When driving up 802 between Mendota and Abingdon, there is a road sign that says “Alum Wells.” It’s on the right, and a friend of mine and I followed the sign to see what Alum Wells was.
We didn’t find anything except a narrow road that is no longer maintained (think private property) that goes to the river. We saw grazing land, a natural gas pipe line, woods, a swinging bridge that crossed the river, and the river.
What was Alum Wells?
While I still have this old newspaper subscription, I decided I’d look. Alum Wells was a thriving community. The community had a “stringer” who reported happenings in the area, and here is an example of just one of the reports. There was a Craig’s Mill School. This appeared in the Bristol Herald Courier on April 13, 1911.
I knew there was pottery in this area of what we now call Mendota. There was a Craig’s Mill Pottery Shop, a Wooten Pottery Shop and E. W. Mort Pottery Shop. I learned that E. W. Mort was also a Methodist minister, and as he grew older, he turned his head more toward that vocation than that as a potter. He was originally from the Shenandoah Valley (Strasburg) and when his father was killed in the Civil War, he mother moved him to her childhood home in Washington County, Virginia. I found a recurring ad in the Bristol News in the 1881+ era.
Here’s a sample of Mort’s Pottery I found in an online auction site. This was from a 4/27/19 Spring Discovery Auction. The “sold” price was $480.
Here’s another venture from Alum Wells that appeared in the March 8, 1872 Bristol News:
And another from the Bristol News April 2, 1875:
And finally, Alum Wells, apparently, had a hotel and cabins that typically were for rent. This ad appeared in the Abingdon Virginia newspaper on May 17, 1872. I wish I had a picture!
What happened to the Alum Wells Hotel? Does. anyone have any additional information on Alum Wells? Please leave a comment in the comment area below so we can all see it!
When I grew up, it was a big deal to go to Crystal Pool. It was where all of the cool kids from our high school went; and well, we wanted be cool, too! Because of the distance, we didn’t get to go often so it was a very special time when we did get to go. I left the area for about 25 years and during that time, Crystal Pool closed. Today, as I drive on Wallace Pike, I see a vague footprint of what was once a popular local attraction.
So, we had snow today, and I started attempting to research Bristol’s old newspapers looking for a large snow event. I couldn’t find one — there probably is one but my search capabilities are still being refined.
What I did find was references to Crystal Pool. It was quite the attraction at one time and the fact that “filtered” water was used in the pool was something very important.
Here’s an ad from July 28, 1935.
What in the world is VIM? I saw it repeated over and over in different ads, but it was never defined. I suspect the V is for Vitality?
Here’s another where four Bristolians are pictured at Crystal Pool. While it’s a grainy picture, does anyone knows anything about these young women. From left to right, Mrs. Charles Oakley, Virginia O’Dell, Louise Bush, and Mrs. Henry Doriot, Jr. Could you imagine four women of that same age posing for a photograph today and being described as Mrs.?
Finally, Crystal Pool was so popular that there was bus service to the pool.
Again, what is VIM?
Looking through old newspapers (online) is addictive. What will I find next?
I grew up listening to my parents discuss the Great Depression. Everything but poverty seemed scarce during the years of 1929 – 1939, yet they felt fortunate to live in Mendota as food was plentiful due to the river as a source of grinding meal and small family farms with gardens and livestock. It was during that time that Mendota’s bank closed, the silica mining stopped (I blogged about the silica mining operation in March, 1916. It has a few pictures which you can see here.) and Mendota’s future as an academic spotlight along with future industrial potential changed. It was also near that time passenger rail ceased in Mendota– but not without a fight.
From the Bristol Herald Courier on May 10, 1938:
Council Adopts Resolution Asking Continuance of Passenger Service
Calling the operation of passenger trains on the Bristol-St. Charles line a “public necessity” the town council of Mendota has adopted resolutions protesting against the proposal of the Southern Railway Company to discontinue all passenger train service between Bristol and St. Charles.
The railway’s application to be allowed to discontinue service on that line is now in the hands of the Virginia Corporation Commission which will hold a hearing on the application May 17.
Saying the discontinuance of passenger train service would be “very detrimental to the Mendota section, as well as to the railway itself,” the town council called attention to the “worse than bad” roads in that section and asserted, “It is believed that the greatest potential tonnage of freight along the entire Southern system is located in the Mendota section.”
Only 15 Families In Mendota Have Cars
“Few people residing between Mendota and Benhams own automobiles, because of the poor condition of the roads,” the council declared, adding that out of 60 families living in the corporate limits of Mendota, only 15 have automobiles.
