Picnic on the Parkway: Work First!

My maternal grandfather insisted on doing chores first. All work had to be completed before any fun or rest. This rule served him and his descendants very well. To this day, even though I’m retired, I feel compelled to finish my chores before sitting down to read or watch TV. My mother (Carrie) shared the following story from her childhood which illustrates her father’s insistence on work first.

Some context

My maternal grandparents were Wiley Thomas “Tom” Snyder (1892 – 1988) and Nora Bessie McNeil Snyder (1900 – 1992). They owned an 86-acre farm on Pleasant Home Church Road in Millers Creek, Wilkes County, NC. They raised five children born between 1922 and 1934.

Tom and Nora with their five kids, about 1935.
Back row: Tom and Neil (with puppy).
Front row: Nora holding Ralph, my mom Carrie holding Bette, Mozelle.

From their home, they could watch the Civilian Conservation Corps construct the Blue Ridge Parkway.  Local men, including relatives, were hired to work on the road. Construction started in 1939 and was suspended in 1942 for the war. Using old newspapers and websites about the Parkway, I verified that the section of the Parkway nearest to Millers Creek was completed by August 1940.

 

Wilkes County is in red, in northwestern North Carolina.

The story

One summer day about 1940, Tom asked his wife and children “Would you like to drive up and see the Parkway tomorrow?”  Of course, they said “Yes!”  So, the next day, they got up extra early. They completed their regular chores (milked the cow, fed the chickens, horse and pigs, gathered eggs, washed up, etc.) and made and ate breakfast. In addition, they made a picnic lunch. Nora killed, cleaned, plucked, and fried a chicken, baked a cake, and made more biscuits. Tom and the older kids boxed up tomatoes, pickles, honey, water, plates, glasses, and napkins. Finally, they loaded up the car and Tom drove to the Parkway.

From Pleasant Home Church Road, they took NC highway 16, a very steep and twisty 12.8 miles to the intersection with the Parkway at milepost 261.2. 

They rode along the Parkway for a while, admiring the new road and the scenery.  After a while, Tom asked “Is anybody hungry?” Of course, they said “Yes!”  So he pulled over and they ate lunch. 

The Blue Ridge Parkway is the red road.
The Snyder home place is in the "NC Eastern Section."

During the drive, they probably stopped at the Jumpinoff Rock overlook at milepost 260.3, just north of the intersection with NC highway 16. (Per legend, an Indian maiden jumped off these rocks.)  From this overlook, you can see the Snyder home place in the valley below.

Jumpinoff Rock sign by J Sedg on Flickr

After lunch Tom said, “It’s time to go home for evenin’ chores.”  When they got home, it was only 9 a.m.!

I guess they had time to relax and have fun until evenin’ chores!

The rest of the story

Carrie died on May 11, 2001, age 75, at Wilkes General Hospital in North Wilkesboro. She requested cremation. After a memorial service at Pleasant Home Baptist Church, we decided to spread her ashes on the Blue Ridge Parkway at the Jumpinoff Rock Overlook. She loved her childhood home and the Parkway so the family agreed this would be the ideal spot for her ashes.

Jumpin Off Rocks overlook by Mike Twekesbury.
If you know just where to look, you can see the home place on Pleasant Home Church Road.
This is a beautiful final resting place for Carrie's ashes.

Sources and photo credits

• Carrie told me the picnic story on 27 Dec 1999.
• Map of North Carolina highlighting Wilkes County, David Benbennick, posted 12 Feb 2006; in public domain; https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Map_of_North_Carolina_highlighting_Wilkes_County.svg : accessed 17 Apr 2026.
• Google map: accessed 19 Mar 2026.
• Blue Ridge Parkway map, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, Federal Highway Administration, America’s Byways, https://fhwaapps.fhwa.dot.gov/bywaysp/byway/2280/map : accessed 17 Apr 2026.
• “Blue Ridge Parkway,” Wikipedia entry, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_Ridge_Parkway : accessed 19 Mar 2026.
• Blue Ridge Parkway Timeline, Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation, https://brpfoundation.org/about/history-timeline/
• “Construction of the parkway,” National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/blri/learn/historyculture/construction.htm : accessed 19 Mar 2026.
• North Carolina Certificate of Death, no. 097-60-217 (2001), Carrie Mae Disher’s death on 11 May 2001; Wilkes County, North Carolina Register of Deeds, Wilkesboro.
• Photo: “Jumpinoff Rock hike” by J Sedg, CC BY-NC-SA 2.0. https://www.flickr.com/photos/ephemerama/3175154587 : accessed 19 Mar 2026.
• Photo: "Jumpinoff Rocks Overlook" by Mike Tewkesbury is licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0.). https://openverse.org/image/e727b5c9-203f-491a-b51d-039e47b57cf9?q=jumpinoff+rock+blue+ridge&p=1  :  accessed 19 Mar 2026. 

