Honey bee colony saved after 8-ft. hive discovered in wall of old house
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Eight-foot honeybee hive discovered in wall of old home
NORMA | There’s been a lot of news headlines in recent years about America’s declining honeybee population — a natural crisis that poses a serious threat to agricultural pollination and biodiversity. But, in Scott County, thousands of honeybees were saved last week after their monstrous hive was discovered inside the wall of a house that was being demolished in Norma.
The demolition crew discovered the beehive, which was measured at eight feet in height — covering nearly the entire length of the wall — as the home was being torn down. Someone phoned 1st District County Commissioner David “Blue” Day, who in turn phoned Scott County EMS Director Jamie Byrd.
Day’s call to Byrd wasn’t because an ambulance was needed, but because Byrd is a beekeeper.
Byrd is a busy man. A career paramedic, he is director of Scott County EMS by day, and is also pastor of High Point United Baptist Church. He and his wife, Toni, often sing at funerals and other occasions. And he’s one of several beekeepers in Scott County.
Byrd donned his protective gear and safely removed the bees. He was stung a few times — one sting left his eye swollen nearly shut for a couple of days — but was able to save the hive. He estimated that a hive of that size contained “easily more than 100,000 bees.”
The loss of America’s honeybees has been a major news story in recent years. The number of managed colonies in the U.S. has dropped from around five million in the 1940s to about 2.5 million today, with annual losses exceeding 40% — well above sustainable levels (15% to 20% each year is considered acceptable). This past year, losses have been the worst on record, with up to 70% of hives lost. Experts blame a combination of mites, pathogens spread by mites, pesticide exposure and habitat loss.
It’s an alarming trend, because honeybees pollinate more than 90 types of crops — ranging from apples and almonds to cucumbers and melons — and more than one-third of the food we eat relies on pollinations.
Beekeepers — who are usually farming honey — help change that by investing in the health and future of honeybee hives. The U.S. produces about 125 million pounds of honey annually, and locally-produced honey is especially prized by many.
If you’re interested in keeping bees, or just learning more about them, there is an active group in Scott County called the Scott County Beekeepers Association.
Sacred Ground: Blankenship Cemetery
Just around the bend from the Trammell Cemetery at Capuchin Creek is the Blankenship Cemetery, representing another one of the early families that settled this now nearly deserted valley in the Cumberland Mountains.
You may recall from the story of the Trammell Cemetery that Lucinda “Cindy” Trammell married Ewell Blankenship in 1877, after the death of her first husband. Cindy was the daughter of Hiram Trammell, who served as the first postmaster at Capuchin, and his wife, Anna Campbell.
Ewell Blankenship is not buried on Capuchin Creek; he’s buried across the mountain at the Angel-Wright Cemetery on Jellico Creek. He was the son of Camilla Blankenship. His father was Dennis Trammell.
The Blankenship family
The Blankenship family represented at Blankenship Cemetery on Capuchin Creek began with Canada Blankenship (1819-1901), a brother to Camilla Blankenship.
Born in North Carolina before the family’s move to Capuchin, Canada and Camilla were the sons of Archibald Blankenship and Sarah Richardson.
The Blankenship family was originally from England — spelled Blankensop. The family genealogy is well-documented, and came to America in the early 18th century with Ralph Blankenship — who may have been the third-great-grandfather of Archibald Blankenship.
The American Blankenships settled in Virginia and remained there for several generations. Archibald was born in Wythe, Va. in 1798. He moved to North Carolina and married Sarah Richardson in 1815, and they eventually made the move to present-day Scott County.
Like many of Scott County’s earliest families, it’s not easy to pinpoint exactly when the Blankenships arrived here. The family moved first to southeastern Kentucky, near Williamsburg, before traveling further south to Capuchin Creek. The move occurred at some point in the early 1830s.
Archibald Blankenship died sometime after 1854. It has been written that he was working in the fields on Capuchin Creek when he died. It’s not clear where he was buried, though it was probably in the Angel-Wright Cemetery.
Canada Blankenship was the oldest child of Archibald and Sarah. He was born in North Carolina and was a teenager when the family arrived at Capuchin. He married Malinda Trammell in 1843. She was the daughter of James Trammell and Rachel Starks, and a sister to Dennis Trammell — who was the father of Ewell Blankenship.
According to family history, Dennis Trammell — who lived on Jellico Creek across the mountain from the Blankenships’ Capuchin Creek farm — and Archibald Blankenship got into a fight at some point.
Canada and Malinda had seven children: James, William Riley, Henry, Sarah Ann, Daniel, John Canada and Abraham Lincoln.
