Les Kimberlin recalls life as one of Burke's Garden sharecroppers
In Burke's Garden Virginia Les Kimberlin, now 81, describes his life as a sharecropper starting in 1940. He details firing, uneven pay, and yearly advances, noting a better era when fair bosses sometimes rewarded hard work with larger shares and easier field duties. He reflects on past work with horses, timbering, and sheep, contrasting it with modern farming’s rental system. He values his 1963 home purchase and laments the decline of sharecropping as labor shifted to towns and machines replaced mules and teams.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Burkes Garden
Les Kimberlin
Kimberlin
Bland County
Kimberlins
Tazewell County
Kim
Developer refuses to quit Bernard's Landing plans in Roanoke
Roanoke Virginia. Developer David Wilson tells a bankruptcy court he will push to revive Bernard's Landing at Franklin County while reorganizing under Chapter 11. He plans to reopen the resort restaurant and sell remaining 73 condominiums, with a goal of summer sales. He acknowledges a $21.6 million debt to 300 creditors and notes $15.7 million in assets. Wilson discusses adding agents to boost condo sales and faces questions over income from Smith Mountain Lake ventures amid a $3 million Beechwood Shores claim.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Roanoke
David Wilson
Bernard’s Landing
Wilson
Franklin County
Bernard
Vista Pointe
Lynchburg
Alexander Bell
Bell
Beechwood Shores Homeowners Association
Smith Mountain Lake
Statute changes boost federal crime control tools
Federal prosecutors mark one year under the Comprehensive Crime Control Act of 1984 highlighting broadened forfeit powers, expanded jurisdiction in murder for hire, and tougher penalties. Cases in West Virginia include Grover Jones Jr. and Allen Bartlett linked to a murder-for-hire scheme. The act enables seizures, shared forfeiture with state agencies, and broader use in bank connected fraud.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
U.S
Dave Faber
Faber
West Virginia
Bluefield
Beckley
Monroe County
Grover Jones Jr
Allen Bartlett
Belpre
Ohio
Jones
Monroe
Bartlett
Robert W. Stone
Quentine Trent
Stone
Parkersburg
Ripley
Charles H. Haden II
Trent
Congress
U.S. Department of Justice
Ex-WWU president Gee taunts bow ties in mock duel
Gordon Gee, ex West Virginia and CU president, challenges John Molloy to a high noon debate and mud wrestling over bow ties after Molloy called for banning neckwear. Molloy defends stance noting bow ties mark nonconformity, while Gee vows to argue their merit with humor and style.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Boulder, Colo
Gordon Gee
University of Colorado
John Molloy
Gee
West Virginia University
Molloy
Bozo
Hog Slaughter Marks Busy Farm Season in Cove
On the Jeff Gillespie farm in Cove, Tazewell County, Walter Elswick reports 54 hogs already killed with 10 more to go this season. Hog slaughter, done in cool weather, blends labor and craft from scalding to smoking, with lard rendering and sausage making feeding daily farm meals and winter stores.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Tazewell
Jeff Gillespie
Walter
Brownie
Elswick
Cove
Tazewell County
Dog returns home after long absence in Mechanicsville
In 1984 Tony a male mixed breed dog disappeared from a Mechanicsville home. After months the family lost hope. Tony reappeared recently shocking his owners and the Shepherd’s Staff Counseling Center director who calls male dogs prone to roaming but notes this reunion is unusual.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Richmond
Tony
Mechanicsville
Gerald Qualls
Shephard
Qualls
Also Mentioned on This Page
Sharecropper
Garret Mathews
Pat Cecil
The
Daily Telegraph
Fred Brow
WWU
Success Magazine
Daily Camera
Melody Bowen
Kevin Qualls
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