Document text
February 8-9, 1939
Miss Moina Belle Michael
"The Poppy Lady
Georgian Hotel
Fifth -floor Room 523'
Athens, Georgia
Hornsby
Midd-glanaell
I entered the Georgian Hotel, walked through its spacious lobby
to the clerks desk and asked him if he would call Miss Michael's
room, and find out if it was convenient for me to come up. 3he
told him she was expecting me, as I had made an engagement the day
before to visit her.
When I got on the elevator, to go to the fifth floor, I must
admit I was a little nervous, I got off at the fifth floor walked
down one long emp/Y hall -way except for the carpet on the floor,
and turned into a nother) a few doors down I found the number, knock-
ed upon tne door, a voice within said: "come in." I opened the
door tnere stood Miss Moina Michael, she extended her hand to me
saying, "welcome into my living room, library, office, dining room,
kitchen and bed room. This is the only place I have to invite
visitors. Do you know as much as I have done for the world they
don't even so much as tolive me paper and stamps to do my letter
writing in answer to the thousands of answers and stamps to mail
them with. Right now I am preparing a speech to give over tne
=ado( radio in New York, in the spring. That means new clothes,
an evening dress to wear while I am giving my talk. The thoughts
of all that Oakes me sick.' -Lou know I haven't been well for some
time. One thing I simply don't like to ad is pack for a trip.
"Now whpt is it you want? A story of my life, why that is
very kilnd of you to tnink my life history is worth mentioning,
but I am always doing tnings like that I have tnousands of questions
-2
asked me every day. Whyi I am just like a little wren just as simple
as simple can be. iiy sister once said to my,, 'why, Beckey you are
just too simple for words.' That's why I remind myself of the
little wren, just a simple little common place person. People
will write the best things about me when I am gone.
Her room is neatly furnished, a walnut chest of drawers, which
serves as a dresser on this sits a toilet set of blue glass. A
large mirror hangs over the chest of drawers. A single bed with
low square posts serves as a divan, a tapestry cover is
over the bed and several large pillows are covered with the same
material Isre arranged upright across one end and around the back
of the bed. A screen drapped with harmonizing material is placed
to obscure from view the desk, typewriter, hot plate and other
articles used for house keeping aid. Miss Michael was wearing a
blue crepe dress trimmed at the neck with a c/rochet collar of a
delicate pattern caught with a gold pin of full blown and buds of
poppies bordered with pearls, perhaps a gift for some noble work
she has done in regard to the work to immortalize "Poppy Day."
"Where do you want me to begin, way back to my childhood
days? Well I was born in Walton County, just a short distance
from Good -Hope, between Monroe and High 3hoals, August 15, 1869.
I was the oldest daughter, my mother was Alice 3herwood Wise and
married John Marion Michael. I am of French huguenot lineage,
and borned in a cherry log cabin with a log floor, on the spot
where the first cabin was built on Which was the first clearing
in that county. When my father built a better house the log
floor was taken up and the building used for a smoke house.
Often I was called from my play_house to put oak chips on the
fire when my parents were curing their meat; mother would say;
'Beckey run and put just three chipp oji the fire.' It didn't
mean anything to me than, Oh, the mistakes I have ma 4 it I
could call those times back, I could be of more service to
the world.
"Dunking the war the ashes were raked off tne top of the
ground in tnat smoke house the earth was run through an ash
hopper and the salt from the meat tnat had dripped on the ground
was extracted from it and used to season food. Oh, what.a time
people had in those days, I tnink it was xxxxxim remarkable how
my grandmother carried on after her father died she was the youngest
of nine she herself was only eighteen, how sne took the plantation
over and managed it successfully. He was a large land owner and
had many slaves. But 13hermon's March through Georgia changed
all tnat. I tnink that the things in Margaret Mitchell's book
'Goma With The Wind' were true, I am sure it was that way around
Atlanta or she would never have written it. To my mind Meloney
was the true type of 3outhern Oharacter. When I was a cnild and
38W tnose stately men and women so noble and fine it never occured
to me a bad person ever lived.
"Everyone in that community turned out on meeting day, we had
two meetings eacn month one 3unday we went to the Baptist church
and the next we went over to the Primitive Baptist. I can see
them now, those good women and those grand old men with long
white beard, praying and singing in church.
"I went to school at Braswet1 Academy in Morgan County, and
also attended Martin Institute from 1883 until 1885 however, I
did not graduate. My parents were able to send me to school the
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next term. The first week in 4-4ne of 1885 I left school and went
nome. The next day I met the children of scnool-age of the neighbor-
hoodkn a one -room, vacant negro cabin, on the hill, and laune'ned MY
crude canoe on the dducational sea. My immaturity, ignorance, guilal-
ness and my mother's faith in me, tether with her anxiety con-
cerning the children younger than myself and the neighbors'- children,
was a cargo of this frail bprk. 1 hplft taught in county schddislin
rural one -room house, in town schools in largerIatildings, in
church schools, Bessie Tift College, state schools with big en-
rollments and large and ancient,buildingslfifty-four years.
