Henry Bostic 14 Mar 1856 -15 Jun 1727

BIOGRAPHY: Henry was born in what was known as the "Maiden Spring Fork" Section of the Clinch River. Henry and Sarah were married by Nute Pippin and their witnesses were Candra Hartsock and Cusha Bostic.

When Henry was a young lad of twelve or fourteen years of age he was traveling on horseback through Union and Claiborne County, Tennessee, to his home place in the Bostic Mountains, he took in the beauty of the Powell River bottom with its sandy loom, he felt a desire to someday own a spot of the beautiful land. There was a big beautiful white Colonial house set back from the clear flowing Powell River. He stopped his horse, dismounted, carved his name into a Beach tree, and vowed some day to come back and buy that land.

Before Henry met Sarah he had a dream about her, he said he saw her standing on the steps with a cup of water in her hand. Years later while visiting relatives in Virginia, someone in the group went to the spring to get some water and when Henry turned around, there on the steps he saw a group of girls, one with a cup of water in her hand, and he knew her to be the girl in his dream. He told her he had dreamed of her and that one day she would be his wife. She became angry and said "no old man wasn't going to marry me". To a sixteen year old, a man of twenty four did seem old! But Sarah did fall in love with Henry and soon married him in 1882 when she was 18.

When Henry's daughter Ella was twelve years old, (about 1903), Henry bought that land and that home, and moved his family from Virginia. The house was about five miles down from Leatherwood Holler, between Leatherwood and Capps Creek. This house was the same white Colonial home he saw in 1869. There were six big cedar trees, three on one side of the board walk and three on the left side of the house. On the right side there was a red rose bush. The smokehouse was also located on the right side. There was a beautiful yellow Jeoinica bush beside the dining room door. The road that ran to the house was between the house and the Powell River. In back of the house was a spring and a spring house. The water from the spring ran by two willow trees, keeping them lush and green and then it ran into the spring house and into big wooden water troughs which kept the milk, cream and butter, which Sarah, made cold. From the spring house it ran out into a huge split log just below the spring house. The water ran over the top of the log trough, down a ditch and under the road and on into the River. At the log troth the hired hands washed up with Sarah's homemade soap and they combed their hair with a comb kept hanging from a string on a nail on the spring house. Sarah was of Dutch descent and was very, very clean and neat, and required those who ate at her table to be presentable.

Where their house stood in Capps Creek, has long since been covered with water. About 1933 a big movement started in Claiborne, Union and Scott County, Tennessee. The Tennessee Valley Authorities were talking about a big dam, now known as the T.V.A. Dam, to make power and light to the farm homes, and for a bigger and better business. Many homes and farms were sacrificed to build this dam.

When the government bought the Bostic farm all the members of the family,(there was perhaps four generations living at the "Home Place") realized they would all be separated and that many of them would perhaps scatter so far that they might never see each other again. Henry had passed away before this, and Sarah Elizabeth would not leave her home until every part of the building had been torn down and moved except one room. (Many people tore down their homes and moved the lumber to their new land)

Henry was a great believer in dreams and visions. When he bought his big beautiful Colonial home he told, Sarah which room he would die in, and indeed it was the room in which he died. He also told Sarah not to bury him in the little graveyard on the hill above the house, as some day it would be covered by water. This graveyard is now covered by the T.V.A. Norris Dam.

Henry had dreams and visions which he listened to and used to help guide his life. He had a vision of Sarah or Sarie as he called her, before he ever met her. He had a vision of the Mormon missionaries before he saw them. He had a dream one night that he was working in the field when he looked up and saw two men dressed in black scissor-tailed suits and black top hats walking toward him. Under their arms they carried two books. Some days later when he was in the field that he saw in his dream, he looked up and saw two men coming toward him, dressed just as they had been in his dream, and carrying two books. They asked him if he had ever heard of the Mormons. He said that he hadn't. It was late in the afternoon and the two men asked him if they could spend the night and since he never turned any one away, he told them that they could.

That night they had a meeting at the school house. They invited Henry to go, he wouldn't, but said that his wife Sarah could go and take some of the older children with her. Sarah and some of the children went and the missionaries asked Henry to read some little books while they were gone. While they were gone, he did read them. When they returned and Henry how he liked the books he replied, "If you practice what you preach, it is alright."

In 1900 a missionary by the name of John Leithead went to Virginia on a mission. Henry bought a book from him, which he read and kept, later giving it to his daughter Ella. He read all the books he could get. He learned and believed but did not join the church. He was trying to get Sarah converted so they could be baptized together. She, however, had been baptized in some other church and thought that was the right one. It is said that the only arguments that was heard by others, was that of religion. It is believed that when Henry left Virginia, he lost track of the missionaries, and they lost track of him. It was some time before he was contacted again. In the mean time he read and tried to practice what they had taught.

In 1926 some of the Mormon Elders came and Henry decided it was time to be baptized. He went to the Powell river to be baptized. His wife Sarah went with him. Much to his surprise, Sarah too was baptized, wearing her black dress and apron. Two of his children were also baptized at the same time.

Sarah was a tall woman weighing about 180 pounds. She usually wore her hair in a twist in the back. She made delicious rye bread and yummy wild blackberry jam. The home made butter she churned was white and fluffy, and when it was spread on her flaky biscuits they just melted in your mouth. Everyone loved her molasses cookies, especially the grand children, because Sarah would let them cut out the shapes and then she would bake them in her wood stove. When they were baked she put the cookies in a bowl on the mantle above the fire place and after supper everyone sat around and sang and ate cookies.

A black dress that had belonged to Sharah has been handed down over the years, first to Sarah's daughter Ell, then to Ella's daughter Virgie, then to Virgie's daughter Eva.