Commenting more specifically on the inadequacy of highway travel facilities in the Mendota section, this council said in its resolutions:
“At present between Hilton and Benhams, along said railway line, a distance of 17 miles, there’s no bus service whatsoever except that a bus comes to Mendota once a week. Between Hilton and Mendota, a distance of 10 miles, there are eleven grade railway crossings, which fact indicates the kind and dangerous nature of the highway if such it can be called. Between Mendota and Phillips, a distance of 3 miles, there is an impassable river, with no highway bridge on a direct line, making the distance by bus, if it could be traveled at all, about 20 miles. Between Phillips and Leonards (Wolf Run post office), a distance of 2 miles, there is no direct road, the distance as a bus would travel if al all, being at least 12 miles.”
The council observed also that the present train schedules give a “highly efficient mail service specially from the East-New York, Washington, Richmond etc.” which would not be available if the train service were discontinued.
Saying the proposal to abolish all passenger train service on the line “could not have originated except with railway officials far away, strangers to local conditions,” the council declared the railway officials ask the state Corporation Commission to set its seal of approval upon a proposition that is destructive of their own interest as well as that of the public.
The railway’s proposal would retard the future development of natural resources in the Mendota section, the council complained, saying:
“For example, the Mendota section has enough high grade glass sand to supply all the glass factories in the United States, and all the potteries in the United States with flint, for centuries to come, including refractory material for furnaces and kilns. “
“Mendota is only four miles from producing natural gas wells, with apparently an immense natural gas field to the north and northwest. With soda ash at Saltville and a high grade limestone close by, it is said that there is no place in the world in which the main glass making materials occur so close together. It is believed that the greatest potential tonnage of freight along the entire Southern System is located in the Mendota section.”
Copies of the resolutions were sent to the state Corporation Commission, to Governor Price, the State Senator C. J. Harkrader and to Delegates W. N. Neff and Donald T. Saint.
I have learned two things in the past three weeks.
I learned that a Medial Collateral Ligament tear hurts like hell, and it typically takes about 6-8 weeks to heal. I’m on week four. The first week was a pass because I got a steroid shot that relieved the pain and from a basic x-ray, I learned my knees are in pretty good shape. Week 2 was back at the doctor’s office unable to put weight on my right leg again! My knees might look okay, but you can’t see soft tissue in a typical x-ray. I left in a velcro brace. Week 3 opened with my MRI appointment where we learned exactly what was going on-I have a Medial Collateral Ligament tear.
I have rested this knee and treated it like a baby in hopes of fast healing because it has absolutely stopped me. I go for my PT assessment tomorrow. Yay!
This brings me to the second thing that I’ve learned. I discovered the entire 7 seasons of Gilmore Girls on Netflix. That’s 153 episodes. It was so good. I never would have taken the time to watch it, but with my MCL tear, it was a good time to do so. I’m telling you this in case you have an MCL tear. Trust me. Hook up with the Gilmore Girls.
So, I’m grateful for several things at this time. I am grateful I live in an age where things like my MCL can be appropriately diagnosed so they I will heal properly and get back to work. I am happy that I have internet which allows me to stream shows like Gilmore Girls. I am also grateful for 800 milligram ibuprofen tablets.
There are many things to give thanks for in this world, but tonight, I am grateful for ibuprofen, MRI’s, doctors who know how to read them, and Netflix. So as others are sending prayers of gratitude for major things, I’m over here just lifting up Netflix.
Blogs are not “in style”. It’s why people don’t blog anymore. They find that sharing on Instagram Stories, etc. is sufficient. However, if you’ve ever had a blog, you might better understand what I’m going to say. t’s very, very difficult to close a blog down. It’s very personal. It’s got a bit of history. In mine, it also has some of the history of my community.
I recently lost my blog. I didn’t back it up, and while I maintain a website here and there, I am not highly skilled in the “back end” of a website. At any rate, my blog had a fatal error. While I DID back up my site once about two years ago, it was on my old decrepit laptop that I used last year. When I attempted to find the backup, I had no mouse to look for the folder! My current laptop has a touch pad and all of the laptop mice have scurried away!
However, I started “messing” in WordPress, and I somehow figured out that I might have a recovery method. The long and the short of this is that I got access to the recovered blog, went into the backend and removed the problem plug in. I knew what the plug in was that was giving me issues because WordPress had messaged me. I just could not get into my blog. Instead, I got the white screen of death.