"3outh of my home on the old family plantation, some two
miles distant across the fields, hills, woods and Indian Creek,
was the little community, with the country post office, where we
trk-A-Ai)
mixt gotimal every Friday pfternoon. There was a vacant chest-
nut log structure which had been the Robert Hale store. It had
shuttered windows and front and back doors, an open fire -place,
I taught school five months at this building in Good -Hope. I
received eight cents per day for the sixteen children in school
for tne five months. It was paid to me January 1886. I used
0.0
020.00 of it for dental work. The other I gave to my father.
"The same year I taught at Liberty, in Greene County in
a one -room school building it also was used for a church and
3unday scnool, one 3unday in a month. I boarded with Mr. and
Mrs. watt Wray. Thetv young son, Willis, went to school with
me each day. This "Old Wray" place is a dream place with me;
the original forest whichltade tremendous groves bo/rdered flower
garden and the strutting pea -cocks beyond the paled in yard and
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this grove. Big vegetables gardens with real paper shell pecan
trees which was immense.
It is said of this old place that the
owner used to fertilize his cotton rowS -with hog lard. But this
generation of Wray's was living through "the relics of former
grandeur," as the rest of us southerners were after "The
3urrender."
At 7-.
"I tatiglat tokir years in the Baptist Orphan dome;-twl,
)7„;•.N,
years in Atlanta 4pe--"-'\d-oSrtland 3tregAiia: tow; years after it
was moved to Hape4114, aimednmoickand had to go homes when I
was strong enough Agmaimaeligmwdop,I went back to the school
room4 ttpj at Apalacheee it was at this place l'conducted
a funera3e) 4Wombilomiew in 1897. A little girl in that community
4474ftme, I told my school children to
44:f'44#40;
bring flowersitne next day *.o.pm4....err-ittremlipase. When the cortege
l
arrived we were on the outside of the building. in those
days there were no hearses, so tnat casket was placed across the
foot of a buggy, accomp144d by two men, back of them was the family
in a spring wagonefeveryone in those daye'4urned-out to a funeral.
_
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A runner was sent for the pastor, tollie was conducting /9/44,---,I14
(,_ .
funeral at that time 441e.R.* was attending court at High 3hoalse
witerilleo the only other nearj9y that they could think of
Turning to me cryingvilkiikel said: 'Miss Uoina I simply can't bury
Poo 4 mill it,
my child without a flangrUl,"can't you do it Ear me?' I couldn't
ote
de her 30 I said a few words, had my children sing; 'When
He Cometh To Make Up His Jewels,' and I closed with a prayer.
There wasn't a man there that didalt feel comdemned, they could-
n't even pray in public, and had to get a little country school
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to take with
school
4
teacher to preach the funeral, that as forty years ago.
46, 440 tove I.
3he iattp4144.4 andEV: "I haVp.pinched-;hit at a-funern1 and
wedding. When I was At Columbia Univeraity, a friend of mine was
marrying my cousin, Congressman Walter Wise, of Fayetteville,
Georgia. At the last minutes Welter wired the girl ne was to marry.
'Best man J.- sick, get Cousin Moina to act as best man.' 3he ajked
ii
me and I a4a.mia4ie04. -alter arrived on the day of the wedding, which It,
4,
141.41,4a 4)141•44•4464140.4
was also my friend's graquation daysi Ay friend was..-Arlog for her
graduation0,..ttex-4.4a4-we rode over Central Park./ At -agipt o!clOck
we drove up to the Baptist Church. It was all very homey no fuss
about it After the wedding, the witnesses had to sign ever so
.1000
many papersthere were ten of us in ally The pastor, his wife,
secretary, clerk and etc. When it came my time, I sAgrrern 44H464F
"Moina Michael, best man, everyone laughed. Walter has taught his
children to cut out every picture of me and paste it.in a scrap.,
book and write underneath it LAIWW.41.14-best man- at wedding.' .4
tto
"I was housilmother t. Winnie Davis Memorial Hail ivhen:14011.-)ed"'"41-41
444
I'gaVe't'he boys I. had taught...erlittle remembnrance
.57-61
Bacli at. Apalachqe -4mainti- 'the- bri hpe tfl boy _In
71;
n ever tte-
Hewoulci. run to me, and say: 'Miss Michael I won.
