Rutherford Weekly

A petite Viola Coble Tate sat in her navy blue chair at home recently and talked about the past 100 years. Mrs. Tate's modern home is one she and husband Harold were able to build after she won a Reader's Digest sweepstakes in about 1975. "She was in the hospital and the sweepstakes information came in the mail and it got thrown in the trash, but when she got out of the hospital, she took it out of the trash, entered the contest and won. It was for about $27,000," said her sister Sarah Hughes. When Mrs. Tate turns 100 on Saturday, July 22, friends and family will gather at the Southern Baptist Church in Rutherfordton to celebrate with her. Tony Hamrick and Missy Hamrick are hosting the event and everyone is invited. Tony is among nephews of Mrs. Tate who helps her with grocery shopping or doctor appointments. "He sort of took my place to help," said Mrs. Hughes, 84, who once helped if Mrs. Tate needed anything. Although quite independent, Mrs. Tate doesn't drive a car and never has. Back in the day she really didn't think about a driver's license. "There weren't any cars and no place to go," she quipped. A daughter of Robert and Estelle Coble, she and sister Sarah of Ellenboro, are the remaining survivors of the 10 children of Robert and Estelle Coble. One of the Coble's children was stillborn and another only lived for a day, Mrs Tate shared. "I was the third from the top," Mrs. Tate said, "and there are 16 years between Sarah and me." From her home, Mrs. Tate talked about life on the farm as a little girl growing up off Chase High Road on a 100 acre farm working beside her daddy. "He never really taught us to work, we just watched and we knew what to do. We worked hard," she said. At age 11 she had to quit school to work on the farm. Later on she worked at Alexander Mills until she was 21 years old. Back on the farm she helped in the corn, cotton and wheat fi elds and picked vegetables when they were ready for canning and cooking for family suppers. Some of the Coble children worked inside the house canning the vegetables for winter while the others worked in the fi eld. "I didn't milk. I was afraid of cows and I was also afraid of horses," she said. She was never hurt by either, keeping a safe distance from them. "Those big eyes scared me to death," she said. A trip to the store by horse and buggy was only to buy sugar, salt and coffee. They raised the other foods. For fun as a little girl she remembers going to the cornfi eld where there was some shade from the hot sun and she'd make baby dolls and other creatures from apricots. "I'd use sticks for legs and I'd use crabgrass to make tails," she said. One of her brothers had a "little red wagon" she recalled. When she was 21 years old she married Harold Tate in Gaffney (SC). That's where everybody got married then. They were married 69 years and both worked full-time jobs in textile plants until retirement ages. "Six days a week we worked and on Sunday we went to church," she said. The couple attended Providence United Methodist and Caroleen United Methodist Church. Although they didn't have children of their own, Mrs. Tate was a mother to some of her nieces and nephews. Together the couple kept a great-niece Amanda and great-nephew Andrew, the grandchildren of her sister Sarah, while their parents worked. Andrew and Amanda Hughes (Marshall) stayed with the couple until they were old enough to go to school and after that they would stay in the mornings and after school until their parents picked them up or the couple took them home. "Sometimes they stayed overnight." One of her greatest joys was having Amanda and Andrew in her life. Their photograph is prominently placed on a table in her living room. Mrs. Tate said as a child there were no family vacations and not many as an adult. She recalls one trip to the mountains near Asheville where about six family members crowded in a one seat car. "We were all piled in there and I remember laying on the top of the back," she said. A pair of pliers were attached to the brakes to help with the stopping of the car, but when they didn't work, the family car came down the mountain, brakeless. "I will never forget that," she said. Mrs. Tate was about 31 years old when she took a bus to Denver, Colorado to help her sister take care of a new baby. "She was sick so I went out there to look after the baby," she said. When things improved she came back home. She has traveled by bus or car to Ohio, Virginia, Tennessee and Georgia. "But never Florida," she said. She's never been to the beach or seen any ocean. She has never fl own in an airplane although she remembers seeing her fi rst plane, "with just two wings." After Mrs. Tate was laid off from Caroleen Mills because some folks believed the work was too hard for women, she started working at Wendy's restaurant in Caroleen and later returned to the textile plant. Story continued on page 2. YOUR COMMUNITY NEWS SOURCE! YOUR COMMUNITY NEWS SOURCE! ISSUE NO. 29 • July 20, 2023 ISSUE NO. 29 • July 20, 2023 • • RutherfordWeekly.com • 828-248-1408 RutherfordWeekly.com • 828-248-1408 School Supply Request List School Supply & Backpack Drive Help students in need succeed with your donation of school supplies for the new school year. Drop off donations Mon.-Tues. 8am-5pm, Wed. 8am-3:30pm, Thurs. 8am-2:30pm through July 31. WEEKLY RUTHERFORD 157 West Main Street, Forest City S h l y pp Items distributed at County-wide Back 2 School Bash & Kids Health Fair August 5 at POPS Forest City Pens Pencils Crayons Notebooks Construction Paper Ruled paper Glue Tape Erasers Safety scissors Highlighters Pencil sharpeners Pencil cases N.C. TRACTOR & FARM SUPPLY 299 Railroad Ave., Rutherfordton • 828-288-0395 Mobile: 828-429-5008 • mf1dpshehan@gmail.com SALES • SERVICE • PARTS IF YOU BUY ANYWHERE ELSE YOU WILL PAY TOO MUCH! IF YOU BUY ANYWHERE ELSE YOU WILL PAY TOO MUCH! PROUDLY SERVING RUTHERFORD, CLEVELAND, GASTON, LINCOLN, POLK COUNTIES AS THE AREAS HOMETOWN MASSEY FERGUSON DEALER. Great Selection Great Selection Our 31 st Year • Over 25,000 Weekly Readers Article by Jean Gordon. Photos by Jean Gordon and Contributed. Viola Coble Tate Celebrates Viola Coble Tate Celebrates Her 100th Birthday Her 100th Birthday Viola Tate at home talks about her life and turning 100 Saturday, July 22. Viola Tate (right) and her sister Sarah Hughes.

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