Celebrating the 153rd birthday of great-grandma Clara Eva Jarvis McNeil

My great-grandmother Clara Eva Jarvis McNeil was born on April 6, 1873 in Wilkes County, NC.

Eva had very long hair, as shown in the photograph below. According to her granddaughter, Carrie Snyder Disher, she had curly red/auburn hair, sky blue eyes, and a few freckles. Another granddaughter, Pam McNeil, said "When she was young she had beautiful long red hair. When she was 16 she decided she wanted to have her picture made, so she dressed up and walked into North Wilkesboro (6-7 Miles) to have her photograph done!" Lots of family members have a copy of that photo, shown here:

Clara Eva Jarvis approx. 1889

Beloved by her eight children and many grandchildren, Eva had a wonderful sense of humor and was an excellent rifle shot. She shot rabbits and squirrels, and warded off chicken thieves. She once shot at corn thieves, and they ran off!

Carrie wrote that Eva “was kind to everybody. She kept a lot of travelers [gypsy-like grifters or itinerant workers] but never let them leave until she asked if they were Christian. She always gave them a formula to get on God’s Highway and go on to Heaven. She never refused anyone a good meal, but seldom got a penny in return.”

Eva's granddaughter Dorothy Snyder Myers shared her memories of Eva. Eva only had two pictures on her wall: Jesus and Franklin Delano Roosevelt. She took them with her whenever she stayed overnight at a relative’s house. She was a staunch Democrat. She hated Abraham Lincoln, probably because his army wounded and imprisoned her father. She called Abe a "dirty old man." Having lived through the Depression, she thought very highly of FDR. 

According to Dorothy, Eva was an avid needlewoman. She knitted, crocheted, sewed, and tatted. She made double-sided shawls for each of her daughters; one side was black and the other was a bright color such as rose. She crocheted enough yarn bookmarks (in the shape of a cross, in different colors) to raise $200 for charity. At 10 cents each, that's 2,000 bookmarks!

Crochet cross bookmark similar to ones Eva made

Sources:

• Birthdate is on her tombstone and is consistent with the 1880 census (she was 7).
• Conversations with Eva's grandchildren, Carrie Snyder Disher, George Paul "Red" Snyder, Dorothy Snyder Myers, and Pam McNeil.

Sad ending of “Blind” John G. McNeil

My great-great-grandfather John G. McNeil was blind, disabled, and had rheumatism in the 1880 census for Wilkes County, NC. He was 47 with a wife and six children (ages 8 to 18). (See my previous blog post about John in August 2025.)

Not surprisingly, he qualified for public assistance. The local newspaper published pauper claims and I filled in some gaps by perusing the minutes of county commissioner meetings.  In 1891, the Chronicle listed John G. McNeil, $1.25 per month, under “Pauper Claims Allowed.”  This amount was between the low of $1 and the high of $2 in this list.[1]  In 1895, the Chronicle said the county commissioners awarded John McNeil a pauper allowance of $2 per month.[2]  The last claim is in the Board of Commissioners minutes of January 1899: “John McNeil $1.50 per month.”[3]  After John’s death in 1899, Polly lived with their youngest son, George Thomas McNeil (my great-grandfather) until her death in 1908.

John’s obituary was published in the (Wilkesboro) Chronicle, 21 Jun 1899, p. 1, col. 1:

Mr. John G. McNeill, of Reddies River township, died last week and was buried Thursday at Pleasant Home church.  He was 67 years old, and a consistent Christian gentleman.  His wife and six children survive him.  For about 28 years, he had been a helpless invalid, confined to his bed, and for the last 20 years he had been blind.  Through it all he was patient and resigned to his lot.  The funeral services were conducted by Revs. McNeill and Pardue, at Pleasant Home Baptist church, of which the deceased was a member.

Did any of John’s children have similar health issues? Here are the causes of death for all six children. Only one death certificate listed rheumatism (but they don’t list every health problem):

• Louisa, age 65, apoplexy
• Nancy, age 66, myacardia or old age
• Zeb, age 40, cholera morbus
• Banner, age 77, prostate cancer
• George, age 60, heart trouble (also rheumatism)
• Mary Alice, age 79, mitral insufficiency

Here is the only known photograph of John G. McNeil and his wife Polly Nichols. This is a photocopy of a photocopy someone sent to my Aunt Bette. I don’t know who had the original photo or when it was taken. I asked ChatGPT to improve the clarity and sharpness. According to my cousin Dorothy, Polly wove the coverlet.

