Appalachias Deadliest Grandma: Nancy Kerley

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  • Опубліковано 16 вер 2024
  • Appalachias Deadliest Grandma: Nancy Kerley (Nance Dude) documentary as told by The Appalachian Storyteller. #nancedude #appalachiasdeadliest #appalachia #appalachian #appalachianhistory #storyteller #appalachianstoryteller #appalachiastories #audiobookfulllength #appalachiadocumentary #appalachianoutlaws #audiobook #outlaws #appalachianoutlaws
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    Video from The Appalachian Storyteller
    Story written by The Appalachian Storyteller
    Photos from National Archives, Public domain, and paid researcher subscription to Newspapers.com, Ancestry.com, Proquest.com
    Note: This Video Represents History. The video has been uploaded for educational/editorial purposes and commentary and critique on the topic.

КОМЕНТАРІ • 573

  • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
    @TheAppalachianStoryteller  Місяць тому +49

    Support this channel by LIKING, COMMENTING and SUBSCRIBING. Support the costs of research and video production by clicking the JOIN or THANKS buttons or by visiting www.theappalachianstoryteller.com

  • @justinthomas226
    @justinthomas226 Місяць тому +99

    Blaming a little girl for her brothers bear attack is the most disgusting thing I have ever heard.

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  Місяць тому +5

      💜

    • @TheSouthernLady777
      @TheSouthernLady777 14 днів тому +2

      My best friend's mother blamed her for the death of her younger brother, who was accidently hung while playing with a rope in a tree.

    • @TheSouthernLady777
      @TheSouthernLady777 14 днів тому +1

      Interesting name. I know a Justin Thomas.

    • @maevey3
      @maevey3 2 дні тому +1

      Oh my god! That's horrendous on both counts.​@@TheSouthernLady777

    • @muchtested
      @muchtested 2 дні тому

      Nancy was supposed to throw herself into the bear's jaws to save her much more valuable brother and didn't do it. Therefore, she earned her mother's eternal ire. Gotta obey Mother's rules.

  • @beverlybalius9303
    @beverlybalius9303 Місяць тому +58

    My Grandmother raised 5. Children on her own after divorcing an Alcoholic….. She took in Laundry and picked cotton, planted garden….. sent her kids to school and took them to Church,

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  Місяць тому +6

      ❤️

    • @billballaro6039
      @billballaro6039 17 днів тому +5

      She sounds like a Saint to me.

    • @jessicah4465
      @jessicah4465 14 днів тому

      Was she around at the time of this story?
      A grandma nowadays is a lot younger and less than 100 years old.
      This was a much longer time ago

  • @magnus1001
    @magnus1001 Місяць тому +81

    If Nancy did leave Roberta in the cave, she definitely didn't do it alone. The rocks were too heavy. It is also worth noting that all the towns people who were so concerned and outraged by Roberta's disappearance and death were the same ones who shunned Nancy and then Lizzie for having illegitimate children instead of being good Christians and helping them the many times they had no home or food. Where was their outrage when Roberta had nothing to eat or a decent home to live in?!

    • @ava.artemis
      @ava.artemis 22 дні тому +13

      It’s the same as it is now. They don’t really care about the children, they just like being self righteous and outraged and to look down on others.

    • @sherlockholmes4769
      @sherlockholmes4769 20 днів тому +10

      Sympathy is much harder to muster than indignation. Apparently...

    • @magnus1001
      @magnus1001 19 днів тому +4

      @@sherlockholmes4769 Very true.

    • @shulamiteKINGSbride
      @shulamiteKINGSbride 5 днів тому

      I thought the same thing❤

  • @michaelstusiak5902
    @michaelstusiak5902 Місяць тому +230

    As much as we focus our anger and disgust on Nancy, we can't ignore the part that Nancy's mother played on this story. So very sad.

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  Місяць тому +31

      Well said, Michael, there are many, many layers to this true story

    • @frostyfrances4700
      @frostyfrances4700 Місяць тому +28

      They all failed Roberta.

    • @juliamcminn9231
      @juliamcminn9231 Місяць тому +9

      This is so sad….

    • @bettyir4302
      @bettyir4302 Місяць тому +10

      And Will Putnam. Each one was more than the first.

    • @frostyfrances4700
      @frostyfrances4700 Місяць тому +10

      @@bettyir4302 - Simply saying this in general, not aimed at you: That bible verse about God visiting the sins of the father on the children is a terrible translation. Should simply read 'Sins of the father will be visited on the children' which is absolutely true. Not that humans escape ultimate responsibility for their own deadly sins, but environment definitely plays a strong role. As the rod is bent ....

  • @conemadam
    @conemadam 14 днів тому +7

    A close friend was supposed to be watching her brother at the beach. She turned her head, he drowned. Her parents were merciless with her. Even as an adult she carries horror within her. She is a lovely woman. What Nancy could have become in different circumstances makes your heart ache.

