Paul Drewy Austin (1912 - 1993)

Born 28 Aug 1912 in Culleoka, Maury County Tennessee

Ancestors

Died 12 Jul 1993 at age 80 in Old Brick Church Community

Problems/Questions Profile manager: Wayne Austin [send private message]

Biography

Paul was born in 1912. He was the son of Charles Auston and Otie Kerr. He passed away in 1993.

Buried Colbert County AL. 14 JUL 1993. Old Brick Church Cemetery, Colbert Co., AL.

1st Occupation Furnace Operator-Reynolds Aluminum Co.

Note: #N237. Photo: #M3. File @M3@.

Notes

Important: Austin-3837 (Incomplete) is the same as (complete record) Austin-9719. Austin-3837 is locked so should be ignored or deleted. I am the son of Paul Drewy Austin and the creator of Austin-9719. It is an accurate portrayal of my father including dates and parentage.

Note N237A tribute to Paul Drewy Austin, b. August 28, 1912, d. July 12, 1993

Paul was a dedicated family man who provided well for his family. He instilled in his children morals and a zest for accomplishment, molded and shaped their character. He was handsome, by anyone's standards, well liked and although not highly educated, possessed a love of the academic subjects. He was an active member of the First Church of the Nazarene in Sheffield Alabama for some forty years.*

Paul spent his productive life as a furnace operator for the worlds largest Aluminum manufacturing plant, Reynolds Aluminum Co. of Sheffield, AL. He controlled the temperature of the huge natural gas furnaces that melted the aluminum into ingots. He worked in an era in which the American metals industry was dominant throughout the world. Paul Spent 35 years with the Company, from 1940 to 211975.

Although he made a good living for his wife and six children by working for a major Aluminum Company, he somehow dreamed about "a return to his farming roots". When his children were small he moved away from the city to a fifty acre farm about ten miles out of town to "get back to his roots" and to teach his children the value of work. He continued to maintain his contact with city friends, by commuting twelve miles back to the Nazarene Church he and Ruby and family were members of. He continued this commute even until prior to his death.

Paul was a deeply religious man who gave of his time and resources to his religion. Due to the Great Depression he was unable to get a degree from a major university, as his older brother and sisters had. However, he was able to obtain a certificate from a technical college. Paul was a man who possessed leadership and character in his approach to life. He was gifted with the language, for he was often called on to speak at church services and school occasions. *

He worked hard for the causes he believed in. Once during the early 1950's, after determining that bootlegging and Moonshine operations were rampant through out Colbert County, he joined forces with and led others in the east end of Colbert County, where he resided, in a campaign to rid the county of the corrupt element which included the county sheriff. His band of law abiding citizens succeeded in electing an honest sheriff who would attempt a clean up. He succeeded, but to his dismay, the new sheriff was gunned down by the same corrupt element. Paul and his group of East Colbert County people threw their weight behind the murdered Sheriff's wife who was then put into office. After years of danger, hard work and dedication the new sheriff succeeded in cleaning up the corruption in the county. During the clean up effort a gang of these corrupt forces tried to corner Paul and do harm to him. He escaped and had them hauled into court, convicted, and jailed.

Paul and his wife's active vibrant lifestyle was brought to an end on a hot June day two months prior to his eighty first birthday. He and his wife Ruby were returning from a trip to visit his older sister Lutie Kerr (Austin) Jones, when an improperly maintained transfer truck hit his automobile in the rear. Paul was only fifteen miles from home. His auto was demolished and he sustained serious injuries. He fought bravely for life but the injuries were too severe. The trucking company which hit the car, thru litigation, provided financial relief for Paul's widow Ruby, for she too was seriously injured. Ruby received three broken vertabre, but miracously, no paralyses. By Wayne Austin January 16, 1994

The Cave in back of Grandpa Austin's House

I was told last night via a phone conversation about an event of interest in the life of Paul Drewy Austin. Paul was born 1912 in Culleoka and was grew up there in Maury County Tennessee.

There was an old historic cave in the area of Culleoka above the city that at one time served the Culleoka School (building built in 1921) its water supply. The water came from a spring that gushed out of the mouth of the cave. It was piped to the school from the cave about one mile away. There are still remnants of the pipe remaining today. That water came out of the cave into the pipe and plunged down the hill so a pumping mechanism was not necessary. The mouth of the cave was just east or below Peach Orchard Road in the "holler" and to the east but behind the old Charles H. Austin Home 1879 - 1968, later to become the Westmoreland place.

A cousin on mother's (Ruby Barlar Austin) side Royce Glen Thurman was recently invited by Brian Kunze the new owner of the land and cave to explore the cave. Mr. Kunze and his sons took leave from their busy efforts to build a new home nearby on the land to go exploring. It is rumored that the cave is connected thru another series of caves that opened out on the old Tom Barlar farm (died 1968) a mile or so to the west. Royce Glen and Brian & sons were attempting to prove the connection among the caves along with the normal need to look for earth's treasures by amateur spelunker who searches underground.

After enduring the entrance where the water and space is narrow insuring one will get muddy and wet just getting into the cave they found themselves inside the cavern. When they had gone a few hundred feet back Royce Glen and his friend were surprised to discover carvings on a rock. These were what appeared to be initials. The first recognizable set was CEA dated 1917, we think this stands for Clyde Elbert Austin born 1901 and EPW or ERW dated 1885 and other initials UH and LET and RLB. We are unable to connect a name to the other initials. Carvings in mud were found further back in the cave. John Hoover signed his name and dated it 1927. Also Paul Austin signed his name on the same rock probably in the same 1927 visit since he would have been about 16 at the time. Paul was then a resident of Culleoka living in a house on the north side of the road along Mooresville Pike near the intersection of Frank Moore Road and Mooresville Pike with at least three of his five surviving siblings and parents.