I’m so happy tonight that I have my blog back. I am going to update it weekly. It makes me so much more intentional in how I spend my time, and I need that.
For this week, ending today on Friday, November 20, I have done the following:
Big accomplishment: Recovered this blog. Yay me! I feel like a genius.
Read one book: “The Year of Less” by Cait Flanders. It was a great starting point for January when I like to declutter. I recommend you read it if you find yourself with closets full of things you don’t wear and a habit of shopping when you are out of sorts.
I took one good picture. I did not do this intentionally. I was impressed that when the foliage is turning gray and we’ve had below freezing temperatures several nights, this fading rose was still beautiful and yanked out my iPhone. One of the great things about walking my dog is that I notice things.
And my favorite find of the week has been raspberries for $3.98 at Sam’s Club. I cannot eat enough of these.
Last, I am grateful for so many things this year. While it has been a year of not eating out, not gathering and not doing many things, it still has been a good year. One of the smallest things, but it is still important to me, is this RiverCliff Cottage. I’m thankful it’s back.
Aside from one or two minor details, our kitchen redo is finished. It seemed like it took forever, but it really was under three weeks. However, it’s hard to have all of your cabinets emptied and in boxes all around the house. I’m glad it’s finished both because I really like it and done!
Here’s a picture from before…
And here’s a picture from the present. I was able to save my backsplash with the countertop replacement. It’s still a country kitchen, but it’s so much lighter.
Here’s a photograph of the base cabinets up close. Jon Larson of Refined Finishes in Mendota spray painted my doors and drawer fronts. I brush painted the rest. The paint was Benjamin Moore’s Advance paint, and the green is a Valspar color mix called Leafy Rise. I reused my hardware.
On the opposite side of the room, I left that row of cabinets natural cherry but interrupted them with the new shiplap range hood that Mike made. It’s painted with Benjamin Moore Advance paint in a Sherwin Williams color mix called Vanillin. We haven’t added the crown molding to the range hood yet. I may paint a few of these cabinets but right now, I’m tired of painting and do not want to think about it.
Tom Harmon is a custom cabinet maker in the Tri-Cities area, and I could not have done all of this without Tom. He added the crown molding and modified the cabinets so that they were exactly what I wanted without buying all new cabinets.
Here’s an example. This is the before. The fretwork was dated and this little shelf area was a dust catcher. You can also see the old countertops and the cast iron sink. I’m reusing that sink in the guest house.
Tom just ripped those spindles and shelves off. I realized that each cabinet is really just a box — not so mysterious. Now that area is enclosed.
The front side now has this bar and hooks. I can change things out seasonally or as I want to.
The other big change was removing this…
And adding the open shelves. It gave the whole room a lift. That is my mother’s gravy bowl which is the only thing of hers that I have. Each time I see it, I think of her and am grateful for having the good fortune to have her as my mother.
Aside from a few minor touch ups and some additional painting such as the pantry door, the kitchen is done.
I talked about our goals with our kitchen renovation in a prior post you may read here. This post is solely on modifications we are making to our existing Kraftmaid semi-custom cabinetry to give them an updated look and make them more functional. I searched the internet for something like this and could not find it, so I’m hoping others find this and learn from what we did right or wrong.
Our kitchen cabinet update is based on reusing and modifying our existing semi-custom Kraftmaid cabinetry. Once finished, there will be three colors of cabinetry — one will be the current natural cherry; one will be a creamy Sherwin Williams color called Vanillin; and the remaining is a Valspar green color called Leafy Rise. This process is not a simple cabinet reface. In fact, we are not refacing any of the cabinets. For this to be successful, we had to find a custom cabinet maker willing to work on a small job. In Bristol, Virginia, this person for us was Tom Harmon. He has been awesome to work with, and if you are reading this locally, message me and I’ll provide his contact information.
My cabinets had galley rail which dated them. We are replacing the galley rail with crown moulding. The cabinets are varying heights and it’s tricky to get crown on all of the cabinets and still be able to open all of the doors. This is where the skill of an experienced cabinet maker is working in our favor. The crown is not yet installed so I don’t yet have pictures.
In the photograph below, the left side shows small shelves that were too shallow to be useful and they were a trap for dust and fur. On the right side of the photograph, Tom has enclosed that area and made a door which matches the other lower cabinet doors once painted. Had we opted to buy a Kraftmaid door, it would have been a special order and the shipping would have been exorbitant. I was told you must order at least five “pieces” of Kraftmaid to get a break on the shipping. Tom had the talent and equipment to match the doors, and it was more cost effective for him to make a custom door.
