Time travel, and more

I've been on a trip back in time (about 80 years) and halfway across the country (Florida to Kentucky). It started with the re-discovery of an old photo. I'm on another "toss-it-out" project involving stacks of old paper and a "let's-get-organized" project involving bushels of old photos, but this one photo (see below) sent me off on a mission.

On the back of the photo is written, "Fourmile District School, Emberling, Ky. -- about 1923 or 1924" and a note saying Chester Casey is on the far right, near the top row. Chester, or "Check," was my mother's brother, probably her favorite sibling because they both were talented artists. He became a commercial artist in New York City but he was about 12 years old when the photo was taken.

A Google search turned up the fact that the school was in Harlan County. I e-mailed several school officials and, to my surprise (this was yesterday, a Saturday) got a quick reply telling me where the school used to be located. He suggested the local paper would be interested in the photo, so I e-mailed their editor and (again to my surprise) got a quick reply saying yes, they would, because they might be able to publish it in their next Harlan County Heritage section.

Now, go back and look at the photo (below). You can see from the faces of the children that these were not children of affluence. They were growing up in the coal mining region of eastern Kentucky. They were mountain kids. They look like they'd be at home in the woods with a fishing pole or a rifle, girls too. They have character in their faces. I like Chester, standing slightly aloof but with a see-everything look on his face. I like the little girl on the front row with one hand on her waist. I like the principal, a man with a big job and limited resources. I spent some time re-touching the photo to take some spots and creases out of faces, and I felt like they were looking back at me.

My parents taught school here in the 1930's. It was a tough place to live but they loved the kids. After their retirement they loved to go back to class reunions. They were proud to see that many of these children went on to live very successful lives. I hope these kids have children or grandchildren who will see this photo someday.