Roberts Family Papers, ca.1900-1977 | Eastern Kentucky University - Special Collections and Archives

By Angela Heupel

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Collection Overview

Title: Roberts Family Papers, ca.1900-1977

Extent: 0.22 Cubic Feet

Date Acquired: 09/04/2003

Languages: English

Scope and Contents of the Materials

These photographs and manuscripts were separated from a collection of photographs formerly known as the Townsend Photographs. They are arranged starting with photos of identified people, and these starting with the Roberts family photos themselves. The photos work themselves out through a family web starting with Letha Mae, then moving to her parents, then on to extended family and friends. Following the identified people are the photos of people who were not identified (a photo in which a person is the subject but is either too far away to see or just not identified by the original photographer). The next group consists of identified places and unidentified places. There are a few larger photos at the end of this group including a photo of a train with its crew and a photo of Letha Roberts. The manuscript material follows the photographs and consists of a letter to Stanley Roberts from C.F. Roberts (not her husband, but probably her grandson), a poem about the Cumberland Gas Plant explosion, a short story by C.F. Roberts about a trip through the Panama Canal and lists of family genealogy which explains some of the connections in the Roberts family as well as people outside of the family.

Collection Historical Note

There was no biographical information available for this collection but the photographs are mainly of the Roberts family and their friends in Fixer, KY (Lee County). Chester F. Roberts, also called Red, was married to Stanley. They had a daughter named Letha Mae. There is also a Letha Roberts photo dated 1900, this may be Chester's mother with Letha Mae being named after her. Many of the photos were taken at the Fixer Gasoline plant in Lee County. It was struck by lightning ca.1931 and exploded killing both Frank Hobbs and Roy Lutes. The manuscripts contain a poem about the Cumberland Gas Plant explosion, a short story by C.F. Roberts about a trip through the Panama Canal [it is uncertain if this is a factual or fictional story] and lists of family genealogy which explains some of the connections in the Roberts family as well as people outside of the family.

Administrative Information

Repository: Eastern Kentucky University - Special Collections and Archives

Acquisition Source: Unknown

Other Note: Photographs were initially numbered with the accession number; however, a decision was made to change to collection number. The database was changed, but the numbers written on the images were not changed.

Box and Folder Listing

Browse by Box:

[Box 1],
[All]

Box 1

Barcode: 31234014110918

Folder 1: Photographs

Item 1: Letha Mae as a baby sitting on a train car, Fincastle, KY, 1926: Physical Description: 2.75x3.75
Item 2: Mother and Letha Mae standing together, West Virginia: Physical Description: 2.75x3.75
Item 3: Letha Mae as a baby sitting in a chair, Fincastle, KY, ca. 1920's: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 4: Letha Mae as a child standing next to large barrels, Fincastle, KY, 1927: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 5: Letha Mae as a child in the corner of a photo of a train, Fincastle, KY, 1927: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 6: Stanley Roberts and Letha Mae Roberts with mom and dad standing on at High Bridge, KY, 1933: Physical Description: 2.75x3.75
Item 7: Stanley Roberts at High Bridge, KY, 1933: Physical Description: 2.75x3.75
Item 8: Stanley Roberts and Letha Mae Roberts at Fixer, Lee County, KY, 1932: Physical Description: 2.75x3.75
Item 9: Stanley Roberts and Letha Mae Roberts at Fixer, KY, standing next to a car, 1932: Physical Description: 2.75x3.75
Item 10: Stanley Gilbert Roberts and daughter Letha Mae Roberts sitting on the front steps of their home, Fixer, KY, 1932: Physical Description: 2.75x3.75
Item 11: Stanley Roberts and Letha Mae Roberts inside of a car, 1932: Physical Description: 2.75x3.75
Item 12: Stanley, Letha Mae, and Mary McNabb in front of a store in Slade, KY, Photo titled "Our place of business", 1935: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 13: Chester and Stanley Roberts: Physical Description: 1.75x1.75
Item 14: Stanley Roberts in a motorcycle side car, Fixer, KY, 1924: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 15: Red Roberts and Stanley standing by a car: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 16: Young "Red" Roberts in boxing gloves just before he got ko'ed, 1924: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 17: Red Roberts marked by X in a landscape photo including two other men unidentified: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 18: C.F. Roberts standing in rubble of plant explosion, 1931: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 19: A man sitting on a motor cycle with a side car, back of photo says Crawford Akin. Chester Roberts. Fixer, KY, 1924: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 20: Susannah Roberts and Letha Roberts standing on the front porch of a boarding house in Campton, 1914: Physical Description: 2.5x4
Item 21: C.F. Roberts sitting in a chair in a cornfield, 1918: Physical Description: 3.5x5.5
Item 22: C.F. Roberts (on right) and another man unidentified standing in front of trees holding riffles, 1919: Physical Description: 3.5x5.75
Item 23: Gertrude Roberts standing in front of a water tower marked Natural: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 24: Red Roberts and Chas. Chapman boxing each other, 1924: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 25: Chas Chapman boxing: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 26: Charlie Chapman and C.F. Roberts standing together in Fixer, KY, 1924: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 27: Charlie Chapman standing next to a car, 1924: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 28: C.F. Reed and C.F. Roberts in Fixer, KY, 1924 Jun: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 29: C.F. Roberts and Omer Catron, 1924: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 30: Omer Catron at the Fixer Plant, Lee County, 1924: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 31: Omer Catron at the Fixer Plant, Lee County: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 32: Hobbs, Chapman, and Reed, two men holding another on their shoulders, Fixer, KY: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 33: C.F. Roberts and a Gronville Wireman sitting on steps, 1918: Physical Description: 2.75x3.75
Item 34: Walker Grear and C.F. Roberts sitting on motor cycles in Fixer, KY, 1924: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 35: C.F. Roberts sitting on post, Chas. Chapman standing beside, and Ike Slone marked by X at the rubble of the gas plant explosion: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 36: Charles Chapman and wife, Moodie Booth, Omer Catron, Stanley and C.F. Roberts, Fixer, KY, 1924: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 37: Cumberland Gasoline Plant in Fixer, KY, (Includes C.F. Roberts, Omer Catron, and Walker Grear), 1924 Dec 25: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 38: Ola Mae standing next to James White who is seated and is Ola's Grand Papa, 1921 Jan 30: Physical Description: 3.25x4.25
Item 39: Vivian McKinney on the right of two other women sitting on the ground, Clay City, KY: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 40: Frank Spencer at the Lee County oil fields, 1919: Physical Description: 3.5x4.5
Item 41: Bertie Coons Williams standing next to Mattie Steele Sewell: Physical Description: 2.75x4
Item 42: Troy Bush standing next to barrels in Fixer, KY: Physical Description: 2.75x3.75
Item 43: Mr. And Mrs. J.E. Akin sitting on rocking chairs inside of a home, Madison, WV, ca. 1940's: Physical Description: 2.75x3.75
Item 44: Gerald Wagner and an unknown man pointing revolvers at each other: (Believed to be G. Wagner because of the black gauntlets on his fore arms with a star on them); Physical Description: 3.25x4.25
Item 45: Gerald Wagner, son of Al Wagner; Lee County, 1919: Physical Description: 3.25x4.25
Item 46: Gerald Wagner kneeling with a rifle: (Believed to be G. Wagner because of the black gauntlets on his fore arms with a star on them); Physical Description: 3.5x4.75

