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The Clay We Were Museum
Pioneer Village
History Pavilion
CCAN Magazine
Promoting & Preserving
The History Of Clay County Kentucky
Discover Our Fascinating Appalachian History
Since its recognition as a distinctive region in the late 19th century, Appalachia has been a source of enduring myths and distortions regarding the isolation, temperament, and behavior of its inhabitants. Early 20th-century writers focused on sensationalistic aspects of the region's culture, such as moonshining and clan feuding, and often portrayed the region's inhabitants as uneducated and prone to impulsive acts of violence. Sociological studies in the 1960s and 1970s helped to deconstruct these stereotypes, although popular media continued to perpetuate the image of Appalachia as a culturally backward region into the 21st century. Discover fascinating real Appalachian history in Manchester and Clay County.
Goose Creek Saltworks Pioneer Village
Manchester's Interesting History
Manchester was a lively little town from the very beginning, which by all accounts, seems to have been in the early 1790s when the area's first commercial salt-making operation started up on the banks of Goose Creek at the mouth of present-day Y Hollow (in East Manchester). When in 1807 the Kentucky Legislature created Clay County as a way to keep a better eye on the gritty feuding known as the "Cattle War" the first county court met at this little community, known as the Langford Salt Works. The county officials first called their new town Greenville, and began constructing it a stone's throw down stream and on what became known as "Courthouse Hill."
From that time until the Civil War in 1861 Manchester more or less existed according to the whims of the powerful salt entrepreneur families who came to the wilderness to make their fortunes on the manufacture of salt at works like Langford's (later called the Lower Goose Creek Salt Works), White's (Upper Goose Creek Salt Works), Garrard's (Union Salt Works), the Bates brothers, Francis Clark and several others owned and operated by the Reid, Horton, May, Chastain, Gibson and other families.
The Civil War wreaked havoc in Manchester as foragers from both sides came to the town on numerous occasions looking for food for their troops and animals. The Confederates were especially interested in the salt, apparently having less access to it than the Union. But the Union was just as keen on keeping it out of Rebel hands as the Rebels were on getting it. This resulted in the Union army destroying the salt works in 1862, even though one of their celebrated officers, Brigadier General T. T. Garrard, was the owner of the Garrard works.
Garrard had recruited a substantial number of men in Manchester in the summer of 1861 when he organized the Third Kentucky Volunteer Infantry there. Hundreds of Clay County men served in the Third (later referred to as the Seventh) and other regiments in the Union Army. Most of the local men fought outside the state, but while they were gone from home considerable action was taking place in Manchester and all over Clay County.
The Confederates held the upper hand when it came to causing mischief in and around Manchester, and the mischief led to several deaths at the hands of the Rebels. Though the Union was in town in huge numbers at times there is no evidence that they did any physical harm to the citizens. Nevertheless, the period following the war was a time of unrest and distrust. Animosities developed during this time fed fuel to the fire of growing resentment between some of the powerful salt families, primarily the Whites and Garrards and their supporters.
By the end of the century Manchester was the unchallenged capitol of violence in America, or at least it seemed that way as the little town became famous -- or infamous -- far beyond the borders of Clay County for the gun-play that seemed to be an everyday thing around town. Scores of newspaper articles in papers such as the New York Times created an image of runaway lawlessness in the town, and some of its citizens seemed to feed on the attention like fish in a feeding frenzy.
Gradually, the feud violence dissipated after the 1930s and Manchester settled down into an almost idealized version of small town America. After World War II the town pretty much kept pace with the rest of the country, albeit with an Appalachian patina. Coal and timber had long since replaced salt as the income-generating industries but before long they, too, dwindled as an economic force. Poverty slowly gained the upper hand in the 1960s and 70s and the character of Manchester seemed to lose some of its former tone.
The Warriors' Path
A well-marked trail through Clay County was the route several people of European descent took before Kentucky was discovered.
The closer we look at the written history of what would become Clay County the farther back that history goes. Research has shown that white men whose names we know were in the county at least 150 years earlier than reported in some history books. Until recently the conventional wisdom had it that James Collins was the first white man in the county. In his History of Kentucky (1847, revised 1874) Lewis Collins wrote that James Collins came to the county in 1798 and established a salt works on Collins Fork of Goose Creek in 1800.
Genealogists have shown that John Gilbert of Red Bird was in what would become Clay County at least a decade earlier than when Collins was said to have come. And some accounts have both Gilbert and Collins here in the mid-1780s. Before them, however, there was Daniel Boone, who came to Clay County on his first trip to Kentucky in 1769 with fellow explorer, John Finley. Boone is of course known for blazing Boone's Trace to the bluegrass, the famous trail that part of the Wilderness Road was later based on. During his first trip, though, he followed the well-known Indian "Warrior's Path" that traversed the county from end to end.
Eminent Kentucky historian Dr. Thomas Clark wrote in his History of Laurel County, "There is no solid documentary evidence that Daniel Boone and John Finley in 1769 traveled across any part of Laurel County . . ." Dr. Clark went on to say, "Boone, Finley, and their companions made fairly rapid progress over the rugged territory in what is now Clay and Jackson Counties."
Fifteen years later, around the time that Collins and Gilbert are thought to have first come to the county, Boone, while employed by a land development company, made a 50,000-acre survey in 1784 beginning near the mouth of Sextons Creek. He is, in fact, credited with naming Goose Creek.
Later research has shown that long before Daniel Boone, Dr. Thomas Walker and his party of explorers traveled the Warrior's Path through Clay County in May of 1750. But even Walker, who was clearly in the county 19 years before Daniel Boone, was not the first known white man to trek in the county. That distinction belongs to a little-known explorer named Gabriel Arthur, who as a captive of Indians, was taken along the Warrior's Path and into Tennessee in 1674, and later walked it on his way to freedom. The respected Knox County historian, Elmer Decker, wrote, "The first white man to ever set foot in Knox County and Kentucky was Gabriel Arthur, 1674. . ."
Decker made his assumption based on numerous historical accounts of Arthur's time in Kentucky that had him traveling along the Warrior's Path. This story is covered in detail by Robert Kincaid in The Wilderness Road, a much-quoted history published in 1947 by the Bobbs-Merrill Company that has been a primary source for countless articles on Southeast Kentucky history. Arthur was eventually set free by his captors and set out on a trail that led to the south. "There was no danger of his getting lost in the vast wilderness lying west of the Appalachian range which never before had been penetrated by a white man," Kincaid wrote. "The trail was well defined, called by the Indians the Athawominee, or the 'Path of the Armed Ones.'"
On the next page of Kincaid's book is a map of the Warrior's Path that shows it running along the path described by Decker, and which has it running along a north/south path that would go through what would become Clay County. This map corresponds with one of the earliest maps of Kentucky, by John Filson, in 1784, and numerous others in various publications.
The Warrior's Path has been known since the first white men started drawing maps of Kentucky. From the south, it entered Clay County via the "War Gap" on the ridge that separated the Kentucky River drainage from the Cumberland River drainage, i.e. between the headwaters of Otter Creek in Clay County and the headwaters of Road Fork of Stinking Creek in Knox County. In 1806 the act that created Clay County designated the southern boundary in part: "--thence along the dividing ridge between the waters of Cumberland and Kentucky to a point from which by running due east will pass by Collin's Fork of Goose Creek, midway between Outlaw's salt works and Peter Hammonds'; thence a course to strike the ridge between Cumberland and Kentucky at War Gap."
The path in Clay County runs northward from the War Gap to Clay Gap on the Clay/Owsley County line. Knox County historian Elmer Decker wrote: "The Warrior's Path led south from Limestone (Maysville) almost a direct route to Cumberland Ford [Pineville], across Clear Creek, and up Yellow Creek to Cumberland Gap. Northern tribes of Indians made the trail, and it was much traveled by them. Later it was used by pioneers and settlers, as were its branches down Straight Creek and elsewhere."
The route of the Warrior's Path has long since stopped being questioned except in a few small areas. There is an official Kentucky highway historical marker at Gray Hawk in Jackson County that has the path going along War Fork in extreme eastern Jackson County, which corresponds to the research of James F. Bowman, who has the path going from Clay County into Owsley County then crossing into Jackson County east of Gray Hawk. This marker reports that the path was used by Gabriel Arthur in 1674, and much later (in 1750), by Dr. Thomas Walker, and following them, Christopher Gist (1751) and much later, John Finley and Daniel Boone.
Whether, as the marker indicates, explorers Christopher Gist and John Finely were actually on the local part of the Warrior's Path has not been confirmed by any research this author has seen. The best we say is that they likely were. But in the case of Gabriel Arthur, and later, Dr. Thomas Walker, there can be little doubt. This distinction may seem to some to be much ado about nothing. But the fact that these men were in the county over a hundred years earlier than white men were supposed to have been changes the written history of Clay County, and by extension, of neighboring Laurel County. Historians know that history must be recorded correctly, even if it means taking another look to get it right.
A Clay County History Timeline
Highlights of the 18th and 19th centuries
By Charles House
The following timeline of Clay County history is an abbreviated list of notable occurrences compiled from notes made while researching my book, Heroes & Skallywags. This timeline will give a basic understanding of how the county was formed and why (think salt, and fussing and feuding), and some of the major events that have transpired up until the 20th Century. For comprehensive source notes and detailed information refer to Heroes & Skallywags.
