Valley of the Three Forks of the Wolf
Guv Bob
Excerpt from SERGEANT YORK AND HIS PEOPLE, BY SAM K. COWAN, 1922.
http://www.gutenberg.org/files/19117/19117-h/19117-h.htm
The "Valley of the Three Forks o' the Wolf," where Alvin York was born and lives, which has been the home of his ancestors for more than a hundred years, is a level fertile valley that is almost a rectangle in form. Three mountains rising on the north and south and west enclose it, while to the east four mountains jumble together, forming the fourth side. It seems that each of these is striving for a place by the valley.
It is down the passes of these mountains on the east that the three branches of the Wolf River run, and it is their meeting and commingling that gave the quaint name to the valley.
The forks of the Wolf rush down the passes, but the river runs lazily through the valley. It flows beside a cornfield, then wanders over to a meadow of clover or into a patch of sugar-cane, turning the while from side to side as the varying mountain vistas come into view. At the far end where it is pushed over the mill dam and out of the valley, the Wolf roars protestingly; then rushes on to the Cumberland River a silver line between the mountains.
Pall Mall, the village, is co-extensive with the "Valley of the Three Forks o' the Wolf." As a stranger first sees Pall Mall it is but a half-mile of the mountain roadway that runs from Jamestown, the county seat of Fentress county, to Byrdstown, the county seat of Pickett.
The roadway comes down from the top of "The Knobs," a thousand feet above, and it comes over rocks of high and low degree, a jolting, impressive journey for its traveler. It reaches the foot of the mountain along one of the prongs of the Wolf, crosses them at the base of the eastern mountains and passes on to the northern side of the river.
At the post office of Pall Mall, which is also the store of "Paster" Pile-a frame building upon stilts to allow an unobstructed flow of the Wolf when on a winter rampage-the road turns at right angles to the west. Through fields of corn it goes, across a stretch of red clover to the clump of forest trees which is the schoolhouse grounds and in which nestles the little church that has played such a prominent part in the life of the village. Then the road goes beside the graveyard and again through corn to the general store of John Marion Rains, which with five houses in sight-and one of these the York home-marks the western confine of Pall Mall.
One can be in the center of Pall Mall and not know it, for the residents live in farm houses that dot the valley and in cabins on the mountainsides. The little church, which sits by the road with no homes near it, is the geographical as well as the religious center of the community-it is the heart of Pall Mall.
Passing the Rains store the roadway tumbles down to the York's big spring. A brook in volume the stream flows clear and cool from a low rock-ribbed cave in the base of the mountain.
Across the spring branch, up the mountainside in a clump of honey-suckle and roses and apple trees is the home to which Sergeant York returned.
It is a two-room cabin. The boxing is of rough boards as are the unplaned narrow strips of batting covering the cracks. There is a chimney at one end and in one room is a fireplace. The kitchen is a "lean-to" and the only porch is on the rear, the width of the kitchen-dining room. The porch is for service and work, railed partly with a board for a shelf, which holds the water-bucket, the tin wash basin and burdens brought in from the farm.
Parts of the walls of the two rooms are papered with newspapers and catalog pages; the rough rafters run above. The uncovered floor is of wide boards, worn smooth in service, chinked to keep out the blasts of winter.
The porch in the rear is on a level with the mountainside. To care for the mountain's slope a front stoop was built. The sides of it are scantlings and the steps are narrow boards.
The house has been painted by Poverty; but the home is warmed and lit by a mountain mother's love. The front stoop is a wooden ladder with flat steps but the entrance to the home is an arbor of honey suckle and roses.
On summer nights the York boys sat on that stoop and sang, and their voices floated on the moonbeams out over the valley. The little mother "pottered" about, with ever a smile on her face for her boys. They were happy.
It was from this home that Alvin went to war, and it was to it he returned.
squeegees
"Guv Bob" <broth...@YEEEEOOOOWWWbigfoot.com> wrote in message
news:3NWdnRHzrvHImtrW...@earthlink.com...
http://www.gutenberg.org/files/19117/19117-h/19117-h.htm
Its about a 5 hour drive from here, & its a very booteefool place!!!
sq
Hibb
wrote:
> Anybody ever been to this part of the country, where Serg. York lived? Looks like it's NW of Knoxville on 127.
About 15 years ago a bunch of us cave explorers took a trip to that
area. Our main interest was to explore a cave called "Xanadu" near
Jamestown. But we also went to check out "Wolf River Cave" but the
entrance to that cave was at the edge of the river and the river was
flooding and filled up the entrance to the cave making it
inaccessible. There are aboriginal footprints way back in that cave
and we wanted to check that out.
We also drove over to the Pall Mall area to check out a couple of
smaller caves. I seem to remember it being a small town and the small
post office there was great to mail something to ourselves with the
Pall Mall post mark.
That whole area seemed like a real good area to live. When we went to
find the entrance to Xanadu, we had to walk an access road way down
into a deep valley to the river and follow a small stream up another
valley to the cave entrance. It was just beautiful. There were huge
moss covered boulders that made me think of the picture I've seen of
Ireland and beautiful waterfall at the entrance to the cave. It would
be worth seeing again even if I didn't go into the cave.
David
Guv Bob
"Hibb" <ShyP...@aol.com> wrote in message news:327a37fc-3f1e-4a04...@j5g2000yqm.googlegroups.com...
Hibb
wrote:
> Sounds a lot like the fine places along the Blue Ridge Pkwy in NC.
I drove up the Blue Ridge Parkway a number of years ago. Looked like a
great place to live also.
>
> "Hibb" <ShyPic...@aol.com> wrote in messagenews:327a37fc-3f1e-4a04...@j5g2000yqm.googlegroups.com...