Lee's Life Started Here

The picture above is the way the house looks today.

The below picture is Jasper Anderson, born 1882 in Virginia who built his house in this remote and rugged part of Forsyth County of North Carolina sometime prior to 1910. The acreage he owned was hilly and difficult to cultivate.

Mr. Anderson married Eunice Elvira Scott, born 1891, in the Friendship Community along the Yadkin River in Yadkin County. There is no known early picture of her. Jasper and Elvira began their combined lives here and Mrs. Anderson bore her first child, John, in 1911. During the next twenty-one years, she gave birth to thirteen children of which Lee was fourth when he was born in 1916.

Jasper Lee Anderson was named after his father and grew up on this site as he worked the farm, learned to grow crops including tobacco, and learned skills of living off land. He attended school to about the fifth or seventh grade. People in the community nicknamed him "Keen-Eye" and called him by this name throughout his childhood. It isn't known for certain why this name was chosen. Perhaps, it's the look of his eyes as can be seen in the photo of him in the previous posting.

During the late 1930's, Lee lived a couple years in Canada where he flue-cured harvested tobacco for a man named Ott Doub, an emigrant from the United States.

While traveling to Dozier, NC from Canada, Lee passed through Buffalo, NY where he bought a new Indian Motocyle, "America's First Motorcycle". He drove the remainder of the trip to Dozier on his new mode of transportation.

I grew up calling this homestead the "Old Place". The house hasn't been occupied in over fifty years and probably doesn't have a street address. It is so far off-road that directions to this site are best given by coordinates which are N36 deg. 11.793 min., W80 deg. 25.296 min., elevation 862 feet. Enter these coordinates into Google Earth to locate on a map or to get a satellite view.

Return here on Saturday, June 3 for the continuing life story and photos of this heroic man, J. Lee Anderson.

Have a good day!