1674 – The first documented man of European descent known to have visited what would become Clay County was Gabriel Arthur, a young American who worked for an English trading company and got captured by Indians and taken north of the Ohio River. After being released he took the Warrior's Path and passed along Goose Creek where Manchester would be founded many decades later.
1750 — Dr. Thomas Walker's party returned home to Virginia via the Warrior's Path and Goose Creek after exploring around the Cumberland River.
1769 — Daniel Boone and John Finley took the Warrior's Path on their first hunting trip to Kentucky. Boone is said to have identified the first salt licks along Goose Creek.
1776 — Micajah Jackson and two brothers are said to have come to the area of upper Goose Creek after they stole a ship with a load of potatoes on the east coast.
1778 — Stephen Tudors was captured and taken to Taluegue, an Indian village near Fogertown.
1782 — James Garrard of Virginia, who would become Kentucky's second governor, bought land on Goose Creek.
1783 — Twenty-nine men met in a popular Philadelphia bar to form a company to buy land in an area that included what would become Clay County. A 50,000-acre parcel from Sexton's Creek to (present day) Hector was surveyed by Daniel Boone the following year.
1783 — John Gilbert came about this time to the upper Red Bird area.
1784 — Nathan Hart, Ambrose Robs and Robert Kincaid made a survey beginning a half-mile below Goose Rock.
1785 — Ballard Smith, who had been a general during the American Revolution, applied for 40,000 acres adjacent to Boone's survey.
1786 — James Monroe, who later became President of the United States, received a warrant for 40,000 acres adjacent to the above Ballard Smith tract from Kentucky Governor Isaac Shelby.
1787 — Virginia Governor Edmond Randolph granted to Thomas Franklin, of Philadelphia, 116,656 acres between the Middle and North forks in what was to become Clay County.
ca. 1790 — Samuel Overton surveyed 10,000 acres on Horse Creek.
1791 — Pioneer Clay Countians Julius Bob Baker and William Neal took part in St. Clair's Defeat in the Northwest, the worst defeat ever suffered by the U. S. Army at the hands of Indians.
1790s — The influx from North Carolina began and may have included indentured servants, runaways, destitute Scotch-Irish etc. This period saw the issuing of land grants; salt being made at salt springs; the first salt works at Langford Lick.
1795 — The state's last Indian raid was reported on Goose Creek.
1798 — Burning Springs was discovered.
1798 — James Collins established a salt works near the mouth of present day White's Branch. His salt was thought to be for local consumption only. It was sold to saltman, Alexander Outlaw.
1799 — Francis Clark was issued a patent for 1,000 acres on the South Fork near the confluence of Goose Creek and Red Bird River. He would establish a salt works, most likely on this property.
1799 — Gov. James Garrard patented 500 acres of land on Goose Creek at Buffalo Lick at present-day Garrard.
1800 — Dillion Asher settled on upper Red Bird. Note that this conflicts with the claim on the highway marker this his cabin was "pre-1800." But he didn't move there until he quit his position of toll collector on the Wilderness Road in 1800.
ca 1800 — The Salt Trace road was established to haul salt, most likely via packhorses or oxen, from Goose Creek to Virginia.
1802 — The State Legislature provided for a road from the salt works at Manchester to Laurel County and the Wilderness Road.
1803 — Owing to a scarcity downriver, the Abraham Sneethen family followed the game from the Bluegrass to the South Fork.
1803 — Stephen Langford, founder of the Langford Salt Works, acquired 1,460 acres on Goose Creek.
1804 — James White bought the Collins/Outlaw works and brought his brother, Hugh, from Tennessee, possibly from Cumberland Gap where they had a store, to operate it.
1805 — John Patrick offered to lease two salt furnaces.
1806 — Hugh White was appointed a Brigadier General of the Kentucky Militia.
1806 — The so-called Cattle War between residents of the South, Middle and North Forks of the Kentucky River led to blood feuds between various Clay County factions for a century to come.
1806 — Daniel Garrard came to Goose Creek to establish a salt works at Buffalo Lick; The salt industry began in earnest.
1806 — John Amis and John Crook entered into an agreement for Amis to take over a one-quarter interest in the 375-acre Goose Creek Salt Works and Crook agreed to defend the title against claims against the 50,000 acre Wyncoop tract of which this was a part.
1806 — Hugh White moved from White's Branch and bought John Amis' one-fourth interest in the Langford Works. He established a successful and well-stocked mercantile store at the salt works. The account book of Hugh White's store in 1806-07 revealed an astonishing amount of information about who bought what.
1806 Dec — The state mandated the creation of Clay County, an area encompassing the watersheds of the Kentucky's South, Middle and North Forks. It was later reduced mainly to the South Fork.
1807 — Gov. James Garrard gave James Jr., William, and Daniel Garrard each one-fourth of a 500-acre tract at Buffalo Lick.
1807 April 1 — Clay County became an official county. Note that the two "captains" of the Cattle War, John Gilbert for the South and Middle Forkers, and William Strong, of the North Forkers, were chosen as justices, which suggests that the governor may have been trying to placate both sides of the Cattle War.
1807 — Abner Baker moved from Garrard County to Clay to become clerk for the new courts, county and circuit.
1807 — John Amis was slain during a court trial in Manchester, in trouble that was an outgrowth of the Cattle War.
1807 — Adoniram Allen built a gristmill on the South Fork.
1808 — Daniel Garrard and a slave rode horses to the Alabama coast to find a bride suitable for gentry, then came back with her riding side-saddle to Clay County.
1808 — John Bates appeared in court to defend a purchase of interest in salt works from John Amis.
1809 — Stephen Langford sold 600 acres to James and Hugh White.
1810 Jan — The Legislature passed an Act to create a turnpike from Manchester to the Langford Road (in Laurel or Rockcastle).
1810 Jan — Daniel Garrard, John Bates and Beverly Broaddus were appointed to raise subscriptions in money, labor or property for clearing and keeping in repair the navigation of the South Fork and Goose Creek to the salt works of James Garrard and Sons.
In 1810 about one-half the state's salt was produced in the mountain counties, 43 percent from Clay. Four salt works in the county produced 70,000 bushels annually, valued at $70,000. The population of the county was 330 families, or 2,398 people.
1811 — The court authorized a new courthouse to be built.
1811 – An act created a lottery to raise $10,000 to clear logs, brush, trees, rocks and fish traps on the Kentucky River upstream to the salt works on Goose Creek.
1810-20 era — Thomas Johnson's hotel on the square in Manchester was the scene of lively doings in Manchester. The Manchester–Booneville road was established during this period.
1811 — John Bates bought 150 acres at confluence of Little Goose and Goose Creek from Abner Baker. He would establish a salt works here (at the end of present day Green Street, one side of the creek or the other).
1811 — Clerk Abner Baker was sued for corruption.
1811 — James and Hugh White sued John Bates over the 600 acres the Whites had purchased from Stephen Langford in 1809.
1812 March — The county entered into a contract with Uriah Gresham to build courthouse.
1812 June — T. T. Garrard was born at the Garrard Salt Works.
1812-15 — War of 1812. Capt. Daniel Garrard and Thomas McJilton lead many Clay Countians to battles around the Great Lakes.
1812 — The "free black" family of Elijah Griffin settles in Clay, almost certainly on the Cotton Bend of Goose Creek.
1813 – Uriah Gresham was appointed undertaker of turnpike road from Manchester.
1813 – According to a legislative act the Commissioners were authorized to raise by subscription $2,000 in money, labor, or property to open and keep in repair the navigation of "Red Bird Fork of Goose Creek" from the mouth of John Gilbert's salt works.
1814 — Granville Love, late an Ensign in a "Company of Spies commanded by Capt. Roland Burks in the late Expedition in upper Canada commanded by his Excellency Isaac Shelby . . ." appointed an attorney to recover his wages in the War of 1812.
1814 — Charles Smith sold a number of lots in the town of Manchester ranging from $10 to $40 including one "opposite the brick court house" which shows that there was a brick courthouse by or before April that year.
1815 — An act was passed that provided for the improvement of the stream to the works of Col. John Gilbert on Red Bird.
1815 Aug — The court approved 11 applications for squatters' rights to "vacant" land they had settled on and improved. Six more applicants were approved for property ranging from 150 to 225 acres. All this in accordance with an "Act to appropriate the vacant land of the Commonwealth."
1815 — Thomas McJilton was appointed sheriff.
1816 — James Pogue, of Clermont County Ohio, in consideration of $1, conveyed 500 acres of land where Hugh White lived to Hugh and his brother James. This showed that even the county's biggest shots didn't have clear title to land they thought they owned.
1816 — Daniel Garrard was exempted from paying a "county levy for a blind negro Billy."
1816 — Six residents possessed 41 percent of land in Clay County.
1817 — John Gilbert leased out a salt well and 64 kettles and fixtures on 17 acres on Red Bird. This gives a fair picture of what was considered a minor salt works: 64 kettles!
1817 — The court couldn't locate the owner of a runaway slave, so they leased him out.
1817 — The court ordered that Daniel Bates, John H. Slaughter and Abner Baker, be authorized to receive the planks for the courthouse.
1817 — Hugh White bought a 25-year-old slave "Stephen" for $600.
1817 Aug — The court "Ordered that Robert Baker view and report the best way for a road from the mouth of Sextons Creek to Allen's Mill thence up the river to the mouth of Crane Creek, thence up said creek to the old road, thence with said road to James Sandlin at the mouth of Wild Cat, and with the hands allotted by George Baker Sr. open and keep the same in repair as the law directs sixteen feet wide only."
1818 — Messenger Lewis sold land on Collins Fork (of Goose Creek) to James and Hugh White, $1000 for 96 acres in one tract, $1500 for 150 acres in another, which shows how much more valuable land was on Collins Fork, center of the salt industry. At other places in the county land was going for $1 an acre.
1818 (Dec. term of court) — "Daniel Garrard, Commissioner apptd. to superintend the removing obstructions and improving the navigation of the Ky River from the Goose Creek Salt Works to the mouth of Jack's Creek and its navigable branches exhibited an abstract of expenses to the court Which with the vouchers was examined, allowed and ordered to be certified to the auditor of publick accounts amounting the whole to $2242.81 2/10."
