I have a page on my website concerning a slave graveyard. This graveyard is located close to a road that local folks there call the "backtrack". I never dreamed the "backtrack" would be such an interest to a couple of folks who have left posts on the guest book about what exactly it is.
To my understanding, the backtrack is where an old railroad track used to be, but isn't there anymore... now it's just a back road. I'll have to remember to go take photos of where it starts, and where it ends, and pinpoint on them where the graveyard is.
I talked to Dianne last week about it, Fat Man's Misery and the "Tipple" - all places she used to haunt as a child.. and she said that she'd won some Anchor/Tway scrip from a bid on ebay, that she's put it up someplace, and when she finds it she'll let me take a pic of it as well as other coal mining memorabelia to add to that slave graveyard page. I think that'll be pretty cool. I've bid on a few pieces of scrip (is it scrip, or script? I'm not sure...) from Kentucky mines, but haven't been lucky enough to bump into any Anchor/Tway pieces. Still, any from Kentucky would be a piece of history for me to leave for my grandkids.
I can't remember for sure, but Mom, or Shelly help me out.. wasn't Big Daddy a miner at one time, and if so, do you remember the name of the mines where he worked? I'd like to find out and get some of the scrip from there too. It seems like a million years ago so I can't be sure.. but I can almost hear a whisper of a memory of mamaw telling me about him having to buy their groceries at the company store.. and use script to pay for it with.