James married Emeline Trammell, a daughter of Hiram Trammell and Anna Campbell (and a sister to Cindy Trammell Blankenship). He had two children, Arch and Lincoln.
William Riley, or “Butch,” married Mary Ann “Polly” Stanfill. They had at least 11 children: James, Canada, Melton, Fowler, Rachel, Linda, William Riley, Emma, Chester, Frank and Stella.
Henry married Perneta Jane Thompson. They had at least 10 children: Malinda, Columbus, Alvin, Baty, Nancy, Ellen, Ledford, Ludlo, Lewis and Della.
Sarah married James Marion Lovett. They had at least five children: Rosa, John, Annie, James and Andrew.
Daniel married Rachel Chitwood, and later married Emma Grant. Heh ad 10 children: Elsaca, Whitson, Elijah, Kenada, Fred, John, Lucy, Earley, Mary and Millard.
John Riley married Martha Jane Criscillis and later married Mary Lumpkins. He had at least four children: Charles, Wadsworth, Shelly and Gertrude.
Abraham Lincoln married Elizabeth Lawson. They had at least 10 children: Nathan, Henderson, Johnson, Zora, Andrew, Ollie, Omah, McKinley, Hubert and Clara.
The cemetery begins
The first person buried at Blankenship Cemetery was James Blankenship, the oldest son of Canada and Malinda. He died on Independence Day in 1895, at the age of 55. He was reportedly gunned down in a dispute over moonshine.
When James died, he was buried on a hill overlooking the family’s farm, which bordered the Hiram Trammell farm on Capuchin.
Next to be buried at the cemetery was William Riley’s wife, Polly, who was 46 when she died in 1899. Ten months later, in January 1900, her husband died and was buried there. Many of the burials at the cemetery are descendants of William Riley and Polly, who owned a legal moonshine distillery at Capuchin.
Canada Blankenship died in 1901 and was buried at the cemetery. His wife, Malinda, was buried at the cemetery in 1907.
The Smith family
The first person other than a Blankenship to be buried at the family cemetery was baby Ettie Smith in July 1903. She was just 10 months old.
It’s not certain, but baby Ettie’s parents were likely Roland Smith and Rachel Blankenship, who lived at Capuchin and were buried at the cemetery (Roland in 1936 and Rachel in 1963). Rachel’s obituary notes that she had a daughter who preceded her in death. Her other six children were Nellie Mae, Truman, Nettie, Stella and Frank. Nellie and Nettie married brothers from the Owens family that lived at nearby Stanfill.
Rachel was the daughter of William Riley and Polly Blankenship, who had been buried at the cemetery in 1899 and 1900. Roland grew up in the same mountains; he was the son of George Washington Smith and Annie Leah Sweetwood from across the mountain in Newcomb.
Another Smith baby, Genetta Smith, was buried at the cemetery in 1941 when she died at the age of 18 months.
Seventeen-year-old Offie Smith was buried at the cemetery in 1943, and 19-year-old Ova Smith in 1944.
Ova was killed in World War II. He was a private in the U.S. Army.He served in the Tennessee 2nd Infantry Division.
Both Ova and Offie were children of Truman Smith and his wife, Anna — grandchildren of Roland and Rachel Blankenship Smith.
It isn’t clear who Genetta’s parents were.
The cemetery continues
Following the deaths of Ettie Smith in 1903 and Malinda Blankenship in 1907, Emeline Blankenship Ellis was buried at the cemetery in 1910. She was the daughter of William Riley Blankenship and Polly Stanfill, and was only 22 when she died. She had married George Washington Ellis, the son of Truman Ellis and Martha Ann Marcum, and had two children.
According to a death certificate, Emeline died of consumption – or tuberculosis. The rest of her family left Capuchin. Her husband remarried to Lucille Jamerson from Monroe County, Ky. — located just north of the TN-KY line near Celina — and moved there. Both her children settled in West Virginia.
Earley “Earl” Blankenship, the five-year-old son of Daniel Blankenship and Emma Grant, also died in 1910 and was buried at the family cemetery. He died of diphtheria, four months after Emeline died.
In November 1911, twin brothers Arnel and Ardel died just six days apart and were buried at the cemetery. They had been born nine months earlier. Their death certificate listed stomach troubles as the cause of death. They were the sons of Rufus Lafayette Burchfield and Malinda Blankenship. Malinda was another of the children of William Riley Blankenship and Polly Stanfill. Lafayette was killed by a train near the Oneida depot in 1922. He had been deputized by town marshals to search for bootleggers who were hiding on a train parked at the depot, and was struck by a passing train. He is buried at Coffey Cemetery, where Malinda was also buried in 1964.