1819 — Samuel Nicholson of Pennsylvania appointed Thomas Johnson of Nicholas County Ky. "to lease, sell and convey 50,000 acres . . . granted originally by the Commonwealth of Va., 18 May 1786 to Benjamin Wyncoop."
1819 — The price of salt was down. According to the Commissioner's Report for the Kentucky River a number of salt works on Goose Creek had been closed the previous two years.
1820 — A "road" was to be established from the mouth of Big Creek, down Red Bird to Goose Creek, thence up Goose Creek for a ways to "keep the same in repair as a bridle way only."
1820 June — "Ordered that Joshua Etherton be apptd. Surveyor of the road from the mouth of Wild Cat to where the Salt Works road crosses Harts Branch . . . Ordered that James Lyons be apptd. Surveyor of the road from Harts Branch to the town ford . . ." This may have been the road that ran across the ford below Cool Springs Road through present day Lyttleton and up Harts Branch, thence down Beech Creek to about the mouth of Wildcat. . .
1821 — The Estill Road was authorized. A report made to the court described the road that roughly followed old Warrior's Path "from Clay court house in a direction to Estill county line passing John Chandlers thence by the double lick thence by the single boiling spring thence as the path runs to Samuel Chestnuts (at Sextons Creek) thence as marked to James Wellifords (at Island City in present-day Owsley County) thence to Smiths camp thence to Ambrose Cobbs on Main Sturgeon thence to the Estill line near the head of the grassy branch . . ."
1821 — James white sold his brother Hugh his share of 28 slaves and other property for $10,000.
1822 — Uriah Gresham, of Rockcastle Co., paid $385 for two thirds of a 200-acre tract on Little Goose and "conveyance also of one third part of a Patent claim in the name of Stephen Langford for 6000 acres" on Little Goose.
1823 — A "bright mulatto male child about five or six years old" was left in Manchester by "a certain strange traveling man."
1824 — Daniel Garrard freed his "yellow" slave, Jim.
1824 – Daniel Garrard's sons T. T. and brother James were sent to school at Danville at Centre College.
1825 — Katie Amis, wife of the late John Amis, and sister to Mollie Bowling (John Gilbert's wife), married Robert "Julius Bob" Baker, a widower with nine children.
1825 March — The court "Ordered that Jesse Dameral, Henry Clark, Cornelius Bowman and George Morris . . . view the best and most convenient way for a road from the mouth of Island Creek (in present day Owsley County) up said creek to intersect the Estill Road at the upper end of Jesse Damerals Plantation.
1825 — In the November session of court it was "Ordered that Robin Cornitt be apptd. Surveyor of the road from the ford of Sextons creek where the Estill road crosses up Sextons creek by McJittions along the trace passing Tinchers to Felix Wilds crossing the Salt Works road near Robin Cornits.
1825 — Sale of 6,736-acre tract – Roger Cornett, Elijah McWhorter & Titus Mershon.
1827 — The court reported that a slave killed himself after falling into a boiling vat.
1827 — Clay County Clerk Abner Baker issued a "Certification of color for Elijah Griffin, a free man of color who intends traveling into some distant parts—the clerk hereby certifies that the family of said Griffin have resided in Clay County many years, it has not been questioned, they have been ever reputed as free people. They are commonly orderly, honest and industrious people, possessing a competency for support."
1827 May – Hugh White resigned as Justice of the Peace.
1827-28 — Was a period of heavy road building activity, almost all of it to the benefit of the salt makers.
1828 June — The court ordered the sheriff to investigate a proposed water gristmill on Red Bird and report back on potential damages it might cause to property, navigation or fish.
1828 — The court had apparently taken to calling the road along Collins Fork "The Goose Creek Turnpike" which was a toll road. Hugh White, who had been commissioner of the road from 1822 to Sept 1828, was replaced by John Hibbard.
1829 — John Root sued William House for blocking the road with House's mill, apparently near the mouth of House Branch.
1830 — Willie Hibbard was appointed commissioner on the part of Clay County for $1000 in land office treasury warrants for improving the road (Estill Road) from Mount Sterling by way of Irvine and Manchester to intersect the Wilderness Road.
1830 — Slaves comprised 11 percent of the county's population. Andrew Burns agreed to purchase a negro girl "for his own use and not for merchandise."
1830 — David Robertson moved to Clay County, bought several thousand acres at mouth of Wildcat to Jack's Branch, and built a home opposite the mouth of Beech Creek.
1830 — Pressured by family, Revolutionary War vet "King" David Benge reluctantly applied for a pension. He told officials that the pleasure of fighting the Red Coats was honor enough for him.
1830 — Messenger Lewis, a justice for 12 years, resigned.
1831 — Bonds of $10,000 were set for assuming offices.
1831 — A tool for boring was invented that allowed salt wells to be drilled to a depth of 500 feet, where richer brine was.
1832 — The May term of court "Ordered that William Chesnut be appointed Surveyor of the Estill road from the fall rock to the ford of Sextons creek at Samuel Chestnuts.
1832 — George Freeman, a free black man, bought 50 acres of land.
1832 — T. T. Garrard married Nancy M. Brawner at Alex White's house and set up house on Paces Creek near his salt works.
1832 — Hearings were held in Manchester to allot pensions for Revolutionary War soldiers.
1833 — A new road was sought to shorten the distance between Manchester and London by going up Little Goose to the Salt Road instead of via Gray Fork.
1833 — Judge Thomas Amis, son of John Amis who was killed in court in 1807, was shot and killed during a court session. Thomas had married Dillion Asher's daughter, Polly.
1834 — Dan Tucker was tried for helping a slave escape to Ohio.
1834 — A New York magazine writer visited Manchester and Clay County and described it in a snarky article.
1835 — The legislature approved a bill for improving navigation on the Kentucky River and Goose Creek to the Manchester area to aid the salt industry.
1835 — A state report found that "The South fork could be made navigable for small steamboats as far as the junction of Goose Creek and Red Bird Fork, 42 miles, by 16 locks and dams at a cost of $1,099,746. The board pointed out that if these recommendations went into effect a connection between the slack water system of the Kentucky and the Cumberland rivers could then be accomplished by building a canal between Goose Creek and Cumberland Ford (Pineville)."
1835 — James White was refused permission by the legislature to import slaves to work at his works.
1835—45 — John White, son of Hugh, served in the U. S. Congress as a Whig and went on to become Speaker of the House.
1835 — Daniel Garrard bought one-quarter interest in grandmother Elizabeth Garrard and Son Salt works and changed the name to D. Garrard and Sons.
1836 — A bridge was planned for Little Goose to cross near its confluence with Goose Creek at Manchester.
1836 — There were 15 wells, 250-430 feet deep. Ten were in operation. Most of the production was from the Collins Fork works where the best brine was.
1836 — Abner Baker resigned and moved back to Garrard County. 1837 — A canal was proposed from salt works to Cumberland Ford.
1838 — T. T. Garrard's wife died.
1838 — A State report that year outlined the problems with transporting salt by boat on Goose Creek and Red Bird.
1838 — A railroad was proposed to be built through Clay County. The proposal was defeated in legislature by one vote. A depression that year put a stop for canalizing Goose Creek.
1839 — Daniel Bates sued James and T. T. Garrard over a mill on Little Goose Creek. This seems to have been the precursor of the feuding between the Garrards and Whites, and set up the bad blood that exploded after the hanging of Dr. Abner Baker Jr.
1839 — First mention of a steam mill in county. This may have been one at Goose Rock, a foundry that made salt kettles.
1840 — A mob threatened Daniel Bates; Bates was shot; he sued nearly everybody. The county government started falling apart.
1840 — Clay County had $106,800 invested in the salt works, a labor force of 148 men, and a product of 106,000 bushels.
1841 — Samuel Chastain swore he was not importing slaves to sell.
1842 — David Clark freed his slaves and gave them property on Sexton's Creek.
1843 — D. Y. Lyttle was admitted to practice law. He had come to Clay County to teach at T. T. Garrard's private school.
1843 — T. T. Garrard was elected state representative.
1844 — Manchester was incorporated.
1844 — Daniel Bates was murdered by Dr. Abner Baker Jr. Baker, who was thought to be insane, had accused Bates, and Baker's young wife's own father and others, of having sex with her. The case became a media circus nationwide.
1844 — The pioneer settler Dillion Asher died.
1845 — John White, son of Hugh, Court of Appeals judge and former speaker of the House of the U. S. House of Representatives, committed suicide shortly before Abner Baker Jr. was hanged.
1845 — The Ballard Smith 40,000-acre tract was bought by Francis Clark from a Philadelphia couple and he built a log house on the property which still stands today as of this writing.
1845 — After an extremely well-covered trial, Abner Baker Jr. was hanged for the murder of Daniel Bates.
1847 — Clay Countians served in the Mexican/American War.
1847 — In a major legal case, Clay County slaves sued Stephen Bates for the value of their labor.
1849 — Reuben May moved to Clay County to make salt and farm on 400 acres at Goose Rock. May later became commander of the Seventh Kentucky Infantry in the Civil War after T. T. Garrard was promoted to Brigadier General.
1849 — James H. Garrard was a delegate to the Constitutional Convention of 1849 where anti-slavery advocates hoped to enact emancipation (a gradual end) or abolition (an outright end). Most of the delegates agreed that slavery was an evil institution but that it could not be abolished for economic reasons.
1849 — T. T. Garrard, perhaps getting weary of salt-making, headed for California and the gold rush. He had married Lucinda Lees ten days earlier and then did "like the North Carolinians do" and headed out for California.
1850 — William Baker was hanged in Manchester for a murder apparently committed by his wife.
1850 — The White family was the county's largest slave owners.
1851 — Clay County elected county officers mandated by the constitutional convention of 1849.
1853 — T. T. Garrard moved "to a place near where Dr. Burchell lives" most likely the J. W. Reid house. In 1854-55 there were seven salt works and a product of 130,000 bushels. The center of the industry had moved down stream.
1855 — Benjamin F. White, son of Hugh, drowned at the narrows of the South Fork transporting salt.
1856 — David Yancy Lyttle moved to Manchester where he bought Cedar Craig, mortgaged to Barton Potter and Buckhead White.
1857 — James H. Garrard, T. T.'s brother, was elected to the first of five terms as state treasurer.
1859 — T. T. Garrard got back into salt making with his father. He had got out in 1849 during the California gold rush.