  • @andreacaughey6761
    @andreacaughey6761 24 дні тому +83

    Amazing how the whole area turn out to search for a missing girl yet when Roberta was alive they’d have shunned her and her family ,so heartbreaking

  • @MsCassieCrowe
    @MsCassieCrowe Місяць тому +76

    My daughter is related to Nance on her dad's side. I guess we'll never know the truth but it's still one of the saddest stories I've ever heard. Rest peacefully little Roberta 🙏🩷

  • @pameversole5886
    @pameversole5886 Місяць тому +113

    This broke my heart. 😭
    I thank God for a Granny that truly loved me.

  • @lindacecile5647
    @lindacecile5647 Місяць тому +105

    This entire story is so horrendously sad. The perpetuating cycle of ignorance, poverty, desperation and abuse is so dehumanizing that we see how people become animalistic. In my head I recognize this. But my heart cries out for this child who was never loved. I do believe she did this because she committed this crime in rhe very same cave she knew so well. Once again, JD, you've narrated this so eloquently. We can all say a prayer in memory of this child lest we forget others who deal with these same cycles .

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  Місяць тому +9

      Robertas story should not be forgotten. RIP

    • @rustylynch2
      @rustylynch2 Місяць тому +6

      Very well said...

    • @TheCosmicRealm3
      @TheCosmicRealm3 Місяць тому +4

      Welcome to planet Earth. Please enjoy your stay.

    • @caroleterrell3101
      @caroleterrell3101 21 день тому +4

      Not sure it was the same cave. It said she lived/grew up on Iron Mountain, which is in Iron Duff (I think). The cave where Roberta was found is in Utah Mountain area, which is on Maggie Valley/Jonathan Creek side.

    • @lindacecile5647
      @lindacecile5647 19 днів тому +1

      Thanks for the insight 😊

  • @kittreid704
    @kittreid704 26 днів тому +48

    I'm only a few minutes into this story and am so glad the algorithm recommended this underrated channel. Such fantastic and vivid storytelling.

  • @Romanaitor3
    @Romanaitor3 18 днів тому +24

    I wish people would fight like this today when injustice is done to a child

    • @DorothySbornak
      @DorothySbornak 12 днів тому +2

      They’d rather grab a phone and hit record or make a TikTok begging for money. Can’t forget the go fund me. Sad how people have changed. Our grandparents and greats would be ashamed to see us staring at phones all day. lol

    • @Romanaitor3
      @Romanaitor3 12 днів тому +1

      @@DorothySbornak so true

  • @Dawai-ds5jn
    @Dawai-ds5jn 27 днів тому +49

    one of the roughest lives ever and still lived to be 104...wow

  • @catherinebaum9185
    @catherinebaum9185 19 днів тому +17

    The town didn't care one bit about Roberta while she was alive, but spoke up after she went missing.

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  19 днів тому +3

      100% true

    • @Nettsinthewoods
      @Nettsinthewoods 13 днів тому +1

      @@catherinebaum9185 I think there was a culture of minding your on beeswax. That was certainly the culture in the U.K. when I was growing up. What happens in a persons home stays there. A bad concept in my opinion.

  • @TheSouthernLady777
    @TheSouthernLady777 14 днів тому +7

    My Mother was raised in these very same mountains and I can see how she was the way she was. It is very sad.

  • @loispeterson657
    @loispeterson657 24 дні тому +19

    What ever happened to Lizzie? Neither of those women had a chance in life but killing an innocent child is no excuse. Thank you for a wonderful story. It should make every woman who has ever had to raise a child alone today be thankful for what we have today.💋

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  24 дні тому +3

      I dont know what happened to Lizzie, I do remember looking her up on Find a grave, but other than her date of death, I didnt find anything else on here

    • @muchtested
      @muchtested 2 дні тому

      @@TheAppalachianStoryteller If Nancy lived to 104, how long did Lizzie live? How long did Nancy's wicked mother live, was the longevity genetic?

  • @breezlybruin
    @breezlybruin Місяць тому +52

    That poor little girl, so sad. JD your stories are much appreciated and so captivating . Thanks for your work

