Karl Bolden
Transcript
Carlehr: Okay
Aindrila: Should we start with the first question, then Carlehr?
Carlehr: Yes.
Aindrila: Okay. Yeah. So, I will start at the beginning. We wanted to ask you a little bit about when and where you were born.
Karl: I was born in Albemarle County, of course, UVA hospital at the time, in 1959, March 15.
Carlehr: Okay, so what family do you have in Esmont, and how did your family end up in Esmont?
Karl: Well, that's going to be a long, drawn-out answer because I'm a Bolden. But I'm also a Gardener, a Nelson, a Jones, a Thomas and a Wayne. And the Bolden’s had been here since the mid-1850s. We actually have; some of the homes still exist and stand. As a matter of fact, I lived in my grandfather's home. His father's home is 500 feet from me. His father's home is about two miles from me. And his father's home is about six miles from me. So, we’ve tracked it back since, I think, 1812. But I mean, I can't tell you how we got here, but we farmers, carpenters, masons. That's what we did.
Aindrila: And all of these homes that you talked about going back generations are still standing and those are homes that you have visited yourself.
Karl: My father's home is next to me. My grandfather’s home I live in. His father's home is livable, but it's under construction right now. His father’s home is still standing, but it's falling down.
Aindrila: Well, I don't think I've ever heard anything quite like it, going back generations so far. And in the same place, it is sort of like living testaments to history and history. Yeah, we just wanted to sort of like, along similar lines, ask you what communities you were a part of. And if you could describe your neighborhood and the communities that you grew up in. So maybe memories, stories, just factual descriptions, anything.
Karl: So always, always Esmont. I mean, I've lived in Esmont all my life. I travelled for a living with Continental USA, but I always came back here on the weekend because I worked in Pennsylvania for about five years. And every weekend, I would drive home and then drive back. I mean, activities and Esmont, I mean, we played from one house to another. So, it was always a football game at somebody's house, or we go to their house to play basketball or something like that. And that was the community activity. There was no community center at the time. The community center came into effect probably five years ago, five or six years ago. But I mean, it was an open community, everybody took care of themselves, as you can see by the amount of businesses and things that you're finding out, we're along this road, and we really didn't have to leave. And everywhere we wanted to go, it was just walking. So
Carlehr: So, what were some of the staple institutions and centers of the community that bonded Esmont together?
Karl: Well, we had a farm on my end of the community. That was one grandfather; the other grandfather had the other farm. That was the thing; they also owned two stores, Thomas's store. So, when the kids came from school when they were going to Yancey or Esmont High School, they would always stop at my grandfather's store and get some ice cream or a sandwich or cookie, whatever the case may be. And then it was on to where we're going to play this afternoon or go home and then where we're going to play tonight. And every now and then, we would have an event at the Odd Fellows Lodge, which, you know, was the yearly dances and things like that. So, like I said, everything that we did was at somebody's house, even at my grandfather's house. He had Victrolas and pianos, and they would have parties here. So, he would host even back in the 40s. He would have people on his own to have fun.
Aindrila: Yeah, I had two sort of, like, follow-up questions to that. Just in case I did not, I might not have gotten that right. Did you say you owned the Thomas's store, or your family owned it? The Thomas store.
Karl: Yes. My mother was Leroy Thomas’ daughter. That was the Sunday afternoon. We go down to my grandfather's house, and we'd have the Sunday afternoon dinner until my grandmother died 20 odd years ago. But that was a thing after church. We all, I mean, every member of the family, went to her out for dinner. And, like I said, he ran the store. Until we you know, it was sold, like the property was sold three years ago. But you know, he had a farm; he grew animals and vegetables on that end of Esmont, which is probably about half a mile from the school. And at the other end of the community, my father's father grew vegetables. And I mean, we had every animal you could think of growing up. And at that time, you know, it probably seemed like hard work. But as I look back on it, it was a lot of fun. I mean, when I meet somebody who says, you know, something about a cow or a horse. And it's like, what's the big deal? So, we had those things: rabbits, turkeys, everything.
Aindrila: So, I mean, it seems like from what you've just said about your grandfather, hosting dinners and hosting people, it seems there was no sort of like actual need of like a community center. And the community was already thriving and lively?