1860 — William Reid leased the poorhouse and farm to Thomas Ramsey and May Ponder on Rader Creek.
1860 — The salt business had shrunk to five works with a product valued at $21,000 for 84,760 bushels with a work force of 59 men.
1861 — Almost half Clay County farms cultivated 30 acres or less.
1861 — From the summer of 1861 until 1865 — and for former local slaves who joined the Union Army, for a year after that — there was little in Clay County history that didn't involve the Civil War. People tended to hunker down in their homes and on their farms trying to protect what little they had. They had little time to make "history" and there is hardly any documentary evidence of anything happening during that time other than the war.
ca 1866 — Rebel vet Abner Baker, son of Abner Baker Jr.'s brother, Harvey (who testified at Jr.'s Manchester trial in 1845) was lynched by a mob for killing the Knox County Tennessee clerk, who Baker may have thought had a part in the killing of Baker's father, Harvey, a Confederate. Harvey's death came at the mansion in Knoxville where Abner Jr. told him the lurid details of Susan White's alleged infidelities.
1866 — David Yancy Lyttle beat fellow Clay Countian William McDaniel for a seat in the Kentucky Senate representing Clay, Harlan, Letcher, Pike, Floyd and Perry counties.
1867 —D. Y. Lyttle was urged by "the rebel element" miffed that slaves had been freed, thus losing a tax resource, to oppose a bill before the legislature that called for public funding for public education. They were likewise miffed that the bill would primarily benefit children in eastern Kentucky, who had opposed the South in the war. In a surprise move Democrat Lyttle made an impassioned speech in favor of the bill, got it passed, and was thereafter known as the Father of Public Education in Kentucky.
1869 — Milton Jones donated land for a meeting house.
1870 — There were four salt works producing 83,680 bushels employing 40 men receiving $10,070.
1870 — Sixty-four black households were engaged in agriculture.
1872 — John D. White, son of Daugherty and Sarah, graduated from the University of Michigan. John D. went on to tour Europe and to marry a society matron from Back Bay Boston in a wedding covered by the New York Times. He became known as Kentucky's "Mr. Republican" and served in the U. S. House of Representatives.
1873 — In a breezy article about Manchester a writer was most taken by what he called the state's most beautiful women.
1873 — A nationwide financial panic hit Clay County hard.
1874 — John D. White's sister, Laura, was in the first University of Michigan class to graduate women. She became a major player in the women's rights movement in the U. S. For a while she attended the Sorbonne in Paris, France, and MIT in Boston. In 1885, she moved back to Clay County to take over her father's business.
1875 — Daugherty White, father of John D. and Laura, committed suicide. A news report stated: "Hon. Dougherty White, proprietor of the Manchester, Ky. Salt Works, and father of Hon. John D. White, Republican, recently elected to Congress from the 9th Kentucky District, committed suicide a few days since by drowning. Before throwing himself into the river he tied himself so that he could not escape. For several days previous he had felt queerly and was evidently suffering under temporary insanity when; he committed the act. His brother Hon. John White, once Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, terminated his life by suicide."
1875 — Manchester's rowdy reputation heated up. A reporter wrote about the town's bar rooms and groceries being "open both day and night, and bumpers of 'Paddy's Eye Water'" being "dealt out to a jolty multitude who are assembled here."
1877 Jan — Lawman A. D. Baker was called to settle a dispute on Lower Teges when he was shot and killed by Richard Allen. Reporting on another incident, a journalist wrote, "If Gen. Grant has any soldiers to spare wish he'd send 'em over to Clay."
1878 — Joseph Garrard, son of Brig. Gen. T. T. Garrard, graduated from West Point. Later, in Washington D.C., he got a dressing down from the President on the front page of the "New York Times" for preventing a Jewish underling from attending West Point. The case created a national scandal and resulted in Col. Garrard being banished to a far-flung post in Texas.
1879 — Nancy Potter, wife of prominent citizen Robert Potter (son of Barton), saved the family fortune when she petitioned the courts to have her declared a "femme sole" which allowed her to take over the family business interests from her husband.
1880 — The census that year listed the following people as Clay County saltmakers: William Brumley, Theopolis Garrard, Wilson Chastain, Moses Lytton, William McGrand, John Murphy, Herod Minton, James Philpot and Green White. Only the Garrards seem to have been producing salt in quantity, however.
1880 — Clay County farms averaged 170 acres per farm. A number of people made money in the timber business, but most of the timber was being bought by out of state corporations.
1883 — Laura White studied at the Sorbonne in Paris, France.
1884 — The New York Times reported that "Representative John D. White . . . treated the House to-day to a display of ill temper which some of his colleagues do not consider very becoming."
1885 — The Times reported that White "was the cause of some amusement to members of the House to-day," and was subjected to "loud jeers" by members of the House.
1887 — A land agent from West Virginia started purchasing mineral rights in Clay County, eventually acquiring over 72,000 acres that wound up in the hands of the Kenton Coal and Oil Company.
1890 Feb — Daniel K. Garrard, a very popular lawyer, legislator, and son of Brig. Gen. T. T. Garrard, was gunned down on the streets of Manchester by a black man, Carlo Brittain Lyttle. The murder was a statewide sensation in numerous newspaper articles that were outrageously racist.
1890 — Manuscripts of 1890 census were destroyed by fire.
1890 — Manchester descended into a level of lawlessness that was unique in all America in the 1890s and was widely reported in newspapers from coast to coast. Vicious feuds broke out around the county, and in town the lack of law enforcement made it a chancy thing to walk the streets downtown.
1891 May — The New York Times got the ball rolling with a huffy article listing a dozen Clay County men who had been charged with murder but, in "a most appalling state of affairs" the local court had seen fit not to do much about it.
1891 June — One Theo Moren braved the dangers of Manchester to attend a dance, according the Mountain Echo, "but Theo was not frightened he would risk a mad dog's bite every day in the week to get to see some of those Manchester girls."
1891 Dec — Natural gas was discovered near the mouth of Bullskin.
1892 Feb — News from Panco reported that J. O. Barger with fifteen boys and ten girls married Mrs. Mackie Hensle with six children, making a family of thirty-three. Henry Barger was said to have killed his 12-year-old son by striking him with a board, and a Panco woman named Barger "struck another lady in the head with a rock killing her almost instantly."
1892 Aug — On the London-Manchester road in Clay County "there are in the distance of half a mile, several drinking shops that are the cause of many difficulties and much disturbance," the Mountain Echo reported.
1892 — Pomp Bates, a black man from Manchester, who had been lying in the Danville jail for months awaiting trial for the murder of the Marshall of Junction City, died of consumption.
1893 March — Clay County black men Samuel Gilbert, Saint Gilbert, Charles Gilbert, William Hipshire, Beverly Lane, Peter Lyttle and Maryland Thompson were enlisted in the Ninth Cavalry.
1893 Dec — It was reported in the Mountain Echo that Col. D. Y. Lyttle, "seventy-six years of age celebrated Thanksgiving by taking unto himself a bride sixteen years of age, Miss Ellen Lunsford. This is Col. Lyttle's fourth marriage. There is yet hope for Cicero of the mountains."
1895 Jan — Recent rains gave hope to Clay Countians for a "tide" to get timber to market down the Kentucky River.
1895 Feb — Dale Reid, son of Dr. Stephen G. Reid, was killed in West Virginia in a dispute said to have been part of the Hatfield/McCoy feud.
1896 — In a society note that hinted at the success of Clay County's Asher family the Mountain Echo reported "Mr. A. B. Asher, the lumber King of Big Creek, Clay County, was in London Sunday on his way to Ford."
1897 — In his diary, Rev. Dickey wrote, "Most of the nights since I have been here have been made hideous by the yells of drunken men and the noise of their revolvers. Some nights hundreds of shots have been fired. While I am writing tonight the crack of the rifle is heard making a startling report. Drunken men are seen on the streets daily and along the highways leading into town. The law is not enforced against shooting on the highway nor against drunkenness. There is no fear of the law of its officers. 'Might is right' here, the weak must yield to the strong."
1898 — The most widely reported feud up until this time was the troubles down near and on Crane Creek that saw a number of members of the Howard and Baker clans gunned down in a quickly elevating dispute. It wound up with the killing of "Bad Tom" Baker as he stood outside the courthouse surrounded by 150 state troops sent in to protect him as he was to stand trial for the earlier killing of Deputy Sheriff Will White.
1899 — As the century wore to its end the Clay County feuds were at the top of the nation's reading lists. In addition to the Baker/Howard feud, a far more violent and deadly one, the Philpot/ Benge feud was being carried out in the county; both were covered in extreme detail by newspapers around the country. Here is only a sampling of papers that printed breathless reports of almost daily killings in 1899: The Naugatuck Daily News (Naugatuck, Connecticut) Jun 19, 1899; the Tyrone Daily Herald (Tyrone, Pennsylvania) Jul 18, 1899; the Newark Daily Advocate (Newark, Ohio) Jul 18, 1899; the Lima Daily News (Lima, Ohio) Jul 21, 1899; the Butler County Democrat (Hamilton, Ohio) Sep 7, 1899; the Fort Wayne News (Fort Wayne, Indiana) Sep 6, 1899; the Nebraska State Journal (Lincoln, Nebraska) Sep 12, 1899; the Bessemer Herald (Bessemer, Michigan) Sep 16, 1899; the Newark Daily Advocate (Newark, Ohio) Sep 27, 1899; The Wellsboro Agitator (Wellsboro, Pennsylvania) Oct 4, 1899; the New York Times (New York, New York) Oct. 23, 1899; the Trenton Times (Trenton, New Jersey) Oct. 26, 1899; the New York Times (New York, New York) Oct 26, 1899; the Trenton Times (Trenton, New Jersy) Nov. 7, 1899; The Daily Review (Decatur, Illinois) Dec 11, 1899.
1899 — The century ended on a spectacular Clay County story: the murder of newly elected Gov. Goebel, who, it was claimed, was murdered by Clay Countian Jim Howard in order for Howard to get out of a murder charge arising out of the Baker/Howard feud. In trials covered nationwide Howard was eventually convicted for Goebel's assassination, and served several years in prison before a Republican governor was finally seated and released him.
Clay County Genealogical & Historical Society
Resources & Links |
Galleries |
Manchester, KY 40962
The Society offices are open from 9 a.m. till 3 p.m EST Thursday & Friday or, for members, by special appointment.


