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Character Study: 1964
... hard at something. Print from 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/05/2010 - 6:07pm -

"Cornett family, Kentucky, 1964." One of the Cornett boys on the front porch after working hard at something. Print from 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size.
Role modelMy 17-year-old grandson started his first job over the summer, bagging groceries. He quit after a week because the work was "exhausting." Sigh.
The Working Hard at somethingIs most likely the questionable part. Did this young man escape from what is a future just like his father or did he decide to escape to a new beginning of education and prosperity for his family like many of us did at his age. 
I think I and most of my family looked like the Cornett's Cornetts in 1964.
Dare you!Thsi guy looks capable of murder and abuse. Please stop with the 60s redneck series! Creepy is toop kind a word.
[It's toop something. And speaking of creepy, how are those cousinfs? - Dave]
It's all in how you look at itProbably not a good idea to judge a book by its cover, though on a site like this one it's pretty all we can do.
To some this young man looks like someone capable of "murder and abuse", my impression is that he looks like someone who is used to hard work and not afraid of it one bit.  It's such an unusual trait in today's youth that it's easy to mistake it for something else more sinister.
DisquietingI find this set of pictures a little disquieting. There's something--an intimacy?--about them that's disconcerting. That would make them great pictures.
What he looks likeis a hard worker, a smart guy, a good man to have on your side. Let's hope he didn't get blown up in Vietnam.
GrittyI am really enjoying this series of pictures.  The Cornetts show a hard core brand of grit and determination that I find admirable.  I'd hang out with these people anytime.
Bill GedneyI studied with Bill back in the mid '70s at Pratt. I was fortunate to have known him and to have heard a few stories about these people and his commitment to living with them and documenting their lives. I'm also fortunate to know the people who organized his life's work at Duke Center for Documentary Studies. Thanks for posting these images!
Great Series!I love how this series from Duke brings some variety in the already amazing offerings from this site. 
Looking forward to seeing more of these pics in the future. 
Hmmm!Must admit -- I'm not enjoying these "Cornett" family pictures. Something about them makes me decidedly uncomfortable - perhaps I watch too much TV? I unreservedly apologise if I've done the family a disservice.
["If"? - Dave]
[Update: Commenter has courageously altered his post to remove references to "Dueling Banjo's" [sic] and "potential for violence."]
Huh???What's with the mean comments? This kid looks sweet to me and not afraid to work or get dirty. I would have been about his age in 1964 and it was very common for boys to work on their cars (IF they had one), hunt, fish, etc. If they lived in a farming community, they did some pretty darn tough, dirty work, too. My grandson rarely leaves the house---too busy with the video/computer games. If he does get out in the heat, it's only to get in the pool. I'll bet there were some real winners in this family who made something of themselves and changed their future. Hope we hear from them.
Hey, WyethHey, Wyeth, your profile says it all. These people knew HARD, physical work. They have my admiration and my deep respect. Many here had parents, fathers especially, who worked with their hands and their backs to support their families. Honorable men, all. The family portrayed in these pictures didn't have the advantages you enjoy, your stereotypes obviously intact. I love these pictures, as they show a time when MEN worked hard, played hard and took care of their families. When times get truly tough, people like this survive, You will not. Bah! 
Salt of the EarthThis young man and many many more like him were and are the backbone of the United States. When we were young (I'm about his age, if he's alive) most of us had to work damned hard and get very dirty. Some found their separate ways to a higher place in the middle class, usually by education; some did not. Regardless, these striving, determined, hard-nosed people are the kind who move a country forward. Boys like this are the future of any country. 
The DraftAssuming that he was eligible to be drafted into the armed service, this guy probably served, may have even enlisted. Many of the "Lifers" I met during my time in the Army were from places like these and probably families such as the Cornetts. If they weren't hard drinkers, they made good soldiers and many became NCOs, some learned trades. They were able to visit and live in other countries. They met and worked with people of other cultures. The down side was they could have been in a war. Military conscription in our country ended in 1973.
Then and NowI hope the Cornett family survived to better times. It's hard to look at the photos and imagine the family still living, given their hardscrabble existence. Did they ever smile for their portrait? Did they ever stand together and belly-laugh? Was there any joy in Mudville, ever? It's like looking into a parallel universe and it's haunting, and creepy. There are those who did not experience it, and cannnot imagine this life in America. We want to move on to life as presented by the privileged few,  like Tterrace.  TTerrace had the kind of life we all wanted so let's look at that !
 I saw a documentary of the Appalachian families in the year 2010. Not so different from life as the Cornett family knew in the early 60s.  Are we in a rush to flip back to a perfect world--patterns and possessions, and happy children being encouraged to thrive. No pain in there, just a glimpse of life we want to believe everyone had. 
The art of the well-done photograph is far more interesting and factual than film media could ever be. It produces huge emotion that cannot be dismissed by going for a brewski while the commercial is on. You will come back to your place and there is the same image.
This guy knows how to do stuff.The fact that some people here somehow find his appearance frightening says a lot more about them than the hard working subject of the photo. I wonder how long those folks would last in this man's environment. Thank you for posting this series. We all need a reality check now and then.
60's redneck??Its almost as if the photos in this series are a kind of truth serum for the posters here -- would you call the members of this family rednecks to their faces? I come from a family of hillbillies and rednecks, and I'm not ashamed of it. My Grandfather was a coal miner in Logan, West Virginia. These photos could be of my cousins -- they bring back wonderful memories for me. These people are no more capable of murder and abuse than anyone else. They've just lived a hardscrabble existence, making do with what they had, and narrowing their suspicious eyes at the remarks of "flatlanders" who don't know any better.
Keep posting pictures of the Cornetts!In my neighborhood when I was growing up in NC, they were the Daltons. They had lots of kids, little money, crappy cars and the worst house. Mr. Dalton drove a heating oil truck and they were all as redneck as one could possibly be. They stuck together and would collectively "whoop a#%" on anyone who messed with any one of them, whether it was the oldest or the youngest. We all thought we were better than them because we had more and came from smaller families with disposable incomes. As it probably is with the Cornetts, they were the lucky ones with a strong sense of family and independence, as well as a "we can look out for ourselves" mentality. My family became dysfuntional as we grew up and moved to the four corners of the country; rarely speaking with or seeing each other anymore.  I'll bet the Cornetts still gather for holidays. 
It would be great to find out what became of the Cornetts.
Mixed feelings, but you can't deny a brilliant shotAn amazing study. You look at it once, there's a bright, affectionate, fearless young man - suddenly there's a hostile, defensive, possibly cruel boy. This is an example of where portrait photography surpasses painting. He tries to stare you out across forty-six years.
Not creepy at allHe looks like someone who has just finished doing hard and dirty work.
Sad that that makes people uncomfortable nowadays.
Same teen... different moodThe earlier photo of him smoking definitely had a sinister aspect to it, the eyes (to me) reflected something intense, whether it was resentment, jealously, hatred, disgust, I don't know what.  It might have been just an affectation for the photo.  But it made you wish you could find out.  I felt I had the same reaction that Capote did when he saw the photo that inspired "In Cold Blood."  Now, in this photo, he seems to be in a much better, happier state of mind.
[Editor's note: Not the same guy. - Dave]
Being born and raised, and having lived most of my adult life in the Deep South, I've had plenty of interaction with families like the Cornetts.  If there's one thing I've learned, you cannot judge by appearances.  If you did, and lived in certain areas, you'd never leave your house.  Appearance, for the most part, results from circumstances, not from character.  I'd be more leery of those in fancy suits.  They have the power (and often the inclination) to do you much harm.
I'd say the Cornetts must be good people, given their apparently warm reception of the high-falootin' photographer from Duke U.
"Murder and abuse"?I look at this photo and see a really handsome guy. I don't understand where the negative comments are coming from. 
Enough already!This endless series of rednecks is uninspiring.  They are being showcased as if they were iconic photos of Oakies of the Great Depression. Unlike the dust bowl pictures there is no dignity here or triumph of the human spirit.  Let's get back to 19th century rarely seen photos of America's past.
Honest dirtSome people's only exposure to honest dirt was the one time they got talked into helping their great-aunt Annie  plant her new rosebush! Horrors! What is that stuff all over my hands? Must go wash it with some antibacterial soap, immediately! Poor babies.
I like rednecks & I like GedneyAppearances can be deceiving; I'll bet if you gave this young man a good scrubbing, a haircut and put him in a nice suit, suddenly everyone will be trying to introduce him to their daughters, assuming he was going to Yale or Harvard (maybe he did, on a scholarship or GI Bill). When I lived in Charlottesville, with its "Gown and Town" culture, I met plenty of "rednecks" who were the nicest people; helpful, friendly, loved to sit on the porch Friday nights and shoot the breeze.  Some of the "Gown" group were dressed to the nines, wouldn't dream of getting their hands dirty, stuck up, and borrringgggg!
P.S. I belonged the "gown" crowd at the U of Virginia in Charlottesville, a boy straight out of the Maryland suburbs. 
Good Earthy FolksBack in the mid-1960s.I hung out with a family a lot like the Cornetts, to the horror of my mother, although my father was more understanding.  I was enriched by this association and still keep in touch with the surviving members of my alternate family.  
Try as I mightI detect nothing sinister here. Just a young man with a hard life by today's standards. Maybe even by any standards. But lack of wealth does not always equal unhappiness. I hope he was happy. It bothers me that someone could look at this simple, unassuming photo and then ascribe to it terms like murder and abuse. Reminds me of the quote by Anais Nin: We see things not as they are, but as we are.
We need moreI have a feeling that this young man is a bright-eyed smart fellow that happens to live in the country and knows how to give a honest day's work for a honest paycheck.  Our country needs a few million like him right now.