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[1] "Pauper Claims Allowed," (Wilkesboro) Chronicle, 14 Jan 1891, p. 1, col. 4.

[2] "Pauper Allowances," (Wilkesboro) Chronicle, 17 Jan 1895, p. 4, col. 5.

[3] Wilkes County, North Carolina., Minutes of Board of County Commissioners, vol. 1884-1898:77, minutes of January term, 1899.

Wilkes County Veterans' Stories

I just discovered on the Wilkes Genealogical Society web page - Veterans' Stories! Click here to open web page in a new window

I see some relatives but no one has written about my direct ancestors who served in the military, including Richard F. Jarvis, Wiley T. Snyder, and several others. I plan to write their stories and submit them to this website.

It's very interesting to read the stories that are on the website already.

Screen shot of the web page.

Grandma Nora born 125 years ago today but there's a problem with her delayed birth certificate

My grandmother, Nora Bessie McNeil Snyder was born on August 10, 1900, in Wilkes County, NC, to George Thomas McNeil and Clara Eva Jarvis McNeil.  The photograph of George and Clara McNeil with their two oldest children dates from about 1901. George is holding Ila, and Eva is holding my grandmother Nora. They later had six more children.

Since North Carolina didn’t require birth certificates until 1913, Nora didn’t receive a birth certificate in 1900. But she received a Delayed Birth Certificate in 1959, probably so she could apply for Social Security.  Here is my copy of her delayed birth certificate:

Nora had to supply three forms of proof of her birth. The first proof was the affidavit from her mother (highlighted in the image above). A mother’s affidavit is excellent proof since the mother is the one person who is certain of the child’s date of birth. However, when I applied this year for membership in the Daughters of the American Revolution, the registrar noticed something I had never noted. Clara died on January 24, 1959, but Nora’s delayed birth certificate says Clara’s affidavit was dated February 24, 1959. So the DAR would not accept this delayed birth certificate!

Notice that February 24, 1959, is recorded several times in this certificate. It’s the date Nora and the Register of Deeds signed the certificate. I believe the typist mistakenly used the same date for Clara’s affidavit.

Fortunately, the DAR accepted the NC Birth Index on Ancestry.com:

Sources:

Photograph of George Thomas McNeil family, about 1901, Wilkes County, NC. Privately held by the author.

State of North Carolina, State Board of Health, Office of Vital Statistics, Delayed Birth Certificate, p. 66 (issued 1959), Nora Bessie McNeill, born 10 Aug 1900 in Wilkes County. Privately held by the author.

"North Carolina, U.S., Birth Indexes, 1800-2000," database, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 2 August 2025); entry for Nora Bessie McNeill, born 10 Aug 1900 in Wilkes County.

Parents named in 1868 marriage license in North Carolina!

Finding proof of parentage is a challenge in North Carolina prior to 1913 because birth and death certificates were not required until 1913.  I stumbled across an amazing marriage license in 1868 which names the parents of both the bride and groom!  This is not the only one – several marriage licenses from this time frame list the parents.  Apparently, the clerk of court decided to do this.  Thanks, R.M. Smith!

 

Transcription:

State of North Carolina }  To any regular Minister

                Wilkes County }  of the gospel of whatever

Denomination or any Justice of the Peace of the said County

Greetings you or Either of you are hereby authorized and em-

powered to solemnize the rites of Matrimony between

John Wesley Bumgarner son of John Bumgarner and

Emeline Bumgarner and Martha Adams daughter of

Solomon Adams and Franky Adams and join

them together as man and wife all of these are

Whites  Witness R.M. Smith clerk of the county court at

office in Wilkesborough this 13^th day of Feb in the

92^nd year of American Independence A.D. 1868

                          by J.W. Church, D. Clk [Deputy Clerk]

 

Source:

North Carolina, Marriage Records, 1741-2011, Ancestry.com, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015, Provo, UT, USA; license authorizing the marriage of John Wesley Bumgarner and Martha Adams, 12 Mar 1868, Wilkes County, NC.

 

Cadet Nurse Carrie

Today, March 7, 2021, would be my mom’s 95^th birthday.  She died 20 years ago but I treasure my memories of her and the stories she shared.  This blog post recounts her path to becoming a registered nurse. 

She graduated from Millers Creek High School in Wilkes County, N.C., in April 1943.[1]  Her high school transcript says[2] “Excellent character, dependable, industrious, high morals and good home environment.”