Eating healthy seems to be hard if we aren't in the routine of doing so! This kitchen scale will help you in the practice of that, and really save you time and money!
I would also love to get the INEVIFIT Body-Analyzer Scale I-BA001!
Like the meal prep compartments.


Talk about a heavenly spring debut! Victoria's Secret Angel Alessandra Ambrosio surprised the crowd at Kaufmanfranco's presentation by not only opening but closing the show, too. Designers Ken Kaufman and Isaac Franco made their first spring runway show a cut above the rest with lush light pieces (think cutout dresses and flowy yet structured separates in white, tan and gold)--perfect for a lingerie model. (On second thought, what's not perfect for a lingerie model?) Inspired by a globetrotter, the collection "was really about a lot of crisp shapes for us this season," Franco told InStyle.com before the show. "We were very inspired by musculature and how it forms on a woman's body," Kaufman added. And what a perfect body to which to conform!


The Evolution Of Brain-Computer Interfaces #Infographic ~ Visualistan '+g+"
Imagine a world where machines can be controlled by thought alone. This is the promise of brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) using computers to decode and translate human thoughts into machine commands. Here's a look at the evolution of BCI technology, its current state, and future prospects.


text:
by Phil Brown | February 10, 2012, 9:00 am
When considering whether or not you want to watch Journey 2, the only question you have to ask yourself is: "Do I desperately need to see The Rock play a ukulele and bounce berries off his pecs in 3D?" As far as I can tell, those two scenes are the only reason for the film's existence. The rest is a hodgepodge of half-baked sci-fi ideas, cartoony CGI spectacle and sickly sweet family sentiment that should have even the most forgiving children on a sugar-high rolling their eyes in disbelief. The whole thing smacks of desperation with the filmmakers struggling to stretch a forgettable blockbuster into a franchise and a cast of recognizable actors barely trying to conceal the fact that they signed up for a well-paid tropical vacation that just happened to involve a film shoot. It feels more like a souped-up direct-to-DVD sequel than a marquee studio release.
Now, Journey to the Center of the Earth was never a great movie, but at least it delivered some breezy entertainment. With the new-fangled 3D still in it's infancy when that flick came out, it played more like a 90-minute theme park attraction than a movie, showing off the fancy pop-out-of-the-screen technology with an seemingly endless series of set pieces that never got bogged down with concerns like telling a story or crafting memorable characters. It wasn't great, but it was a good showcase for 3D when it was still a novelty and that's all the movie had to be. But it's sequel time now, and with audiences already tiring of 3D, that isn't enough to carry a movie anymore. Nope, 3D flicks have to work on their own merits now and sadly the folks in charge somehow dreamed up an even less compelling story this time.
The movie opens John Hutcherson's teen protagonist Sean from the last movie escaping from cops on a dirt bike clutching a stolen broadcast that he hopes is from his grandfather. You see, Sean is a Vernian, a special breed of people convinced that everything Jules Verne wrote about was fact. Given his last adventure, he has good reason to feel that way and is convinced his grandfather is stuck on Verne's Mysterious Island. Thankfully, he's got a new stepfather played by The Rock whose navy training gives him the necessary skills to decode the message and kick some mythical creature ass. They head off to the coordinates they were sent and meet up with Luis Guzman and teen love interest Vanessa Hudgens as the father/daughter team who takes them there via a rickety helicopter. Shockingly, they end up trapped on the island with Sean's grandpappy Michael Caine as their guide. Cue a series of CGI set pieces involving volcanoes of gold, riding giant bees, learning lessons about connecting with parents, and for some reason finding the Nautilus from 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea.
Right off the bat, the 3D in this movie is fairly lackluster. While Journey 1 featured scenes with characters spitting into the camera every few minutes to take advantage of the new dimension, in Journey 2 it almost feels like an afterthought. Sure there are plenty of perfunctory action scenes, but they never really take advantage of 3D, which kind of seemed like the whole point of this franchise. The giant lizards and tiny elephants that populate the island are kind of fun, but honestly the trailer gives away every expensive sequence, so you can't even count of getting some sort of minor joy or surprise there.
The cast is good in theory, they just have nothing to work with. The Rock knows how to charm and beat things up, but he's grasping at straws with a boring, caring stepfather character. He does get to play the ukulele though, which is weird as hell to see, but it might be best to wait until the inevitable and numerous YouTube videos that will arise from the scene to catch it. Luis Guzman flails around and pulls pratfalls like a silent movie clown, while Hutcherson and Hudgens are stuck with drab pretty teen archetypes with little to no personality. Then there's Michael Caine. You might be asking yourself, "What the shit is Michael Caine doing in Journey 2?" Well, he claims it's for his grandkids, but this movie was shot in Hawaii and I'm sure that Caine had a nice relaxing time because he certainly wasn't burdened with much acting to worry about.
So, as you probably worked out by now, Journey 2: The Mysterious Island is a bad movie. There's really nothing in here you haven't seen done better before and even Dwayne Johnson has a healthy list of movies on his resume that are better than this (and yes, that includes The Tooth Fairy). To be fair, this movie is for children and I suppose that if you're taking along a youngster who hasn't seen many adventure movies or isn't exhausted with 3D, the little tike could have a good time. The kid would probably have a better time with 80s family cheese like The Goonies, but that wouldn't get him out of the house, so I can sympathize. Just bring along a pillow for yourself. You're going to need it.
Dwayne Johnson • film • Josh Hutcherson • Journey 2: The Mysterious Island • Journey to the Center of the Earth • Jules Verne • Luis Guzman • review • The Rock • Vanessa Hudgens

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


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text:
September 7, 2019 on Arts & living, Lifestyle
Editor's Note: Here's a quick look at some of the latest books to arrive in the mail at The Ellsworth American. They either have ties to the state or are of special interest to our readers.
Pet ponderings
Cats can be mysterious creatures. Who know what's behind their fixed, enigmatic gazes. That thought was what inspired Dr. John H. Hunt to write "Why Does My Cat Look at Me Like That? Ponderings of a Small Town Veterinarian" (2019, Dorrance Publishing Co., Pittsburgh, Pa. $26). Hunt, who owned and operated the Bucksport Veterinary Hospital for more than 25 years, hosts WERU Radio's "Pet Sounds" spot from 7:30 to 7:35 a.m. on Sundays. He got the idea to write the book when his sister blurted "Why is my cat looking at me like that?" in the middle of a phone conversation.
The result is a colorful, informative and highly entertaining collection of essays about pets of all kinds. Topics range widely from to carbohydrate consumption in the diabetic cat to "My bird screams all the time. What can I do?"
Something is out there
Under a full moon, Logan Jennings lies on the grass, listens to the crickets in the family farm's pecan grove and tries to conjure lines in a poem at the outset of his summer vacation.
This placid, pastoral scene in the wilds of Oklahoma's Cherokee County is suddenly shattered by a calf's screams and its vicious mauling by a huge, shadowy creature whose guttural growl fills the air and teeth flash in the moonlight.
That's the compelling start to Bar Harbor author Carrie Jones and Steven E. Wedel's second co-written young adult novel "In the Woods" (2019, MacMillian Publishing $17.99). Their first collaboration, "After Obsession," won praise from Kirkus Reviews.
A New York Times bestselling author, Jones has written many award-winning novels for teens included in her "Need," "Flying" and "Time Stoppers" series.
Also set in Oklahoma, where Wedel teaches high school English and lives with his dogs Bubba and Bear, "In the Woods" promises to be a worthy choice for readers who enjoy fantasy and paranormal fiction. The authors' writing is vivid and characters thoughtfully crafted.
In Portland, author Joseph Souza's mystery "Pray for the Girl" (2019, Kensington Books, $26), a haunted former combat medic/Manhattan sous chef starts to recover from her post-traumatic stress disorder only to immerse and insert herself investigating the murder of an Afghan girl in her bleak Maine hometown where she has holed up.
Suffering from insomnia and anxiety, Lucy Abbott rallies and feels compelled to act and find out what happened having been haunted by her failure to save another Afghan girl during her tour in Afghanistan.
That's the complex plot that the former Drug Enforcement Agency intelligence analyst's second mystery revolves around. His novel about Lucy, her family, the town of Fawn Grove, its Afghan community, polarized inhabitants and their identities is full of surprises. It's a maelstrom worth diving into.


