Grandpa and Grandma Stubbs

~ Grandpa Stubbs was born Benjamin Howard Stubbs 13 June 1882 in Newnan, Coweta County, Georgia and died 24 September 1933 in Ashburn, Turner County, Georgia. I only know what little Daddy told me of him. Daddy was almost 12 years old when he lost his Daddy to a stroke. Daddy said that Grandpa Stubbs had a beautiful singing voice. Grandpa had been crippled for several years from a stroke before he died. He was a farmer, so my Daddy and his siblings had to do the farm work. Grandpa Stubbs had told Daddy that he was from 'Up Country'. Grandpa Stubbs was raised around Senoia Georgia in Coweta County. He was one of ten children of Zachary Taylor Stubbs and Martha (Mattie) Whatley Stubbs. They moved to Turner County Georgia in the early 1900s. A few years ago my double-first cousin, Clifton Swain left me a sketch of Grandpa Stubbs. The sketch is large, so Frank took a picture of the sketch and this is a scan of the picture.

On 12 September 1910 Grandpa married my Grandma, Leola Ellen Wilson. She was born Leola Ellen Wilson 15 November 1893 in Rochelle, Turner, County, Georgia and she died 05 April 1980 in Ashburn, Turner County, Georgia. Grandma was raised in Wilcox and Turner counties Georgia one of seven children of William Thomas Wilson and Frances Elizabeth Ryle Wilson.

This is Grandma Stubbs when she was 15 years old.

This is how I mostly remember Grandma Stubbs.

Grandma and Grandpa Stubbs had eleven children together and eight of them made it to adulthood. Grandma Stubbs had a set of twins a few years after Grandpa's death. Rumors abound about her. Daddy had a love-hate relationship with his mother. She was a hard woman and not one that showed a lot of love. She did have a sense of humor... much like my Daddy passed on to his children and grandchildren. We lean a bit towards sarcasm... one of my nieces calls it being a smarta**. I think she is right :-) 

 Grandma Stubbs farmed some and then she waitressed to make a living. I don't think she crocheted, but she did make a few quilts. Grandma Stubbs dipped snuff. She would smell of it and sometimes her clothes were stained from the snuff. She always carried around a small coffee can to spit in. She could play the organ. She would play Grandma Swain's organ when she came to visit. Mama still has Grandma Swain's organ. I think I forgot to mention the organ when I talked of Grandma Swain. Both would have to have someone else to pump the organ for them... it isn't easy to pump an organ while someone else is sitting at it. 

 Grandma Stubbs lived in Georgia, then Florida and then Georgia and Florida and so on... she was a traveler. Her religion was fishing. She fished whenever she could. One time she even took a cab to go fishing.

 I wish I could say that Grandma Stubbs was the perfect grandma. One that baked something nice just for you when you came to visit or sent birthday and Christmas cards. This was not her though.