+ IN MEMORY +

- MARTHA ALICE "MATTIE" ASHLEY ISAACS -

+ "The best and most beautiful things in life.. cannot be seen, not touched... but are felt in the heart." +
-hk

+ "Those we love remain with us for love itself lives on.

Cherished memories will never fade, because one loved is gone.

Those we love can never be, more than a thought apart, for as long as there is a memory, they live with in our heart."


Martha Alice "Mattie" Ashley Isaacs


Martha Alice "Mattie" Ashley Isaacs, was my Grandmother. My Mother, Maggie Isaacs Barber was the youngest child born of Martha and is still living today, at 89 years of age, as I write this memorial page for my Grandmother.

My Maternal Grandparents were known to me, as "Ma and Pa", as will always be.

Martha Alice Ashley, was born to Larkin Ashley & Sarah Osborne Ashley, on December 14, 1881, in Ashe County, North Carolina.

Father: Larkin Ashley

Mother: Sarah Osborne Ashley

She had seven brothers and only one sister. Her siblings were David, Elihu "Hugh", John L., William E., Thomas Larkin, Milton "Milt", James Ashley, and then her one sister, Sarah Ann "Dolly" Ashley Holtsclaw.

Brother: Milton "Milt" G. Ashley

Brother: John L. Ashley

Brother: James "Jim" Ashley

Her only sister: Sarah Ann "Dolly" Ashley Holtsclaw

Martha Alice Ashley married Aaron Wesley Isaacs around 1897. They lived in Mitchell County, N.C. and then Avery County, N.C. Afterwards, they moved to Carter County, Tennessee for a few years. Then they moved to the Marion, McDowell County area where after a few more moves locally, they then made their permanent home near Glenwood, North Carolina, where they continued to live until their deaths.

My Grandmother was a very petite, soft spoken, sweet lady, that lived a very hard life..starting with when she was only about 8 years old, her Mother passed away, so she had to take over and take care and provide for her younger sister, Dollie, as well as cooking and other household chores, until her Father remarried. Her Mother, Sarah Osborne Ashley got breast cancer (she had gotten hooked in the breast by a cow, so back then, the family thought the cancer was brought on by the injury). As she lay dying and realizing it, she begged my Grandmother to go fetch her a cold drink of water from a nearby spring...my Grandmother ran for the water and when she got back her Mother had died. She was through God's help, as providing her with the strength, knowledge, to do so, protecting her little girl from seeing her Mother die. So, my Grandmother, Martha Alice Ashley Isaacs, did indeed, learn responsibility at a very, very young age, as a child.

With me living close by as growing up, she taught me so much as a child as of the simple, but very important things of life that we take so much for granted today. I saw her working the fields, harvesting the crops, taking care of the animals on the farm, all with still doing the normal chores of a housewife as cooking, washing clothes, ironing, canning, mending, churning the butter, molding the butter, making sour kraut, drying apples, even the milking of the cow named, "Ann". I can even remember her calling for the cow "Ann" to come in to be milked. Yes, I was a part of all this, an experience that my children never had the opportunity to do. One of my favorite fond memories of childhood were of the fall of the year, harvesting of the pumpkins, getting to ride in the wagon..going with my Daddy to the old malasses mill, old corn,flour mill..and most of all..the beautiful, fall colors of the foliage!

When I was a small child, my relatives even raised and then butchered their meats providing food for their table. Country fried fresh tenderloin was some mighty fine good eating and so was sugar cured ham...Yummy. Also, fresh fried sausage and liver mush were delicious. With the sausage grinding, I got to help with that. She would make home made hominy from scratch and let simmer on the old heating stove in the sitting area until done. Then she would give my family a big jar of it. This hominy was nothing like this canned hominy of today, so much better in flavor. Today I occasionlly make hominy & pork chops (of course the hominy being of canned) and my children love it. That's when I really think of my Grandmother's homemade hominy, as how much better it was!

I can remember the days of when she would even make the soap to wash the clothes with, of course with the clothes being scrubbed on a scrub board, until later on when she got a wringer washing machine. Washing and ironing was mostly an all day chore, as having then to even heat the water for doing the wash,etc.

