Eli Esau Eagle
1864-1935
By Mamie Frick Page, granddaughter of Eli Esau Eagle, March 1978

Eli Esau Eagle was born in the Liberty Community of Rowan County Oct. 14, 1864 in a log cabin where his father lived as a tenant farmer. The farm was owned by the “Halseys” and several rooms had been attached to the original log structure which was the central living area of the home. In the center room was an open fireplace made of hand made brick which was the only source of heat in the whole house except for the cook stove in the lean-to kitchen. Much of the cooking in winter was done in the fireplace. Eli’s father, Joseph, was married in 1859 and occupied this house. Eli was born here and when he married Nancy Ann Kirk June 10, 1883 his father and mother moved out and left the house to them. Thus, until their deaths, Eli & Nancy lived in this one home. Fourteen children were born here and all but one lived to adulthood. Father, Joseph, purchased a large home near the cross-road of the village which had been built for the Methodist parsonage, but which the church found itself unable to finance, and here at the village square Eli’s brothers and sisters grew to adulthood.

At the time of Eli’s marriage the farm was still leased from the Halseys – 325 acres along with the house for $50 per year. By sub-renting part of the acreage, farming what he could himself, and using his spare time in the off-season working in his woodwork shop, he supported his family along with Nancy’s help, until the children each assumed part of the work at an early age.

All the furniture in the home was made by Eli himself. And with wood shop and a turning lathe pedaled by foot, in later years many desks, chairs and stools were produced for children and grandchildren.

In 1916 the Halsey Farm was split and Eli purchased the house with 116 acres for $2000. Cotton was the main money crop and the children took over the farm chores, hoeing, and cotton picking at very young ages. Even the girls were all required to learn to follow a horse and plow. During these years cotton sold $25 to $40 per bale (4 to 5 hundred pounds). While many farmers preferred mules for farm work, Eli considered a mule a poor substitute, and always worked nothing but horses.

Needless to say, the house was like the Old Woman’s Shoe in the nursery rhyme – it ran over. There was a ladder to the attic and some of the children slept up there even when the snow blew between the wall boards.

There was a most unique storage bin for sweet potatoes under the living room floor. A section of the floor boards – about three feet square – was cut separately and laid loosely on the sleepers of the building. A hole was dug in the ground below and the potatoes placed in it where the temperature remained constant, and it took only a few minutes to raise the floor boards and let a child down to “fetch” potatoes from the potato “hill”.

Another of Eli’s inventions was a fly brush which he pedaled by foot and swung back and forth across the table pulling a floating bunch of paper streamers to “shoo” the flies away during meals.

About 1922 a Ram pump was installed in the spring-run to bring water to the house by pipe. This simple little Ram operated automatically by the tiny stream of water flowing out of the spring and through the spring house where it cooled the milk and butter. In spite of the steep incline from the spring to the house, from that day forward there was a continuous stream of water delivered to the back porch 24 hours a day. This was one of the most amazing gadgets of my youthful memory, and why it was not used more widely has always remained a mystery to me. It required a very small flow of water to keep it pumping. How my grandmother must have loved that Ram!

The greatest unhappiness and discord in the home occurred when Eli left the local Methodist Church in 1906 and joined the Holiness Church near Gold Hill. Tensions arose between Nancy and Eli and between Eli and the children. Being by nature a very stern man, and reaching a stage of spiritual confusion, sometimes he was harsh with both Nancy and the children. He seemed emotionally disturbed and his reactions were unpredictable and sometimes rather violent. At this point he seemed to adhere to a very legalistic religion, one which brought the family no joy or peace.

One day Eli hitched his horses to the wagon and jumped aboard. Nancy rushed to the door and called, “Eli, where are you going?”

“To heaven,” he yelled in glee.

“Well,” Nancy retorted, “Leave the horses and wagon here.”

In his bad moments sometimes he seemed to try to spite people – such as the time he cut down Nancy’s cedar tree in the side yard and another time when he chopped down a healthy grape vine which she cherished. But he had a sense of humor in spite of his problems. Many times he said Nancy was so stingy she would skin a flea for it’s hide.

In spite of the fact that he owned a car for a few years, Eli always seemed more at home with the horse and buggy. The first car was a 1923 Ford, then a 1925 Ford Roadster, and the last one a 1926 A Model Ford Coupe which he wrecked in 1929 on the way to visit his son James, in High Point. Nancy & Eli were not seriously injured, but a basket of eggs was “squashed” all over the place and Eli never wanted another car.

Returning to the Methodist Church in 1927, Eli helped in building the new Liberty Methodist Church. He loved to sing, and often when the family was home they were gathered by the fireplace on Sunday afternoons to sing the old familiar hymns.

Eli was generous in lending money to people in need, and also willing to help friends and neighbors during illness or misfortune.

Eli did a lot of living, with a lot of determination, and he never seemed to doubt that he and God had everything well in hand.

In June 1934 he suffered a stroke from which he never recovered. Mute and helpless he lay in a state of paralysis the last nine months of his life.

Death came at age 71, on March 7, 1935, and I can imagine that Eli walked briskly through the Pearlie Gates with a hearty greeting, ready to tackle whatever job the Lord had waiting for him.

Note: Most of the factual information & data for this biographical sketch furnished by James H. Eagle, son of Eli.

Mamie Page
March 1978