Carrie’s high school graduation, 1943

 Limited options for girls included marriage, teaching, secretarial work, and nursing.  Carrie decided to become a registered nurse but had to figure out how to pay for her education.  She stayed home for a year and took the bus to a job at Wilkes Hosiery Mill.[3]  She saved her money but it was not enough for nursing school.  She learned that the U.S. government paid for nurse training in return for military service.

 “Public health administrators as well as the American public believed that the increasing demands of the U.S. armed forces for nurses were responsible for a shortage of civilian nurses. Responding to these concerns in June 1943, Congress passed the Bolton Act, which set up the Cadet Nurse Corps program.

… The U.S. government subsidized the education of nursing students who promised that following graduation they would engage in essential military or civilian nursing for the duration of the war…

… The Cadet Nurse Corps training program was extremely successful and enjoyed enthusiastic public support. By 1948 when the program was discontinued, more than 150,000 nurse graduates testified to its value.”[4]

Carrie applied for the Cadet Nurse Corps program and attended Grace Hospital School of Nursing[5] in Morganton, N.C., only 50 miles from Millers Creek.  Her ID card is shown below.[6]  It took three years to become a Registered Nurse.

Carrie mentioned in newspaper in 1944

 

Cadet Nurse Corps card

 

Her high school chemistry teacher had been drafted, so Carrie had to take high school chemistry while attending nursing school. Fortunately, the high school was just across the street!

 

Carrie, Cadet Nurse in training, 1944 - 1947

Carrie heard horrific stories of nurses who served in the war, which she had committed to do when her three years of school ended.  One nurse had been captured by the Japanese, raped, and then they cut out her tongue so she couldn’t tell about it.  She came back home pregnant.  Carrie was terrified to serve overseas, but fortunately the war ended.  The government paid for her final year of school even though the war was over – there was still a nursing shortage.

Carrie graduated from nursing school in May 1947.  She is third from the left.[7]

 Carrie’s silver cross was engraved with her initials: CMS, Grace Hospital, Morganton, N.C., 1947.  A graduate of the school said “Everybody recognized Grace Hospital graduates as the only nursing school who wore the silver cross.”  [8]

Carrie's silver cross from Grace Hospital School of Nursing

After graduation, Carrie remained in Morganton working as an emergency room nurse at Grace Hospital from September 1947 through December 1948.[9] 

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[1] "Seniors at Millers Creek Are Listed," Wilkes Journal-Patriot, 19 Apr 1943, online archives (http://newspapers.digitalnc.org/ : accessed 5 Nov 2017), p. 4, col. 4.  N.C. had only 11 grades at that time.

[2] “North Carolina Uniform High School Transcript Blank,” Carrie Mae Snyder, 5/22/44, signed by R. V. Day, Principal sending credits; private collection of the author.  Dated a year after graduation because Carrie worked for a year.

[3] Per Carrie's resume, she worked at Wilkes Hosiery Mill from April 1943 to September 1944 when she started nursing school.  She had also worked at Rose's 5c-10c-25c Store in North Wilkesboro.

[4] The Army Nurse Corps, digitized booklet (https://history.army.mil/books/wwii/72-14/72-14.HTM : accessed 5 May 2018), p. 7.

[5] "Here and There," Wilkes Journal-Patriot, 21 Sep 1944, online archives (http://newspapers.digitalnc.org/ : accessed 17 Nov 2017), p. 7, col. 1. 

[6] Card for student nurse Carrie Mae Snyder, May 1944, serial number 74122; U.S., World War II Cadet Nursing Corps Card Files, 1942-1948; Records of the Public Health Service, 1794–1990, Record Group 90, National Archives and Records Administration; digital images, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., Ancestry (http://www.Ancestry.com : accessed 30 May 2012).

[7] "NURSES TO GRADUATE AT MORGANTON FRIDAY," Greensboro News & Record, 15 May 1947, p. 2, col. 3; digital images, Genealogy Bank (http://www.genealogybank.com : accessed 25 May 2014), newspaper archives.  Photograph in private collection of the author.

[8]    Tracy Farnham, "Grace Hospital School of Nursing celebrates 100-year anniversary with weekend events," The News Herald (Morganton, N.C.), posted 15 Jun 2010,  https://www.morganton.com/news/grace-hospital-school-of-nursing-celebrates--year-anniversary-with/article_ae9b05e6-b1ce-5d47-9b7d-8f083b90ad5a.html : accessed 9 Jul 2018.

[9] Carrie’s hand-written resume, approximately 1990.