Melton Blankenship, the 38-year-old son of William Riley Blankenship and Polly Stanfill, was buried at the cemetery in 1913.
Elsaca Blankenship was buried at the cemetery in 1916, after being gunned down by a man he was fighting with. He was 36. He was the son of Daniel Blankenship; a grandson of Canada Blankenship and Malinda Trammell.
The Stephens family
The first person buried at the cemetery who was not a member of the extended Blankenship family was Maggie Chitwood Stephens in 1918. She died at the age of 30.
Maggie was the daughter of Lindsey B. Chitwood and Armelda Baker. The Chitwood family was from Winfield, but the Baker family was from Capuchin. Armelda grew up at Capuchin, the daughter of William Hiram Baker and Elizabeth Davis.
Maggie married Thomas M. Stephens, who would later be buried at Blankenship Cemetery in 1929. They had at least five children: Ova, George Flem, Odas, Meldia Elizabeth, and Roy.
Ova was buried at the cemetery in 1942, when he died at 38. His wife, Manilla Webb, was buried there in 1996. They had a son, Pete, who was buried at the cemetery in 2017.
Ova and Odas married sisters from the Webb family. Odas married Elsie. Elsie and Manilla were the daughters of Lewis Webb and Elizabeth Jane Cordell, who lived across the mountain at Jellico Creek. Lewis is buried at the Trammell Cemetery on Jellico Creek and Elizabeth is buried at Perkins Cemetery. Elsie died in 1956 and was buried at Blankenship Cemetery; Odas was later buried there in 1986.
The Braden family
Infant Marshall “Junior” Braden was buried at Blankenship Cemetery in October 1927. He was the son of Marshall Braden and Pernia Blankenship.
The Braden family was from McCreary County, although some lived on Jellico Creek, as well.
Pernia was the daughter of C. Canada Blankenship and Nancie Jane Stephens. C.C. was the oldest son of William Riley Blankenship and Polly Stanfill. He was buried at the cemetery in 1940, and his wife was buried there in 1939. An interesting note about C.C. and Nancie: They raised C.C.’s youngest siblings after his parents died. The youngest of those children — Stella Mae — was only two at the time.
Junior was Marshall and Pernia’s first-born child. They had several others, however: Earl, Verlon and Geraldine.
The cemetery today
Blankenship Cemetery is no longer active. When Pete Stephens died in 2017, he was the first burial there in 21 years. The last member of the Blankenship family to be buried there was Rachel Blankenship Smith — daughter of William Riley Blankenship and Polly Stanfill, and wife of Roland Smith — in 1963. She was fondly known as “Aunt Rachel.”
C. Canada Blankenship, 1873-1940
Canada Blankenship, 1819-1901
Earley Blankenship, 1905-1910
Elsaca Blankenship, 1880-1916
Emaline Trammell Blankenship, 1855-1921
Henry C. Blankenship, 1850-1936
Infant Blankenship, 1934-1934
James “Jim” Blankenship, 1840-1895
Junio Blankenship, 1933-1933
Malinda Trammell Blankenship, 1826-1907
Mary E. Blankenship, 1917-1919
Melton Blankenship, 1875-1913
Nancie Stephens Blankenship, 1872-1939
Neatie Blankenship, 1856-1936
Polly A. Blankenship, 1852-1899
W.R. Blankenship, 1850-1900
Junior Braden, 1927-1927
Ardel Burchfield, 1911-1911
Arnel Burchfield, 1911-1911
Emma Ellis, 1888-1910
Ettie Smith, 1902-1903
Genetta Smith, 1940-1941
Offie Smith, 1926-1943
Ova Smith, 1924-1944
Rachel Smith, 1880-1963
Roland Smith, 1877-1936
Elsie Stephens, 1913-1956
Maggie C. Stephens, 1888-1918
Manilla Stephens, 1903-1996
Odas Stephens, 1910-1986
Ova Stephens, 1904-1942
Thomas Stephens, 1871-1929
Opal Smith Trammell, 1922-1941
Did you know? You can find the entire “Sacred Ground” series archived on the Encyclopedia of Scott County.
West represents Scott County
Leah West represented Crew 333, Scott County and American Legion Post 136 at Philmont Scout Ranch in New Mexico. Philmont is one of four high adventure bases owned by Scouting America. She is shown standing on the Tooth of Time, elevation 9003 ft. While at Philmont, Leah attended the training Chart Lead Explore. Crew 333 meets every Tuesday at 6 p.m. at the American Legion building.
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◼️ Monday morning: The Daybreaker (news & the week ahead)
◼️ Tuesday: Echoes from the Past (stories of our history)
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