Tom got his nickname, "Black Tom" because he had black hair. He had an uncle, William Thomas Bean, who apparently also went by Tom, and his hair was red. So he was called "Black Tom" so as to differentiate from his red-headed uncle. His uncle was nicknamed "Red Tom".
Tom was a no-nonsense type of man for the most part. He did enjoy teasing people occasionally and when I was a child and visited him and my grandmother, he would wake me up by poking me with his cane. I'm still not sure if he just thought I should get up or if he was just happy we were there, but he always seemed happy when he did it.
Tom was a very hard working farmer and believed everyone should work and be honest. He had little tolerance for lazy folks or thieves and would not be shy about letting you know about it. He worked very hard all his life farming but in spite of the hard work had little, like most folks of his time and community.
For a time he went to Detroit, Michigan to work; he also worked for a time in Dayton, Ohio, at Siebenthaler's Nursery. In the days of the depression many from the community traveled north for work of any kind. He also worked at TTU, or Tennessee Polytechnic as it was called then. He was a custodian there.
He had a sharp wit and lived alone for many years after the death of his wife. He looked forward to the van that would pick him up along with other seniors to take him to the grocery or doctor - he enjoyed socializing with the others.
He was a very strong man. In his 80s he caught himself on fire while burning trash. He lived in a hollow and a passerby saw the fire. He lost parts of some fingers and had a lot of severe burns, had to have skin grafts, etc. For a man of such advanced years it still amazes me that he survived it. He was made of strong stock.
He and my grandmother had a good partnership from all the accounts from his children. My father and his siblings that I asked said they could not remember their parents ever quarreling in front of them.
I don't recall ever seeing him dressed in anything other than his bib overalls. The older I get the more I wish I could talk to him again.
Tom was a no-nonsense type of man for the most part. He did enjoy teasing people occasionally and when I was a child and visited him and my grandmother, he would wake me up by poking me with his cane. I'm still not sure if he just thought I should get up or if he was just happy we were there, but he always seemed happy when he did it.
Tom was a very hard working farmer and believed everyone should work and be honest. He had little tolerance for lazy folks or thieves and would not be shy about letting you know about it. He worked very hard all his life farming but in spite of the hard work had little, like most folks of his time and community.
For a time he went to Detroit, Michigan to work; he also worked for a time in Dayton, Ohio, at Siebenthaler's Nursery. In the days of the depression many from the community traveled north for work of any kind. He also worked at TTU, or Tennessee Polytechnic as it was called then. He was a custodian there.
He had a sharp wit and lived alone for many years after the death of his wife. He looked forward to the van that would pick him up along with other seniors to take him to the grocery or doctor - he enjoyed socializing with the others.
He was a very strong man. In his 80s he caught himself on fire while burning trash. He lived in a hollow and a passerby saw the fire. He lost parts of some fingers and had a lot of severe burns, had to have skin grafts, etc. For a man of such advanced years it still amazes me that he survived it. He was made of strong stock.
He and my grandmother had a good partnership from all the accounts from his children. My father and his siblings that I asked said they could not remember their parents ever quarreling in front of them.
I don't recall ever seeing him dressed in anything other than his bib overalls. The older I get the more I wish I could talk to him again.
Tom got his nickname, "Black Tom" because he had black hair. He had an uncle, William Thomas Bean, who apparently also went by Tom, and his hair was red. So he was called "Black Tom" so as to differentiate from his red-headed uncle. His uncle was nicknamed "Red Tom".
Tom was a no-nonsense type of man for the most part. He did enjoy teasing people occasionally and when I was a child and visited him and my grandmother, he would wake me up by poking me with his cane. I'm still not sure if he just thought I should get up or if he was just happy we were there, but he always seemed happy when he did it.
Tom was a very hard working farmer and believed everyone should work and be honest. He had little tolerance for lazy folks or thieves and would not be shy about letting you know about it. He worked very hard all his life farming but in spite of the hard work had little, like most folks of his time and community.
For a time he went to Detroit, Michigan to work; he also worked for a time in Dayton, Ohio, at Siebenthaler's Nursery. In the days of the depression many from the community traveled north for work of any kind. He also worked at TTU, or Tennessee Polytechnic as it was called then. He was a custodian there.
He had a sharp wit and lived alone for many years after the death of his wife. He looked forward to the van that would pick him up along with other seniors to take him to the grocery or doctor - he enjoyed socializing with the others.
He was a very strong man. In his 80s he caught himself on fire while burning trash. He lived in a hollow and a passerby saw the fire. He lost parts of some fingers and had a lot of severe burns, had to have skin grafts, etc. For a man of such advanced years it still amazes me that he survived it. He was made of strong stock.
He and my grandmother had a good partnership from all the accounts from his children. My father and his siblings that I asked said they could not remember their parents ever quarreling in front of them.
I don't recall ever seeing him dressed in anything other than his bib overalls. The older I get the more I wish I could talk to him again.
Tom was a no-nonsense type of man for the most part. He did enjoy teasing people occasionally and when I was a child and visited him and my grandmother, he would wake me up by poking me with his cane. I'm still not sure if he just thought I should get up or if he was just happy we were there, but he always seemed happy when he did it.
Tom was a very hard working farmer and believed everyone should work and be honest. He had little tolerance for lazy folks or thieves and would not be shy about letting you know about it. He worked very hard all his life farming but in spite of the hard work had little, like most folks of his time and community.
For a time he went to Detroit, Michigan to work; he also worked for a time in Dayton, Ohio, at Siebenthaler's Nursery. In the days of the depression many from the community traveled north for work of any kind. He also worked at TTU, or Tennessee Polytechnic as it was called then. He was a custodian there.
He had a sharp wit and lived alone for many years after the death of his wife. He looked forward to the van that would pick him up along with other seniors to take him to the grocery or doctor - he enjoyed socializing with the others.
He was a very strong man. In his 80s he caught himself on fire while burning trash. He lived in a hollow and a passerby saw the fire. He lost parts of some fingers and had a lot of severe burns, had to have skin grafts, etc. For a man of such advanced years it still amazes me that he survived it. He was made of strong stock.
He and my grandmother had a good partnership from all the accounts from his children. My father and his siblings that I asked said they could not remember their parents ever quarreling in front of them.
I don't recall ever seeing him dressed in anything other than his bib overalls. The older I get the more I wish I could talk to him again.
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