Goble
Willie
Aleen
Goble
(1925 - 20??)
Martin
Luther
Goble
(1888 - 1979)
Jacob
Hedrick
Goble
(1860 - 1929)
Harriett
Lucinda
Goble
(1839 - 1911)
Lewis
Carlan
Goble
(1813 - 1880)
Corban
Goble
(1761 - 1840)
John
Goble
(1724 - 1813)
Daniel
Goble III
(1698 - 1750)
Daniel
David
Goble
(1669 - 1733)
Daniel
Goble I
(1641 - 1676)
Thomas
Goble
(1590 - 1657)
William
Goble
(1540 - 1593)________
Willie's
SIBLINGS
Geneva
May
Johnson
(1903 - 19??)
Ethel
Irene
Goble
(1908 - 1983)
Lewis
Hubert
Goble
(1910 - 1911)
James
Henry
"Leggs"
Goble
(1912 - 1995)
Baby
Boy
Goble
(1914 - 1914)
Baby
Girl
Goble
(1915 - 1915)
Jay
Corban
"J.C."
Goble
(1916 - 2005)
Harlee
Goble
(1918 - 1980)
Fannie
Elizabeth
"Lib"
Goble
(1921 - 1998)
Mary
Helen
Goble
(1924 - 20??)
Willie
Aleen
Goble
(1925 - 20??)
Elgevia
Goble
(1928 - 20??)
Estelene
Goble
(1928 - 1929)
Doris
Goble
(1933 - 1934)
_______
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________
FAMILY
NAMES
LOFTIN:
Beatty
Corzine
Cranford
Fisher
Givens
Harwell
Kaiser
Lomax
McCorkle
Rudisill
Sherrill
Upright
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SETZER:
Aderholdt
Barringer
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Bushart
Deal
Heavner
Herman
Ikert
Miller
Motz
Rankin
Witherspoon
GOBLE:
Babst/Bobst
Douglas
Faber
Fink
Fulbright
Hefner
Meinhert
Miller
Muller
Pabst/Bobst
Robinson
JOHNSON:
Corzine
Fink
Hamilton
Kaiser
Leslie
Lewis
Moore
Sherrill
Upright
Wilkinson
Willie Aleen Goble
Born: 04 Dec 1925, Iredell County, NC
Interview with Willie
November - December 2006Willie Aleen Goble Loftin was the ninth child of Martin Luther Goble and Beulah Vernesta Johnson. She was born December 4, 1925.
Willie didn’t get an actual birth certificate until 1975 and found that it contained several mistakes. Her name was recorded as Willie Ellen instead of Willie Aleen. Her birth year was listed as 1924, but she was actually born in 1925. She never changed this information legally.
(Left) Willie, 2nd / 3rd Grade Iredell County
Martin & Nessie lived in several rented houses in Iredell County, including the Henry Setzer house. Willie only remembers seeing/meeting her grandfather, Jacob Goble, one time. She and Helen saw a very dark skinned man coming down the road and Helen hollered, “Daddy, here comes a black man!” It was actually Martin’s father, Jacob. Martin, himself, was extremely dark skinned from all the time he spent outdoors.
Willie remembers the family visiting her Uncle Henry Pinkney Johnson Jr., her mother’s brother, and his wife, Beulah, as well as her Uncle Ode and Aunt Becky, Martin’s brother and sister. Uncle Hen only had one leg.
Martin decided to move his family from Iredell County to Catawba County. They loaded their meager belongings into a horse-drawn buggy, crossed the Catawba River, and moved into Pump Alley’s old house on (Pump) Alley Rd. (about 0.1 mile on the right), just off of Sherrills Ford Rd. near Catawba, NC. It was a small 3 room house. The kids all slept in one bedroom - in two beds. They didn’t have mattresses for the bed and slept on straw ticks. When the straw became flattened, it could be replaced. Lib, Helen and Willie & Elgevia slept in one bed, while Legs, Harlee & JC slept in another one.
J.C. Goble at the old Murphy Jones home on Alley Rd. in Catawba County Willie was the next to the youngest child and thus had different responsibilities at home. While J.C. (age16), Harlee (age 14), Lib (age 11) and Helen (age 8) were working in the cotton fields, Willie (who was 7 at the time) was helping her mother at home, and also helping to look after Elgevia, who was 4 at the time, as well as baby, Doris. James/Legs was 20 and married at the time.
Willie’s siblings always thought Nessie “petted” her. Willie used to laugh and tell Lib, Helen & Gevia, "Mom always said I was the best kid she had. This would make the others a little jealous.”
Willie at the remains of the old Pump Alley houseWillie said that as a little girl, she and her cousin Fannie Bunton, daughter of Marvin & Becky Goble Bunton, were the favorite nieces of her Uncle Otis Goble, Martin’s brother. Once he gave her a little rocking chair and didn’t give the other nieces or nephews anything - maybe because there were so many of them.