Karl: Yes, I mean, I did an interview probably two years ago when they were doing the project at the school. And the question was, how was it like growing up poor? And I said I can't answer that question. Because nobody knew they were poor. I mean, you know, if you needed something, then you always had what you needed. And that was throughout the community. You know, there were people that, I guess you would say now, a little less fortunate. But that was okay. Because you wouldn't ever know it because everybody took care of everybody. And if you messed up before you got home, your parents already knew about it. I don't know how that worked without a telephone, but they already knew about it, and you were in trouble. So but yeah, I mean, my grandfather, he, they did not hesitate to give away, whatever they need to give away to help the community survive,
Aindrila: Thank you, I think. Yeah. Carlehr, should I ask him this next question?
Carlehr: You can ask.
Aindrila: And then we could go on like that. Okay. Yeah. So like, along similar lines again, what are some things that you did for fun or entertainment? You talked about the games that you played, like, with your friends, but apart from that, you could talk a little more about that as well. things that you did for fun.
Karl: Well, that that was it. I mean, we had horses. So, so we could ride. We have a lake so you can always fish. We have a big field so we could always play baseball or football. So, those are the things that we did just to keep back about and have a lot of fun.
Carlehr: So, can you tell us about... sorry, I'm sorry. I was excited. I've been hearing about Cozy Comfort, Julia’s Inn. We want to know about those places.
Karl: Cozy Corner. When you when you came out of the school, it was probably half a mile away at the crest. And it started out as a restaurant, sort of speak. But then, at my grandfather's store, he had, you know what a piccolo is, sort of like a jukebox. So, he had that going on. And then he later, there was another family that ran Cozy Corner, but it was a restaurant slash, someplace to go and listen to music. Because just about everybody had a piano or a Victrola. So, there was always music going on; it was always someplace to go and dance on a Friday or a Saturday night. And then there were a couple of other clubs, Blue Mint, which my mom was a member of, and she's in her 80s. So, they got together, and they did things around the community and different houses. And at the community center as well. Julia’s Inn is the same setup as Cozy Inn and started out as a restaurant. They became, I don't want to say nightclub, because it didn't, you didn't stay out too late, can be home. But it was someplace to go, listen to music, and mingle with the crowd. So, I mean, they didn't have to go to Charlottesville. They didn't have to go to Scottsville. So, because you know people met. I mean, as you can see it, it was a lot of businesses in the earlier days, and there was no need to go anywhere else.
Carlehr: That's great. So, what schools did you attend? What were your experiences in those schools?
Karl: Well, my first school was the Yancey. Because I was born in 1959. The Yancey opened in 1960. So that was grades one through six, six or seven. And then it was Scottsville. At that time, it was Scottsville High School. And that was grades seven through eight. And then after that it was Jack Jewett in Charlottesville. And after that, it was Albemarle High, which was 10 through 12. And after that, it was just a year. So, at Piedmont, I didn't go to college, I didn't need to because I got a job at Comm Dial became their first technician, then their first field engineer, and then part of their business broke off into nursing homes. And I became a project manager and a production manager for them. And that's where I travelled, doing field installations for about 37 years, until my health said, you need to go home. But I had reached my last state, which was South Dakota. And that was my promise to myself, once you've traveled to every state, then retire. And I did and I'm still living. My experience. Yancey was fun. Scottsville was even better. And that was my first experience with a truly integrated school. But some of the best times were there in Scottsville. Albemarle was different altogether. Because now, at that point, you had a combination of really rich kids, and really poor kids, and middle-class kids. And at that point, they really didn't want to be involved with each other. So, it was an experience. But you know, Mike, my great grandfather, his thing was, you get an education, and you get a skill. doesn't matter what it costs. Education skill, and then get out. You know, I, I was a three point something student. So, anyway, I paid attention to what he said.
Aindrila: We also wanted to ask you about any sort of like major historical events that affected assessment and how that might have impacted you, your family, your friends, community, if you could talk to government policies or redevelopment, funding changes, divestment, things like that.