Negative comments?I also don't understand where these negative comments are coming from. Too bad that some Shorpy viewers think they are better than others.  I see a very hard working family when I view these photos of the Cornett family. They appear to be honest hard working people the kind that make good neighbors and good friends. What viewers are looking at here is the true backbone of America. The fancy dressing politicians could not pass the muster in similar situations.
Thanks Dave for showing not just the historical America but also the hard working America.                        
I can relateI just spent the afternoon under the truck replacing its shock absorbers. 
Except for being much cleaner around the eyes thanks to wearing safety goggles, I ended up just at dirty as this fellow, something I don't find myself doing like when I was in my twenties.  It felt good and I expect to sleep well tonight.
Still creepyI have found the reactions to this series very interesting.  I have lived in such a rural poor area all my life, going to school with MANY children who were forced to live as these people.  Let's not make more out of these people than they were, they were just like the rest of us: both good and bad, smart and dumb, clean and dirty, hard workers and lazy, compassionate and indifferent, etc.
How having said that and being a product of a poor rural area, and still a resident in that area, I find the series creepy especially of young children smoking which I never saw happening with the like people I grew up with, at least not in front of their parents.  I think it very possible the photos could have been a bit influnced.
[Just a bit "influnced"? Or a whole lot "influnced"? - Dave]
MoreWould like to see more of the Cornett family series.
Eye of the BeholderThis series of photos has turned out to be quite the Rorschach test.
Dirty work, clean money   I worked alongside some guys like this for a short while in the '60s. The title was a comment I heard from one of them.  The Cornetts of flyover land built the 20th century and won its wars.  I don't think the 20 year-olds of today could do as much. 
Worked hardAnd is dirty.  This is what happens.  I'd love to know how the next few decades played out.  And I love the sparkly bits in the chair.
The Best Hard TimesOdds are, in later years, these folks look back on this era as being some of the best times in their lives.  I know that when I think back about my younger years, we lived in a tiny house, were raised by our divorced mom (two of us), and did not have extra money. We had lots of neighborhood friends, we always had three meals, and we always played outside. We were as happy as pigs in mud.
Reminds me of my sonHe who isn't happy until he's worked hard enough to get this dirty. His dad and I must've done something right. A healthy work ethic will take one a long way in life.
HandsomeI, for one, think that he's a very handsome young man, dirt and all. I bet he lights up and shines when he smiles. 
A true portraitI really hate reading some of the truly (literally) ignorant comments in this series.  
If you want a real taste of what Eastern Kentuckians are really like, just consider that this man and his wife, unemployed and with 12 children, opened their home to a photographer (read: stranger) from Duke University with no pretense and showed him hospitality for 11 days in 1964 and then again welcomed him into his home 8 years later. 
That is more a portrait of the true nature of Appalachian people than any ridiculous story Hollywood can make up (e.g. Deliverance).
[A little confusion here. It was this young man's parents who played host to William Gedney. Who had no connection with Duke University when these pictures were made. - Dave]
to: A Certain Canadian Shame on you! My parents lived in Minnesota during the depression, and we did not live much differently from this photo, but we had a happy family, we ate well, and we all grew up to be responsible adults. How dare you think that just because someone is poor, they are rednecks!
[What exactly constitutes being a redneck, and why is it bad to be one? - Dave]
Folks, do not despair.We still have plenty of hard-working young men and women like this young man in our America.  Do not despair.  We'll get through it.  
WOW!Dave...You must be in Heaven! What a response to your Photos of the Cornett family!
I have commented, myself, before, and I am totally into this family, and have been for days. I just read through all of the comments and I think I could read on forever…they are such a mix of Brilliance, and, I am sorry to say this…total Stupidity, but that is in the Minority. Thank You, Dave!
But, I Think you, too, must be a bit amazed. What a great way to get people to come alive and Talk to a subject…if only we could continue the dialog…in so many other topics.
Coal DustThis young man has a right to be proud and you can see it in his eyes. He is covered with coal dust. That means he is making money--good money! Things sure have changed for today's young men. Not for the better.
 Bah, humbugSorry guys - but - by about the 3rd picture I didn't want anymore Cornett Family either.   There's an affected bleakness about these pictures that just makes me wanna smack somebody, probably the photographer.  A couple of the girls snuck in a smile . .probably when the photographer was off-guard.  Good for them, probably blew the whole theme for Gedney though.  Are we going to get any Cornett pictures without the "o I see misery, that makes me profound" motif?  Goodness, beauty and truth are also part of the human experience, ya know.  I mean, just sayin'.  There's nothing wrong with honest dirt.  /end tirade.
["Misery"? What misery? - Dave]
"Dirty jobs"Late 70's spent my days baling hay and milking cows on our 4th generation dairy farm, my sisters and I would pack 1,000 bales or more of hay a day into the barn, under a hot tin roof in typical Ohio weather, 98 degrees and 98 humidity, "the sweaty armpit of America."
I now own that farm and my dad at 78 is out helping me milk the cows every day, because he wants to be useful. The comments on this list tell me that a whole lot of folks have never learned to appreciate a hard day's work. The feeling of sweat running down the crack of your a-- and hay chaff in places you never new it could go, the feeling of a good shower and sleep that comes from being tired and not from "sleep aids". The pride of good day's work, a full barn ready for winter, contented cows and a full belly produced from your own hands.
Keep posting these types of pictures, we need a reminder now and them. Like Mike Rowe keeps saying, this country needs people who will do the "dirty jobs."
Definition of a redneckThe term is used to describe the hardworking man or woman who has labored, bent over,  in the hot sun, and received the mother of all sunburns for their efforts. I don't know why it's bad to be called one. Sounds like a badge of honor to me. A few people who have posted here have more than likely never suffered anything more serious  than a paper cut in their daily labors.
Hey Lou, don't look!! It's that easy.Shoot, I was born in 1966, and there were a LOT of days I left work looking like that. It was either from working at the service station (yes, I used to pump Ethel), or at the sign shop. Sometimes, you just get dirty doing an honest days work. Painters get paint on themselves, and farmers get dirt on themselves. That's all.
Dave-Thanks a million for posting the Gedney shots, as well as all you have done with shorpy.com. I scan your site every day looking for cool shots of insulators and feats of electrical engineering, but being a history buff in general, I get a real good feel for days of yesteryear.
Keep'em coming my good man!
[Now we know the reason for Ethel's mysterious smile. - Dave]
Nothing More to AddI'm disappointed in some of these comments but reassured that there are others who don't agree with the stereotyping and leaping from a photo to the "murder and abuse" branding.  Ridiculous.
The Cornett defenders have said what I feel, but I found myself wanting to show my support for them, too.  ("Yeah!  What HE said!")  Any way we could get a "like" button for Shorpy comments?
Undoubtedly a relativeI'm a member the Cornett family with strong ties in Kentucky (my dad's family is from Cumberland, although we live in Maryland now).  Amazing seeing these shots.  I never knew this guy but I have no doubt he's a cousin of some sort.  Cornetts had our black sheep (what family doesn't?) but on the whole we're a hardworking breed who gets by the best we can.
Street smart?I have finally given up reading the comments on this picture. The one that really bugs me is the person who thinks this face belongs to a criminal.  Obviously someone who has no street smarts.  There is nothing sinister behind those eyes.  And as for the people complaining about how sad these people must be, I ask why?  Because they don't have all the luxuries of today that most people consider needful things when they are not?  I have not seen a miserable face on any of the Cornett family.  I am glad to have seen them and hope they all had or are having great lives.  
Another '"Yeah! What HE said!"These photos are great.  Keep them coming.  Anyone who could see someone capable of murder or abuse when looking at this photo is someone or find this series creepy is one who only has to look in the mirror to see a real creep.
Am I the only one... or do you see a resemblance too?
[Maybe that's toner on his face. - Dave]
The old adagesays that when you point your finger at somebody, THREE fingers point back at you.
These pictures of the Cornett family are a vivid portrayal of an important part of the American Experience. The photos are illuminating and often a work of art, as this particular picture is.
This is my very favorite historical/picture blog. Keep up the GREAT work, Dave!
Every timeI look at this photo I think of James Jones' star-crossed Pvt. Robert E. Lee Prewitt in "From Here To Eternity." In fact, I think I'll pull out my battered copy of that book and re-read it for about the fifteenth time.
My cousins from Martin County. Just like him. high-school "diploma," willfully ignorant, hopped up on Baptist prayer meetin's, and just as happy as can be that they'll be able to get a job in the mines just like Daddy and Granddaddy, both of whom got the Black Lung from too much coal and too many Camels. And it's still like that there. WTF, America? Seriously ...
[Inane Comment of the Day! - Dave]
Handsome I look at this photo and see a very handsome man. In this day and age, its hard for a girl to find a guy that doesn't mind rolling up his sleeves and getting dirty to get the job done.  The ruggedness of his features makes him attractive. 
Kindred SpiritIn 1964 I was very close to this guy in age, economic prosperity, and work opportunities.  One difference was that I was in rural Alabama rather than Kentucky.  I am not embarrassed by the type work I used to do, but I am thankful to now have a physically less demanding job.  My electrical engineering degree helped to ease my way into middle class status.  I would like to know what happened to this guy after the picture was made.  I hope that he has been as fortunate in life as I have been.
William GedneyI was surprised when I saw the work of Bill Gedney, years after I knew him as “Mr. Gedney,” my photography teacher at Pratt Institute, Brooklyn, NY. He rarely, if ever showed his work to us. His classes were focused (bad pun) on us and how to improve our photographic vision. I liked him a lot – he was soft spoken and kind unlike the abrasive/aggressive nature some of the others in the photography department. One of my proudest moments: when he approved of my photo essay of my sister and her husband’s  move from apartment to their first house. They weren't “pretty pictures,” but captured a significant moment in time, much like his own series of the rural families. It was indeed an honor and pleasure to have worked with “Mr. Gedney.”
(Cornett Family, Portraits, William Gedney)