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  Місяць тому +1

      Thank you Bryan

    • @SherylFranklin-u9z
      @SherylFranklin-u9z Місяць тому

      I researched that story for my husband's aunt by marriage. She and my husbands grandmother tended Nancy on her death bed when they were younger in Whittier N.C. Said she came in on the train to Whittier from Ashville and her son picked her up when she was allowed to come home from prison. They thought she would tell what really happened to the child on her death bed. But my husbands aunt said she never did. His aunt said "she took it to her grave". I remember when the shack she died in was torn down for a new house after the property was sold. My husband's aunt asked me to read the legend of Nace Dude and see if I could find the cave. She said it always bothered her and she was to old to go look for herself and I was young and would I be willing to go and see to help settle her mind before she also died! She is now deceased. She said the men of the family went and found the cave and said the rocks were to large for Nancy to do it by herself. She told me where to look for the cave!! I found the cave. But I came up from the bottom of the mountain and couldn't climb to the entrance because of the huge rocks! Wr had to sneak in and the cave is nearly to the top of the mountain. It was open and I could see it. If I had come down the mountain from the top i could have walked right up to it. It's true! The rocks are huge! I believe it would have taken at least a grown men to move any of the rocks I saw there that day. I know for a fact that I could have never moved one by myself! I don't believe she did it by herself either after I went to the cave myself with my husband. I found the cemetery where she was buried. But my husband's aunt said it wasn't marked to keep mean spirited people from destroying the grave. She said it was in the back of the cemetery. But most of the graves in the back were so old and only marked with river stones at the head of the graves. So I couldn't find her. Only the area she was located. By the time I reported back to my husband's aunt I was so weary from the story! My heart was so heavy! It took me a long time to overcome it! Sometimes I wish she had never asked me to do it for her! Cataloochee is so beautiful where Nancy lived! Lake Junaluska is so peaceful where the old folks home was where Nancy claimed to have left the child. The court house still stands in Waynesville. And sometimes I wonder which of the giant trees still standing might have been the one that the people intended to hang her, her daughter and that man from when I pass by, and I always think of the story. I will always believe she took the blame to protect someone. My husband's aunt said her son was mean and they wondered if he was involved! But I've always wondered if she was followed there by the man who refused to marry her daughter! He had a hate for the child! An unbearable hate! And a motive! He wouldn't marry the daughter until that child was out of his way! Makes me wonder if the daughter was already pregnant by her father and that's why he burned the cabin down! I don't think that research will ever completely leave me in peace! There is another story to research! It's as disturbing! It's about the first woman ever hung by the neck until dead in N.C. It's the ballad of Frankie Silver! I meet her great granddaughter! That's how I found out about the story. We worked side by side in a sewing plant in Sylva N.C. She told me when I met her that I might not want to be friends with her because everyone knew who her great grandmother was. Her great grandma killed her abusive drunk husband with an axe in front of the fireplace after he came home drunk one night! He beat her and threatened to start on the children. She panicked and chopped him up and tried to hide the crime. But it all fell apart when the dog's and searchers found his head in an old tree stump on the property. It's definitely worth a video also. You have to understand how hard life was back then in the Appalachian Mountains. Starvation was a breath away! Moonshine was the making for a lot of abuse for the women who already had their hands full! Mortality rates for children was high! The older graveyards are full of babies! It's amazing Nancy lived so long with the life she was dealt! My heart hurts for the poor child! But Nancy lived an awful life for many years! And died a broken old woman in a shack with that stench about the baby hung around her neck! I will always feel sorry for her also! I believe she took the blame for some reason for a man! Either to save her daughter's lover because they did have other children together or her son! That's what I will always believe! What a pitiful life she indured! The Appalachian mountains are full of these awful stories! I can tell you three more. In Cades Cove on the Tennessee side of the Great Smoky Mountais a woman in the Cove died in child birth. The infant was not breathing either. The people of the cove buried her and the baby in one coffin together in a cemetery in the very back of the cove! For several days people kept seeing her in the cemetery. They all decided to dig her up. They did!! And found the infant alive! That's documented!! Another one is of an old woman my mother helped tend to at a nursing home In Swain Co. She came from Robinsville. Her mother died and left her to the mercy of her father and a group of brothers, way back up in the mountains! She was the only female left on the mountain! They used her for sex and she became pregnant. Another nurse told mama that the daughter belong to her own father. Her daughter was at the nursing home with her! She was so inbred she couldn't talk or take care of herself. The old woman lay in bed and fixed her eyes on the ceiling and never spoke a word until she died. Mama put her hand on the woman's forehead one night and prayed for her in silence. The old woman rolled her eyes and looked right at mama. Then rolled her eyes back to the ceiling and fixed them again until she died. Mama quit the nursing home after that. We don't know what ever happened to her inbred daughter. You just don't know how bad it was back then in the Appalachians. For the women it was awful! The other story happened on the Great Smoky Mountains. And for me personally it's the scariest story of all. It nvolves a woman's murder on the park. Her murder is unsolved! She was beat to death on the park. And her body was found just a little ways down a trail from her car. She haunt's it now! If you come across the top of the mountains around Newfound Gap and the entrance of Climans Dome at the right time at night she might hitchhike a ride in your back seat and you can hear her gasping for breath and screaming in terrible fear! Reliving the horror of her last moments of life! This will continue until you pull off the road and turn on the over head light in the car. As soon as you turn on the light the car falls silent and there is no woman in the back seat! That happened to my husband and myself one night coming home from Gatlinburg when I use to sing for a restaurant and bar called North of the Border. If I told anyone what happened to us my mountain husband would not say anything! I asked him just before he died to tell me the truth! Did it happen to us or not! That I needed to know! And I needed to know the truth!!! And if the answer was no i would accept it. He looked right at me from his hospital bed and plainly said "YES! It did happen"!!! I asked him why he never backed me up when I told someone about it! He said "I didn't want them to think we was crazy"! Just like a mountain man! Guess it was ok for them to think I was crazy! My husband died only a few days later. We spent almost 33 years together rambling these mountains! These mountains hold deep dark frightening secrets!!! I came from Jacksonville Florida when I was about 19 or 20. I'm almost 68 now! It was a huge change of life! A great awakening from big city life to mountain life in the middle of nowhere! I married a ridge runner! A sharp shooter! A mountain wildlife hunter! I've explored these mountains for over fifty years! Iv'e even seen a huge black panther on the park. And about a thousand pound Russian razer back hog with piglets. I llove the mountains! But I have learned to respect them also! And to always be very aware of my surroundings!!

