(MY GRANDPARENTS, LOUISE LYNCH TAYLOR PARENTS)

JOE AND LULU RAISE FOUR CHILDREN, ONE MOVES IN WITH UNCLE AND AUNT

Louise (Lynch) Taylor's life story would be incomplete without telling a bit about the Joe and Lulu Lynch family. Their first home was on North Seventh Street in Charleston. They would later move to Fourth. They were true North-Enders. They lived right in the middle of the Railroad activity and fairly close to the stockyards. As my mom would often say when we would go for car-rides in my youth, "At least their houses would be paid for, and the tax bill would be smaller than those in the South End." She relates a funny childhood story in which her cousin Bob Lynch was delivering mail on horseback. He rode the horse up to the Joe Lynch house mailbox to put the mail in. It scared the little Louise and she told him to get that (Damn) horse off her porch. I guess everyone laughed for a long time about the outlandish words of the cute little girl with curls. Louise lived next door to Roger Sullivan and Wayne Lanman (old-time Charleston fellow North-Enders). At the Wayne Lanman Roast (Spring of 1993) Louise related a story of her and Wayne playing doctor. She said she "got the best complete physical she could remember". Oh well, that's Louise.

JOE & LULU HAVE FIVE CHILDREN                 

The young couple would have three girls and two boys. Nina Louise, Veronica Ruth, Jayne Pauline, Charles Randall and Clarence Bertram, Jayne would move in with her Uncle Tom and Aunt Margaret Lynch in her early years. She would remain with them. The reason for her moving out seems to be that she was moved out to keep from getting sick. Her other brothers and sisters were sick and Joe and Lulu asked Tom and Margaret to keep her. Tom and Margaret were brother and sister. This recollection is Louise's. Others like to make up fancy reasons, but not many are around to remember the facts of Jayne moving out. One other thing is that for some reason, Jayne never connected with her mother and father again. She now lives in Decatur. Her husband, Tom Crockcer, died in 1993. Jayne occasionally communicates with her sister, Louise and niece Catherine Burge. It seems to me a very common old-time story—separation of kids in the family. Even the sisters in my mother-in-law's family were raised by different "parents'¹. People were poor in Depression Days, and had to do what was best or necessary for their family.

JOE LYNCH IS ENGINEER ON CLOVER-LEAF RAILROAD

Any of the old-time railroaders in Charleston will remember that my Grandpa Lynch was a likeable fellow, a good engineer, but had a drinking problem. He would do his work well, and did his drinking in private in the basement of the house. He went to therapy at the Keely Institute at Dwight three times. These treatments cost $900.00 a trip. The final trip finally cured him. I don't remember any of this personally, because I was an infant. Louise said that when she got married (she married outside of the Catholic Church) she kept it secret for a while. Finally, she told Melvin to watch the East porch window. If it was open he could come in to the Lynch house* She had told them. Well he forgot which window should be open and came in early. Joe and Lulu somehow already knew, and Louise figured that Bert had told them. It wasn't long until Louise and Mel moved in at 408 Madison for their first temporary home. Joe and Lulu grew to like Melvin very much. One thing Joe liked was that Melvin would stoke the furnace for him. Lulu would often serve him cookies and milk when Louise was gone. Things worked out great for the new couple.

LULU LYNCH DAUGHTER OF JOHN AND ELIZA JANE LOVING

Being a Loving, Lulu Belle no doubt was raised in the protestant faith (Methodist, possibly). She married a Catholic. John Loving divorced his wife (my great grandmother). He was a bit of a lady's man. He would die and leave much of his property to Lulu Lynch, including the 408 Madison home. This house would be owned by Joe and Lulu, and then later Melvin and Louise.

JOE AND LULU LIVE AT 1209 JACKSON

This new home would be the farthest south the Lynches would ever live* The house was east of the Clark Funeral Home. Louise's first job was helper in the funeral home. She got used to seeing bodies on the embalming table. She mixed with the public while at the Funeral Home. She would later take a job with Oscar Seamon car dealership at Fifth and Monroe. Melvin was a TUP distributor. They met and went out dancing shortly thereafter. She had a cast on her leg, and you will hear what happened when her story start