Robert Lee Lancaster and Adeline McClure were married on December 30, 1888, in the presence of T. A. Lancaster and Arbie Brawley by J. L. Jones, at D. J. McClure's. Seven children were born to this union: Curry Herbert, Beulah May, Benjamin Dempsie, and Grady Leonard Lancaster at Dunbar in Decatur County; Euda Jeler and Jessie Thelma Lancaster at Sardis in Henderson County; and Julia Edna Graper Lancaster at Bath Springs in Decatur County, Tennessee.
Someone has said there is no such thing as "The Perfect Home". However, my parents tried to set a standard of values centered in love. They were members of the Church of Christ and placed Christ at the center of their lives. They experienced great tragedies and much sorrow, but their deep faith sustained them during trying times.
My Mother was never too tired to answer a call to help the sick in the community, sometimes staying with them throughout the night. Politically, my Mother was a Republican and my Father a Democrat.
Papa was a farmer who, for many years, also served as a notary public. He had a grocery store and also peddled groceries throughout the community. Susie McClure wanted some vanilla extract, but Papa didn't have any. He knew it as vanilla flavoring and actually had several bottles with him.
It was mouth watering to see a whole barrel of apples and a showcase filled with candy and other goodies. One day Grady filled his cap with candy and when he put on his cap all of the candy fell to the floor. My Father didn't have the heart to spank him.
He was an expert at making sorghum for our consumption as well as for others. My Mother would pack a good lunch for him, but when the people invited him to have dinner, a big meal then, he would accept and eat his lunch later.
They raised sheep on the farm and, on many cold nights, bottle fed newly born lambs before the fireplace. Some became pets but later on, unfortunately butted people. When grown, the sheep were sheared, the wool washed and carded, and then Mother would spin the material into yarn on a spinning wheel.
My Mother had superior skills and created artistic designs. She designed and created a beautiful wool dress in the natural color. Later, she dyed it a beautiful shade of red. She made her own dyes. She also created a lovely Afghan using bright colors. She spent long evenings knitting gloves, mittens and sweaters, and sewing.
Planting a variety of vegetables, cultivating and later gathering her produce was a source of great satisfaction for her. She always wanted relatives and friends to see her garden. She canned and dried fruit and made hoop cheese.
She needed an abundance of food because my parents extended a warm welcome to all visitors; they were numerous. To this day her loved ones still remember her strawberry shortcake and fluffy homemade rolls. She was a marvelous cook. Grandfather McClure would stay at our home a month at a time after Grandmother died. He was highly respected.
When I was on a train to Nashville to attend George Peabody College, these words of wisdom from Mama echoed through my mind, "I have done everything within my power to instill character in you. You will be on your own now and I trust that you will never go astray."
My parents left us a great legacy. May we continue striving to uphold the principles and values they respected.
excerpted from The Lancaster Descendants, Patricia Ann Maners
prepared for the Lancaster Reunion, July 4, 1991