Bonus: 1972
... "Woman in kitchen tying her hair." Another of William Gedney's images from 1972 of the Cornett family in Leatherwood, Kentucky. [ Link 1 ] [ Link 2 ]. William Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/05/2010 - 6:12pm -

"Woman in kitchen tying her hair." Another of William Gedney's images from 1972 of the Cornett family in Leatherwood, Kentucky. [Link 1] [Link 2]. William Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size.
These Gedneys are gold.Thank you for posting these two jewels. And oh my wouldn't it be so fine if there were more. Again, thank you.
Most important applianceThe meat in that freezer is probably 80 percent pork and venison. I bet a very small portion of the pork is domesticated. Might be a lot of wild hogs in that area.
[Probably attracted by all those store-bought eggs. - Dave]
LivelihoodSo what did these folks do for a living?
[When William Gedney first stayed with the family in 1964, Willie Cornett had been laid off from his job at a coal mine. In some of the 1972 photos he's seen in a McBroom Electric Inc. work shirt; one of the sons is shown wearing a hard hat. Maybe we'll hear from some Cornetts. - Dave]
Great photoCrowded flypaper, a huge freezer, a huge bucket of lard and bottles of what look like distilled (although I doubt it) water. I am going to bet this was taken on a back porch.
[As noted in the caption, this room is the kitchen. - Dave]
What is it?What manner of beast is on top of the cabinet? My eyes are not so young and it could be a bag but it sure looks like a giant squirrel. Was it a prize dinner saved for posterity?
[I think it's a paper bag. - Dave]
RoutineI love this photo. Women do this every day, multiple times a day, and yet even in new candid photos, I can't recall having ever seen a photo of someone doing it. Excellent snap by the photographer.
RetrocityGreat ashtray!
Already an AntiqueGreat juxtaposition of the sleek deep-freeze and the Hoosier cabinet (complete with tambour door and enamel worktop).  What great shape the latter is in for being ~50 years old.  
All on the Atkins Diet?Meat, eggs, lard and water.  Svelte City, here we come.
Look Out!There's a giant rat waiting to pounce from the top of the Hoosier!
Homage to the ImpressionistsThis photo and the one below it ("Chevy Men") remind me of the compositional style -- and subject matter -- of Van Gogh and Degas.  Beautiful!
William Gedneyhas just gone to the top of my list to study further.  Powerful photography.
Valleydale Swine LardWhat an appetizing product description!
I don't remember their lard, but I do remember their TV commercials featuring dancing cartoon cheerleader pigs singing the Valleydale theme song in a chipmunk-style voice:
"Hooray for Valleydale!  Hooray for Valleydale!  Hooray for Val-lee-dale!  All HAIL, it's VALLEYDALE!"
As I recall, these mostly ran during college football and basketball games.
Bonus, indeedDoes anyone else remember the days when boxes of laundry detergent came with a "bonus" dishtowel, plate or drinking glass? Do any still do that?
Shell No-Pest StripHaven't seen one of those in many years!
[Didn't No-Pest Strips come in a hanger-box? - Dave]
Prizes in detergent boxesYes, now that you mention in, I do remember when some brands of detergent had a towel or something else in them.  I remember seeing TV ads for them.  My mother only used Cheer, which didn't have that.  I don't remember seeing a detergent box with a bonus in it for at least 30 years, though.
I have to tell Dave that posting all of these photos from 1972 is making me feel ancient!  I graduated from high school that year!
Give ThanksThe little plaque hanging over the freezer that says "Give Thanks for something or other", I remember making these in Vacation Bible School back in the 50s.
Good TeacherI am so happy to see these pictures.  Bill Gedney was one of my teachers at Pratt Institute in the late 1970s.  He was a fine teacher with a compassionate eye for the human condition.  I haven't seen these photos in quite some time.
Thanks,
Roy
(Cornett Family, Kitchens etc., William Gedney)

Chevy Men: 1972
... and some of his 12 children. 35mm negative by William Gedney (1932-1989). From Duke University's Gedney Collection , encompassing some 5,000 pictures taken from the 1950s ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/02/2010 - 2:19pm -

"Cornett family. Leatherwood, Kentucky, 1972. Men and boys without shirts sitting and standing around two cars." Willie Cornett (seated, right) and some of his 12 children. 35mm negative by William Gedney (1932-1989). From Duke University's  Gedney Collection, encompassing some 5,000 pictures taken from the 1950s through the early '70s. Do we want to see more? View full size.
1964 was OKSeems all of us boys did the same from 1964 to ??
I am not sure but those seem to be a 1964 Impala and yes we need and want to see more!!
Circa 1979My buddy Whit had a '63 Impala. We spent hundreds of hours in that car on the back roads of Pennsylvania. Toking and listening to Led Zep, we ruled the world.
Yes, we want to see moreMore Chevys, that is. Got any '58s? 
Junior's thought balloonIn jes' a few more years ah'll be able to afford:
1. Ciggies!
2. Shoes!
3. My own craptastic car!
Ancient HistoryYes, would love to see them. The older we get the more the '70s seem like ancient history.
This is so coolIt's a new twist on the Shorpy formula for success. A different era, still black-and-white, and nice insight into how people lived at another time. I like it. More, please!
SpellboundThe young boy on the left is totally fascinated by the collective wisdom of the big guys whether the subject  be cars or girls, and I guarantee it's one or the other. I know because that's me 10 years earlier. 1963 Impala hardtop on the right, and a 1964 Impala convertible on the left (owned one in '69).
A few more, anyway. That's a good pic - very well composed and with excellent tonal range.
Lurkin'Back at the right is a 1957 210 wagon.  Chevy's forever in this group.
Cigarettes, succotash and hard workWill keep you thin!
My Kentucky HomeI was about this kid's age growing up in Eastern Kentucky in 1972.  We lived a simple life but probably a little better off than these folks, although in the mid '60s my father was a sharecropper and we had running water only in our kitchen sink (no bathroom in the house). Sure made for some cold trips to the outhouse as a tot. Thank God my sister helped me. Times have surely changed but I'm still in Kentucky, and there's no place I'd rather be.
You Betcha!You know the Bull City Boy wants to see more from this Duke University collection.  I could probably do without the condescending comments, but that seems to part and parcel of the Shorpy experience.
The One in ChargeIt seems clear from the dynamics captured in this picture that the boy in the middle, leaning on the trunk lid of the Chevy, with his right hand with the cigarette up on his left shoulder, is in command of this scene. The younger guys to his right hang on his every word, and the old guys on his left are afraid of him. Look at how the one older man shields his soft body, and the other holds his hand to his head. The middle boy is the only one not shielding himself in some way. Look how the third boy from the left has his legs crossed to protect his family jewels.
[The "older one" with the "soft body" is Dad -- Willie Cornett. The others are his sons. - Dave]
Yes, pleaseI'd very much like to see more of this collection. As a Hatfield I have a lot of history and interest in Eastern Kentucky and having spent quite a bit of time there I'd love to see more.
Do we want to see more?Yes
ChoiceHaving occupied that time and nearly that place, I understand the texture and tone of the choices that brought those men and boys to that spot.  Though there is an escape, it does not require a change of place but a change of action and perspective; poverty does not by itself produce poor vehicle maintenance, nor poor hygiene or self loathing, but it does place a heavy air in one's lungs and a blur in the eyes.  But I could be wrong:  Maybe they were happy and had optimism, dreams, and plans for a prosperous future and I am the one who made poor choices. 
Minus the carsThis could be a shot right out of the Depression.
Shields UpI have lived in Kentucky and I still work there and I can assure you that these young men aren't shielding soft spots or anything else except from gnats, flies, and mosquitoes. These guys are in a woods environment in the mountains of eastern Kentucky. They are shirtless because they are at home and among family so no modesty is needed. If the this image was captured in the late afternoon then the bugs are starting to come out and all three on the right hand side of the image seem to be swatting at the same time. If that is the case then they'll all be putting on shirts soon to give mosquitoes less of a target. It won't really be cooling off that much at night in the summer.
I suppose in our bug-spray crazed society we forget that once upon a time in America people spending time outside dressed to ward off biting insects as much as to protect their modesty and to prevent exposure to the elements. 
RidezFor cars one model year apart, the difference in condition is striking. Neither car is ten years old in this image. I believe the better one is Dad's, since he's the only one sitting on it. I'd also believe that one of the boys picked up the battered convertible secondhand (or he had a drinking problem).
My own father, an Arkansas native, was posted to Fort Knox around this time, so the Gadney scenes resonate.
Family ReunionThis shot could easily be my grandfather and his five sons (as the eldest, my father would likely be the one in the center, sans cigarette).  The age differences are spot-on, as is the time that they were these ages.  The location is the only detail to indicate these aren't my kinfolk, as the family has resided in East Texas since the late 1950s.  Interesting, though, because like lawgrl, I also have Hatfield roots in Eastern Kentucky.  Thanks for the photo that strikes close to home on several different levels.
No Money but Hearts of GoldJust think that with 12 kids, the Cornetts had at least 14 people living in their very humble dwelling but still voluntarily "took in" photographer Gedney who was not even kin.  Can't hardly find people like that anymore.
[There were indeed 12 children when William Gedney met the family in 1964, but by 1972 but they weren't all living with Mom and Dad. Some of them had married and had kids of their own. - Dave]
Biding their time by the river... just waiting for Ned Beatty to glide by in his canoe.
BuggedHey, remember "6-12", available in the yellow tube or can?  How about "Flit", Real-Kill, Hot Shot, and Black Flag?  Back then, every service station had their company's own brand of spray, probably DDT suspended in "petroleum distillates", a polite way of saying kerosene.  They were also happy to sell you their pump spray atomizer.  Us kids soon discovered what a wonderful experience could be had from spraying them at a lit candle.  
The thing hanging from the families kitchen ceiling might have been a "Shell No-Pest Strip".
It was about this time that the miracle product, "OFF!" appeared, and put 6-12 out of business with its new technology:  "They don't BITE, they don't even LIGHT!"
More, more, more!Dave, you always pick great images. I would love to expand the time-line offering. Just keep the fantastic older ones coming too! 
Then and NowNo jeans. No shorts. No running shoes. No long hair. And no caps.
Classic A classic southern photograph I recognize until this day. The men still take their shirts off and feel comfortable in doing so. The joy of looking at old photographs like this is the great conversation it brings up like above. I agree with Anonymous Tipster about the subject matter, it looks about right to me. Photographs are awesome in a way a video is not. You can notice all the fine detail in a photograph and to me black and whites are the best. As some of the other Hatfield descendants above have noted, our lines go way back in the south, so we know the good stuff is in the details. 
(Cars, Trucks, Buses, Cornett Family, William Gedney)