Karl: Well as Esmont, as a whole was a town built around the quarries, I mean that that was their thing. The marble and the slate out from the quarry were known nationwide. The Lane brothers that made the cedar chest started in Esmont. And that was not Porters. But Esmont the little village, that's a half a mile away. And that then, they had over 4000 people that shut down in 1960, because of the dust. So, after that the town, of course, at that point became less and less people. People moved out of Esmont the town. Porters, was known for agriculture, they were farmers. And later on, they became professionals. So they really weren't affected by the quarries, as much as a lot of people think, because there weren't a lot of people on Porters that actually worked in quarries; they actually had their own farms and worked for themselves. And, you know, it was coming, it was just a little town over to the corner that went out of town, but a road over in the corner that not many people knew much about, you know, we just survived based on this little road, you know, they talk about the stores and the railroad down in Esmont. The folks in Porters didn't use that. It wasn't because they couldn't, they just didn't need to. So, the government policies, of course, integration of the school, that's when you know the Yancey became less of a need. So, I think maybe they closed it, they probably closed it, because the amount of students, you know, it's an aging community, the average age, in Esmont, and this part of Albemarle County, is 80. So, there's not going to be many kids around. And we think we understand why they closed the school, the best thing that could have done was to make it a community center, and a senior center. And that really works for this particular area. I mean, it really does. But more and more people are moving into the area. I myself took a little ride different Porters Road, which is two miles long. And there are 21 new families in the community that I don't know. And they're younger families. The family next door to my dad's house, are from Colorado. And I asked him, you know, what was the drawing factor? It just so happens that the wife is from Ivy, but the husband is still from Colorado, and she just moved to Albemarle County because she loved Albermarle Couty. Nothing special about it rural. And there's even a group in the area. That's trying to keep it rural. No development. Just rural area. That's it. So I mean, as far as like I said, as far as government policies, there's there's not a lot that affects this little community. I mean, they're gonna take care of themselves no matter what, they still do. No, no stock market crashes or anything like on their land. I mean that we own the land that my great great grandfather had, you know, we’re not farming anymore, but we still own the land. And I have a tough time getting it from either one of my families. The Thomas's, or the Boldens, and the other ones in between the Gardeners own the same amount of land. The Jones is there, they’re the interesting family, that's my grandmother's family. They're from Blenheim. I'll tell you a short story. And then we'll we can move on if you'd like. her great grandmother was a slave at Readlyn farm. Her name was Catherine Lewis. And Catherine took care of the kids. She was released when she was 11 years old. And they told her, if you stay, we'll take care of you. So she stayed. They gave her 250 acres which he built a house and we own that till about 30 years ago. And after that, it became what is now called Trump vineyard in Blenheim, so yeah, we are On the land that ex President Trump actually has his vineyard on. So that that was there was an article written about her story, as well, but she's really the only member of our group that we know, was definitely a slave at some point.
Carlehr: Well, that's a great story. Someone in class yesterday we were learning about heirs property and someone had asked the lady about the Trump vineyard. What was that process? Like? Did they was this someone owned that property in between your family? And then the vineyard or? Yes, it was.
Karl: It was it was originally owned by Redland Farms and wetland farm still exist in Blenheim. And then they think it was the Carter family that that are the original owners. And I believe it was, of course, it was a plantation. And then they they basically wouldn't when slavery ended. Like I said, they they offered my great grandmother, great, great grandmother. You stay, we'll take care of you. So they gave her acreage, 250 acres. That point, uh, her daughter, married a Jones, who's my grandfather's or my grandmother's father. And he actually worked at Redland Farm for a while. And then after that, after he died, my grandmother got older, the sisters decided we can't handle that property anymore. We don't want it anymore. So they sold it. And at that point, it went in the hands of a real estate company. At which point John Kluge bought at that point, John Kluge was going to third which is made in the US. So he was buying all this land around Monticello. Because he had gotten married to a lady from England, but he bought all this land around Monticello, including that property. And then, after they got a divorce, the wife owned the property, whichhe sold recently, within the last 10 years, I think, to Trump. So it was the Carter, the Joneses, or I'm sorry, the Carlehr, Cather Louis, the Joneses. And then Kogi, and then Trump.
Carlehr: Well, thank you, thank you. Um, so What changes have you seen in your lifetime?