Very well done guys! Your layed back style of ad lib comments really makes both videos very interesting and entertaining. Nice job.
Great stuff!!! Any chance any of your videos will be made into dvd format and made available for sale to the public?


text:
E-bikes and bad days
We were away for the mid-term holidays. Just a short break, across the hill. Part of the plan was to hire a couple of electric bikes to try them out. The weather permitted, and we had a fun afternoon enjoying the newly found benefits of a bike set on eco, normal, or high, whereby, although you pedal, there's a little engine kicking in to assist. I climbed my first hill on eco and was still puffing, so from then on, it was high uphill all the way, almost coasting. We smelled the cow pats, breathed in the pollen, and faced the headwinds with ease.
On our return to base, at a pretty modern cottage, in a reasonably high-end resort (special deal for mid-weekers), we collapsed, each with a glass of wine, to read and relax. I was inside, as the wind had come up and John sat outside to catch the late afternoon rays of light.
Later that evening, he told me what he overheard, while sitting sipping wine in the sun. Across from us, almost obscured by a beautifully manicured hedge, were other pretty wooden cottages. John heard a man knocking loudly on a neighbouring cottage door. The door was answered by another man who was regaled with loud apologies. It seemed the man knocking on the door wanted to apologise for having abused his neighbour in their adjoining courtyards just a moment ago. He was speaking loudly and apologetically and trying to explain that he'd just had the 'worst day of his life'. John said, he could hear the pleading in the man's voice and sensed him wanting the other chap to at least ask, what the matter was. But it seemed the man who had been abused, although grateful for the apology, didn't wish to dally and enquire as to why. (Understandably probably).
John and I talked about this encounter and whether we should go and ask after this stranger, so distraught that he was abusing other people and then apologetic, saying he'd just had the worst day of his life. We speculated that perhaps his wife or partner had left him, that perhaps someone had died…. We even briefly permitted the idea of murder in the benign cottage across the manicured hedge.
But still, it wasn't our business, really was it? And we both agreed, if we'd been closer to the encounter, it would have been okay to at least ask this distraught man if he was okay – but by the time we talked about it, it was too late really and we couldn't be sure exactly which cottage he had come from.
And then, I looked at the date which was 12 October and that almost 50 years ago, in 1969, my eldest brother took his own life on this exact day – back then, indeed, it was the worst day of my life. I wrote a poem about this which is due out later this year in a new literary magazine Geometry. The idea that people put their heads down when others are in trouble, or when the trouble is too awful to acknowledge. Back in the 60's suicide held a certain social stigma, and people preferred to pretend it hadn't happened. We're both hoping the distraught man who abused his neighbour in the resort over the hill, is okay.
The author photo
Front on, full faced and smiling
at my age, is inadvisable,
I tried it this morning on my phone
alas without an airbrush and
undaunted, I tried again
something more serious, more
fitting of a writer perhaps, I
turned sideways, hoping my profile
would be interesting or mysterious
alas the phone has no filter
I was certain though, this could be
managed somehow with careful
placement of my head at the right
angle adjacent to books of course
looking authorly my glasses on
alas I blame my phone the camera
it's tricky to get the perfect light
if I wait awhile it might come right
but wrong again, with every click
I'm forced to face the truth of it
That look, that sidelong interrogation
the mysterious faraway insightful side-on
almost smile but not so blatant with
chiselled chin and cheekbones eludes
both the phone, and my ambition
I'll have to settle for the loving
Smile at me darling, you look lovely
From my beloved photographer
who doesn't see my necklines
ignores my crooked mouth
and doesn't understand when
I'm disappointed with the photo
he takes, me thinking there must be
a better version surely, and that
I could look authorly eventually
Everything is here except Elvis
'Everything is Here' by Rob Hack
I really like the profile on the Escalator Press website that says this about the poet…
Rob has lived in Paekakariki since 2005, after a third attempt to live across the ditch. He has been an insurance salesman, greenkeeper , builder, personal trainer, gym owner, factory hand, gardener, shop assistant etc and currently works as a handyman, to buy second-hand poetry books, and petrol so he can visit his grandchildren each week.
There's a nice anarchy here, the poet as an insurance salesman, which grabbed my attention immediately. And then there is the interesting fact that Rob was born in Invercargill but spent his childhood in Niue. It's hard to imagine such a striking shift in landscape and indeed, the landscape is preeminent in his poems.
'Everything is Here' is the title of his collection, a series of poems. The poetry is freighted with an emotional energy connected to family, milieu, place, and displacement. It speaks to a New Zealand childhood that I recognise. The poem 'Canons Creek Four Square' could easily be my home town of Richmond, but then there is disconcerting twist, the poet as an outsider. The boy from Niue sent by his Mum to buy a tin of peaches. Innocuous, but powerful and nicely underplayed where racism is mollified with a lifesaver lolly.
The collection resonates with a spiritual thread from one sea to another across the Pacific and as far as Europe. It is a poetic memoir traversing connections to the two sides of his family. They are snapshots into a life, or lifestyle, at times cinematic, but often leaving the reader wanting to know more. An example is a poem 'High Noon in Avarua' which feels like a second-hand local myth retold, handed down, and turned into a poem. And yet I wanted more, I felt I'd only glimpsed 'Te Kope, the adopted son of the late Nui Manu'. At times, I was reminded at times of Tusiata Avia's 'Wild Dogs Under My Skirt'. 'Blue Laws' a list poem with fines for misdemeanours including, my favourite 'If a man cries at the funeral of an unrelated woman $10.00'.
Another poem I really enjoyed with a fabulous long title is 'James Cook couldn't land and Elvis never sang on Niue'… which ends with a great three lines
Dad said, Elvis would've come to Niue
if he saw your mother dance
but he'd have to leave his hips at the door.
The poems have warmth and humour, they are easy but not light, warm and heart-warming. There is darkness written lightly. Rob is a true bard. I've heard him read now twice (the first time at open mike at the Writers Symposium at the National Library) and then at Litcrawl. He has a strong presence as a performer and these poems lend themselves to the oral tradition. They have an anecdotal conversational air about them.
Katherine Mansfield and a bookmark
Last evening, October 14, we celebrated the birthday of Katherine Mansfield. Nicola Saker, Chair of the local KM Society made a short and pithy toast, pointing out that as poor Katherine had so few birthdays and had the misfortune to be married to a man who often forgot her birthday – it behoved us to raise our glasses on this (if she'd lived) her 127th birthday. This celebration was also a special occasion to raise funds for the prestigious Menton Fellowship.
We were in the new Meridian Energy building – glass from floor to ceiling, looking out at the almost calm and very blue harbour. One of the red tug boats made a cameo appearance, but most of the time our eyes were on the objects being auctioned. My heart was set on a painting of KM by Seraphine Pick. Alas, the auction for this, kicked off beyond my bidding price. It was a real joy to see that it reached $4,000 even if I wasn't the lucky buyer. I am both a friend and fan of Seraphine who is a most joyful down to earth and hugely talented woman. It was the first time, she told me, that she had been in a room when one of her paintings was being auctioned.
It was interesting to observe the room. These were people with deep pockets. We were drinking French champagne and eating dainty canapés. I love French champagne and I scoffed the stylish canapés to keep pace with my bubbles. When I say deep pockets, I mean people with the discretion to bid recklessly and generously to support the Menton Fellowship. It was a very flash version of the local cake stall in the village – a fundraiser. Kiwis are good at this. And in the arts, we are very good at this and we have to be grateful for people with money who want to support the arts. There were a few writers in the room, but not many.. We talked about this. It's probably because most writers do not earn enough to bid recklessly at auctions, but are very grateful for the support of the residency.
The highlight for me was queuing at a table where three local poets, Bill Manhire, Greg O'Brien and Jenny Bornholdt sat, on demand, and for a donation, creating one-line poem bookmarks. Earlier in the evening Bill made a very warm and witty speech about the personal impact of the Menton residency on his sense of self as a writer. He then read a poem he was commissioned to write for Sir Ed Hilary on the 25th anniversary of the Erebus crash. A most poignant poem and yet such a tricky topic to do well. Manhire paid tribute to his time in Menton giving him the courage to tackle such a poem for such an occasion. As he was reading the poem, spookily, the super-duper air-conditioning unit re-calibrated making the sound similar to a jet's wings adjusting.
I chose to queue and wait for Greg O'Brien because he was my mentor in the late 90's when I undertook the Victoria University undergraduate Poetry Course – I think one of the first of the CREW series. It was an amazing time in my life. I was almost 50, my teenagers had left home and I was full of crazy doggerel. Greg managed to find the poetry in my wild scribbles. I'll always be grateful for this doorway to a writing life.
The poets asked that you give them a hint or theme for the bookmark poem. I mentioned my character Artemis from my new novel due out soon to Greg for his drawing and to Jenny, I said that I will be getting my 'gold card' in November.
This is the beautiful bookmark that I received. I will treasure it. And don't you just love that something so special can be created 'on the spot' by true poets and artists.
Tags Bill Manhire, Greg O'Brien, Jenny Bornholdt, Katherine Mansfield, Menton Fellowship, Seraphine Pick, The Dowse Gallery
Clive James and the humblebrag
I've just listened to Clive James talking to Kim Hill. She mentioned the 'humblebrag' when he deferentially said 'I'm a fairly ordinary story' in response to questions about someone writing his biography. 'Don't' forget, 'he said, 'sometimes reputations just melt away overnight.' With further modesty he claimed that one of his main talents was his ability to concentrate and that he had a knack for a turn of phrase.
All I can do is turn a phrase until it catches the light.
He's dying and so this conversation was about death and regret and about a poem too, that went viral when published in the New Yorker. It's called 'Japanese Maple' about a tree his daughter gave him that is destined to outlive him – but he's already survived longer than his poem about himself and the tree predicted.
I was struck by the difference in Clive James in conversation with Kim, and a time when I saw him at the Wellington Writers and Readers festival a few years ago. My first impression was great, because he was interviewed by Kate Camp who was an obvious devotee and she brought out the best in him. They had what I call a 'love-fest', where the interviewer as admirer creates what feels like a true and mutual intimacy in conversation. Alas, at the same festival, on a panel, he behaved boorishly and condescendingly and was embarrassing. It was as if he didn't know how to share the limelight.