She loved to quilt, but quilting was done mostly in the colder months, when there were not as many chores to be done outside on the farm. She would let me help her as a little girl piece scraps of material onto Sears Roebuck Catalog Pages with preparing the squares etc., to put together for a quilt top. Then batting was added and a backing, with then it being placed in her quilting frame that was upstairs. My Mother and sometimes a sister or two would then join in as doing all the hand stitching of the quilt. I have a couple of quilts that my Grandmother gave me when I got married that even belonged to my Grandfather's Mother, Liddie, My Great Grandmother. (unfortuately now I have to later add, and say, I did have, as others have taken these, along with other memorable items).

My Grandma taught me the basics of cooking, as a very little girl. I can still remember until this day how she used to have this way of peeling an apple, potato, peach,etc. and while peeling the whole apple or whatever, she would do so without breaking the long strip of peel. I used to get so frustrated to why I couldn't do that. Then later I realized she had the worn thin sharper knife and I was to use the one less apt to cut myself with, but I wanted to do good just like my "Ma". She was my special "Ma", and always will be.

A couple of other fond memories of spending time in the kitchen with my "Ma" was..when she would make home made buttermilk biscuits, she would let me take some of the dough and make minature cinnamon crisps, by rolling out the dough thin, sprinkling with cinnamon and sugar, then rolling this up and slicing into the crisps for baking or just frying in a iron skillet. "That was special..got to do this myself, and then had a treat for me and others."

Also, at about this same time period, the first little cake mix had come around that we knew of, "Jiffy Cake Mix"..and it was reasonably priced that my Grandma felt she could afford to send out by my Daddy, or whomever, that might be going out to the store, to buy for me, as for letting me make a little cake. She would take out her little change she had stored a way, in her little cupboard, and give it to them to buy what she would like from the store. I would be so proud! Today, when I am in the grocery store and happen to walk by and notice the "Jiffy Mixes"..I know you can guess who...comes to my mind? Later on, another special treat..was when the little dolls could be gotten by saving box tops from "Fab" laundry detergent, she would send for the "Fab" to use, and that would mean later on that I would be getting another little doll.

With having the opportunity to experience all the daily chores, working in the fields, hardships, sacrificing some play time myself, and all, as of my Grandparents and by my own Parents..I feel this is how I, along with my older brother, Bill, also, have all these years looked back on the homesites and properties as with much, much appreciation, as we saw and was a part of all, as growing up in childhood. This was as for Bill's feelings as we talked of this together so many times, his feelings being, until his passing...with giving me still today... the fond memories of all. The property, homesites, memorable items, all, may have ended up being taken away as by greed, selfishness, etc, by others, but I can always have these loving memories and appreciation of my ancestors the rest of my life..that no one.. can ever take away.

On January 14, 1965, McDowell County, N.C., Martha Alice "Mattie" Ashley Isaacs, passed away in her home and within only three weeks of the passing of her dear husband of 68 years, Aaron Wesley Isaacs. She died at the age of 83, as of cancer.

* Two of my Grandparent's sons, as well as a daughter, lived many miles away, but they still loved and thought of these, just the same as those living nearby. One son they were greatly proud of was a son that moved to the west coast as a very young man, as he had enlisted in the U.S. Navy, he was Brownlow "Brown" Martin Isaacs.

* DAUGHTER MISSING

Please see Bertie or Bertha L. Isaacs for more details.

* Note - Please feel free to read more about Martha "Mattie" as her life shared with Aaron Wesley Isaacs, within his Memorial Page, including the listing of their TEN CHILDREN.

Thank you for dropping by and letting me share in part, as my life shared with my Grandparents, Aaron W. and Martha A. Isaacs .... my.. "Ma and Pa".

* "When tomorrow starts without me...don't think we're far apart...For every time you think of me...I'm right here in your heart". * Yes, Grandmother, My "Ma", You are right here with me..and have been.. all along...Thank You! *
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If Roses grow in Heaven, Lord,
please pick a bunch for me,
Place them in my Grandma's arms
and tell her they're from me.

Tell her, I love her and I miss her,
and when she turns to smile,
place a kiss upon her cheek
and hold her for awhile.

Remembering her is easy,
I do it every day,
but there's an ache within my heart
that will never go away.
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-Appreciation-

My appreciation to "Anita", for her visitation to the gravesites and providing photos of Martha and Aaron Isaacs' markerstones in May 2006, and also for, many other photos of markerstones for other memorial pages, that I have contributed to Findagave. Anita has been so, "cheerfully helpful" in many ways. Thanks again, Anita, for all your efforts you have put forth in all you have done over the years, since we both joined in at Findagrave in 2006!