  • @louisevisser89
    @louisevisser89 Місяць тому +41

    Thank you for sharing all these stories. I am from South Africa and will never be able to visit these mountains. But I get a vivid picture ebery time I listen

  • @karenbrewer5864
    @karenbrewer5864 Місяць тому +60

    I know these were hard times and the grandmother never really knew love. She was treated so harshly as a child, but there is no excuse for what she did to that precious little girl. To think that grandma lived to be 104, but that little girl was taken at 3 years of age . So sad. Thanks for the story!

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  Місяць тому +1

      Thank you 💜

    • @iristarot999
      @iristarot999 Місяць тому

      Karma has no deadline!

    • @loriegosnell9355
      @loriegosnell9355 Місяць тому +3

      Wow how did Nancy live so long😮

    • @carolleeames6659
      @carolleeames6659 Місяць тому +1

      Her history reminds me a bit of Aileen Wournos. Yes, she was a serial killer. Her home life was horrendous. It’s no excuse, but it played a part!

    • @Dawnsdelightsart
      @Dawnsdelightsart 28 днів тому +1

      When you know nothing else aren't exposed to kindness, our animal instincts take over. 😢💔

  • @kina18
    @kina18 Місяць тому +121

    I think everyone was guilty including the self-righteous town folks who didn't give a damn about the child until she was dead. They wouldn't hire her mom or grandma leaving them starving and desperate, dependant upon the lowest of men.

    • @monicadebolt3364
      @monicadebolt3364 23 дні тому +8

      Exactly!! 😢

    • @Wendy-Williams-NC
      @Wendy-Williams-NC 20 днів тому +6

      100% AGREE!!!

    • @lisawilliams2406
      @lisawilliams2406 20 днів тому +5

      True!

    • @o0LoveLove0o
      @o0LoveLove0o 19 днів тому +1

      Yeah some people think it’s better to not let that cycle continue horrible but I get it

    • @mr.joedirt8583
      @mr.joedirt8583 17 днів тому +3

      Most of them were probably too poor to take them in and didn't know much about the situation. They didn't have internet and phones. They worked from sun up to sun down and didn't know what was going on several miles up the road and in the next hollow.

  • @trishnemeth7035
    @trishnemeth7035 21 день тому +7

    It seems so hypocritical of a community that shunned these women and the little girl, who needed care, to suddenly care so violently after the girl died. It is a tragedy all the way around.

  • @jamilea3043
    @jamilea3043 Місяць тому +112

    Triggering for me being raised in East Tennessee. 😢 i was terribly abused, and it seemed like no one cared. In fact, they didn't.

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  Місяць тому +21

      Much love to you ❤️

    • @jamilea3043
      @jamilea3043 Місяць тому +2

      I love your book so much!​@TheAppalachianStoryteller

    • @jjframe1238
      @jjframe1238 Місяць тому +22

      Sending love your way sorry you had to go through such a life of trial❤

    • @jamilea3043
      @jamilea3043 Місяць тому +12

      @jjframe1238 thank you, that means the world to me! Bless you.

    • @rhondacribbs5727
      @rhondacribbs5727 Місяць тому +8

      Prayers for you!🙏 🙏🙏🙏🙏

  • @michaelvarble4392
    @michaelvarble4392 Місяць тому +37

    Such a sad story of harbored guilt and sadness ending in the death of such an innocent little girl. Thank you for telling this sad but true story. You are the best my friend

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  Місяць тому +5

      As tragic as this story is, Roberta deserves to be remembered.

    • @ValerieDee123
      @ValerieDee123 Місяць тому +4

      ​@TheAppalachianStoryteller Anywhere there is poverty. Especially the Appalachia's this still continues. This is the reason half of my family don't talk to the other half
      I don't speak to my Mother or Daughter. They're meaner than copperheads in shook up jar.

  • @kaytownsend5349
    @kaytownsend5349 Місяць тому +24

    Such sad story for the grandmother but she chooses life over her granddaughter is unbelievable

    • @jesusnameaboveallnames7369
      @jesusnameaboveallnames7369 7 днів тому +1

      09.09.2024
      Yes, very sad. Even though my grandson is a young man now, I'd give up my life for him in a heartbeat. 💙😎💘

  • @neeceeboo777
    @neeceeboo777 Місяць тому +31

    What a sad story. But like someone else commented, she wasn't loved as a kid and wasn't taught how to love. 😢😢. I couldn't begin to think of doing any of my children this way.

