| STRETCH NECK HOLLER |
| There are four hollers in Dizney, I grew up in Stretch Neck Holler. The other ones are Bills Creek, Yocum Creek and Turner's Creek. At one time these hollers had houses on every possible site that a house could be built. Tilman and Leona Cloud lived in Kenvir when they first got married. When Junior (Tilman, Jr. my dad) was three years old papow and mamow moved to a small building above their now existing home. Papow bought that house shortly after moving to Stretch Neck. There is another holler that branches off to the left just past papow's house. There was a dirt road that could be traveled by horse or wagon. There were homes on the left side of this mountain range. My father told me that grandpa Ben's brothers (I don't know which ones) used to live on the top of the mountain across from Papow's Clouds house. This being the same area and probably the same cabin that Dan and Polly lived in and was near daddy's garden. On both sides of the mountains surrounding Stretch Neck Holler are apple and pear tree, black walnut, beachnut trees, papaw trees. Grandpa Ben's brothers planted most of the fruit trees. They grafted different types of apples to produce totally new apple varities. I have yet to taste another apple that can compare to the apples from Dizney. About 10 years ago my dad and I walked up to what he referred to as the orchard near Ben and Polly's house. This apple tree was not very tall but very wide. There were ripe apples on the ground and on the tree. Around the edge of the end of the tree limbs on three sides (not the lower side where we walked up the mountain) was tall weeds and brush about four foot tall. Daddy and I were busy picking apples and I began to slowly move up the hill getting closer to the tall grass at the edge of the tree limbs. Daddy called to me "Don't get too close to those weeds there may be snakes in there". Daddy never went out of the house without a gun in the pocket of his overalls and if he was headed for the mountains he had a walking stick with him. I took his advise and started backing down the hill towards the center of the tree. As I was backing down the weeds started rustling noisly. I only had time to look towards Daddy because the noise was coming from near him. The biggest black snake I ever saw, about ten feet long and 12 to 16 inches round, came out of the weeds directly towards daddy. Before my brain took in all that I was seeing, daddy took his walking stick and hit the snake. The snake changed directions and went back into the weeds. I was ready to get out of there, but daddy said no lets pick a few more apples. I sat down in the dirt because my legs were shaking so bad and told him I wasn't picking anymore apples, but I did need to rest until my legs stopped shaking. |
| Alene and Larry Presley |
| Jennifer Banach & Junior Cloud Tilman & Leona Cloud's house in background. |
| Above Tilman & Leona Cloud's house |
| 1st Row: Fay Cloud, ?, ?, Sue Hale, Curtis Blevins & Tony Cloud. 2nd Row: Doris Cloud, Lanny Walls, Joyce Cloud, Roger Cloud & Billy Cloud. 3rd Row: Mary Ellen Cloud, ?, Alice Hale, Larry Pressley, Tinley Presley, Shirley Cloud & Brenda Jones |
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