February 16, 2017, The News- Page 11


House in Washington. And, even to Europe. That tour raised enough money to get the univer- sity out of debt, buy land for the Fisk campus, and build Jubilee Hall which we can still see today on the Fisk University campus. Another big attraction in the Old City Cemetery is the grave of Captain William Driver (1803- 1886). He is the person who gave the American flag the name “Old Glory”. William Driver was an old sea


captain. He flew his country's flag from the mast of his first vessel on a voyage to the South Pacific. Driver moved from Massachusetts to Nashville in 1837. Two of his brothers lived here. Captain Driver became a member of Christ Church Cathedral which is still located at the corner of Ninth Avenue and Broadway.


Of the many other notable


people buried in the Old City Cemetery, there are Senator Felix Grundy, Governor William Carroll, General Felix Zollicoffer, Mr and Mrs. Henry M. Rutledge whose fathers signed the Declaration of Independence, Timothy Demonbreun, a trader and Nashville politician, and 14 mayors of Nashville, among many others.


A trip to the Old City Cemetery would be valuable for everyone. A city's population needs to have a knowledge and understanding of its history so that the city has a foundation of values to offer its citizens. History is alive at Fourth


Avenue South and Oak Street. E. D. Thompson can be con-


tacted at thompsonia04@att.net A monument in memory of Ephraim Foster. Writings from the Past for the Future


by Kathryn Huddleston, Ph.D. “Fake News” appears to be the


new phrase of the decade. Blogs, heretofore credible magazines, mainstream television and even some cable shows, e-mails, and instagrams: all are filled with biased statements that often appear to be pulled out of the air but believed if repeated enough. Somehow they become a basis for arguments. Furthermore, no longer can we rely on a vehicle such as Snopes or Google to know whether something is true because of their own political agendas. So maybe the only way to really know what is true is to rely on one’s own primary research, not secondary. English professors used to insist that primary research had to be the actual Congressional Record or a news channel such as C-Span for what’s happening in Congress. Here again how tiring is it to hear political leaders pontificate or filibuster hours on end just to delay or advance a single point? Therefore, one of the most


credible and interesting readings and writings today relates to one’s own family history and histories of other families. When this activity is done, often the reader gets an insight into more than just the family characters. Woven in and out of letters and other documents (including pictures) is material about the culture of that time. Clearly lessons of the past can help provide help for the future. Some can reap encouragement from reading about courageous acts displayed by their ancestors – but at the same time avoid some mistakes which may have


gotten their


ancestors into an embarrassing jam!


Years ago Tom Peters wrote In


Search of Excellence, in which he purports that with increased technology comes a greater interest in what he calls “high touch,” interacting with people on a personal basis. With the surge of social media over the past 15 years, studying and preserving families’


histories has become very popular. However, often those interested don’t have the time to research nor the writing skills to preserve their research in a way to pique interest from others. Fortunately, Judith Parrish Broadbent of Nashville has used her previous varied work experiences to develop a business that is focused on stories that preserve family and local history. Broadbent, a free-lance writer and teacher, has always held a keen interest in archival material and is now elevating that avocation into a vocation. She says, “Many families have


invaluable stories that


contribute to the overall knowledge of the area and to their own families.” In her new business she will produce a lasting record of a family’s history through letters and other documents. Ms. Broadbent has about 30


years of teaching experience in art, English, and science, and in all of them, she has tried to integrate an appreciation of local history in one way or the other. She recalls one


generational family member over 60 and write a character story about them. She explains that though some weren’t too excited to do it in the beginning, almost all admitted they gained knowledge about their heritage they wouldn’t have had otherwise. Some stories were pretty shocking, such as the young boy who discovered that his great grandfather had to spend time in the attic coffin when he was bad! This interest in Nashville history is also illustrated in the English class she teaches at the Nossi College of Art. She requires her students to take walks around Nashville, in a particular path, not just to know the architecture and style, as is emphasized at Nossi, but to also understand the history of the various buildings and the culture of Nashville at the time they were built.


In 2013 Ms. Broadbent co-


authored with her daughter a paper- back entitled Golden Days: Stories and Poems from the Central South and Beyond, which is a combination of family legend and historical fact. The book is filled with short stories (“slightly embellished,” she says in her delightful way) that enhance local and family history. Alariça Kathryn Broadbent, her daughter, is a free lance artist and supports Judith’s work with her own work in oils, pastels and graphite. She designed the cover of this paper- back and contributed some of the poems in the book. Ms. Broadbent was in the first


During Ms. Broadbentʼs re- search she discovered a photo of her grandfather Robert William Reich, Senior Supervisor of Pitney Bowes boarding the first Eastern commercial flight from Nashville.


example when she taught at MBA. The homework assignment was for her students to interview an older


group of the Governor’s Academy of Teachers of Writing, a two week workshop and writing laboratory for English teachers, funded by the Tennessee Department of Education and the governor’s office, at UT Knoxville. She holds a Master’s Degree from the Uni- versity of Memphis in Individual Studies, a program for gifted students. She presently is an adjunct English professor at Columbia State Community College and Nossi College of Art. She has also taught science and English at Tennessee State University.


Judith Broadbent pictured with her book entitled Golden Days


In her new business of helping


families in their quest to discover their own family “stories,” her three step process includes: (1) inter- viewing family members and recording their stories; (2)


trans-


cription and writing of stories, done by Judith in consultation with the family; and (3) collection of documents and pictures to ac- company the writing and final editing of materials. The number of hours for each step will be


determined by how much the customer wants included, and the overall cost will be negotiated from that amount of time and the complexity of the project. Printing is a separate cost and negotiated with a local printer. Appointments are now available.


Those interested should contact Judith Broadbent directly at email adreadne@mac.com or telephone (615) 400-6954.


Researching family history through letters and other documents. This is a paid advertisement


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