"..44.Ripir."
that game.' I would yes, Louie you have won your
spurs.4He was among the last to.. good-bye. rtold
him, Louie I want to give you something as a little remembrance
to take with you. He had joined e_
4 2<24at4e
t I told him:
the I am
going to give you a pair of spurs,/ he said,, 'ph, Miss Michael
_.
I was 0.ng you would say that, I have everything but
We tried to get them in Athens couldn't find them.
4f/<,
Az I gave him a 440Xibilbeer_bill,f, t“,( t#1nk I ever saw anyone as
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happy, hee_#-,441eg:he in Atlanta' on his way to Fort McP1w,son,_ He
told me0 he was going to write a note Saying: 'I am wearing the
spurs given m&by Miss Moina Michaele 4ft-immer, no matter what
l/
eyr, YK,o
happens to mwhether die of a natural cause or,shot down on
the batlae field, I want them sent back to her., Louie was in
the first victorious battle fought .in France, he was one of the
men who kept the wires from being cut. It was a heavy tight, but
when that battle was over he sent a message to his commanding
officer saying, 'we won tne battle everything is Olt Kr-Louie.'
111-1/4,4; 44-44.6-
That message was flashed over the world. He brought those spurs
OF
to me. I took them, patted him on the shoulder saying to him. Louie
you won your spurs./ The showed them to me,isimoo a' whi tilt, °this
lit A.4-41-0 t e
was the Ammi.whistle blown in France-44et ended!' war.
.4„
"I was in Europe when Archduke FerdhanT as ed, and
hurried home with other American to keep out of the war, but I
soon discovered that our country would have to join in tne hostilities.
I will never forget tnat afternoon in April when I learned that t
the United 3tates had entered in that great war. I waited impatient-
ly on the steps at Winnie Davis Hall where I was housemother, for
the paper boy after getting I went to my room to read every
word7 I took a leave of absence from the Normal 3chool, now the
Co-ordinate College, and went to the Y M. C. A. training Conference
-44-Columbia University in New York( t was thebe the final step
in tne generation of tne poppy idea came, for it was there I read
a challenging poem.
-8
"I met with4",difftpulty 41,Fren,ch.woman Madame E. Guerin
took up the poppy cause for Prince, .and brought poppsto this.
country. The resulVFwas compettt,ion. for the disabled American
veterans who were fashioning the poppies in government hospitrEds
4/tot X:
for one cent each. I proved I ifflabortilsoctette=Zo originaathe idea.
She save up -4,work here, and later took poppies maJle by the
French war widows to Earl Haig tale England. The meMorltil poppy
gaidwide circulation,aft4megimmt.ed our. annual-pOOpy'daleti May,
30.
"Ipromiseda,Tagther_whose.oray son We0...,down,at_sea on a
transport, that those
definite floral tributes
4.
"4,t7.444,40-,,
land. 3o a poppyitftchor is placed on the wav es a
should have their
as well as taose whose graV6S7were on
e-11 each Memorial Day.
"I saw no reason why the beauttful new bridges built in
Georgia since 1918 shouldn't be dedicated to our World War men
who died to keep civilization as=1;liei...iitiptaimeto. Through me the
Teachers/College, established its own chartered Red Cross Chapter,
thei4i4or school in the United 3tates to nave such a chaptpr.
it. €4. 44e r
"My foreign serviceseeme-Osime.in Rome, Italy, assisted the
Embassy and tne Consulate in handling the difficulties created
for American turists by the war. The neadqyarters of tnis com-
mitee were in the Hotel Royal. I was presented one of the two
distinguished Service Medal's which have been awarded in the
United 3tatest Haig's Legion of London, England has adopted the
Igemorial poppy idea, which brought a total of over $20,000,000.00
profits on Poppy Day since 1921.
-9-
"I was a war worker 433141.40( .$Pretary to Dr. Irwin, President
Ott4A
of the Y. M. C. A. in New York, and it 'was in, inthe
A
1r /4-4, ,0!10,:, Mov.,
basement tnat. my idea of the poppy was worked out. I tnink the
greatest thrill I ever had was when Columbia University celebrated
its one -hundred and seventy-fifth anniver3ity. I was the only
woman mentioned in tneir report of that great and gigantic insti-
tution witn thousands of students scattered all. Overi-the- world.
I was too sick to get a thrill when the state unveiled a bust of,
me in the State Capitol however, I don't think it was 30 much in
honor of me as it was Just a record of the State's acnievements.
