Carry On, Hettie
With three children to care for and feed, Hettie Ann continued to work. A few of the children are cared for by her parents, John and Mary. Brothers and sisters also move to the area and take Hettie and her children in. Wherever the work was and whatever it took.
Farming in Maryland was a prosperous venture if you owned the farm. For many, the tenant farmer’s life was still very much as it was in the south. Struggling to make ends meet, so the life on the lower rungs of society’s ladder was all to cling to. That and family with its strong bonds to hold you close. Above all, there’s religion. Keeps you on the straight and narrow and promises a better life when all is said and done.
The great Monk migration took a few years. Hettie and her parents, John and Mary Monk, coming north happened with many families from the south. An uncle or a brother up north would write home and talk about the land of plenty. Pretty soon, entire bloodlines would pack up and head north, leaving history behind and writing new chapters.
Think about it. The south is decimated following the Civil War and the Depression took a lot of life out of folks. Had to go where the work was, just to keep things going. The tree with roots was migrating and respective walking shoes were making new paths. As unbroken circles go, they brought with them everything they had learned so far.
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1932 was my birth date. You are doing a beautiful job writing a history of my history.
love the way you intertwine history with the personal family story. The line “my one and only mother” made me smile – says it all 🙂
nicely done…last image of Hettie and the quote was worth the read.