  • @samuelschick8813
    @samuelschick8813 Місяць тому +88

    No excuse for this. I'm in the Philippines and would go to a restaurant and got to know one of the female servers. I told her how I did not have a son and would love to have one. Well one night I went to said restaurant and some guy kept staring at me, after the place was empty, the waitress said the guy invited me to his table for a beer.
    At the table he told me a woman from his village worked in Manila and got pregnant. She then went back to the poor village, delivered the baby and abandoned it, a baby boy. He asked me if I would take this baby boy and give him a home. We went and talked to my wife and we decided we would take him in. Three days later the man shows up with the baby boy and the babys grandmother.
    The village was so poor they had to borrow clothes, bottles from other mothers and bring them back. That baby boy is now a strapping teenager.

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  Місяць тому +10

      Wow! are you still raising the child?

    • @homegrown1015
      @homegrown1015 Місяць тому +7

      Bless you and your wife for listening to your heart and God❤

    • @eunicestone6532
      @eunicestone6532 Місяць тому +3

      You got a bonus grandma too!!

    • @samuelschick8813
      @samuelschick8813 Місяць тому +12

      @@TheAppalachianStoryteller, Yes.

    • @RobertaReal7980
      @RobertaReal7980 Місяць тому +4

      I'm so happy to hear how this turned out. When I was reading it I thought "oh no they stole a baby". Bless you for opening your heart ❤️

  • @kalevala29
    @kalevala29 20 днів тому +11

    I was actually shocked when it turned out to be the same cave where she had sought refuge as a child.

  • @jayneepeters56
    @jayneepeters56 28 днів тому +16

    I'm not defending Nancy but if these justice seekers had put in the same energy at aiding Nancy and Lizzie,Roberta would have lived. Morality ends up destroying many lives.

  • @myerstalesofappalachia
    @myerstalesofappalachia Місяць тому +11

    That baby sure didn't deserve what happened for sure . Now she's with her heavenly father who showers with like be and kisses as she deserves.

  • @rustylynch2
    @rustylynch2 Місяць тому +31

    I feel there's more to this story. A few details that can never be proven. If a 12 yr okd coukd move the rocks, id say ahe probably could too. But its certainly possible she had help. As one comment mentioned about Nancy's parents, she wasnt loved as a child. Humans have to be be taugh love, along with everything else. unfortunately it usually doesn't come naturally. J.D. Im glad you did the research on this, cause i don't think i could have. The story telling was great, but a sad story indeed.

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  Місяць тому +11

      It was hard to tell this story- when I began researching, I never realized the details I would find or the actual pictures of the crime scene. I didn’t show them here cause they broke my heart

    • @rustylynch2
      @rustylynch2 Місяць тому +5

      @@TheAppalachianStoryteller thank you for not showing them. have a good night.

    • @keithstewart2639
      @keithstewart2639 Місяць тому +5

      What a sad story..I live in mitchell County. But also know the area this happened in. Life was rough back it those days

  • @summerfi
    @summerfi Місяць тому +14

    Abuse begets abuse in a cycle that is so hard to break. Such a sad story.

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  Місяць тому +1

      so true Summer

    • @lisalu910
      @lisalu910 20 днів тому +4

      Maybe, but not always. When my parents beat me, I always vowed I would never lay a hand on my children and I never did. I couldn't bear the thought of hurting anyone the way I was hurt.

    • @summerfi
      @summerfi 20 днів тому +2

      @@lisalu910 Bless you for breaking the cycle in your family. Your children and their future generations are so fortunate.

  • @thejewelrycabana3057
    @thejewelrycabana3057 Місяць тому +24

    Thank you for the story. Nancy Conard did have a hard life and there is a lot more to this story.

  • @brunetteone4082
    @brunetteone4082 Місяць тому +12

    This story broke every inch of my heart 😢

  • @maymellor7592
    @maymellor7592 Місяць тому +18

    What a heartbreaking story. I'm stunned. ❤

  • @Buck58
    @Buck58 Місяць тому +9

    Glad I found your channel. I'm 66 years old, and born and raised in east TN, and still live in Bristol, TN, So alot of these stories happened close by.

  • @reneerollins4433
    @reneerollins4433 Місяць тому +13

    What a story! RIP little Roberta ❤ thanks for sharing JD😊

  • @tammypetruzzi9191
    @tammypetruzzi9191 Місяць тому +20

    Such a sad story.
    That poor baby.

  • @wayne-tg1xh
    @wayne-tg1xh Місяць тому +19

    Love these Appalachian mountain stories.thank u sir

  • @laura6796
    @laura6796 Місяць тому +19

    Poor little Roberta, so heartbreaking. ❤

  • @chrishensley6745
    @chrishensley6745 Місяць тому +15

    That was a roughin man......Times back then were brutal here in the Mountains. Take care J.D.

  • @87clits
    @87clits 29 днів тому +4

    I can't help but feel true sadness for these women. Treated like objects not human beings. This can truly bring out the worst in human beings. Especially when they are denied the very basics ever child deserves.