Lib, Willie, Elgevia and HelenWillie and Helen both played basketball in the 7th and 8th grade at Balls Creek Elementary School. In the 7th grade, Willie won some socks for being the best on the team.
Willie’s baby sister, Doris, was born 31 October 1933 and died 04 August 1934. The photo at left shows Lib (age 13), Willie (age 8), Elgevia (age 5) and Helen (age 10) at the church for Doris’ funeral. They were a poor family and had to borrow clothes for the girls to wear to the funeral.
Willie was in third grade when the family moved to Catawba County.
Willie and Elgevia both played guard and Helen forward. Willie and Helen eventually quit school in 8th grade to go to work. Willie said…
Helen could get by with anything with Daddy. We were sliding on the ice when we were kids, and Daddy asked me, "Willie, were you sliding on the ice?"
I told him, "No!"
Then he asked Helen, "Helen, were you sliding on the ice?" She said, "Yep!" He whipped me and didn't whip Helen.
When I asked him "Why'd you whip me and not her?"
He said, "You lied to me!"Another incident from Willie…
“Helen and Lib fed me ‘rabbit pills’ (feces) when I was a kid, too. They told me it was candy. They got a whipping for that!”Willie said the children would sometimes go to Ebenezer Lutheran Church with Mrs. Pump Alley, a neighbor. She also said that she, Helen and Lib would walk to Center Methodist during revivals. Their brothers didn’t go with them and usually the Rudisill boys would walk the girls back home.
The Martin Goble family when they lived at the old Murphy Jones house in Catawba County
Nessie, Martin, James/Legs
Willie, Elgevia holding Bud (Leg's son), HelenAfter a short while, Martin moved his family into the old Murphy Jones house because it was a little larger. Murphy Jones was Edna Jones Loftin’s brother. Edna became Charlie Loftin’s wife. This house was also located on Pump Alley Rd. (about 0.8 mile on the right). Willie lived here when she dated and married Sam. This was the only two-story house in Catawba County that the Goble family ever lived in.
Willie during her teenage years Most of the kids
had nicknames.
Willie was called “Bill”,
Lib was “Can”,
Helen was “Min”,
JC was “Tud”,
Harlee was “Doc”,
and James was “Legs”.
Harlee & James carried
their nicknames with them
for the rest of his life.
Elgevia, being the baby,
didn’t have a nickname.
On one occasion while Willie and Helen had been working in the field hoeing rows of cotton, they ate too many green apples and got sick. “Daddy let me quit working, but he made Helen keep on hoeing”.
Sometimes J.C. was in charge of the kids when they worked in the garden and he was "tough". On one occasion, he told them that he had weighed the cotton from the day before and that if they didn’t pick as much the next day, he’d “beat their butts!”
Willie, unmarried, with Bud Goble (James/Leg's son) at the Murphy Jones property
Willie and Helen both went to work at Betterware Hosiery Mill in Catawba when Willie was 15 and Helen was 16, boarding socks. You had to be 16 to work, so Willie lied about her age so she could get the job. Willie and Helen were hard workers.
Helen & Willie Goble Willie said she dated several boys as a young girl but never single-dated - she always double-dated - usually with Helen. Willie said they never really went to movies or dances, but usually just rode around in the car.
When asked how she first met Sam, Willie said she had gone to Speedo’s store, just down the road from where the Martin Goble family lived, to buy some candy and Sam was working there. This was Speed’s 1st store, and was located in the corner close to the road going down to Mathis Chapel Church. She said, “He gave me a LOT of candy for the money. He told a neighbor, Ms. Trimm, that he was “gonna date that girl, Willie” … that she was pretty. Willie always said Sam was the best looking man she had ever met. Willie said she was a “good girl” and never single-dated Sam before they were married.
Everyone wasn’t interested in seeing Sam and Willie get together.
Lib, Willie’s sister, asked Sam, "Why do you want to marry her? She can't even cook!"
He said, "That’s OK! I can teach her. I can cook!"Willie said that one evening her Daddy, Martin, came home drunk. He found Sam’s flashlight, that he had left at the house and said he was gonna break it. Helen said, “Daddy, don’t break that flashlight. That’s not Sam’s flashlight; it’s mine.” Martin favored Helen, and thinking the flashlight was hers, didn’t break it.
Sam eventually asked Martin, if he could marry Willie. Martin told him, “Yes, but if you’re mean to her, I’ll get you!”
Willie and Sam were married on March 21, 1942. They eloped to York Co, South Carolina. Willie was 16 and Sam was 23 at the time. They lied about their age in South Carolina in order to get married. Willie said she was 18 years & 4 months - she was actually 16 years and 3 months. Sam said he was 24 years & 2 months - he was actually 23 years & 10 months. Floyd Sigmon and Helen, Willie’s sister, went with them.