Karl: Aging community. That's, that's it when the most of the people that are my age, once they got old enough to drive and things like that, you know, I'm not going to stay here. And they went on to bigger and better jobs. Um, you know, I myself left, and we didn't want to run the farm. My dad was a painter. His father was a painter. His father was a painter. But John Ealy was a, who's my grandfather, great grandfather. He was the secretary or treasurer, or just about everything in the community. And how I got into it was, there's a cabin outside of his house. And in that cabin, he kept probably every paper he ever had, including the, how do I want to say this? There was an argument between the community and Albemarle County and Scottsville Board of Education as to whether their community was going to turn over the land that the school existed on, in order for them to build the school that went on for almost five years. It went to court, and then it and this is all in papers that I have that he had, that said, Okay, we voted in your favor. They're gonna build a school. All you have to do is sign a deed over to them. And there will always be a school there. Well, we know now that there's no school right there. But it lasted a long time. But that started in 1911. And the school was built in 1915. So it took him a while. But yeah, it was some interesting things in that cabin. And I mean, I just love history and the fact that there's a lot of things, a lot of things that my family owned, like there was a funeral home in this community And the director of the funeral home was my great grandfather, great, great grandfather on my mom's side. His name was Samuel Woody. And he buried the DF Yancey. The the person that the school was named after. So, yeah. Proud to be one. So-
Aindrila: Thank you for sharing those memories. And I had one question before we move to the questions or the next question on the list. So you talked about the sort of change that you've seen in the demographic of the community aging . I'm guessing that did that coincide with with the closing of the mines and the queries? Sorry, the closing of the queries and closing, which certainly closing of businesses did that coincide with that?
Karl: Yes, I'd say, the change. The quarries didn't affect the people on Porter's road. Because they, they didn't work there. They work for themselves. In the 70s, is when they started migrating toward Charlottesville. Now you have a vehicle and things like that. So, they were more professionals, like technicians and engineers, and there weren't many housekeepers in this area. My mom actually worked for the Van Cleves for a really long time. My aunt, she was personal Secretary for Ms. Vancleave for a really long time. So the Vancleave is we're also a big employer, in this community, just about everybody worked for them at some point or another, and they ran a horse farm. And they had over 2000 acres. And Daniel Vancleave was a House of Representative for Virginia. So and he took care of the community. And, you know, after a while, I think in the 19, late 1980s is when he died, and then the family kind of went their own way. And the horse farm went its own way, they didn't do it anymore. So that was the biggest change for Porter's that, you know, there was no place for the younger people to go to work in the community. So they had to go to Charlottesville. And once they went to Charlottesville, it was okay, well, I have no reason to live in Esmont if I'm working in Charlottesville, it's too far. It's really not that far. But that was a thing, it was too far. And they didn't want to do farming or anything like that. So once the, the 80s came around, then you know, you could see the change to people that were still here. We're retirement age in their 60s, and now they're, they're in their 80s. Some of them are even in their 90s. And because of that, there's a lot of people that can't take care of themselves. So they're having to sell their homes and move out. And that's that's why the community is changing the way it is. Now there is no the health care out this way, is practically non existent. There's no caregivers that that will come or there's no caregiver service out this way. So we you know, if you're in your 90s, he really didn't want you to be in a house by yourself. That that was that was the big, that's probably the biggest reason or change for this particular road in this particular area. They've retired and, you know, after the good old life and it's okay now I can't take care of myself so I have to go somewhere. And when that happens, that's when the next generation which have there own kids move into the area.
Aindrila: I mean, that's such a shame and also sort of like I don't know if I if we could connect it to the push to keep the place so like in its pristine rural. When did that happen? Was it around that time?
Karl: It was around that time. So you don't on the on the backside of
Esmont. It's still in southern Albemarle County. And about three or four miles away is there's a huge turkey farm. And nobody, of course, the community here in Esmont, they can't work there. They're too old. There's wineries. There's four of them within four miles of Esmont. So and then Dave Matthews has a huge farm. that he has to Clydesdales and a winery and a lot of other things. But again, the community is too old to actually work there. So there's things still out this way to do. And I think that's what the people that have moved to the community have found out. But, you know, this community, this road, this particular area, a lifetime resident, is nothing that they can do to make that any better. So all they want is a nursing home so they can stay near their homes. And that has come up a couple of times now Mark County, so they may be doing something about that we'll see.
Aindrila: Yeah, I mean, it's just a very, like, really strange to think that, I mean, sort of like prioritizing the landscape before the people when the landscape is of the people and the people who have preserved the landscape entirely, kept its history from being lost. But yeah, so we'd also like to ask you about some of your favorite places in Esmont. If you'd like to share some of your memories or any other stories that you might have, or events that you associate with this.