Cigarette Lighter: 1964
... for these lads. Print from a 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/14/2011 - 6:22pm -

Leatherwood, Kentucky, 1964. "Cornett boys smoking by car." No after-school soccer for these lads. Print from a 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size.
Family TreeWillie and Vivian Cornett eventually had 13 children, 11 of whom were still living when Willie died in Keavy, Kentucky on May 8 of this year at age 84.  Vivian died at 66 on September 16, 1994.  I can't find the date of Glenn's death, but it preceded that of his brother Billy in Buna, Texas, on October 11, 2005 at age 44.
This Cornett bloodline will go on for many years.  In addition to 6 sons and 5 daughters, Willie left 42 grandchildren, 66 great-grandchildren and 9 great-great grandchildren.
Peer pressure visual aidWhoever came up with the "smoking makes you look COOL" line HAS to have seen this shot
Could be meWow!  That looks like me back in the late 1950s except my father worked for a local laundry, and I would have had on clean clothes.  I did break the habit though.
FlashbackI can remember driving to the middle of Missouri back in 1970 or 1971 to visit some cousins of mine. Dirt roads and outhouses were just a part of life as they knew it.
I think I was 5 or 6 when my 11 year old cousin first offered me a drag off of a Winston. The setting was oh so similar to the one in this photo. 
I really like these snapshots of the Cornetts. Every picture tells a story! I knew these were Cornett boys before I ever read the caption. 
On a side note, when the country cousins came to KC for a visit, they were awestruck by the inner-city surroundings. They had never seen so many people in one place before.  
Yesterday's TomorrowTwo young boys emulating the adults of their day.
What would the future hold for them: rural poverty, coal mines, tobacco farming - or perhaps being drafted into the army and fighting in Vietnam?
Oh Man!Does this take me back?! That was my car at about that age (15); a '55 Ford Fairlane four door sedan, with a "three-on-the-tree" gearshift. It was a hand-me-down from my granddad. This one even has the rare factory radio with the round dial. I had to buy mine from a junkyard for an astronomical $25. That was a week's wages.
I can also identify with the boy with the healing thumbnail; I've been there! And his shirt collar is turned outside in. We did that too, to save it from "Ring Around the Collar". Well, actually, to save us from Mother's carping!
Good going Dave! 
It's a good thing I read the caption... because I thought it was tterrace, in a little-known chapter of his teenage years.
What's with the Ford?The boys of this hardened family were formerly identified as "Chevy Men" in a previous Shorpy post by Dave.
[True. But that photo was from eight years later, in 1972. -Dave]
Sure brings back memoriesThis picture is so me and my buddy back about the same era.  Hope the boys were able to quit the cigs before it killed them.
Fashion Faux Pas!A wife beater with sandals? How gauche!
Cool.I would have thought these were the coolest kids ever when I was coming up.
Hey!Don't you know kids know smoking will "stunt your growth!!"
His shoesfrom that era MUST be a pair of huaraches. Sure you remember them.
TuffThe kid on the left holds himself with an adult swagger. No doubt that the only kids that would have picked-on these two would have been older siblings.
Six DegreesAnybody else get a Kevin Bacon vibe off the kid on the left? 
Re: Six DegreesI can see Kevin Bacon in him, but to me he looks more like Donald Sutherland. 
Re: Six DegreesHow about a River Phoenix vibe ("Stand by Me") off the kid on the right?
(Cars, Trucks, Buses, Kids, William Gedney)

Porch Light: 1964
... From a series of photos made in 1964 and 1972 by William Gedney documenting the lives of Willie and Vivian Cornett, their 12 children and grandchildren. Gedney Photographs Collection , Duke University. View full size. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/11/2012 - 4:35pm -

Leatherwood, Kentucky, 1964. "Cornett boys sitting on porch lighting cigarette." From a series of photos made in 1964 and 1972 by William Gedney documenting the lives of Willie and Vivian Cornett, their 12 children and grandchildren. Gedney Photographs Collection, Duke University.  View full size.
Anyone rememberwhat the expression was for lighting one cigarette with another, my age has let it escape me.
I agree with WillcI had heard a rather vile expression for the lighting of one cigarette from another and to paraphrase someone else discussing the topic here it was how little monkeys are made not little turkeys.
Those were the daysI grew up in eastern North Carolina and those boys could have been some of my 'down the road' neighbors. And yes, smoking cigarettes was like a rite of passage into young adulthood.
Expletive DeletedThe only expression I ever heard, and I heard it quite often thirty to forty years ago, is probably better left unstated in this far more genteel assembly. 
Re: Anyone rememberAll I can come up with for this is "chain smoking". Been 50 years ago since I did that and 25 years ago since I smoked at all. 
Simpler timesFrom the old Chevy, to the front porch, those Cornett kids lived in the same setting as my cousins back in Boone County MO. You reckon the glass cover on that watt meter has turned purple from the sun yet?
Ice Gang-I'll try and answer your question in the wholesome, family hour kind of way-It's how little turkeys are made.
ElectricityAmazing that they had electricity! I know the area. My Aunt lived in McRoberts and many of her neighbors did not have electricity or indoor facilities. My Aunt was fortunate in that her and the rest of the family had both. Thanks for the photo.
I Was Cool TooI started smoking Winstons when I was 13.  A friend and I would meet after school near a hollow tree in the woods behind my house and light up and be cool. I changed brands a few times and then graduated to menthols to help suppress any coughing.  In time I had a 3+ pack a day habit which lasted about 40 years. One day I figured that enough was enough and I quit, cold turkey.  It was difficult but still a good idea.
I'm still pretty cool though! 
Lighting UpThe one cigarette to another method worked best when it was windy. Another couple of reminisces:
Smoke 'em if you got 'em
Field strip 'em when you're done.
Do I meet them?I was drawn to that area around 1975 by an article in the Louisville Courier-Journal describing a pristine forest which one could tour with the land's owner. Lilly Cornett Woods, according to google maps, lies about eight miles from Leatherwood. We arrived without notice, as the article's author said was the custom, and Ms Cornett, a woman probably in her seventies at that time, agreed to lead my wife and I through her forest. The land had never been lumbered and besides the old growth trees contained many rare plants. The hike was a real treat.
Then we received another treat when she invited us to follow her over to where her younger relatives were holding a coed softball game. My wife opted to watch from beyond center field while I played the game. Ms Cornett and her family could not have been more welcoming, and I treasure that day even now.
Seeing that photo, and the family name, and now knowing that they lived near her Woods; I wonder if these were some of the folks I played with in that pickup game of softball.
(Cornett Family, William Gedney)

Prince Albert: 1964
... The tobacco-loving Cornett boys started early. Gedney Photographs Collection , Duke University. View full size. ... in many of the photos. (Cornett Family, Kids, William Gedney) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/20/2012 - 9:05pm -

Leatherwood, Kentucky, 1964. "Boy covered by dirt smoking cigarette with one hand, holding can of tobacco in other." The tobacco-loving Cornett boys started early. Gedney Photographs Collection, Duke University.  View full size.
Sheesh!Didn't he read the warning on the pack?
Oh, right. Nevermind.
Where's my banjo?This kid looks like the one from the movie "Deliverance."
With some reluctanceI have to say this is the first Shorpshot I enlargenized reluctantly, knowing there'd be no unseen charm or other attractiveness uncovered in Full Size mode. What in the world was happening with this little boy that day to leave him so grimy and dirtstruck? Much worse is imagining that this illustrates several days' accumulation. Lordy, but I do hope his adult life was brighter. Probably not cancer-free, however.
WowI don't have a witty title for this but must state that besides being filthy AND smoking an unfiltered cigarette. I must say that that poor child is remarkably skinny or just desperately hungry and poor.  Look at his shoulders.
This picture just depresses me.
A Common ThreadI wonder who the photographer was who took the series of "Cornett Boys" photos.  They all seem staged to emphasize the early corruption of the brothers.
[The photographer's name is seen twice in this post. - Dave]
Following my post I realized my mistake.
My apologies.
Where are they now?It would be very interesting to know the current status of living members of the family.  Was the next generation able to leave poverty?
[See these comments on two of the other Cornett family photos, here and here. - tterrace]
TareytonWhy so negative? Little boys have lots of fun playing in the mud. How do we know if he wasn't just back from a romp in the mud? How do we know if the cigarette wasn't just a gag for the camera?
On the other hand, junior does look like the type of smoker who'd rather fight than switch.
fun timesJust because he is dirty I don't think it's a bad sign, like commenter Don alluded.  I assume he's been having a great time. This is rural America it was easy to get dirty especially for a kid.  And after a long day of play sometimes you need a nice smoke to calm down.
Alternate universeOpie without the watchful eye of Aunt Bea.
Not so oddThat this kid is sneaking a smoke considering (for the time period 1960+) that almost every adult around him smoked (I remember the same as a kid).  I've been going through the Cornett family photos on the Duke University site, they look like a very close knit normal family who worked hard - they look happy in many of the photos.
(Cornett Family, Kids, William Gedney)

The Brewski Brothers: 1972
... view of the back seat. Print from 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/05/2010 - 6:10pm -

"Cornett family, Kentucky, 1972. Rider in back of car." Continuing the previous post with a view of the back seat. Print from 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University.  View full size.
Imperfect StrangerI realize how impolite it is to point out the physical imperfections of others, especially perfect strangers, but what happened to the guy's hand?
[According to the photographer's notes, it was a birth defect. - Dave]
Amniotic Band SequenceUnilateral, isolated developmental disruptions (of the left hand in this case) are most commonly caused by the amniotic band sequence (1:1200 to 1:15000 live births) hypothesized as likely due to early rupture of the amnion with subsequent anular constriction of appendages early in fetal development.  These cases are usually sporadic, but the differential diagnosis includes the inherited Adams-Oliver syndrome, symbrachydactyly and ectrodactyly.  Without knowing the man's history, and without the benefit of a full examination, the correct diagnosis would remain undetermined.
[Impressive, but needs a bit more research on the difference between left and right. - Dave]
Re: Amniotic Band SequenceDo what now?
This image could be froma Tarantino movie.
Or.... it could be...Love the long-winded explanation of what's 'wrong' with the boy's hand (Unilateral, isolated developmental disruptions, blah, blah, blah). Who's to say it's not bilateral? We only see one hand (P.S. It's the right hand, not the left, Genius).. Besides, could it not be simply the result of an accident of some sort? Maybe he ground it off in the engine of one of the many cars on his property. 
I'm just sayin'.
[Photographer Gedney noted that the hand was a birth defect. The other (intact) hand is seen in other photos. - Dave]
(Cornett Family, On the Road, William Gedney)