Next, 20 years ago we “created” a small shelf at the end of our upper cabinets. It was going to be “styled” and look nice but it became a repository of Mike’s wallet, receipts and basic junk. Worse yet, what didn’t fit in the shelves got stacked below on the kitchen counter. It was a source of contention that the cabinet was always cluttered. I’m not exactly a neat person, but this was something that really bothered me.
So, the solution was to provide him with a place where he could stash his things yet I would not have to look at them. So the shelves below were removed…
And in place of those shelves, an enclosed end-cap cabinet was installed.
So… as shown in the photograph below, when you open that end cap cabinet door which will be painted to match the upper cabinets, you’ll see a place for all that clutter. (The door has been removed for painting in this photograph.). There’s a lot of stuff on the cabinet in this picture and I’m not certain why. I must have had to empty a cabinet for some reason while this work was going on.
I also wanted to provide a place to hang the Swiffer mop and the Bona mop. Tom found a close match to the existing Kraftmaid cherry wood cabinetry (this section is not being painted) and build it as an end cabinet add on. It is slightly lighter than my existing natural cherry, but this will change over time. This is photographed below.
And here is is open. I really like it. Sorry for the bad photos.
In the photograph below, you’ll see a plate rack. I’ve enjoyed that plate rack, and I still like it, but I want my kitchen to feel more open, so I removed it and in it’s place there will be open shelving.
And finally, the picture below shows my range hood. Replacing the range hood did not start out as part of the update plan.
However, we needed a new fan/light/vent kit. Here’s a shameful truth. I did not know how to pull this out and clean it. It had not been deep cleaned in 20 years. Honestly, it had not been cleaned in 20 years. Seriously. There will be a new one installed which I am going to read the cleaning instructions on as soon as it’s operational; and since we are doing that, Mike is building me a new range hood. This was a surprise! My inspiration was this.
These custom range hoods run between $800-$1500 on ETSY. By Mike doing it himself, it will save us money, and it was such a nice gesture on his part. It will also be an opportunity to bring some paint over to an area of cabinetry that I was not painting. I need to “move the color” around the room a little bit and this is a good opportunity.
For scale and to ensure we were on the same page — when you’re husband makes you something you don’t want to look up and say “hmmm…don’t really like that!” … we drew and taped what I wanted so that Mike was sure he understood. This will be made of shiplap.
These are all of the modifications we have made to the kitchen cabinetry.
Next up is painting these cabinets prior to the installation of the quartz countertops. Paint will be my next post. We’ve learned a lot about painting cabinets and while it is not expensive compared to new cabinetry, it still was a significant cost.
When I left my job at AGC in 2012, I talked about changing my Corian countertops to granite. However, we took the money set aside for the granite and bought a Generic whole house generator. That was a good decision.
In the years that followed, I’ve had a Pinterest Board where I’ve pinned new kitchen ideas and while I continued to think about how I’d like to update my kitchen, I have become more satisfied with my kitchen. When I was younger, I was such a consumer–discarding things simply because I wanted something different. I’m much less that way today. I have a very functional kitchen, and I am grateful for it. Many would love to have this kitchen.
Prior to the pandemic, we talked about selling our home and property in Mendota and moving elsewhere. We spoke with a realtor, arrived at a price, and then for whatever reason, we stalled. Once we were told to “stay at home,” we both realized we liked our home, we liked living in the country, and we liked living near my sister and brother in law. We wanted this pretty view and quiet place to continue to be our home for hopefully another five years or so.
We opted to make a few investments in the property we were now going to keep beginning with things like guttering and heat pumps. Then, we realized we needed to do a few things to our guest house which is an airbnb — mainly swapping out lighting, adding some shiplap, putting new flooring down in the laundry room and removing carpet from the steps to keep it fresh and as a desired place to stay. (Funny…as we did this, we also blocked off dates because we really didn’t want guests to stay during the pandemic so we were getting it ready for no one!)
About 2 weeks ago, the guest house was finished. I thought we were through, but Mike then asked me what I’d like to do to my kitchen since we now planned to stay. My kitchen is now 21 years old — old enough to drink! My Kraftmaid semi-custom cabinetry is looking dated and the lower cabinets near the sink are showing some wear and tear. I told him that I would not want to tackle the kitchen unless he was totally onboard. I knew I could be happy with my existing kitchen; it worked fine, and if it wasn’t something he was invested in, then I’d rather forego the stress of even a small kitchen redo. He wanted to go ahead but we had to be mindful of the budget for this project. New cabinets were not in the budget.