Willie & Helen Goble After they were married, Sam & Willie moved into a small 2-room house on the corner between East Bandy’s Rd & Sherrill’s Ford Rd. beside of Ida Loftin. The house only had a kitchen and a bedroom, but Sam did buy Willie a new bedroom suit when they moved in. Sam built their kitchen table and bought a second-hand wood stove and cabinet for their dishes. There was no water in the house and no bathroom. They had an outhouse and carried water from Mrs. Loftin’s house to use in the kitchen. They didn’t have electricity or a refrigerator. They used a horse and buggy to go from place to place, visit parents, siblings, etc.
Sam & WillieA year-and-a half later, Willie was pregnant with Billy Ray. She and Sam had been visiting with her Mom & Dad on Christmas Day 1943 when it started to snow. While there, Willie went into labor and Sam had to go get his brother Mike’s car in order to drive her to the hospital in Newton.
Because of the snow, others in the family had to push the car, including Floyd & Helen. Willie’s mother, Nessie, joined her as Sam attempted to drive her through the snow to the hospital. From her parents home (Murphy Jones place) they drove toward the old Gold Mine on Mathis Chapel Rd. in order to stop by their little 2-room house and pick up some clothes for Willie. From there, they turned back on E. Bandys Rd. heading toward Charlie Loftin’s Home, as well as the home of Floyd & Helen Sigmon. When they got to the bottom of the hill, the snow was so heavy & high, the car couldn’t make it up the hill. Eventually Sam went and got horses from Roy Setzer to pull the car up the hill, as they continued to the hospital in Newton. Billy Ray was born over 12 hours later on December 26, 1943 around 10 P.M.
They had left home about midnight and didn’t get to the hospital in Newton till 7 a.m. the next morning.
Willie and Sam with a new-born Billy Ray in 1944 Eventually Sam bought 40 acres of property on Dexter Path, just off of Shiloh Church Rd. from Fred Gibson’s father. Sam purchased the property, then cut and sold the timber there to pay for the property. Sam worked at Russ Campbell’s sawmill at the time. He used Russ’ horses to pull the logs that he had cut off of the property. He also used some of the timber to build a house for him & Willie.
Willie at the first house Sam built on Dexter Path, off of Shiloh Church Rd. Billy Ray was just a couple of week old when they moved into their first new home. In the beginning, there was no water in the house. Willie had to walk to a nearby stream to wash their clothes, and also had to carry water to the house for drinking and cooking. In time, Sam would dig a well close to the house. They had no indoor toilet facilities, so Sam built an outhouse on the property.
Willie, Sam & Billy Ray While living there, Willie started boarding socks 2nd Shift (3:00 to 11:00). Sam also planted a large cotton crop. Willie would hoe cotton and work in the garden during the day and board socks in the evening. When Sam wanted to put in another cotton crop the second year, Willie told him “No”. She told him she’d hoe cotton or work in the boarding room…either one…but not both.
At one time, Sam & Willie hired a Ms. Setzer to keep Billy Ray during the day while they worked. She would come to their house during the day, but go home at night. She would also do some cooking while she was there, and Sam would come home for lunch at times. One evening when Willie came home, he threw one of Ms. Setzer’s “hard” biscuits against the wall and said to Willie, “Look at what I have to eat!”
Willie’s sister, Elgevia, also lived with them for a short period of time. Occasionally Sam, Willie & Elgevia would go to dances at Genevia & Lester Gibson’s. Genevia kept Billy Ray for a short time when he was a baby.
Helen Head Matthews, Willie and Sue Kale at Betterware Hosiery in Catawba
A variety of Campmeeting photos of Willie
Sam and Willie still used their horse-and-buggy while living on Dexter Path, but Sam eventually bought a 1935 model used car.
The Loftin family had deep roots in the Balls Creek Campground. When the large Loftin family would get together for the Autumn event, they’d have to use two tents because of all the kids and grandkids. Alonzo & Ida Loftin’s tents were 69 and 70. Sam’s sister, Frances Cook, inherited 69 from her parents.
Sam built a tent for Willie and himself down close to the spring and “Shack” area - around 116.
Sam eventually sold this house on Dexter Path and purchased some property on E. Bandy’s Rd where he built their second house. Sam built a bathroom in this house and even installed a shower in the basement.
Sam and Willie started off with about 30 acres, but eventually bought 30 more, and even more after that. He also built another building on the property that became a beer joint.
The second house & beer-joint Sam built on E. Bandys Rd. According to Willie, Sam was making a lot of money from selling beer and bought them a new electric stove, new refrigerator and even a new deep-freezer. They also purchased their first living-room suit while living at E. Bandys.