The signatures in mud are surprising considering they were inscribed there more than 80 years ago and are still there. We know these cave water sources and surrounding caves are usually subjected to periodic horrendous flooding. It is a miracle that the writings were not washed clean from the face of the cavern by floods over time. There they were though visible imprints left as proof of the past exploring endeavors of youthful boys bent on discovering what was there in the darkness of this web of caverns. They probably used kerosene lanterns or candlelight as their source of light. Battery powered Flashlights were not invented or used. That in itself was a major challenge for the young explorers. To prevent their sinking into the expansive darkness they must keep the light going or become lost in the darkness of the earth and not being able to find their way out.

Royce Glen was able to get photos but due to the wet conditions and the difficulty in getting back there he used throwaway cameras. Consequently the imagery is not as good as one would want.

Paul Austin married Ruby L. Barlar in 1940 and moved first to Town Creek, Alabama, went to work for Reynolds Aluminum Company and began a large family of six children. We are also aware that John Hoover grew up to become a physician and moved to Chattanooga where he spent the remainder of his life. The Austins' and Hoovers' occasionally had exchanges, which kept their friendship alive through the years. That generation is now all gone as of this writing in 2007 and another one is in place, but they left a legacy for all to follow.

I remember as a child the wonderful times we boys had in going down to the cave and seeking its cool sanctuary from the hot summer sun. Though close by Grandpa's house it was a major event just to get there. We typically left the Austin home and walked northwest toward the cave. We explored the open pasture for fossils and noticed many times what appeared to be iron slag from an old iron smelting furnace lying around on the ground. Was this something related to the Civil War? I never knew, but maybe it was an effort to create iron for the military needs of the Confederate Soldiers. As far as I know there is no written history on this mystery.

After a few hundred yards of fun in the hot summer sun we found ourselves deep into the woods on the steep northwest facing slop. There we looked for all kinds of wild flowers and other strange plants fascinating to our young minds. As we moved downward toward the mouth of the cave the terrain turned dangerously steep almost to the point of being a bluff. Somehow on most occasions we managed the climb to the bottom without falling. Since trees grew all along the hillside we typically shuttled from southeast side of one tree to another as we made our way down the hill. Any other way would have started us sliding out of control. While there the greatest treat was to get to peer into the dark expansiveness of the cave mouth and to feel its cool refreshing breath on our hot tired skin. We were also able to drink of its cold water as we were told the water was clean. As was mentioned above at least two generations of the Austin family had made that trip. The cave was not on the CH Austin place but children in those days paid no attention to property lines as no one was around to tell them "no trespassing" and one rarely if ever saw in those days one of those signs or anyone who cared. Now you are aware of why they call those the innocent times.

The last visit I made to the cave was marked by a near tragic event for me. While going down the steep incline I lost my balance and began to fall downward toward the bottom. I was just enough of an athlete that to prevent the head first tumble I started bounding downward while staying on my feet. That was about the time I served as a linebacker for the Colbert County Hi Indians so I was in pretty good shape. However, I quickly descended out of control toward the bottom of the steep incline. I picked up a dangerous amount of speed, way beyond my young ability to maintain control. After long moments of this motion I came to rest very near the bottom by slamming against a 12" size tree trunk. I took the hit in the center of my breastbone stopping my descent instantly. I must have hit the tree 20+ miles an hour. That knocked the wind out of me and I am sure injured my breastbone in some manner. I felt a strange sensation of tingling and fainting but managed to continue standing. If my recollections serve me well the tree was the last one before the final drop down to the roadbed beside the cave. Like many such injuries in those times this pain too was ignored until it healed. Nevertheless, I learned a hard lesson about steep bluffs and maintaining firm footing.

Soon after that the home of Charles H & Otie Kerr Austin was broken up after nearly 70 years of marriage and 90 + years of life and rearing a large family of six surviving children. Grandfather and Grandmother moved away to a small house in the Yokley Community of Giles County to be near their daughter Mary Austin Hubbell and her family. Elisea Rene’ Hatton-Smith recalls visiting her Great-Grandparents in this home at Christmas with her newly acquired Baby Secret and her sister, Antha Renise Hatton Marks Beaver, had her newly acquired Tippy Toes Doll. Granddaddy Austin just kept watching the dolls that talked and rode a tricycle in amazement. Until he said to his Granddaughter, Joyce Ann Austin Hatton Grigsby’s daughters,”Where did you little Alabama cotton tops get these dolls?” To which the girls excitedly replied, “Santa Claus brought them to us.” Grandpa went on to meet his maker and was laid to rest in the Wilkes cemetery down the hill. The old home was sold to Mr. Westmoreland and the generations of Austin's were no longer a part of Maury County Tennessee and its wonderful rural attractions. Sadly for the Austin's it was a time for new generations and faces to take up their place high on the top of Peach Orchard hill to the west overlooking the sleepy but vibrant little village of Culleoka Tennessee.

Wayne Austin August 1, 2007

Note: #N237. Photo: #M3. File @M3@.

External Files

• File M3 File: C:\Users\Wayne Austin\Documents\Family Tree Maker\cwa-thisareit Media\PDA1.jpg Paul D Austin. 1930 High School Senior picture at Culleoka High School, Culleoka TN.

Sources

• family files of C. Wayne Austin

1930 Census [1] Tennessee, State Marriage Index, 1780-2002 [2] United States Social Security Death Index [3] Cemetery marker [4]