I do not want simply a repaint or reface. While I do want to paint a portion of the cabinetry, I also want to modify my existing cabinets, yet about half of them will be exactly as they are today with the natural cherry finish.
Here’s the modifications I want:
I want all of the fretwork removed from the kitchen.
I want a place for a broom and a few cleaning products.
I want the galley rail replaced with crown moulding.
I want the plate rack and enclosed shelf above it replaced with open shelving.
I want the range hood to be replaced/updated.
I want a place for Mike’s “stuff” that he drops off on the corner of the kitchen counter and always creates clutter. He likes to pile things up. Ugh.
I want quartz countertops since mine have a flaw that I’d unwisely accepted when they were first installed. Plus, I want a lighter color and sheen to help brighten the kitchen.
I want to paint a portion of my cabinets.
For the painted portion of my cabinets, I want one color for the lower and another color for the upper.
I want to consider replacing my recessed light and pot rack over the kitchen sink. I still love that pot rack but it blocks light.
I want an undermount sink with new faucet.
Things I want to retain:
Keep the kitchen layout.
Keep the flooring.
Keep the tiled backsplash. I loved it 20 years ago and still love it today.
Keep all of my appliances.
Keep some of the natural cherry cabinetry.
Keep the cabinet hardware.
Not a lot of pictures in this post, but I want to get started sharing my journey because while I could find information on cabinet refacing, I did not find much on modifying existing semi-custom cabinetry. Surely there are others out there who have comparable thoughts?
My budget is $10,000. Twenty one years ago, my kitchen cabinets were $18,000 (not installed).
While it’s fun to make humorous comments about the days drifting during this time of staying at home, I don’t really want to not know what day it is or wear pajamas all day. I DO drift some days, but I don’t want to do that very often. It’s better for me to get up, shower, put on some makeup and start the day. It’s also good if I have a small goal that is accomplished each day.
Today I got the groceries I meant to get yesterday but could not due to the flooding. I also hooked up with the long-arm quilting person who will be quilting my recent quilt. We practiced social distancing. We met at the K-Mart parking lot in Bristol (Now a U-Haul lot but I’ve not yet got used to calling it that). I hopped out of the car, handed her the quilts — I had my sister’s quilt as well — and left.
Here’s what Tippy Jo had to say about the whole thing. She’s a know it all.
Going to the grocery store is a BIG deal now that COVID-19 is part of our world. First of all, it’s just nice to get out. Second of all, we cannot get grocery delivery because we live so far out in the country, and while I use grocery pickup, I can’t schedule Sam’s Club, Walmart and Food City pickups on the same day. I need things from each of these stores, so while I use the Walmart pickup, I go to Sam’s Club and Food City early when the store is not crowded. It’s a coordinated effort, and one that I do between 7 am and 9:30 am once every 10 days.
Before heading to the grocery store, I walked River. It was beautiful walking down the hill. If we have to “stay at home,” I’m grateful for this pretty place to do so.
It rained a lot on Easter Sunday, but I did not even THINK that we’d have flooding on Monday. We’d just had a big flood 8 or 9 weeks ago. On Monday, I saw my neighbor drive up the road and he did not return, so I thought I would be able to go to town even though the river was up. I’d go and come back quickly–that was my plan. We started out, but I got scared, and we turned around which meant that we drove through a small amount of river water on the way back. I’m glad we turned around. We would not have been able to get back in.
It rose so fast. In 12 hours, the North Fork of the Holston rose 10 ft. In the picture below, here’s the fence row that runs along side the road in front of our house. By 11 am, our fence row looked like this. Remember…at around 7:20 when I walked River, it was not in the road in front of our house (even though it was in the road further up the road).
We were completely surrounded by water. So in this world of doing things so differently than we normally do, I decided to cut Mike’s hair. That is a first!!
While I thought I did a decent job, no pictures were allowed. Drat! Even though I did do a pretty good job, the person who does his hair has no worries. He will definitely be back. It’s just that desperate times calls for desperate measures.
Tippy Jo had a little surprise for me on this wet Easter Monday day as well.
Hope your staying at home time is going well. Let me know your plans for your hair! I’ve ordered color from esalon but I hope I do not have to use it!!