  • @rudolpholaspari6039
    @rudolpholaspari6039 Місяць тому +11

    I find it amazing that these men made a posse yet none of these fine men could help this destitute family. Wow, the hypocrisy. This was a great story

  • @donnamays24
    @donnamays24 Місяць тому +11

    I love your featuring Nance Dude…I read the book about her story years ago…and did a lot of research about this woman..I’m distantly related to her..she had a horrific life..there is much more to her story than this..so much more..I think it’s important to note that Nance literally tried every way possible to provide for Roberta..and her daughter Lizzy was terrible selfish girl…a very sad and tragic story of extreme abuse, poverty and hopelessness! Blessings❤

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  Місяць тому +3

      The book is a fiction novel with some historical facts along the way, this story I told was based on court and newspaper records

    • @donnamays24
      @donnamays24 Місяць тому +3

      @@TheAppalachianStoryteller the book written that I’m referring to was all based on facts written by Maurice Stanley titled “the legend of Nance Dude”..I also read the fictional book loosely based on her story titled “the serpent slips into a modern Eden” by James A. Turpin. I obtained my copy of the Stanley book through the Haywood county historical society about 25 years ago. Included in the Stanley book are numerous records from court, local newspapers and interviews of old folks who knew Nance and lived in the community . The Stanley book also includes a lot of photos, birth, marriage and death records. I absolutely love your channel and so enjoy your posts-Good job!

    • @FrankHarrington-h7l
      @FrankHarrington-h7l Місяць тому +3

      ​@@donnamays24I have really wondered if someone with her weight and I read she had
      arthritis could have physically done this! Patricia Gambino Harrington

  • @DianeMario-ct9tf
    @DianeMario-ct9tf 20 днів тому +4

    I love to hear your storytelling even though it’s a sad story. These things need to be remembered.

  • @emilypine
    @emilypine 28 днів тому +5

    Hi from Australia, I’ve just stumbled upon your channel and I have to say I love hearing a human voice! New subscriber 🎉

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  28 днів тому +2

      Welcome aboard my friend so glad to have you here there’s a large community of folks from Australia that are also in this channel and we’re glad to have you here

  • @johnbubbajohnson5630
    @johnbubbajohnson5630 Місяць тому +5

    A truely sad story. Bur thank you for sharing it with us. God bless you and your whole family...🙏🙏🙏

  • @mtnbee23
    @mtnbee23 Місяць тому +4

    Wow, this is heartbreaking in every possible way. Nancy clearly did not know what love truly is, and she likely was speaking her truth when she said she "loved" that child.

  • @marydellgeorge2425
    @marydellgeorge2425 Місяць тому +7

    You did a great job
    Telling this story
    Sir
    God Bless Roberta ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

  • @raymondbradley6788
    @raymondbradley6788 Місяць тому +10

    JD that is one tragic story. If it’s blue, it’s blue.

  • @relicrecoveryspecialist16
    @relicrecoveryspecialist16 Місяць тому +3

    As a devout Cherokee genealogist Nancy was a 1 thing!! A legitimate EBCI member living in the foot hills, surviving lots of things even what her family had well before her. Her family was unlucky quite a bit

  • @sw-js6eh
    @sw-js6eh Місяць тому +4

    Wow! Although a very sad ending to an adorable and innocent little girl, thank you again for sharing with us!

  • @Ms.Ussery
    @Ms.Ussery 11 днів тому +2

    Poor baby i feel sorry for all three people poverty's hell sometimes im catching hell myself but aint no way on God's green earth that i would put no one before my children! Great story 🙏 God Bless you and your family

  • @ellenjames7630
    @ellenjames7630 Місяць тому +11

    In all these comments, no one is blaming the man? If he hadn't been so selfish that he insisted he couldn't possibly raise another man's daughter, none of this would have happened! Men push women to desperation, but we never blame the man!

  • @darlenerobinson8821
    @darlenerobinson8821 Місяць тому +4

    Wow!! What a sad sad story JD!! Things weren't any different then...being a single mother still hold a stigma today. Poor little gal. I feel sorry for all of them.

  • @Nightbird1914
    @Nightbird1914 Місяць тому +3

    Please do a story on the Legend of Nance Dude if you haven’t already. “One cold February morning in 1913, a 64-year-old woman known as Nance Dude led her granddaughter, Roberta Putnam, out of their home in western North Carolina and up the side of a mountain. She returned without the child later that day.”

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  Місяць тому +8

      This IS Nance Dudes story. The real story. Her name was Nancy Kerley, it was only when the fictional Novel came out about her life that “nance dude” nickname was invented.

  • @karena2685
    @karena2685 Місяць тому +5

    Such a sad story on every level! Thank you for sharing

  • @Ashley.Michell22
    @Ashley.Michell22 Місяць тому +9

    Omg!! Hope the guy felt bad about telling Izzy to get rid of her

  • @MichaelSSmith-hs5pw
    @MichaelSSmith-hs5pw 23 дні тому +3

    JD, I have subscribed to your channel a long while back & I click the like button to every one of your episodes that I watch. Please keep these wonderful stories coming, we need them so much. 💕

  • @debby705
    @debby705 17 годин тому +1

    That's me subscribed. So good to have a real person doing the storytelling JD. Such a tragic story of this poor little soul 💔

  • @FeralSheryl1818
    @FeralSheryl1818 Місяць тому +7

    So very sad and haunting. Bless the little children.