And so, I am interested in the humblebrag. It's a tricky thing to achieve and I think writers in particular are quite adept at it. There's the gorgeous stuff that only the very young can pull off whereby they claim not to care about fame, but draw attention to themselves all the same with their foxy protestations. Then too, there are blogs about rejection. It can sound like self-pity, or self-promotion. But it can also be superb. I recommend Paula Morris nominated for the prestigious Sunday Times short story competition, and her blog posting 'Not Real Life' about daring to dream she might win.
I recently read somewhere that at age 20, we worry what other people think of us. And then at 40, we don't give a damn what they think, and then at 60, we realise (thankfully at last) it wasn't us they were thinking about after all. I like that very much and it's such a gem of wisdom that you wish it was a vaccination.
Why am I writing this? Because I have a blog, and excitingly I have a new novel coming out in October. I wanted to draw attention to myself and to my writing. I needed a hook. Shamelessly I've used Clive James as my lure. It's my version of the humble-brag.
And so I'll end with a Clive James quote from his conversation with Kim Hill 'Life is not a picnic – it's not all laid out for you.' But if it were, then where better than at our local beach to spread your picnic. (photo by John).
Tags Clive James, Kim Hill, Paula Morris
4th Floor Literary Journal
4th Floor Journal
This week, I had the pleasure of participating in the live launch of 4th Floor journal. It is the first time that I've been able to attend the actual launch. It was upstairs on the first floor of the Wellington Whitireia Campus and hubby was nonplussed in the lift, having assumed the 4th Floor, meant the fourth floor!
Lynn Jenner was the guest editor for the journal and it was very nice to finally meet her. She was so enthusiastic about the work of all the contributors. I found myself sitting next to the fabulous Renée Taylor and in the very good company of Adrienne Jansen and Jane Blaikie, who were tutors at Whitiriea when I completed the Advanced Fiction Diploma some years ago.
Adrienne read her terrific series of poems titled 'Local' about her observations while catching the bus and developing stories for the characters she saw. It's a delicious poem kicking off with the opening line
She balances the tray of eggs
on her fingertips, just like a waiter.
I particularly liked these lines from the poem 'At the Exhibition' by Jane Blaikie.
It's as simple as that, although as must be clear
to us all by now that love and simple are unrelated.
Renée read from her poem 'Outside the Sun is Shining'
I wanted to post an excerpt from Renée's poetry here, but the blog format won't let me scan the full line, so instead I will post a link so you can go right on over to the 4th Floor Literary Journal and read it for yourself (which is partly the point of this blog anyway).
I am a big fan of Renée's writing and will never forget the performance of her play 'Wednesday to Come' at Downstage on the 20th anniversary of its first performance.
I love being part of this prestigious journal alongside such esteemed good company. This year the likes of Elizabeth Smither, Lynn Davidson, Pip Adam, Natasha Dennerstein, Vivienne Plumb and Mercedes Webb-Pullman, to name just a few that I know. Mercedes was unable to attend the launch and I had the privilege of reading two of her poems. I'm always enjoy poetry, so it was a pleasure.
Here's a couple of lines to tempt you from 'Are all the pilots down'
through dark clouds colder than ice
into the peace of stars
then vanish where all pilots go
finally home to the sky.
I also really like the poetry of Helen Lehndorf and had planned to post an excerpt from her poetry but alas, I seem unable to retain the right line breaks and so instead, I will send you over to the 4th Floor Journal to read 'So much white noise'. I can't resist quoting this perfect question from the poem…
and how can you trust a man without a story?
The most affecting moment of the live launch was the reading of the poem 'Exceeding Expectations'. I urge you to go on over to the 4th Floor and read this evocative, heart-rending poem. It's a father son kind of poem and written by Brandon Mehertens who is autistic and unable to speak – a friend read the poem for him. As a poem it sure packs a punch.
Lastly, there is my own poem. I'm very happy this year with my contribution. It is my very first sestina. I find that the villanelle and the sestina allow the writer to traverse tricky topics without becoming maudlin or over- sentimental. This poem, titled 'Ngawhatu', is about the psychiatric hospital in Nelson and my memories of it during the 50's and 60's – prompted by a recent visit to Nelson about which I have already blogged.
Here's a teaser line or two for you:
if you're not careful, shit a brick, you'll end up there
What's up there? But no one speaks, it's all unspoken
get off the grass and up your arse with superstition
hoodackie, thingummybob, bite your bum thoughts
These lines were tweeted and a few of my friends made the comment that they couldn't imagine these words coming out of my mouth – I rather like that – and yes they did!
Finally, it must be said, that the contributors owe a debt of gratitude to the Whitireia publishing team for all their work behind the scenes, tweaking, editing, putting the final touches to line breaks, mistakes and both querying spelling and author intent.
Tags 4th Floor Journal, Adrienne Jansen, Elizabeth Smither, Helen Lehndorf, Lynn Davidson, Lynn Jenner, Mercedes Webb-Pullman, Natasha Dennerstein, Pip Adam, poetry, Renée Taylor, Vivienne Plumb, Whitireia Advanced Diploma in Writing
Kate Sheppard and a tinfoil mouse
I recently read Penelope Lively's 'Ammonites & Leaping Fish', a thoughtful memoir in which she explores the meaning of memory and links moments in her life to precious objects, not valuable artefacts necessarily, but meaningful and even sentimental. Ian Wedde, too in his recent memoir 'The Grass Catcher' evokes memory through objects and the odours of his youth. The main object being the grass catcher. (Some of the odours he mentions are best left to be read about.) Although, I guess there's probably not a Kiwi kid from the 50's and 60's who doesn't remember the smell of freshly cut grass, and a hand mower with a canvas catcher. Or indeed, who doesn't recall the whiff of two-stroke petrol when the family upgraded from a hand to a motor mower… and in your over-enthusiasm pulling out the choke, the mower flooded.
On reading these memoirs, I realised that my garden whenever I wander in it, evokes important milestones both happy and sad. It was over Labour Weekend, home alone with a broken wrist, somewhat sorry for myself, that I sat reading on our sunny deck and recalled it was my Aunt's birthday. That's my deceased Aunty who would have been 94 this year. What made me recall her, was not just the date, the 25th of October, her birthday but that she would often come to stay with us for Labour Weekend and we would share her birthday. And that the cherry blossom tree that we built the deck around would be in full flower. Since then, we've chopped down the cherry tree – as it was taking up so much room on the deck but the memory of the cherry blossoms and my Aunt are intermingled.
This prompted me to explore my garden and I found another blossom tree that forms an almost canopy on the lower part of our hillside section. The first year we moved into this house, our youngest son was six (he's now 33) and we have a photograph of him standing under the flowering canopy with a chipped front tooth – memorable, because that very next day he was going to be page boy at the wedding of friends, fully decked out in matching tail-coat with his father who was the Groomsman. I remember being annoyed he'd broken his tooth. The couple who married, now have a daughter off to university next year. Whenever I look out our bedroom window in Spring and see the blossoms, I see our son with his chipped tooth, and then I remember our friends' wedding anniversary.
Immediately beneath the blossom canopy is a very important memorial to our deceased cat Red who just happened to be a almost twenty year old black and white cat. Our granddaughter who adored Red, has made a pile of stones and shells in the garden as a tribute, and this includes a once shiny tinfoil mouse. The cat's ashes are inside our house in a box, or are they? That's another story, told in a poem and here is the link.
Then there are my roses. They bring me both joy and a stab of grief. Roses enjoy being hacked it seems. The possums last year were feasting on my roses, and so I cut them back savagely to pervert the possums – it seems the roses enjoyed this and they are looking positively radiantly ready to burst into many buds. This includes Kate Sheppard, named after the feisty Kiwi feminist whom we thank for the vote. My Korean daughter-in-law helped me plant Kate – a treasured gardening memory, all the more poignant as this year, she moves on to a new life, away from our family. No-one warned me that as a mother-in-law I could also have my heart broken.
The Kate Sheppard Rose
More violent and perhaps funnier, is the silk tree at our gate. One day, some years back now, after a fiery argument with my beloved, in fury and frustration, I attacked the silk tree – it was growing out over the path and obstructing the entrance. I chopped and chopped and snapped and attacked and I'm not sure what my neighbours thought. I felt bad afterwards and imagined the silk tree doomed, but it, like the roses, has thrived – but always to remind me of my tantrum.
Then there are the daisies that were once very fashionable in cottage country gardens. I tried slavishly to cultivate a cottage garden look to no avail. And then when we converted to a more coastal (but let's keep the roses), suddenly the packet of seed that I sowed decided to grow. And now those daisies are considered weeds, but I allow them their rampancy as it only seems fair that they have tried so hard. They interweave with a beautiful old-fashioned red-leafed creeper with tiny mauve pom-pom flowers. The two fight for supremacy and I keep them both in check.
Too, as you enter out front gate by the almost demolished silk tree, there is a softly delicious smelling jasmine plant that entwines with the wildly fragrant honey-suckle. Both plants are now considered 'outlaws' as we live next to a native reserve… but the scent is so delicious of an evening that I cannot bring myself to be rid of them entirely. Inside our front gate are two Daphne bushes bringing their 'lawful' luxurious bouquet to our doorstep. Dare I mention my rogue (practically heretical) ginger plants. They look so striking and I've tried to strike them out. Alas, they resurge.
The last important memory is about our first day in this house. We inherited a beautiful old-fashioned garden and one of the main attractions were the pink water-lily dahlias. The previous occupant an older couple who had tended the garden for years with love and affection, slyly dug up some of the 'considered rare' dahlia bulbs and took them to their new abode. Due to landscaping and renovation, I no longer have any dahlias, but I know where they should be and they remind me of the key to the house, left in a glass bottle under the front veranda by the same elderly couple. And too the note they left us, filled with daily, weekly, monthly chores to be attended to, including the trimming and clearing of the zig-zag down to the road below. There's a blackbird that comes to sing. We've named him after the dear old chap who lived here before us – although we've been in the house now for over 25 years, and I'm not sure how long blackbirds live…
Recently I posted a poem inspired by the tuis in our Kohwai tree. This tree was but a wind-blown seedling on the side of a clay bank that I was about to tear out while weeding when we first moved in. Something stopped me. It seemed wrong to not want a Kowhai, even though it was in the wrong place. The Kowhai now is a superstar where in springtime eight or nine tuis can be found feasting. It shades my washing line, something I lament, but the song of the tuis and the sight of the overweight kereru, more than compensates.
So, my garden is full of birdsong, flowers and my heart's song, a testimony to loss and new growth.
Tags 'Ammonites & Leaping Fish', 'The Grass Catcher', Book Reviews, Ian Wedde, Kate Sheppard, Penelope Lively, the Sixties