Biscayne Barbie: 1972
... of the Cornett clan and its fleet of vehicles. William Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size. ... [I guess a Garnett is what you get when you cross a Gedney with a Cornett. - Dave] "Real Dolls" With twelve kids ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/02/2010 - 2:17pm -

"Cornett family, Kentucky, 1972. Girls playing with Barbie dolls next to parked car." More members of the Cornett clan and its fleet of vehicles. William Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University.  View full size.
BarbiThose aren't Barbie dolls. No doubt, some cheap dime store knockoff. I'm sure after purchasing cigarettes, beer and Chevies for the male Cornetts, there was little left to indulge the girls with hifalutin' playthings.
All you need is imaginationThe standing doll isn't a Barbie.  She's probably one of those cheap knockoffs we all had.  ("We" being little girls in the '60s and '70s.)  They've turned a board into a perfectly fine dollhouse with chairs, a carpet and kitchen -- no matter that they're smaller in scale than the dolls.  I remember gluing small wooden blocks together and coloring them with markers to make chairs for my Barbies.  You don't need pink plastic furniture with the Barbie logo printed on it; you just need some imagination.
The GarnettsI am very much enjoying the montage of the Garnetts.  Thanks.
[I guess a Garnett is what you get when you cross a Gedney with a Cornett. - Dave]
"Real Dolls"With twelve kids and no job, I doubt these Cornett kids expected to get name brands of anything. I met a very poor, aged Oklahoma Dust Bowl farm woman many years ago who told us about some type of shrub or plant that grows in Oklahoma which produces a bud that looks like a tiny baby doll wrapped in a blanket.  The "blanket" can be unwrapped and the pod inside becomes the doll.  Those were the playthings of her and her sisters during the Great Depression.  One splendid quality of children is that they can summon incredible imaginations when they have to and if they have nothing better, they "make do" with what they have.  I have seen city kids with no toys playing with dirt and pebbles on the sidewalk and only they knew what their imaginations pretended to have.  One has to wonder if it causes any real harm to the psyche or if, in fact, it improves their improvisational and inventive skills.  Necessity is the mother of invention. 
[Footnote: "No job" was in 1964. This is eight years later. - Dave] 
Time passes in KentuckyI see this is eight years later than the "All Our Children" family portrait.
I would guess the older girl here is the little blonde sitting on the steps in the 1964 photo. And the little one here must be #13? #15? #20?
[Some of these are Willie and Vivian's grandchildren. These girls might be cousins. - Dave]
Very InterestingCriticism about Barbie dolls being authentic or not, charges of spending more money on Beer and Chevy’s than on Mattel Brand…Real, Official, and Bonafide Barbie Dolls? Are you kidding me here? Are you Really Serious?
We have a picture here of a little girl, about 10 or so, playing with and teaching her Baby Sister about "House" and "Dress" and all of that. Sorry, I am a guy, so I am sure I have missed many other things, but I haven't missed This…
This Sister; not the biggest, and maybe not even the Best, is playing with the Baby Sister, and that, in my mind, Says a lot. Neither gives a ‘Hoot’ if the dolls came from Mattel or the “Dollar Store” of that time, or any place else. The point is…they have Dolls to play with and even Doll Furniture, too. And, they seem to be pretty concentrated and involved in the whole thing…bless them, they Are Happy…and not pretending. 
This little adventure into the Cornett Family has been pretty interesting, and I am quite sure that Dave has been, as I, rather intrigued with the Varied Comments. 
I must admit, like a previous poster, that I was a little “Creeped Out” in the beginning…and I didn’t even have a reason for that feeling…it just was. But, maybe like others, and I know Dave and William Gedney came to this place; I grew to understand this family over time…and to Respect them. I can’t say that I Love them…and only because I don’t Know Them. And, I wish that I did…we have so many of these families today, and always will have.
These are “Poor People” in only the economic sense…and trying their best, too. I have yet to see even One Photo of Unhappiness or Despair displayed in this series.
I see a Father with his Sons, I see Brothers with their Brothers, a Mother with her Daughters; and, I see Sisters with their Sisters… and I see Kindness and Love throughout these photos. 
How could this be more perfect?
One strike for funThat looks like a large box of wooden matches on the "doll house" floor next to Big Sister, probably serving as an key piece of furniture or, on second thought, the discarded box has been put to use (the Cornetts went green!) as a storage container for loose doll accessories and clothing.
These photo-visits with the Cornetts have reminded me of two things: My own good fortune to have had a pretty comfortable childhood, and of the indomitable we-can-handle-it attitude visible in many of the Cornetts' faces which seems to be a rock-solid detail of the American personality. Not all of us have been as blessed as the Cornetts have with such strength and grace. I sure have not. 
Obviously many of the Cornetts we've met are far into their lives. My hope for each of them, and I'm looking at the little girl and her sister as I write this, is that their happy moments far outnumber the sad ones. God bless them all.       
DollikinsNot that it matters, but the doll is called Dollikin. Not a cheap knockoff of a Barbie but her own brand that was sold exclusively at a specific department store. She was even more poseable than Barbies at the time.
This could have been meIn 1972, I was 11, so the girl on the left could have been me.  We lived a similar lifestyle as well.  My dad had returned to college courtesy of the GI Bill and we lived at 50% BELOW poverty level. My point is this: we didn't have much in the material sense, but we always had a good time with the toys we did have.
My sister and I learned to sew making Barbie clothes. Our Barbies were also Renaissance women; they traveled the Great Plains via covered wagons (read shoe boxes being pulled by Breyer horses) as well as fashion models, teachers and undercover FBI agents!
(Cars, Trucks, Buses, Cornett Family, Kids, William Gedney)

Momma: 1964
... on the front porch. Print from 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/05/2010 - 6:28pm -

"Cornett family, Kentucky, 1964." Vivian Cornett (1928-1994) and one of her twelve children on the front porch. Print from 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University.  View full size.
All you needis love, Love. Love is all you need.
M is for ..Love them all equally, make each one feel special. That's what mothers do. Good ones anyway.
Keep 'em coming!This is a great series! My siblings and I grew up in a rural area much like that pictured, and just about the same time. Some of the negative comments remind me of our Northern city cousins. They always seemed to feel sorry for us, and we always felt sorry for them. We stayed close as we grew up while our cousins have suffered a very dysfunctional family life.
Only MotherWe each have only one mother, and only she can provide the comfort and succor we crave. I wonder if it grieved Vivian Cornett that she, her children, and their clothes were so dirty? Or if it was simply a matter of practicality: you do your washing and bathing once a week, and the rest of the time you simply wait it out. Bear in mind this woman was probably no older than her mid-thirties at this time.
I'm NOT an old hippieAt the risk of sounding like one, here are a few lines from a Rod McKuen poem (paraphrased) that popped into my head when I first saw this picture:
Watching children grow
is like threatening the ivy
to climb the garden wall
Giving love to children
has made us older overnight.
I AM old but I'm not a hippie.  This is a photo of a  young woman growing old giving love to children.  It is a beautiful mom and a beautiful child.
Southern ComfortI am from Kentucky. While I love the California photos of tterrace, for instance, they are a world away from what I grew up with. The evocative photos of "country" people and the rural Southern buildings, including the general store photos, speak to my soul in a very special way that sometimes can bring tears to my eyes. They take me home in my mind's eye to a place that is locked away in my heart. Thank you for the best website going.
We know where this is goingPerhaps the Detroit Publishing Company and the National Photo Company Collection have slowed down the supply of glass negatives images from the turn of the century so now Shorpy is filling space with 1964 pictures of rural families.  Coming next will be 1988 photos of Texas kids with kittens and puppies.
[Or perhaps dodos in Ontario. - Dave]
Fierce loveThat's typical of families of that area; strong bonds, holding on to each other to make it through life.  I'm going to ask my father if he knew Willie and Vivian; they're not far from where he grew up and I'm positive they're distant cousins, at least.
Go Joe!Joe Manning, you are our hero, once again!  Please keep us posted!
Momma Cornett: 1964The child is probably Bernice, who was born in 1961. 
The richest people in the worldThe affection shown in this photo is timeless. The times may change, but the special bond between children and parents is eternal. 
It's photos like this that keep me coming back to Shorpy. Love you, guys!
Momma CornettVivian passed away in 1994. I just talked to the daughter of one of the boys in the photo. She confirmed that the girl is Bernice. I am hoping to arrange an interview if the family is willing.
[Thank you, Joe! - Dave]
AmericanaThanks for this series, Dave.  The strength of this country was derived from the courage, sacrifice, hard work and love of people like these. I reckon a foreigner just ain't gonna understand.
Not ALL DodosAs non-Dodo Ontarian, I would just like to say that I appreciate ALL the photos posted on Shorpy.
Thank you, JoeBecause I am of Appalachian heritage (southwestern Virginia, Scotch-Irish, Cherokee, other), I felt as if I were back in my mother's stomping grounds while looking at the Cornett family series. Hoping that Joe Manning would show up to give the circularity and connection he so often can, I can only sit here and say, "Thank you, Joe."
Wow,just wow.  William Gedney knew how to make the connection between subject and viewer, didn't he? Keep 'em coming, Dave.  These photos are touching a soft, warm spot in the hearts of many of us. Thanks.
Another Then and Now, sortaI grew up on the iron range of northern Minnesota. We kids rode our bikes through the ore residue, and ran races through the dust, and thought nothing of it. Then our mother got ahold of us. "Soap and water is cheap. Don't come in my house with that dirt on you." We did not have junk cars either, but we knew kids who did and thought it was cool. Life was a better then. We had more money than the Cornetts, and looking at Mrs. Cornett snuggling her baby I think "I wish she had been my mother." I also think "12 kids!! I hope she could afford a doctor to tie a knot in her bladder. Yikes!"
Shorpy is just the best! I enjoy it so very much and Dave, your comments are always spot on !
Cornett FamilyI talked again to the daughter of one of the boys in the family. She called her grandfather, Willie, the father in the picture. He prefers that I do not interview the family, for privacy reasons. I am disappointed, but that has to be respected. However, he mentioned that there is a well-known book about William Gedney and his writings about the family. It's called "What Was True: The Photographs and Writings of William Gedney." It's currently out of print, but expensive used copies are listed on Amazon. There is also the Duke University website devoted to the works of Gedney, including a gallery of the Cornett family photos.
(Cornett Family, William Gedney)