Folder 2: Photographs

Item 47: Two unidentified men standing with a horse in the road: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 48: Two unidentified men standing next to each other: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 49: Four unidentified men standing next to each other: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 50: Unidentified man holding a baby: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 51: Women passing in front of a train at Natural Bridge, KY: Physical Description: 2.75x3.5
Item 52: An unidentified woman sitting on a log with chicks at her feet: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 53: A man holding a baby by train tracks in Fincastle, KY, 1924: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 54: Unidentified woman and baby on railroad tracks: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 55: Two men standing by a shed like building: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 56: Unidentified baby sitting in the grass: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 57: Two unidentified men sitting on a train car for Cumberland Gasoline Co: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 58: Unidentified man standing in a pile of debris: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 59: A large group of unidentified people gathered in front of a building: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 60: Two unidentified men walking behind barrels: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 61: A group of people standing in a shadow behind a wheel-like object, 1924: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 62: Two unidentified men in ties standing next to each other: Physical Description: 2.75x4.25
Item 63: Dewey Booth standing among barrels, Fixer, KY: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 64: Two unidentified men standing at the mouth of Townsend Cave: Physical Description: 3.25x4.5
Item 65: A group of unidentified men standing by an extremely tall corn stalk, one man on another's shoulders to show the height of the stalk: Physical Description: 3.5x4.5
Item 66: A man standing in front of the Cumberland Gas Plant In Fixer, KY, 1923: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 67: Unidentified group at the Lee County oil fields, 1919: Physical Description: 3.25X4.25
Item 68: Cumberland Gasoline storage tanks after the fire of December 1924, 1925: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 69: Three men standing together on a porch, Lee Co., KY, 1919: Physical Description: 3.5x5.75
Item 70: Pet X Camp Oil Field, six men standing together on a porch, Red is marked with an X, Lee Co., KY: Physical Description: 3.5x5.75
Item 71: Kentucky State Capitol: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 72: Lee County Oil Field power house: Physical Description: 3.25x4.25
Item 73: Natural Bridge Excursion train, 1935: Physical Description: 2.75x3.75
Item 74: Campton School, 1934: Physical Description: 2.5x3.25
Item 75: Posts sticking up out of the ground with barrels behind them, Fixer, KY: Physical Description: 2.75x3.5
Item 76: Cumberland Gas Plant, Fixer, KY, 1925: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 77: Men standing behind some wheeled objects, Christmas, Fixer, KY, 1924 Dec 25: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 78: Fincastle Office and Engine Room, Cumberland Gasoline Corp. Loading Rack, L and N Railroad: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 79: Engine Room after the explosion, Frank Hobbs and Roy Lutes killed, Fixer, KY, 1931: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 80: Engine Room after the explosion, Frank Hobbs and Roy Lutes killed, Fixer, KY, 1931 Jan: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 81: Engine Room after the explosion, Frank Hobbs and Roy Lutes killed, Fixer, KY, 1931 Jan: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 82: A rock formation, Fincastle, KY: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 83: Men standing around a ditch where four bodies were found, near Clarksburg, WV, 1928: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 84: Sky Bridge, KY: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 85: Cumberland Gasoline plant employees marking a tank, after lightning struck a tank, 1924: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 86: Cumberland Gasoline Plant at Fixer, Lee County, KY, 1924 Jun: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 87: Big Sinking Creek, Cumberland Gasoline Plant after explosion, Fixer, KY: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 88: Gasoline train cars at loading rack, Fincastle, KY,, ca. 1927: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 89: Cumberland Gasoline Corp. loading rack, pump house, and office, Railroad and tanks, Fincastle, Lee Co., KY, ca. 1927: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 90: Cumberland Gasoline Plant, Fixer, KY, 1924: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 91: Unidentified torn building: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 92: Slade, KY, with a building labeled Standard Oil Productions, 1935: Physical Description: 2.5x3.5
Item 93: Unidentified torn building: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 94: Unidentified building with roof missing: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 95: Unidentified torn building, 1931: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 96: Buildings on top of a hill with a heading saying started housekeeping here: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 97: Unidentified torn building: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 98: Unidentified torn building: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 99: A winter scene of snow blanketing the ground and a pine tree: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5
Item 100: Men in the distance standing among buildings: Physical Description: 2.75x4.5

