I received an e

That got me to thinking, (which is sometimes dangerous). There was a boatload of those Heatherlys, (sometimes quite literally, when the crappie were biting).

Cotton lived just north of the Highway Tabernacle, across the road from Fred and Georgia VonMoss, and he had a couple of boys. Then, Ott lived a half block north, right beside Bill Parkinson, and he had a couple of boys.

Then, on south main in Picher, just north of the highway, Carl had a couple of boys, and Karlene. Also, Roy had a boy or two, and Ray, who was called Ray Paul so he couldn’t say “Oh! I thought you meant Roy” and he had a couple of boys.

Thankfully, Jim solved my problem by explaining the maze of Heatherly boys.

He wrote:

My Dad was the oldest of the Heatherlys. Ott and Faye had three boys and one girl. My sister and my youngest brother died at a young age. There was just me and my older brother Elmer left.

My Uncle Cotton and Aunt Millie had Jack and Don.

My Uncle Carl and Aunt Helen had Mick, Larry, Karlene, Richard, Dennis, Lyndon and Chuck.

My Uncle Roy and Aunt Letha had Lela Rae, Terry and Janie

Then there was Uncle Ray Paul who had Dale and David.

Hope this helps you remember the Heatherly family a little better.

Jim H.

Yes, Jim, I think that will help lots of folks straighten it out. Thanks for the information.

By the way, Carl and Helen owned the grocery store on the corner of String Town Road and the highway, and lived in the house just west of it before moving to Picher.

The Heatherlys originated in Devonshire, England. The first Heatherly to come to America was Timothy Heatherly in the year 1623. He was a felt merchant and acquired large tracts of land in Massachusetts. He founded the city of Scituatte, Mass. There is a large monument in the city square naming him as the founder. His descendants moved to Maryland, and later fought in the Revolutionary War against the British under General Washington. They were named as Patriots and awarded large land grants in North Carolina. Some of their descendants moved to Tennessee and our Great Great Grandfather, George William Heatherly moved to Douglas County, Missouri in 1838. The father of Ott, Cotton, Carl, Roy and Ray Paul was Samuel Heatherly. He and his brother Jess Heatherly moved from Aurora, Missouri to Joplin and later in the early 1900's to Cardin, which was known as Tar River then. Sam Heatherly was married to Elmina Brown. Their children were: Ott, Clarence Elmer , Claude (Cotton), Carl, Roy, Ray Paul, Faye, May, and Juanita. Sam's brother, Jess Heatherly was married to Pearl Fischer. Their children were: Charles Elmer, Opal, Violet (Townsend), Hazel (VonMoss), Lucille (Perry), James and Wanda. Many of the descendants of these people still live in the area today.