All Our Children: 1964
... and twelve children." Print from 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/13/2011 - 11:04pm -

Leatherwood, Kentucky, 1964. "Entire Cornett family on porch; Willie, Vivian and twelve children." Print from  35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size.
Now that takes ingenuityand fortitude to raise 12 kids as an unemployed coal worker (or his wife!) They look like a pretty happy bunch overall. 
That poor womanIn more than one sense of the word.  My guess is she only had a couple non-pregnant years in the last 16.
Not that I'm pitying her.  They seem, and probably were, a happy bunch.
I am reminded of a line from a movie -- I can't recall the title just now -- an admonishment to be wary of a certain family: "Watch yourself. There's a whole lot of 'em and they stick together."
Not buying itWho ever anointed women "the weaker sex" was a damned fool.
"High Explosives"What exactly WAS in the box, bottom left? Great pic. Betcha she dipped snuff.
Let me be the first to say"Good night, John-Boy!"
What's in the box?Just the requisite stuff for any kid growing up in Kentucky in the 60's -- an American Cyanamid dynamite crate.
Footwear12 kids, 2 adults = three pairs of shoes and one pair of flip-flops. Not too many socks got lost in this house.
Handsome FamilyWow, what a great-looking family. Even if the brother in the back on our right does give me a bit of that "Deliverance" feeling.
Share and share alikeI would be willing to bet there was not even one spoiled brat in the entire dozen.  
They're out there nowClassmates.com has ten Cornetts from Leatherwood High School in this era. Before long Shorpy will be hearing from them!
More than a Part Time JobShe was pregnant a total of 108 months - or 12 nine years. Holy smokes.
[Assuming there were no multiple births. - Dave]
No TVI'll betcha!
Actually, she was pregnant "only" 9 years108 months divided by 12 is 9 years not 12 (assuming no multiple births and no more kids after this picture). A nice looking family. I was 6 years old when this was taken and I thought one of my neighbors with eight kids was a big family. But what did I know being only 6?
Cornett HospitalityI found some more photos and info about the photographer here.  He stayed with the family in their home for 11 days in 1964 and revisited them in 1972.
Fit and trimNotice that none of the kids are fat. Or the parents. Lots of hard work and play in that family. Who says kids have it better today?
I'd like to see a book made of their livesThey all look happy and healthy. Wish we could follow up with them - what a great book that would be! Mom and Dad deserve kudos for being strong adults.
My grandmaMy paternal grandmother bore 18 kids, 17 before she was 29! Yep, these people could be my relatives. My parents are from Oklahoma and Kansas, BTW, but these could definitely be my relatives!
How many are alive today?It's only 46 years, but accidents do happen.
I bet that every one of those surviving have an internet connection in their home. That is how much things have changed.
I do so hope to be here in another 46 years.
What matters mostIt's easy to make fun and belittle people who are less fortunate and impoverished, but I'll bet their lives were a lot richer than most. Education, money and mean-spirited wit -- those things are valuable to the small minded. Kindness, compassion, and good manners are far better things to value.  I'd say that everyone in that photo looks happy, in spite of their impoverished circumstances. That's one up on most people these days.
If I may Pollyanna this a bitIt was God Who proclaimed woman the "weaker vessel" and He is most certainly no "damned fool." What He meant was, most women are weaker physically than most men. Emotionally, it has been my experience that women are generally more so than men, at least superficially, but when push comes to shove and there's a crisis on the home front, the woman's inner strength kicks in and often exceeds the man's. And having known the glory of motherhood four times myself, and being able to state unequivocally that my children are the best things that have ever happened to me apart from their own father, I believe Mrs. Cornett, despite her obvious life of hardship economically speaking, was blissful in motherhood and overall a happy woman. I hope she's still with us and if not, that she lived long and that those kids cherished her the way they ought to have done, to the very end. And I hope they still miss her.
That Could Be Meon the far left standing on the porch. I was 4 years old in 1964. I wasn't anywhere near Kentucky then, but I would have liked to have known this family if I were. No frills living and I'll bet Mother Cornett always had lunch ready for other neighborhood kids that were playing there that day. I'd like to see a current family tree for this clan - probably quite a few grand and great-grandkids by now.
[No doubt, although I don't know if you could say that this rural household was part of any neighborhood. - Dave]
Love conquereth allMy first thought is that the mother, Vivian (name of my last child), was the mortar in the wall comprising this fortress.  I'll bet her every child loved her fiercely, and she them.  Dads are harder to figure out, often aloof, and shielded by kids and mother from the daily trials.
It can't have been easy, but I am sure they were basically happy.  Vivian died relatively young.  My hope is that she had many grandkids close by in her last six or seven years.
[Vivian had plenty of grandkids in just a few years, as the 1972 photos show. - Dave]
Weaker vesselWow, no wonder the earth is becoming over-populated!
Also, let's just clarify that god didn't write the bible, sexist goat-herding men did. Read it thoroughly and you'll realize that the authors are very clear that they consider women lesser in every way than men.  Nice try though.
(Cornett Family, Kids, Portraits, Rural America, William Gedney)

Framed: 1972
... in "Chevy Men." Print from 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/05/2010 - 6:09pm -

"Cornett family, Kentucky, 1972. Boy looking out from truck bed." The youngster seen earlier in "Chevy Men." Print from 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University.  View full size.
Early Morning MistHaving once spent a short time in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee, this picture is reminiscent of a very early morning on the acreage when there was work to be done as the young boy looks like he was made to awake very early and help with harvesting or farm work with the rest of the family, as he appears tired and not too happy.  The foggy atmosphere and damp dewiness of the background makes me feel as though I'm there.  Can't you just feel the moistness which permeates the morning? 
A perfect pictureThe framing, depth of field and grain of this photo are simply perfect. I hope Mr. Gedney gave the boy's mother a copy!
(Cars, Trucks, Buses, Cornett Family, Kids, William Gedney)

Close to You: 1972
... seemed to congregate around cars. Photograph by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/05/2010 - 6:10pm -

"Cornett family, Kentucky, 1972. Girls by car." The Cornett women, like the menfolk, seemed to congregate around cars. Photograph by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University.  View full size.
The Important QuestionWhat model Chevys are these?
ExpressionismThese beautiful young women seem very guarded if not very dubious. Is it the photographer or is it the era? There is a vast gulf between these expressions and those of half a century or more before these were taken.
Not quite the sameThe Cornett ladies differ from the Cornett menfolk in that they have shirts on.
The tough yearsYou can't make us smile,  We are trying to be cool and not too eager!  Great picture!!  Love his work.
Cooool!Love this picture
Barefoot girls dancing in the moonlightThese girls could bring to life the John Fogerty lyric in "Green River."
It's a good thingThe Cornett women sure are a lot prettier than the men are handsome!
It's just a family photographtaken by a skilled professional photographer. Good composition, good lighting, nice hair, smooth skin, eyes that look right at me ... where was I?
BaristasThese two could be leaning on the counter of any trendy coffee shop in the US today.  Their hair and clothes are right in style, and their indifferent expressions are (I hate to say it) typical.
(Cars, Trucks, Buses, Cornett Family, William Gedney)

Car Talk: 1972
... post from this series. Print from 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/05/2010 - 6:09pm -

