The White Family - Part 4

(The following was written by Dexter White, and is reprinted from “Reflections II”, a collection of local stories available at the Grove City Welcome Center and Museum. Any opinions made in the article are from the author.)An interesting account about the Revolutionary War service of the above-mentioned Sam White indicates he was too young to go with his older brothers into the war, but before the war was over, he finally joined up with an outfit, and was promptly shot at the Battle of Stoney Point, and left for dead on the battlefield, but Sam survived, and at the age of 83 was thrown from a horse at his farm near Big Run, and died of the injuries.My early years were spent at the White home place on Rt. 665 West of Pleasant Corners, past the farms of the Emmelheinz, Pearl Heath, Shorty Karn, Elvi Trapp, Guthiel, Fritz, and Bill Lambert families. Rt. 665 was not paved under the early 1930s and during the Great Depression years, gasoline was 16 cents per gallon, bread was 9 cents per loaf, many people were out of work. Cars would come past the farm, and deliberately hit a chicken, then the driver would stop, get out, grab the chicken, throw it into the car, and drive away. Many local people were glad to get jobs on WPA.I learn to swim in Big Darby Creek, just over the hill from Gutheil’s orchard. Several of us boys in the neighborhood would swim there (including Kenny Breckenridge, Art Gutheil, and others) but it seemed that none of us owned a bathing suit. When going to Grove City the back roads went past Jenny's woods, Mary Butcher’s place, Russ Seymour was just down the road, then across HellBranch between Earl Cummins and John Wahl’s Farms.In 1944, everything changed. Both of my parents died, I turned 18, was out of high school and then went into the U.S. Army paratroopers for about two years. After 14 parachute jumps, and an honorable discharge, I returned to the area for a while, but nothing was the same.