Also while living there, Sam & Willie got “saved” and turned the beer joint into a grocery store. Sam had gone to William Guins’ to buy some chickens and William invited Sam & Willie to a revival at Mathis Chapel Baptist Church. Willie got saved first, then Sam. The Loftin family had been Methodist for many generations, but after their salvation experience, Sam & Willie joined the Baptist Church.
According to Willie, she & Sam owned the first TV of anyone in the area. Every Saturday night, Fred & Emmer Mathis (who donated the land for Mathis Chapel Baptist Church, where Sam & Willie attended) would come over to the grocery store to watch TV.
Many of Sam and Willie’s family lived in the surrounding Bandy’s community, including Willie’s parents (Martin & Nessie Goble) and Sam’s mother (Ida Loftin). Sam’s brothers Charlie, Oscar and sisters Sadie Lee, Alley Lee and Frances Cook all lived nearby. Willie’s sisters Helen Sigmon and Lib Isenhour, as well as brothers James and Harlee all lived within a few miles of Sam and Willie’s home on E. Bandys. Elgevia and Bill even lived in the former beer-joint and grocery store at one time.
Additional Campground photos of Sam, Willie and Billy Ray 
Willie and Billy Ray in 1944 - 1945 On one wintry evening while living on E. Bandy Rd., Willie discovered that Billy Ray was missing in the middle of the night. He was 3 or 4 years old at the time. Willie remembers crying and saying, “it’s so cold outside - he’ll freeze to death.” Eventually, however, he was found in the spare bedroom under a stack of clothes. He told them he had been cold in his room and climbed under the clothes to keep warm.
It was also during this time that Sam purchased about 40 acres, that he eventually sold to Lloyal Deal that would become Sugar Farm. Sam’s brother, Oscar, built a home and lived in the Sugar Farm area.
Sam, Willie & Billy Ray at Mathis Chapel Churh in 1952
Willie became pregnant again when they were living on East Bandy’s Rd. She was helping to push a car during the snowy winter, fell, and miscarried as a result.Curtis was born in 1953
Eventually she would become pregnant the third time. Sam & Willie were living in this house when Curtis was born in May of 1953.Sam contracted to build a house on Hwy. 10, just out of Catawba, for his cousin Glenn Loftin’s oldest son. When the house was completed, the boy wasn’t able to get his loan to pay for the house, so Sam decided to sell the house on E. Bandy’s Rd. to Carson & Velma Pool and move his family to Hwy. 10. The year was 1954.
The Hwy. 10 house had two bedrooms, a kitchen, an inside bathroom, a living room and a den.
Sam eventually built an inside back porch for a washing machine. Willie had used a scrub board for washing clothes when she was first married, but now she had a electric washing machine, and it had a “ringer”. She’d hand-feed the sopping-wet clothes through the “ringer” and all the excess water was pressed out. The family had no clothes dryer, and all clothes were hung up outside on a clothes line to dry.
Families seldom locked the doors to their homes when they went off - or even at night. Cars were never locked.
(Right) Campground photo of Curtis, age 3 (1956)
Willie celebrates her school class reunion at Balls Creek in 1960
Willie, Curtis, Billy Ray & Sam (Middle)
Floyd & Helen Sigmon (Right)Sam & Willie would live in this house on Hwy. 10 in Catawba for the rest of their lives
(Left) Willie & Sam with Bevery & Billy Loftin, their first two grandchildren, in 1966
(Right) Sam & Willie with Curtis, Bill & Diane, Beverly, Billy, Eric and Crystal at Mathis Chapel in 1971Willie and Sam had two children, six grandchildren and ten great-grandchildren. Willie with Curtis & Carolyn and their children
Philip & Leslie Loftin, Beth & Brad Seese (Middle Row)
Alexandria & Savanna in 2006
Willie was 80-years-oldWillie spent most of her life boarding socks. In the 1970s, Willie stayed at home with Sam because of his declining health. After his death, she went to work at Catawba Middle School in Catawba as a custodian. She was 55 at the time. She stayed at Catawba Middle School until she retired at the age of 63, but she didn’t stay retired for long. She eventually went back to work at K-Mart in Conover as a Greeter. She stayed at K-Mart for 7 years, until she was 70. When Willie told her Doctor that she was going to retire from K-Mart, he told her he thought she should continue working. She told him, “I’m 70! How old do you have to be before you can retire?!” He agreed with her and dropped the subject.
School photos of Willie when she worked at Catawba Middle School
After Willie’s retirement, she continued to stay active - visiting family, driving to church, and going daily to the Senior-Citizen’s site for lunch daily.
July 6, 2003
Upon her death, Willie will be buried beside of Sam at Mathis Chapel Baptist Church in Catawba County
If you have additional photos or information on Willien Aleen Goble, please contact me.
A special thanks to Willie Aleen Goble and Brenda Isenhour Schronce for the photos of Willie and her family.