Karl: Places I grew up on the farm. And the other farm, my grandfather saw me know it, that there were just fun things to do. We we had a lot of fun with with the animals. And, you know, we had the fields, like I said to play baseball or football. So, you know, that was the fun part, you know, that I ever go to cozy corner? No, it wasn't open one during my time. But I, you know, I went to add Rose Hall, which was the second coming of cozy corner. And that was kind of neat. But, you know, we could walk up and down this road in pitch black at night. And we had a bunch of folks in still have a lot of fun. So there was no single place. But there was just places along the way to go to people's houses and things like that. And we just had fun doing it.
Carlehr: Thank you. So our last question. What do you value most about what you do now? And how has as much shaped your worldview?
Karl: No, I tell the younger people. That sounds kind of funny now. And tell the younger people you have a lot to be proud of, just Porter’s Road because of all the things that they did for your parents and your grandparents. It was a road, not not a town, but a road that supported everybody on that road. So if you if you took care of people you met, or people that you come in contact with, you know, along the way and treated in the same way your parents and your grandparents did know would be a better place. You know, we wouldn't have to worry about oh, look at that poor person over there. Okay, what can you do to help them? You know, what was that rich person over there? What can you do to help them because they need help, too. So I, you know, like I said, in all the travel to all states, I had a problem in one state. And it really wasn't even a problem. Because, you know, I tell them, if you look for trouble, you'll find it. Just don't look for it. I mean, you know, a couple of times I ran into folks that would listen to me talk on the phone. And then when I got in front of them I think one guy asked He laughed, I said, What's wrong? He said, I never would have guessed you were black. And one person out of over 600 people 600 different locations that I've been to. And it actually was funny, as, like, the listen to myself talk sometimes. But, you know, I got to meet some pretty important people. There's very few people in this community that even know what I did for a living, because I didn't change. You know, it's still, Carl's a little farmer boy, that lives up the road. He's still doing his little gardens. And I joined the seniors. Because when I went down there, they were doing their little coloring and putting puzzles together. And it was more of a social club than anything else. So I said, you know, let's do some crafts. So we did bamboo wind chimes, and we made flowers, and we did potting things. And now we're doing seeds. And pretty soon we'll be grafting seeds to make two apple trees into one, you know, something interesting. So it's grown in the past year by probably about 15. People that are actually just sitting at home doing nothing. And that was the purpose behind it. Let's get them out. So they can do something different. But, and that's what I hope somebody else someday will, will say, Well, I'm gonna take up what he did, and continue on. You know, my purpose is, I got a lot of history that I know about. And I try to document it, so that my kids know about it. So if I see them walking with their head hanging down, it better be because your neck is hurting. Because you've got no reason to hang it now. You got all the reasons in the world to be proud of the community that you came from. And I certainly, I mean, I was told by one of the owners of my company, when he we were at a lunch and he said, Well, Karl grew up on a farm. So it must have been tough. And I said, No, it wasn't, we actually owned the farm. So that that contains the mentality, they are a little bit. So
Carlehr: Well, thank you, Mr. Bolden. This has been great, all of these wonderful stories. Is there anything that we haven't asked that you think would be beneficial to understanding as?
Karl: Well? as well? See, I think the the stories that you guys are doing right now, are basically on most of them, the majority of them are about Porter's road. And when somebody says as not,they're talking about a little village, that's a half a mile away. And there was a story written in the newspaper. I think it was Alomar weekly or something like that. And that was title as month a Zombie Town. And I had to respond to that. Because it's not was not a Zombie Town. That will area down there was was not operating or it didn't have a lot of residents there and houses are closed. And you know, there was nothing being done. But Esmont, this road that I live on, is part of is there's surrounding areas that are called Esmont. So as managers, it's full of history, it really is the book that was written about asthma, and it's a good starter. The first book you guys got that was a good starter, because it actually tells you about historical things around the area. And hopefully it will make you want to go and visit and say, Okay, what's the rest of the story? The part that was left out, unfortunately, was Black Esmont. And I, you know, just want to make sure that, you know, there's two sides to the story as not a bad story. You know, it's just a area of Albemarle county that actually took care of themselves. Okay, they really did. And there's pictures that go back to the late 1800s of folks at church and you're not one person in there that doesn't have on a suit or or a nice dress. So, when you say for as long as you don't see, it would be tough to see our town when you're looking at true pictures and stories of as mine itself. So that's what I have. Of course. I got a lot of stories, but that's all.
Carlehr: You got one more. You got one more. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Okay, well, this has been great. Do you have any follow up questions or?