"The Little Watermelon Thieves"

The Albritton family are the hosts of the 2011 Johnson Family Reunion, and we understand that we might be in for a treat - a video about Caroline Johnson Albritton (Aunt Caroline). In early November, 2010, Walter Albritton, Jr. was in the process of gathering memories and anecdotes of his mother in preparation for this. Naturally, he turned to his mother's brother Wylie Pierson Johnson (Uncle Wylie) to get his memories. Uncle Wylie responded with the following photo and message. Hopefully, we'll be able to share more of the referenced photo album some day.

Brothers Parley Philip Johnson and Wylie Pierson Johnson, 1922
(Entitled "The Little Watermelon Thieves" by Uncle Wylie)

4 November 2010

Walter Jr.;

I'll write a more detailed, in depth answer to your letter later. For now I want to call attention to the wonderful black and white photograph album she [Aunt Caroline Johnson Albritton] put together in her teens and twenties. She only had a brownie box camera but the pictures she made are the best record we have of the family during that period. I made copies of some of the pictures in the album. I'm attaching one of them to this email. I do not know who has the album now; but to me it is a priceless family treasure. She loaned it to your cousin Parley; but, I believe he returned it. If you can locate this album it will be a lot of help with your project.

The attached picture was taken in 1922, when I was only three years old. Philip and I were standing where the Delco house was built in 1927. Behind us on the left is the clothes line yard where the wash woman hung the clothes to dry. The out house that was used by the family up until 1916 was in this yard. Behind us and to the right was the scuppernong grape arbor.

All the best.
Uncle Wylie


Thank you for sharing this, Uncle Wylie. And, Walter, Jr., we'll look forward to a very special memoir of Aunt Caroline at the Family Reunion in the Summer of 2011.

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