  • @kevincaldwell1935
    @kevincaldwell1935 Місяць тому +3

    I am from Maggie valley I'm part Indian I have heard about this but also that the cave is haunted been there several times but don't believe it 😅

  • @WillowsGarden
    @WillowsGarden Місяць тому +9

    Good morning JD! This story makes my heart hurt and break. I just can’t imagine how anyone could harm a child. God sees all and everyone has a judgement day.
    I hope you and your family have a very blessed weekend!

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  Місяць тому +2

      A truly heartbreaking story, very hard for me to tell, but Robertas story should not be forgotten. Hope you have a great weekend Willow, im taking my boy to the lake today.

  • @rogerparris6742
    @rogerparris6742 Місяць тому +6

    Sad but great video JD. Being from Swain County, I’ve driven Conleys Creek many times never knowing this part of History. Thanks for the tremendous story…..FYI. My great grandfather John Wesley Phillips was from Eastern Tennessee. Thanks for your hard work Cuz😁

  • @stuartwhelan233
    @stuartwhelan233 Місяць тому +3

    Wow absolutely brilliant true life stories across the pond really appreciate your crack that happened in the us it was a cruel ways back then so sad exactly the same in the uk too. Thanks for sharing there stories to us all they will never be forgotten....🇬🇧🇺🇸...😢😢❤

  • @N2Mtns2
    @N2Mtns2 Місяць тому +5

    I’m not crying I’m not crying. Yes I am and I’m ordering your Book now.

  • @Doug-z5o
    @Doug-z5o 13 днів тому +2

    Good storytelling. Good job! Thanks

  • @paulfroese1469
    @paulfroese1469 22 дні тому +3

    First time I've seen this channel and this story made me subscribe. Thank you!! Great story telling.

  • @ChrisBruggeman-ie6rf
    @ChrisBruggeman-ie6rf Місяць тому +6

    Child versus fast strong 🐻! So how was she supposed to look after her brother in that circumstance? The mother had anymosity for the daughter before the bear attack.

  • @stevecurtiss46
    @stevecurtiss46 Місяць тому +12

    As much as I would like to beleive in Nancys innocence, being abused all her life could well have bent her mind. I think she did bury that baby alive. It is amazing she lived to 103 year old. I have been to Maggie Valley and Bryson City and to Maple valley outside Bryson.

  • @deanlibby5878
    @deanlibby5878 Місяць тому +22

    She kept changing her story, I would say that she did it.😢

  • @charlespressley6064
    @charlespressley6064 Місяць тому +5

    Good afternoon JD another great story and superbly told . All the best from Nottinghamshire County Uk .

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  Місяць тому +1

      Hope you are doing well Charles!

    • @charlespressley6064
      @charlespressley6064 Місяць тому

      @TheAppalachianStoryteller Am i right in saying you play all the instruments? i play the mandalin very badly. I love the traditional sound.

  • @ryanlemley4866
    @ryanlemley4866 Місяць тому +9

    This one's sad. Always worse when it involves children. 😢

  • @williamhensley8698
    @williamhensley8698 Місяць тому +5

    She killed the kid. Pure and simple.

  • @nancyweems5270
    @nancyweems5270 Місяць тому +3

    I use to listen to your stories don't know why I didn't see them no more, Watching Miranda reminded me of you. I'm back 😊

  • @bigdan653
    @bigdan653 Місяць тому +4

    I love the stories about NC especially the happy ones

  • @FrankHarrington-h7l
    @FrankHarrington-h7l Місяць тому +6

    This story has haunted me for years! I grew up in Asheville NC and found an article about this when I was 13 and I am 55 now and it still haunts me! Patricia Gambino Harrington (I post on my hubby's UA-cam acct)

  • @lauriemohr470
    @lauriemohr470 Місяць тому +2

    So heartbreaking. You are an amazing story teller and my new favorite UA-camr. ❤ These stories are fascinating.

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  29 днів тому

      Thank you Laurie so glad to have you here. Hope you’re having a fabulous weekend, my friend.

  • @Nonniemaye
    @Nonniemaye Місяць тому +6

    I am against violence of any kind . The Bible teaches us that our tongue is little member of our body but it has the power to speak life or death. PROVERBS 18 : 21 .
    This story broke my heart .
    A little encouragement to Nancy could have changed her whole out look on life. God help us to be careful what we say to others .
    At the end of the day, it's God's opinion that counts.
    Many thanks, JD. For sharing this story.
    God bless .