"Cornett family, Kentucky, 1972." Battery transplant for the 1957 Ford seen in the previous post from this series. Print from 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University.  View full size.
HoodiesI wonder if they took the battery from the '65 Ford in the background. The '57's front-hinged hood was a reminder to me of my second vehicle, a 1946 Hudson Super Six. The hood also opened that way.
Let's get this wrapped up, quick.The beer store closes in 20 minutes.
Reverse alligator hoodSafer if the latch gives while the car is moving.  Still seen today on such as various Corvette models and a certain PV-544 Volvo in my garage.  Wonder if there was a Ford side and a Chevy side to the family?
Old Car ParadiseIf the Cornett family still has the same place they did then, it would be a car restorer's treasure trove. Apparently they did not get rid of any old cars.
Best of TimesOh, for the roar of V-8's in the early seventies.  I was filling my '66 Fairlane up in '72 with 102 octane Chevron Supreme for 29.9 cents a gallon.  Bought it by the "dollar's worth" and had enough to cruise into town 10 miles away, drive around a bit and then head for Cal's Drive-In, home of the 19 cent hamburger where we would fill up on five for less than a buck.
JuicedAt least they had a good battery. Neat to see an old Interstate from back then.
Hood's Up!My second car was a 1958 Ford Custom 300 two-door hardtop with the 332 V-8 Interceptor.  This is a '57-'59 but I can't get enough visual cues to determine which.  It looks like it has a two-barrel carb, so it's probably a 292 or 312. What I can see of the dash should clarify the year, but I just can't remember, it's been 42 years since I traded it off. The car in the background is a '65 Ford, which my mother bought brand new from my Ford dealer uncle.
All generalizations.....I think it's pretty impressive the way Lou can determine the IQ of a person from a 38 year old b&w photo. Of course he is the "smart one" of the familyf.
Enough of the rednecks!I don't expect you to publish this, but i am really tired of these yahoos polluting the Shorpy goodness. I have a dozen or so cousinfs who look like this and seem about as unintelligent.
Please, back to the past again, please! If you are taking votes, put me down for two against more of these rednecks aqnd their polluting vehicles!
Thanks. Not just the subject, but I'd prefer seeing nothing on Shorpy from later than 1950 (my birthdate).
Lou
[Nothing worse than an unintelligent counsinf. - Dave]
ConfoundingI don't understand how pants can  be fitted so as to lack a belt, while not creating a roll of fat, while not being loose so as to display underwear. I have never seen the like in today's America.
We're all wonderingDoes anyone have any info on where the guys are now??
Recycling, what's that?I wonder what they did with the dead batteries (and used oil when they changed their own, which they surely did).  In those pre-EPA days they very likely just dumped the batteries into the nearest stream or ravine.  Oil?  No sense catching it, just unscrew the drain plug and let it drain into the ground.  Today, I wonder if the property is eligible for Superfund cleanup.  
Indiana state inspection stickerThis car must've came from Indiana at one time, note the State of Indiana inspection sticker on the corner of the windshield. Don't think they took the battery from the 65 Ford, the battery looks like it's still in its box.
Hood's Up IIDumb me!  All I had to do was look down two photos and see the front end of this 1957 Ford, the year Ford outsold the future iconic Chevy!  Whodathunkit!  Had any number of those Interstate batteries and its heavy duty sibling the Megatron back in the day.  They'll get good service out of it.  For whatever reason, Ford continued the use of the rear-opening hood through '69 on the Lincolns.
It's all about you, Lou."I'd prefer seeing nothing on Shorpy from later than 1950 (my birthdate)."
That pretty much tells us everything we need to know about Lou.
Thank God for rednecks who can fix our cars, grow our food, and keep our beer distributors in business!  Where would this country be without them?
I, for one, love rednecks and despise snobs who look down their noses at them!
That ain't no 2 barrel carbThat is a Holley 4150 4 barrel.  Note the rear metering block.  The stock 4V Holleys for regular Ford engines were 4160 types without the rear metering block.  The 4150/4160 was not in production in 1957.  In 1957 the Holley 4V was still the model 4000 "teapot".  
The presence of the 4150 carb suggests non-stock speed parts.  The level of the carb in the engine bay suggests the Y block engine has been replaced, probably with an FE series mill (352, 390, 406, 427, 428).  My '58 Ford has a 352 with Tri-Power, sits at about the same level.  Sure wish there was a shot of the engine.
The Other HalvesAccording to the CIA, the median age of Americans is 36.7 years and the median age of the world's population is a mere 24.3 years.. Therefore, more than half of Americans alive today and three quarters of the world population were not yet born when these Cornett family photos were taken. Shorpy's peeks at the Cornetts inform most Americans and a huge majority of the world what life was like here way back when.
The CIA Factbook population numbers are kind of scary -- the median age in Afghanistan and Angola is 18, 16.8 in Burkina Faso and Burundi, and only 15 in Uganda and Niger. The oldest median ages reported were in Germany and Japan at 44+ years.
Lookey LouI wonder which of those "rednecks" did Lou's last brake job. Maybe a compression test would be in order.  Seems the head bolts are a bit over-torqued.
Easy there Lou!Getting a wee bit cranky in your old age?
Dave, you got me there ... and I Love It!I relied too much on Spell Check and the inability of one to overlook ones own spelling errors. I am still laughing at my error -- or was it? We did indeed turn a wrench ... and on the Rare Occasion a wench, too.
Thanks, I really needed a good laugh today ... you're Great!
[Aw shucks. - Dave]
The Best of the Cornett Boys & FriendsBoy, I sure was glad to see Jay comment here, he was just in front of my thoughts. As to Lou, well, too bad for him and his poor relation "cousinfs." They may have been the better portion of the family -- but I digress.
I grew up in the South Chicago Suburbs, so although not down in Kentucky, my friends and I did the same thing as the Cornett boys…we were all over cars, and motorcycles. Oh, and my Wrangler Jeans never saw a belt and never fell from my waist, either.
My best friend had two vehicles, a 1939 Harley Knucklehead 61 CI and a Studebaker pickup, about a 1952. I drove, or rode both, and I still ride today, thanks to Mike.
My point is that Cars, Motorcycles, Cigarettes, and Beer were the topics of the day, and then the occasional Girl. The Studebaker didn't ever have a working starter, at least an electrical one. Our Band of Brothers just pushed it and one of us would pop the clutch in 2nd gear to start the flat head six. We went everywhere in this truck, two or three in the cab and then others back in the bed. We never gave any of this a second thought. And, all of us could "turn a wench," so we just had Fun with our Boy Toys.
So, Kentucky or Chicago, or any place else, it doesn’t make a difference. The Cornett Boys and we Yankees had Very Much in common. Good Times!
["All of us could turn a wench" -- simultaneously? - Dave]
How 'bout it?Some more of the sisters. Or did the boys hog all the spotlight?
[Maybe so, just by virtue of their greater numbers. But there are more to come of the girls. - Dave]
New Hampshire redneck!Grew up and lived in southern New Hampshire during this time. This photo looks like any of our back yards on a weekend during the summer. So much for it being a "Southern thing"! Funny thing is I go back there to visit friends and family after all these years we'll still gather around someone's new car and  shoot the breeze. Cars, fast cars, women, and beer! Nice to have a little sameness in life.
Enough, Already!Re: Cornett family photos.  Frankly they remind me too much of my youth in the 50s.  I've got lots of equally period photos if you need them.
Jimbo's vintage snapshots>> I've got lots of equally period photos if you need them.
Yeah, but there's a difference -- Gedney's photos are amazingly good and evocative.
There's a Corvairback there.
'Shiners?These guys may well be souping up their car for a moonshine run.  You had to have hot cars to keep ahead of the "Revenuers". This is the way NASCAR got its start!
As for Lou, a lot of us come from redneck roots, even if we are card carrying liberals today.  Therefore, Lou, you may be making fun of our relatives.  Get over yourself and live with the pictures of people who aren't as fortunate as you.
Corvair? Back there? Where?It looks like a 1963 Chevrolet Impala/Biscayne to me.
I am referencing the car (in the right background of the photo) that can be seen over the left shoulder of the guy holding the car battery. The car is also partially obscured by the hatless head of another family member.
If you enlarge the photo and look closely at this car in the background, you can see the straight, shiny, chrome trim on the turned down front edge of the hood as well as just  above the outer-headlight bezel trim. This particular chrome trim is indicative of the '63 model Chevy Impala.
Upon further inspection of the enlarged photograph, this car also has a front grille between the headlights.
A Corvair does not have a front grille. It does have two elongated rear grilles below the bottom edge (rear cowl area) of the back window glass.
[You're half right. The car is not a Corvair, but it's not an Impala, either. It's a circa 1965 Malibu.  - Dave]
(Cars, Trucks, Buses, Cornett Family, William Gedney)

Willie and Vivian: 1964
... coal miner, and wife Vivian had 12 children when William Gedney snapped this exposure on his first visit with the Cornett family. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/02/2010 - 2:17pm -

"Leatherwood, Kentucky, 1964. Willie and Vivian Cornett sitting on porch." Willie, a recently laid off coal miner, and wife Vivian had 12 children when William Gedney snapped this exposure on his first visit with the Cornett family. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University.  View full size.
Must be Date NightThese days marriage counselors and psychologists tell married couples they have to keep the romance and magic in their relationships by having a date night about once per week, spending leisure time alone together.  I'm pretty sure the rural living and low income for the Cornetts in Leatherwood, Kentucky, made for this kind of "alone time" that was simple and free of charge as they appear to be shelling peas or stringing green beans together.  Note how she is watching out of the corner of her eye to make sure he does it right.  This heartwarming photo really portrays the simplicity of that time and place in an austere environment which still manages to convey a certain intimacy in their leisure time together.
pPodsLooks to me like they are "snapping" peas in the the pod. You had to "snap" the pod to get the peas out before you could cook them.  
I recall seeing my great-aunts doing just that on the back porch of their farmhouse in the fifties. 
Solid citizensThey look well groomed and clean, as is their porch (notice the broom in the background?). The husband's shirt may be holey - but hey, it's an undershirt. They look like a great team. They are doing the best they can given the times, and they certainly don't seem like "complainers" to me. I bet they raised solid adults. 
Fearless. I tell yaI have a feeling that there is nothing in the world that could scare a Cornett. With every Gedney shot you post, I grow more and more curious as to what has become of them.
Thanks again Dave, for all you do on shorpy.
(Cornett Family, Rural America, William Gedney)

This Old Ford: 1972
... what Cornett men do. Print from 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/05/2010 - 6:09pm -

"Cornett family, Kentucky, 1972. Looking under hood of car." The Cornett men doing what Cornett men do. Print from 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University.  View full size.
Got to be SundayTwo of them boys is wearin' shirts.
Clothing VortexThe Cornetts' cars must have been something like Charlie Brown's "kite-eating tree," the only difference being that they sucked the shirt right off you as soon as you popped the hood.
Equal opportunityWell, they're under the hood of a '57 Ford, so we know they're not just Chevy men.
MotivationThe question is, is it a 292 or a 312?
(Cars, Trucks, Buses, Cornett Family, William Gedney)

Me and My RC: 1972
... food at the table." Print from a 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/05/2010 - 8:23pm -