Folder 3: Photographs

Item 101: A portrait of Miss Letha Roberts in a white bonnet standing in front of her washing tub, ca. 1900: Physical Description: 5.5x7.25
Item 102: Meadow Branch School class, Joel Cox as teacher, Red Roberts is the student with an arrow pointing to him, ca. 1907: Physical Description: 7x9
Item 103: Engine #12, J.E. Akin was the engineer and Crawford Akin was the Fireman, two other men in the photo are unknown, hauling logs and pulp wood on Williams River, Webster Co., WV, Cherry River Boom and Lumber Co., Richwood, WV, ca. 1927: Physical Description: 8x10
Item 104: Three men standing/sitting/ on the front of a train engine, J.E. Akin was the engineer, WV, Williams River, Cherry River Boom and Lumber Co. Richwood, Nicholas County, WV, 1927: Physical Description: 8x10
Item 105: Landscape of Fixer, KY: Physical Description: 8x10
Item 106: Reprint of a photo of Easten Town Saw Mill, located between Sandy Ridge and booth Ridge on Lower Devils Creek, ca. 1920: Physical Description: 8x10
Item 107: Reprint of a photo of Billy Booth at Lower Devils Creek: Physical Description: 8x10
Item 108: Reprint of a photo of a landscape including buildings in front of a creek with a small bridge crossing the creek: Physical Description: 8x10

Folder 4: Manuscripts

Item 1: A letter to Mrs. Stanley Roberts from C.F. Roberts, July 16 1968: July 15, 1968, Fixer Ky, Just one more line from the Fixer post office which will close August 2nd , 1968 after serving thru the Big Sinking Oil ____ and for over fifty years mail was delivered here by ox and mule team, horse back, train, or car and on foot. But everything must pass on. This will be the last letter from your old home P.O. With Love, Chester.
Item 2: Family Genealogy, undated: A piece of note paper recording the names of five generations of the Roberts family and their birth dates. This includes Letha Akin Roberts, C.F. Roberts, Letha Mae Roberts, Gregory Knack, and Greg Chester Knack. The generations span 90 years. The slip of paper has been photocopied and is attached to that copy.
Item 3: Family Genealogy, undated: One photocopy of a piece of paper listing the family tree of Virginia Roberts, daughter of Commodore P. Roberts, who married John Duff. It tells where people are buried, who they married, the names of their children, and who the children married.
Item 4: Family Genealogy, 1977: A photocopy of a list of people, stating who they married, when they died, and who their children were. Towards the middle it picks up with Letha Roberts and follows her family through to the birth of Greg and Gary Knack. It is dated Oct. 19.

Folder 5: Poetry, 1931, ca.1975

Two typed poems under the tittle Early Morning, one dated 1975 about a person attending their own funeral and not knowing that they were dead, and the other is a letter to someone already dead telling them about what is going on in the living world. Also a 1931 poem dated about the lightning strike at the Cumberland Gas Plant. It is written in the first person and sounds factual, however, it is not signed or noted as being such. It has the sound of being written by C.F. Roberts but it is not known for sure.

Folder 6: Short Story, 1939

A short story by C.F. Roberts, four pages long with writing on both sides of the last page. It is about a man who takes a ship through the Panama Canal and on up to Long Beach. He holds a package for one of his ship mates which eventually gets stolen. However, it is stolen by the "good guys" as it is a plan on how to protect the Panama Canal from invasion; "bad guys" had been after it through out the entire story. The narrative is written in first person form and it is not know if it is a true story about C.F. Roberts or a work of fiction.

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