William’s mother, Flora King, sold all the farm implements and
animals except for one milk cow and went to work at the shirt factory.
“Rent for the shack was $8 a month, and we could hardly afford that,”
said William. “The shack had two bedrooms and a kitchen. Mama
scrubbed those wood floors with a corn scrub brush ‘til they were almost
white. Every spring, she put pot-ash in tubs of water and threw buckets
of it on the walls. That kept away roaches and any other kind of bugs.”
The windows were shutters held open with nails and wire. There
was no running water or toilets. Water was drawn from a well, and the
bathroom was an outhouse and a washtub for bathing. “At night, Mama
let down a quilt she kept rolled up at the ceiling. Nails and rope held the
quilt in place. She rolled it down at night and worked by the light of a
kerosene lamp,” said William. Even though there was an electrical line
out front, electricity wouldn’t come to their home until William was
about twelve years old, and then it was only for one bulb with a pull
string.
But William had no concept of poverty. “We had it tough as
children, but so did everybody. We all went to school barefoot. Mama
worked hard and made sure we always had food on the table. My older
sisters, Betty and Loretta, helped raise my sister Joann, my younger
HOMETOWN LIVING AT I TS BEST 85
William found his blue 1950 International truck in the back of a rundown store. He
purchased it and restored it over a two year period. Now, he rides his "farm animals"
around in the back and people all over Toombs County recognize him. BELOW William
takes his truck to car shows for fun, but often he ends up bringing home awards.