Farley-Hite-Hale-Rice – Dare to Discover

Joplin Hollow

November 4, 2025July 3, 2020 by admin

I’m really fortunate that my father decided to document stories about his family. Over a period of about 8 years, he wrote the stories, and I put together the finished product. Joplin Hollow is the result, a collection of family stories, personal memories, and music. We printed about 50 hard copies for family and friends, … Read more

Mystery Great-Great-Grandmother

December 30, 2017 by admin

This photo of a young woman standing by a chair is believed to be my great-great-grandmother. The problem is that I don’t know whether it is through the Jameson line, or the Rigg line.

Escape to Her Grandfather’s Ferry

September 8, 2016 by admin

This photo is from “Album of Virginia, Plate 26, Kanawha Fall. Edward Beyer, 1858” – the time period is very close to the time of this story, which refers to a period between 1847 (Nancy Montgomery Rigg’s birth) and 1852 (the death of her grandfather Henry Montgomery). Frances Folsom Farley (1886-1076), known as “Aunt Aggie” to … Read more

Basketball in the Family

June 6, 2016 by admin

Today is my paternal grandmother’s birthday; Audrey Vellence Hale was born on June 6, 1908. In this really fabulous photo, she is posing in her basketball uniform for Winding Gulf High School. Family lore is that she is turned to the side to hide a shiner received in a game a day or two preceding this picture.

Football in the Family

April 22, 2016 by admin

Winding Gulf High School - 1927 — Collins High School – 1927 – See Story Below

Several years ago, my mother-in-law gathered photos of her sons’ grandfathers (with their football teams) and had them professionally cleaned up and enlarged, suitable for framing. My husband and I were inspired to expand on the idea by assembling a collection of photos (portraits and sports both) of grandparents on both sides of the family. I was able to find the football photos for my grandfathers (and a fabulous 1923 photo of my grandmother in her high school basketball uniform – that’s worthy of a separate story coming later). Below are those four photos, and a couple others of related family from roughly the same era. They represent participation in a variety of roles – player, manager, coach. You can click on any photo to bring up a larger version.