Orphan’s Boy Success Saga



By G. T. Winchester



Mineral Springs Feb 21



Pardon me and I will give a little history of the life of a cousin John H Secrest.
He was born December 14, 1861 and died in 1952, after his 90th Birthday. He
never saw his father a Civil War casualty. His mother, a daughter of George
Howey died when John was an infant. He made his home with his Aunt Nancy
Winchester until he was 21 years old.

After John was grown my father gave him $5.00 per month. He had only one or two
months in public schools but he learned to write his name. In later years he
learned to calculate in his head very rapidly.

He was at his grandfather’s sale and put a bid of $7.50 on a cow. He had no idea
of getting her but the bid was knocked down to him. One he had no place to take
her. He got busy and sold the cow for $5.00 but he had to wait to the fall to get his money

John lived the life of an old bachelor and died most of his cooking. I think he
would have married in his younger days but he was a poor orphan boy and the
young ladies turned a cold shoulder to him After he became wealthy some tried to
catch him but it was too late.

He went to Florida and spent two years with Mr. Crumb who was rich in cattle.

When he came back home he bought the William Daniel Winchester home place. Oak
Grove Baptist church now stand on a part of it.

He soon sold this place to John Rogers who put a cotton gin and a corn mill which he operated for some time.

Secrest the bought the Sanford G Howie land and lived there until his death.

Sanford was a son of Samuel Howie who owned the land we here the gold was first
discovered at what is now known as the Howie Gold Mine.

Around 1900 John did a good buiness in buying and selling beef cattle. He would
buy a bunch of cows and put them on the road and drive them 25 miles to the
Charlotte market. In the summer time if the roads were muddy he would roll up
his pant legs and walk the road to Charlotte in his bare feet.

On one occasion after he had sold his cows, he was walking on the streets and
passed a store where some young men were standing in the door, and one of them
said, "did you see that barefooted tramp pass?"

John heard this and it made him very mad. He stopped, turned around and pulled
out a shot sack full of money and said "If you were "

In the prime of life he owned 40 head of mules and horses. In 1918 at the close
of World War I, everything was bringing high prices; cotton sold for 40 cents a
pound.

Around 1930 business went all to pieces. Many of our banks failed. Cotton went
down to six cents and everything was dead. John’s croppers had all done a
big-time business and could not pay their bills. He had to pay their bills for
them, which set him back badly. He had to sell a part of his land to pay their
debts.

After business was good and when J A Secrest died he owned around 1000 acres of
land and it was all paid for. His estate was divided between the heirs of his
two half sisters.

He was a great trader in cattle but ever made any enemies/ to my knowledge. In a
trade he would tell what the other man had said and then said he himself did not
know and for you to take your own judgement.

You can never tell what a boy will grow into. In his younger days John Secrest
was a hard worker. He would chop and put up for cords of wood in one day for
John bates who ran the Howie Mine. John A made a wonderful mark in this Old

World and those who knew him loved him.

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