A recent addition to Blue Gum Cottage is our super Interactive Smart Board.
The children love exploring all the different interactive games and puzzles that they can explore independently or with their friends.
They enjoy listening to stories watching them come to life and also we can use this for our Jolly Phonics program, the possiblities are endless!


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Minimizing Facility Electricity Risks (Part 1)
Posted on December 3rd, 2018
Risk management is a never-ending task for facility owners and managers. Today, electricity-related issues are high on the list of risks for facilities: increasing energy costs, an aging electrical infrastructure, restructuring of the utility business model, renewable energy mandates, rapid technology changes and cybersecurity issues. Moreover, the magnitude, velocity and potential impact of changes to the electricity-supply industry exacerbate facility risk management challenges.
This is the first of a 2-part series. This first part examines the risks to the electricity supply and the second part will look at the options facility managers have to manage electricity-supply risks.
Electricity Risks Ahead
The North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) oversees the reliability of all aspects of the bulk power system (BPS): what is commonly called "the grid". The BPS includes the interconnected international electrical system of generation and transmission (>100 kV) plus all the utilities, infrastructure and control systems that deliver electricity to more than 334 million people in the U.S., Canada and parts of Mexico. A critical part of NERC's oversight is an annual assessment identifying and prioritizing the risks to the reliability of the bulk power system.
Shown is NERC's 2018 risk assessment map. The horizontal axis shows the likelihood of grid-level problems occurring and the vertical axis shows the potential severity of such problems. Arrows show the change from the 2017 assessment. Item #4 shows no arrow since its position change was due to a modification of the risk definition.
Of the highest priority issues (1,2,3 & 9), risks (1), (2) and (3) are highly interrelated with respect to rapid changes in the electric utility business model: the decentralization and changing mix of the electrical generating capacity.
The changing resource mix risk (1) has the highest likelihood of occurrence. It represents the risk presented by the shifting of electricity generation away from fossil-fueled power plants and towards renewables such as solar and wind. This risk is driven primarily by two factors:
The difficulty of maintaining grid stability when very large and rapid electricity supply swings occur such as large storms causing the quick shut down of substantial wind and solar generating capacity, and
The uncertainty, based on limited evidence, that a high percentage of wind and solar (inverter-based) generating systems might trip offline when needed most: during electrical system upsets or transients.
Risks (2) and (3) relate to the operation and development of new electrical generating capacity. More-and-more, decisions such as size, type, location and operation of new generating resources are made by independent entities other than utilities and grid operators. Often, these entities and the generating capacity they control falls outside the authority of NERC and those responsible for the BPS. This leads to uncertainty about having adequate total generating capacity as well as uncertainty about the operational availability and outage scheduling for a large percentage of the total generating capacity.
Cybersecurity vulnerabilities (9) are just that: a bad actor attacking power plant, transmission or control systems via software and the Internet.
Risks – Electricity vs Natural Gas
While NERC isn't responsible for overseeing the natural gas supply, they do recognize that the increasing reliance on natural gas to generate electricity elevates the risk to the BPS should there be a major disruption in the natural gas supply system. Fortunately, however, the reliability of the natural gas supply system is orders of magnitude higher than that of the electricity system.
As noted in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's study for the Department of Defense, "Interdependence of the Electricity Generation System and the Natural Gas System and Implications for Energy Security:"
The natural gas network has few single points of failure that can lead to a system-wide propagating failure. There are a large number of wells, storage is relatively widespread, the transmission system can continue to operate at high pressure even with the failure of half of the compressors, and the distribution network can run unattended and without power. This is in contrast to the electricity grid, which has, by comparison, few generating points, requires oversight to balance load and demand on a tight timescale, and has a transmission and distribution network that is vulnerable to single point, cascading failures.
In addition to the advantages of the natural gas system (NGS) compared to the electricity supply sytems described, other advantages include:
The majority of the NGS is underground making it far less vulnerable to weather and disasters while nearly all electric transmission lines are aboveground
Large quantities of stored natural gas are readily available while no similar storage of electricity is possible, today
Many compressors on the natural gas system run on natural gas, independent of the electrical system
The natural gas system has many redundant pipelines and circular distribution piping systems. Many parts of the electrical system have no similar redundancy
Minimizing Electricity Risks
Problems with electrical reliability and resiliency are very real and often impact facility operations. While NERC suggests that the risk from extreme natural events has decreased, it's hard to overlook the electrical problems posed by hurricanes, flooding, high-wind events, wildfires and even icestorms. In addition, NERC indicates some of the more critical electricity supply risks are self-inflicted ((1), (2) & (3) above) and of increasing concern.
In second and final installment of this series, we'll look at the options facility managers have to minimize the electricity-supply risks for facilities.


East London artists will get the chance to show off their talents at the Buya Live Arts and Culture Festival taking place from November 29 to December 2 at Masingata Village, outside King William's Town.
Event planner Moses Gxothiwe said Buya Live was a workshop for artists as well as a festival with the aim of which aims to assisting local artists who were in need of developmental support.
"Buya Live aims to take the town of King William's Town and surrounding villages to greater heights as the top cultural tourism destination, through exhibitions, street art and a music festival," and give broader exposure to rural and local talent," said Gxothiwe.
A selection of activities for adults as well as an arts and craft zone where guests can network while listening to buskers' music and good food will be on offer.
"The target market will be entrepreneurs, youth and the emerging market.
Gxothiwe said the event was different from other well-known music events like the Buyelekhaya and Ebubeleni music festivals as it was not only about performances.
It was also about workshops where young artists will be given the necessary tools to success. artists will be conducted.
"The event is to empower rural and township residents to work for themselves without being dependent on handouts and government grants, to revitalise rural areas and township tourism.
"We also want to provide an overview on the destitution of youth problems, women, black businesses, cooperatives and people with disabilities in these areas and will seek to find solutions to alleviate the situation," he said.


Heaven & Hell This is a point of no return. You wanted to know something about heaven and hell? to do this, like all mortals, you must follow the course of nature and die first. During this adventure you will have the chance to open the gates of heaven and feel the heat of hell itself while you look for the defribillator that can bring you back to life. You are lucky because in this case you won't be alone since there will be other souls next to you that will help you to escape from this other world. The defribillator only works for 60 minutes so if you don't find it you will stay trapped in this place forever. An unknown voice from the living world will guide you in case you need some help.


Sometimes life is a bit magical and you meet special people at just the right time. How I met Amandine is a very long story involving family, travel, Cambridge University, and my love and respect for people like her who with her hard work in medical research helps so many. This is where I leave it for many reasons, but be assured she is one special lady!
When I met Amandine she was planning her wedding to Maris, they wanted lots of natural photos of the day and to capture it all in an unfussy way so I ended up the following summer in the South of France, in a cute town called Saint Georges d'Espéranche near Lyon, photographing the beautiful wedding day. She had told me it was going to be a very relaxed wedding day, very personal with close family and very good friends. I was amazed at how much Amandine and her friends were involved in every aspect, from creating the decor to buying the flowers..it was a cooperative event!
After hairdressing, make-up and flower buying (yes! she has nerves of steel, she bought her bouquet that same morning!!) we went back to their venue, the gorgeous Domaine de Grand Maison to get ready for some photos with Maris. Apart from them being one of the cutest couples I ve photographed, the grounds of the Maison were just stunning, full of flowers in all sorts of colours and textures, a really lovely french cottage garden. We also had some photos done near a cornfield in homage to Amandine s farming family history : ) After the session off we went to the town to take more photos and make our way to the town s church were the guests met them both before the mass.
Back to the venue and it was time for drinks, chats, delicious veggie food, games, great french wine and dancing!
We left them as the party was in full flow, a lovely happy bunch of people celebrating Amandine and Maris s special day.


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ARQUUS introduces its unique Advanced Survivability System, fitted on the VAB MK3
Show | 20 February 2019
To answer the needs for advanced capabilities in conflicts of growing intensity, ARQUUS is constantly integrating top-level technologies in its vehicles to further increase their mobility and protection. European leader of protected land mobility, ARQUUS is an expert of vehicle conception and systems integration.
Conceptor, manufacturer and maintenance services provider for the world-famous VAB, which has been the battle horse of the French Army for decades, ARQUUS brings more than 40 years of combat experience in wheeled vehicles to constantly serve and develop a unique product, the VAB MK3, an extremely mobile and multi-purpose infantry fighting vehicle.
At IDEX 2019, ARQUUS is introducing a unique solution. Thought as a complete system and designed to be the best in class protected combat vehicle, the VAB MK3 equipped with the Advanced Survivability System combines cutting edge technologies and technical excellence.
On top of its native low profile which grants the Véhicule de l'Avant Blindé with unique stealth in all terrains, the VAB Mk3 now presents new ballistic & mine protection features of the highest standard. These new capabilities significantly improve the protection of the vehicle and its crew against all the conventional threats of the battlefield.
The VAB Mk3 is the first vehicle protected against Tandem Warhead Threats. The integrated systems aboard the vehicle detect the impact of warheads on the hull, and launch countermeasures which negate the tandem warhead effect.
To ensure the best possible level of tactical awareness and decision process, the VAB Mk3 has also been equipped with ARQUUS' own Battlenet information and communication system.
The VAB Mk3 is a family of 6x6 medium weight armored vehicles offering very high level performance in terms of mobility, protection and payload. The vehicle, driven from behind the windshield, provides the on-board commander and driver with a wide view, allowing for excellent direct observation and situational awareness. ARQUUS offers the VAB Mk3 with a complete systems package integrating top-level technologies and allowing the completion of all combat missions in collaborative mode.
The VAB MK3 offers performance close to an 8x8 with an excellent cost-efficiency. It also benefits from the global Volvo/Renault Trucks maintenance network.
This vehicle is presented on the ARQUUS Booth: n°07-B30.


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