  • @poempadgett4664
    @poempadgett4664 Місяць тому +4

    Regardless of Nancy’s painful and neglectful childhood, for her to have let any 2-year-old, let alone her own grandchild, die like that is inexcusable, imo, although I don’t doubt that she was M-I. I had only imagined at first that she had done it quickly, and _then_ buried her body- not what she did- sadistically buried the tiny girl alive under big, heavy rocks to suffer helplessly all alone, possibly for days, in terror, confusion, thirst, and hunger, in pure agony. What a horrifically tragic story.💔

  • @FrankMobelini
    @FrankMobelini Місяць тому +5

    My grandma was chasing a man that caught my grandpas head turned and bashed him with a piece of steel ! He made it to the railroad tracks and while they were both running she shot his ear off trying to shoot his head off!

  • @PaulaNealy
    @PaulaNealy 28 днів тому +2

    I heard the story of Nance Dude as a child. My maternal grandmother was 10 years old and lived in the area when Nance placed Roberta in the cave. My grandmother named her first child, my mother, Roberta, in memory of the little child.
    There is a book, The Legend of Nance Dude, that goes into greater detail about the story.

  • @yvettevitacaponigro
    @yvettevitacaponigro Місяць тому +4

    Thank you for sharing this story with us! ✌🏼😊

  • @ezekielmoorejr3145
    @ezekielmoorejr3145 Місяць тому +3

    This is a unfortunately sad story and it clearly shows how cruel society can be with their unrighteous judgment and how people will even commit heinous acts out of desperation.

  • @GrannyNoodles
    @GrannyNoodles 2 дні тому +1

    So sad. Excellent storytelling.

  • @davidbigbee3556
    @davidbigbee3556 Місяць тому +4

    Excellent story!!! I really like this one 👍🏻

  • @georgeseymour7116
    @georgeseymour7116 Місяць тому +4

    Another great story. Thanks

  • @sevenspecie592
    @sevenspecie592 Місяць тому +2

    Times were just so hard & people so poor! I know this was horrible thing that happened to little Roberta , & how incredibly painful & the suffering she.endured! All 3 of them suffered & Nancy her life was a.nightmare since she was.a young child! So beautiful --all 3 of them! Shockingly beautiful actually!
    For.some reason I stopped receiving your.notifications a few months ago & I just happened.to.run across this.video! I now haven3 months worth to watch & its suppose to rain for thr.next 24 hours here. Kind of excited!
    Ive.missed your stories.& most definitely your.voice! God bless❤🇱🇷❤

  • @chrissmith9135
    @chrissmith9135 22 дні тому +2

    So glad I ran across this channel. A lot of work has obviously went into these well produced videos...

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  21 день тому

      Thanks for this comment- each one of these videos takes 40-60 hours of research and production

  • @johnruggiero3366
    @johnruggiero3366 Місяць тому +8

    Wow how cruel people were !!!! Poor roberta!!!!😢

  • @Kate_Neuman
    @Kate_Neuman Місяць тому +1

    Oh JD, this is the saddest story I have heard. Just horrible all the way around. Where was the love they needed? Why didn’t they go to a church? So many questions. Thank you JD, for telling the story and keeping Roberta’s memory alive. God bless you! Love from Canadice NY ❤

  • @rebeccasblingingboutique4762
    @rebeccasblingingboutique4762 Місяць тому +5

    Thank you jd 🎉

  • @naomidimartino6441
    @naomidimartino6441 17 днів тому +2

    Her young face is so majestic. It's so hard to see the world wear down what God created. This was a child. 😢😢❤❤❤

  • @kathyowen6806
    @kathyowen6806 Місяць тому +2

    I really enjoyed watching this. I am from Macon Co., NC, so, I am aware of all the places mentioned in this story.
    Thanks for sharing!

  • @debbieritter1096
    @debbieritter1096 Місяць тому +6

    How very, very sad---- poor little Roberta...

  • @Jacobbradyyt8869
    @Jacobbradyyt8869 Місяць тому +5

    Another great video! 👍👍

  • @johnbrereton6823
    @johnbrereton6823 Місяць тому +4

    With the life that Nancy was forced to live, she never knew compassion. Therefore I don't see how she could have the feeling to try to protect her daughter. I also don't see how she would be able to have feelings for her grand daughter. She did the act.

  • @NoBonesPressed
    @NoBonesPressed Місяць тому +8

    REST FOREVER IN PEACE
    little one, you left this world in a very tragic way...
    I pray God handed out justified judgment!

  • @barswaygo
    @barswaygo Місяць тому +6

    I think all 3 were involved

  • @gonzalojr596
    @gonzalojr596 Місяць тому +3

    Love your channel my friend. Leesson to you every day.

  • @dreamofmermaids
    @dreamofmermaids 17 днів тому +2

    This channel just popped up in my feed! Wow! Truly great story telling.
    What a tragic heartbreaking story all the way around.
    Definitely just subscribed!

    • @TheAppalachianStoryteller
      @TheAppalachianStoryteller  17 днів тому +1

      Welcome to the channel my friend so glad to have you here. Pull up a chair and make yourself at home.

    • @dreamofmermaids
      @dreamofmermaids 17 днів тому

      @@TheAppalachianStoryteller yes indeed, thank you!