"Just think what-I-11,wengemweemir the world 41, realidfrom.tne
sale of poppies each years -joist seventy millionddrillarso ye4-4ite
w=ld-dawit-clIgnntir-ane-pennomard.mr7worpert and I have barely
enough to buy actual necessities. I have a letter asking for a
donation toward tne Torld'.5Pa r. I tnink they ought to be asham
of theAselves4
However I am going
to New York tn give a talk sometime during the Pail:. I told tnem I
,s4tettio-w -;91
as near Popcy Day as I possibly can, My expenses
011164.44? eirry-LZ
will be paid for that trip. REJeop ?Eel* askimenfor donations
I get- thent-everr-eldly-. Iüd8750.00 to help put over tne
Georgia Bi-Centennial. I do appreciate all the nice things said
about me. Someone said of me: 'Betsy RO3S is Uncle 3am's most
famous seamstress and Miss Moina is his most celebrated gardner,
for she planted the Memorial Poppy in the heart of the English
spealdng world.' I also have a medal from SerVla, brought to me
er.
by Dr. Rosalie Yortan in 1930.
-10
"One day last week I had a -letter from a mother in New Jersey,
,7
-asking me; 'what in the world-is,wrong w4Alitr-tios,„
,^-1/10.444d *44/
,ft_mcco... I wrote my son4 anelasked him if tie had met you, he
he had not. I tol him to go to. see you r ht I wrote her
1- ?e- 4.0.&"
kndpr,-77
where to find.1".e.,
kfk0w-1!rke-rltEpr.''Why„x$ut*.I don't feel- Isaportanto and why should
anyone want to know who I an What I did, :'.anc4.1'-vdoing avow la- no more
than anyother person would have done. I only thought àit first.
Frve.24--712,sa-sorte-mcrd Uttl, gel, itp and
g,a4-.lttOetr4--**rt-gbe-pert--zr--aaa4.-Arc,9942,LtttlSiL.
t1 nave earned every dollar I:-.,,hava-r ince I begin working
back in my young days'.'' I began work to educate my younger sisters,
support** my Parents, and pa all my subsequent expenses for my
own educational advantages, the years of misfortunei4eft my family
fenniless* moved Og tnem into town we* taught in the school at
Monroe. One of my brothers married and altiviXtraux eamig a short
time, my other brother died a very young man. Father's health
was bad, -.1peing tue oldest;had to supportmlo family. When
my sister Nell Oolquitt, now (Mrs. J. T. Maohleglgraduated at
the University she was the first woman who had ever spoken nu from
that 410ge t at institution. _
A am too old to do _much work join- I was housemother at
Winnie Davis Memorial Hall twenty-five years0''I am not 1l enough
to do my own work, such as sewing and darning. A woman came to me
with a pitiful tale, she didn't nave work, owed a large doctors
bill and the drug stores were pushing ner for -their money. I let
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have the money and asked her to come to my room and Idca'my clothes
for meit she promised xxikt anything until she got the money now
,rt.hitFon't come near me. Alamos° tonsil,A
nil tO1 401
"71d you read in Lucian Lamar Knight's book what he had to
0
sWy about me? It 13 very good, but when he wrote it he sent the
manuscript tamomomart264...for my approval. In a note AMMINNEM6 ne
was A .2
as4114,N1 have only given Rebecca Felton aso.pegagsAMIR anebAssimit
allhed twt;r1wIr for you.' Q11 wrote nim .a letter and quoted what
a very distinguished person said about me whpn he introducbd me
to an ordisieftett before I gave an address, 'Re'trecca Felton be-
longs to Georgia, Martha Berryo belongs to the mountains, Milly
Rutherford belongs to Lucy Cobb, but Moina Michael belongs to
the world.' limo I told Mr. Knight, 'Aecide for your self if I
in youttook
am worth twelver whole pages ibmagsactsdxkmmur.' ,When q received
(14, eit itto.
a copy of,ttxklmksdxtimairaxpagita the book -as Asti twelve wfterke
e_1,44411-0144,
pager d 440 -se. I thought it was very nice to be in
'Who's Who' in America from 1932-1933.
".4
"I have a busy day ahead of me. I am expecting out-of-town
guest, and have just bought some lovely roses for her room. I wish
I had the money to maintain a little home 30 I could have my friends,
but this is the only home I can afford. I am not afraid here, the
manager is awfully good to me they do my laundry I don't ejen, have
4411444,.,
to buy soap. wi 1 down with you for m41.1.
14. te-pau
-476?
for you t.;aet Ampealt.p.
I try evfpry way I can to save my nickels I am glad you came,
andedon't c,o,nsider your -self under'=obligatione it is just like I
gaing, :to Your office and you coming to mine. I am always glad to
-12-
5 e; 44-1
Wfljfl I can.
Some day I hope to be well again so I can
ierJ
4mowfa place large enouFh to display zame-e.f tie lovely gifts
presented to me." Te rod#416100bnAlIkajlevator together f left
euu tol 103i.mo9
her in the lobby of the hotel.
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