Leatherwood, Kentucky, 1972. "Cornett family. Little boy taking a bite of food at the table." Print from a 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size.
PhotointerpretationTo save time and effort, potential commenters may simply respond by number:
1. Adorable scene of cute kid attempting to wolf down a burger in one bite
2. Early days of a future axe-murderer
I pick ...#1. 
Back in the ancient dazeBack before Big Gulps, way back in 1972, sodas were bought in returnable bottles. The 7-Eleven stores in the DC area had coolers out front, on the sidewalk, with Pepsi, Coke and RC. Since the RC was 16 ounces and the others were 12, over half of the cooler was RC. A big big seller in '72.  
I remember seeing RC ColaI remember seeing RC Cola available quite a bit when I lived in Kentucky from 1993-2001. Even better was a regional cola called Ale-8-One made in Winchester, KY. It tasted something like ginger ale. 
Third Choice#3. Someone I've never met and know nothing about, not that that will keep me from passing judgment on his intelligence, character, and future prospects. 
Love the plateI'm struck by seeing the Currier & Ives plate in use. I'm slowly assembling a 12-place setting, piece by piece.  Whenever I find them in an antique shop (they're quite common here in MO) I wonder about the items' history; their backstory.  My grandma got me started on the collection; she got several bits and pieces back when they first came out.  I love using the same plates that my grandpa (who I never got to meet), mom, aunt and uncle all used.
Corny?  Yes.  Sorry.
RC in KYI  don't know about today, but RC Cola owned a lot of the market in Kentucky in the '70s.
Are there peanuts in that RC?And where is the Moon Pie?
Also I pick #1.
Give the kid a Moon PieThat's the best dessert with an RC Cola. Love the plate! And the kid is absolutely adorable. Little towhead, God love him.
Barechested CornettsI don't understand why the males in the Cornett family don't wear shirts.  Not a judgment, just an observation.  But I LOVE the photos - very real and down to earth!  I feel the Cornett family was "salt of the earth".  Thanks again, Shorpy!
Cornett familyJoe Manning again. Kentucky birth records show that the little boy is Terry Allen Cornett, born June 18, 1968.
Does it get better than that?!Burger, chips and a bottle of RC cola... the best meals of my youth!
It reminds me in 1990 when as I rookie firefighter I fought a big one in a plant where those bottles were made and I was allowed to keep a bottle as a souvenir.  18 years after this photo was taken, the bottle I picked up had not changed.
RC Cola, Nectar of My Youth!In my teenaged years I drank RC exclusively. Our RC bottler offered the prizes under the cork of the cap, up to $10. I won a lot of 10 cent prizes, which back in the early to mid sixties would buy you an RC (plus deposit). This bottle dates to the early seventies. The RC diamond logo was used from around 1958 through the sixties.
Royal Crown ColaI remember RC cola well.  It was cheaper than Coca-Cola, so that's what Mom usually bought, when she bought soda at all.  Most of the time we got Kool-Aid.
It looks like he's eating a hot dog in a bun, rather than a hamburger.
#1.....of course!Yes, the summertime lunch of champions!
Kate-Good call on the plate. 
Jenny-Loved the dogsitting story on your website! 
Aunt Lottie's FarmWhen our family drove down to the Eastern Shore of Maryland to visit our
great aunt Lottie, one of our pleasures there as kids was walking down to
the little country store for a big RC Cola. I believe they were a nickel.
We never saw the like in N.Y. Exotic!
The Blue FarmI have that plate. Here it is:
http://www.hearthworks.net/blue_farm/index.html
Under the capI remember in the era that RC had a surpise under the cap od some bottles. Somewhere around 1965-66 I won five bucks! Given that you could buy both an RC and Twinkies for 25 cents, five bucks was a huge deal.
China backstoryThe Currier and Ives china pattern was everywhere in the early/mid 1960s. The color and border design were inspired by traditional "Blue Willow" patterns; the scenes are simplified versions of famous Currier and Ives engravings. The china was given away/sold at major U.S. grocery chains. I believe it was manufactured in Japan. One received a free piece for spending so much money on groceries and could then purchase additional pieces quite cheaply. While it's far from fine china, many people prized it. In my family, it was used for Sunday dinner and holidays -- not for daily use -- so I suppose we might have been even more frugal than the Cornetts. 
Planters Peanuts and RC ColaBack in the 50's and 60's RC was behind only Coke, Pepsi, and Dr Pepper in sales. However, in many parts of the country they were the number one soda to pour your package of peanuts in.
The lightingon this photo is superb.  Beautiful picture!
I  like the dimples in his handThis kid is enjoying a bunch of sugar, salt, and God knows how much trans fat.  He looks healthy enough to me. So, before the finger-wagging food police start, remember we've also seen Mom stringing plenty of fresh green beans or shelling peas.  Nobody in this family is obese, and Vivian looks pretty clean, crisp, and trim for a woman who has borne and is raising 12 children.  They must have found the right nutritional balance somehow or other. 
Plate!My grandmother had some plates with the same scene, but they were green, not blue, and I don't think they were Currier and Ives.  The plates were precious in our family.  She only had 2 dinner size plates and you were the lucky one if you got to eat off one of the plates with the scene.  After she passed, the plates were given to the two grandsons in the family.  I have such great memories of those plates. In fact, when this page was first published, I sent a link to my sister with the subject "Look at the plate!"
(Cornett Family, Kids, William Gedney)

Flying: 1972
... we saw earlier. Print from 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/05/2010 - 6:11pm -

"Cornett family, Kentucky, 1972." A Cornett boy and one of his Buds in that Chevy convertible we saw earlier. Print from 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University.  View full size.
It's safer than textingAt least he has his eyes on the road.
Been there, done alot of thatAh youth, 1977, '66 Olds Toronado, Strohs or Bud, occasionally Schoenlings Little Kings cream ale, Salems by the carton and Craig cassette stereo cranked up to the top, probably Doobie Brothers, or Marshall Tucker band. Thank heavens that damn thing had the Divine Intervention Option or I would have been a goner, wish I could do it all over again. Keep up the posts, could have had a ball with these guys even though I'm From Ohio.
ShiftlessWhere did the shift lever go?
[Moved downstairs, I'll bet. - Dave]
MemoriesHand cranked car windows.
Chevy Super SportThat tachometer might mean this was a Chevy Super Sport. You could get it with a column-mounted manual shift although this probably had an automatic transmission that was switched out in favor of a three-speed manual with floor shifter. As would befit any self-respecting good ole boy.
KeylessIt's a brave photographer who gets into a car that's been hotwired with a man who's been drinking.
[The key would be in the ignition, which would be on the dashboard (he said, steadying himself on his cane). The hole is where the shift lever used to be. - Dave]
Well, this answers one question... Do any of the brothers own a shirt?
Vent WindowWhat's missing from today; really miss them.
The Hazards of Duke?Speeding down the road, chugging beers.  I bet they rarely opened the doors to get in or out -- just slipped through the open window.
'64 SSIf this is the same car shown earlier it's not a Super Sport. The SS had a single, wider side-spear trim, not the U-shaped twin spear in the photo. Interior would have has a SS trim button on the door and a factory installed floor shift, so there would never have been a column shift. As for the tach, it was an option, my high school '64 Super Sport never had one, had to mount a Sun tach on the dash (not that it was needed with that old Powerglide. Thanks for steadying that cane.
Gulp!That appears to be a steel can.
Sleazy RidersHunting for hippies, no doubt.
Hey, hold my beer and watch this --Sometimes the last words heard on the "black box" recorders in these cars of the South.
Beer / PitchingReminds me of the good old early 70's - tossing empty Miller Pony bottles at highway signs while standing up in my friend's 1970 Grand Prix sunroof - careening down a twisting highway of course. It's a wonder I'm still here!
Here's JohnnyBefore I even saw the Dukes of Hazzard comment (and not necessarily connected to it), I thought this guy had a serious Johnny Knoxville thing going on. And not just because he seems to be doing something stupid. Great photo.
(Cars, Trucks, Buses, Cornett Family, William Gedney)

Young America: 1964
... Teenage boy smoking." An image from photographer William Gedney's first visit with the Cornett family in Leatherwood, Kentucky. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/02/2010 - 2:17pm -

"Cornett family, 1964. Teenage boy smoking." An image from photographer William Gedney's first visit with the Cornett family in Leatherwood, Kentucky. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University.  View full size.
Sweet, wholesome peopleWhat worldview must one have to look at a photograph of two little girls playing with dolls and determine from that alone that they are not "sweet, wholesome people."
Poverty is a social situation, not a moral one, and does not preclude sweetness and wholesomeness any more than wealth guarantees it.  Drawing conclusions and making assumptions about personalities from photographs is always risky, but drawing conclusions about the morals of children from a photograph is pathological.
[Another questionable assumption might that of "poverty." - Dave]
Leatherwood KY isnot too far south of Cornettsville KY
Roll your ownNot my favorite pic of this family, but shows true teenage life and reminds me of my early teenage years. Everyone remembers the feeling of that first drag on a cig and your lungs trying to tell you "no way". In my case the peer pressure won the day, sadly. On the other hand, I quit many, many years ago before the damage was done.
Still Alive?The boy might be, if he ever stopped smoking. 
Answered PrayersIf I were Truman Capote, I might be inspired to write a novel.
Excellent!That is a great photo, thanks!!
Rural lifeI have lived in a very rural area all my life.  I enjoy this web site more than I can describe, especially the photos of families, but this collection gives me the creeps.
Creeps and rednecks!Your creepy feelings are probably justified. These are not sweet wholesome people, even the girls and Barbies.
Raising tobaccoOne thing for people to keep in mind is that Kentucky is a huge tobacco growing state. Tobacco was cheap, readily available and, let's not forget, socially acceptable (dare I say popular?) in 1964. My father, born and raised in Pike County , has been smoking since he was 10 and now he's 64. This was absolutely not uncommon in Eastern Kentucky in those days.  
StereotypingI'm glad we've gotten past that now.
(Cornett Family, William Gedney)

Looking Back: 1972
... and their cars. Print from 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University. View full size. ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/05/2010 - 6:11pm -

"Cornett family, Kentucky, 1972. Family in car, baby looking back." Our daily dose of the Cornetts and their cars. Print from 35mm negative by William Gedney. Gedney Photographs and Writings Collection, Duke University.  View full size.

Bettsie, Bottsie and Bobby
Photo taken in front of my family's then-home at 2 Gedney Way in Newburgh, NY, probably on Easter Sunday in 1941, but no later ... 
 
Posted by wilso127 - 09/16/2010 - 8:30am -

Photo taken in front of my family's then-home at 2 Gedney Way in Newburgh, NY, probably on Easter Sunday in 1941, but no later than 1942. In the foreground is myself, "Bobby" Wilson, and behind me are, at the left, Bob "Bettsie" Betts, my older sister's early high school sweetheart, and to the right, Don "Bottsie" Bott. Bettsie joined the Navy the following year and never returned to Newburgh. Bottsie lived in Newburgh for the remainder of his life and died only last year. And there I am today, in Beaufort SC, still wondering how I ever ended up here. View full size.
(ShorpyBlog, Member Gallery)
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