JESSE STUART

by Jamie Ballard

Jesse Hilton Stuart was the second of seven children born to Mitchell and Martha Hylton Stuart, on August 8, 1907, in Greenup, Kentucky. He grew up with parents that had very little education. Stuart was a hungry learner (Garrett 25) and through his hard work and his writings, he brought his life in the hills of W-Hollow alive.

Growing up, Stuart was eager to learn, but because he had to miss school so frequently to help his father on the farm, he finally had dropped out of school. He then became an itinerant farm hand. At the age of fifteen, Stuart was inspired to return to school. At Greenup County High School, Stuart played football and baseball. At home, he had chores such as feeding livestock, milking cows, and chopping wood to burn (The Man...Jesse Stuart 3). At Greenup County High School, Stuart was inspired by a book of poetry written by Robert Burns. This book was given to him by his English teacher, Mrs. R. E. Hatton, who took a lot of interest in the young writer (The Man...Jesse Stuart 3).

After graduating from high school, Stuart left home and worked for a circus and then later a steel mill. When fall rolled around, he found himself wanting to go to college. After hitchhiking to several different college campuses, Stuart found himself at Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tennessee.

Within three years, Stuart graduated and returned to the hills of Greenup County to fulfill his father's dreams of becoming a teacher. His first teaching job after graduation was with fourteen high school pupils. Stuart was so successful, the following year he was made principal of Greenup High School.

Despite the fact that Stuart had another successful year, he was not rehired. He had made the mistake of asking for an increase in salary and he found himself without a job. He then went to Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee for a year of graduate work. There he worked for meals in the cafeteria and as a janitor to help pay for his expenses (The Man...Jesse Stuart 5). After a long year, Stuart returned to W-Hollow to help his father on the farm. He wrote two to three poems a day while he was out working in the field. Then a drought came and the crops failed. At the age of twenty-four, Stuart was asked to be the Superintendent of Greenup County Schools. He became the youngest school superintendent to serve in Kentucky (The Man...Jesse Stuart 6).

While he was superintendent, he wrote vigorously. By February 1933, He had 703 poems which he tied together and called Man With a Bull Tongue Plow (Garrett 27). This book was published in 1934 and years later it was selected as one of the world's best one thousand books. Stuart found himself ranked by critics with Edgar Lee Master, Robert Frost and Robert Burns (Garrett 27).

He received a Guggenheim Fellowship and traveled abroad. Upon his return to W-Hollow, Stuart jumped into many activities. He started a newspaper, taught a year in Portsmouth High School and then he quit the teaching profession for a short time. He married Naomi Deane, a lifelong Greenup County neighbor and fellow teacher. Together, they raised sheep on their farm (The Man...Jesse Stuart 6).

Stuart again, became Superintendent of Greenup County Schools. During this time, in 1942, the Stuarts' only child, Jessica Jane, was born. The author kept busy and published many stories, poems and books. In 1943 Taps For Private Tussie, his most successful book, was published shortly before he became an officer in the Navy in World Was II ( The Man...Jesse Stuart 6). While Stuart was in the Navy, he continued to write. After the war the Stuarts returned to their farm in W-Hollow (The Man...Jesse Stuart 6). Mr. Stuart farmed, lectured and wrote stories, poems and books (The Man...Jesse Stuart 6).

In 1947 Stuart wrote a book about his teaching experiences that expressed his father's belief that teaching was the greatest of all professions. This book, The Thread That Runs So True, was published in 1949. It was selected as the best book in 1949 by the National Education Association.

Mr. Stuart is known for his children's books too. Most of his children's books are written as a result of something that happened to him or to someone very close to him. Many of these books are used in churches and schools because they teach morals and very important lessons about growing up. Mr. Stuart's first junior book, The Beatinest Boy, was published in 1953. This book shows how love can always pull a person out on top, no matter how little they have. David makes Christmas the best one ever for his grandmother because he gave her a gift that money can't buy. His second junior book, A Penny's Worth of Character, was published in 1954. This book gives a great lesson in honesty. Shan Shelton shows how one little lie can turn the whole world upside down and inside out. Even one's favorite things in life can become very distasteful when one goes against their authority to only better themselves. It is interesting to see Shan's world turn from one extreme to the other when he tells the lie and then when he confesses.

Red Mule, Stuart's third junior book, was published in 1955. According to Browning, "It has delighted many and received much critical praise". This book shows how the growth of the economy can change everything in life. The young boy, Scrappy loves animals and because of this love, he feels it is his responsibility to help save the mules from the canneries. Through this young boy, Stuart shows how faith and responsibility brings rewards (Browning 306).

On October 8, 1954, Stuart experienced the first of eight heart attacks. That day of his heart attack became known as the day of his rebirth (The Man...Jesse Stuart 10). For a short time, Stuart was able to return to McKell High School as principal. Due to health problems, he was only able to remain a year. Stuart began traveling and lecturing extensively. He lectured in the United States, Europe, Near East, Middle East, and the Orient (The Man...Jesse Stuart). No matter where or how far he traveled, his love for his home always took him back to W-Hollow.

Jesse Stuart died at the age of seventy-six on February 17, 1984, after being in a coma since May 1982. He is buried in Plum Grove Cemetery in Greenup, Kentucky. At this place, a one-room school use to stand. Stuart's body now rests in the very same place that his desk once stood years ago. Through Mr. Stuart's stories and poems, he brought the world of W-Hollow alive. In return, through the efforts of the Jesse Stuart Foundation and the Nature Preserve Commission, his memory is kept very much alive. Kentucky now owns the landmark that was so inseparable to Jesse Stuart (Rankin A6).

Jesse Stuart won many honors throughout his life. The most important thing to him was being an educator. He once said, "First, last, always, I am a school teacher. I loved the firing line of the classroom" (Coady A21). Stuart's love for educating shines through in his children's books. They not only entertain children, they also teach a lesson. He should be a great inspiration to everyone in the world. He proved to the world that a young boy from the hills of Kentucky could make something of himself no matter how little he had or how hard he had to work.

Browning, M. (1968) Kentucky Authors - A History of Kentucky Literature. Indiana: Keller Crescent Company, p 305-306.

Coady, J., The Courier Journal. "State's poet laureate, Jesse Stuart dies". February 19, 1984.

Garrett, B. Appalachia. "An Appalachian author describes his life style". December 1972 - January 1973, p 25-28.

Rankin, F., The Courier Journal. "Jesse Stuart's home - a landmark". November 17, 1980, A6.

Tucker, R., (1964) The Educational Forum. "Jesse Stuart, Here's to You!", p 165-170.

"The Man....Jesse Stuart. (1968) Ashland, Kentucky: Economy Printers.