishing or hunting or
playing horseshoes, they could be found at the baseball field. The
Estelle crew played teams from Durham, LaFayette and
Chickamauga.
Among the hundreds of men and boys who worked in the Estelle iron ore
mines were Canzada's brothers, William and Charlie Kilgore and will's
sons, Bill, Gord and Willie.
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