Sylvia Mae Burnette
1928 Black Star Flood Photos
In 1928, Black Star
(Alva, KY) suffered a great flood. These are photos of the aftermath, made
by Roy Fraim. He was the store manager at the time and was the Father of
Sylvia Mae Fraim Burnette and the Grandfather of Melvin Clay Burnette. It
is not known if any lives were lost, but many homes and company buildings were
lost. At the time, most all the camp dwellings were above the
tipple and in School House Holler. The two story structures were built in
such a way as to provide for multiple families or one family with boarders.
A dwelling served as the company store and one served as the school. The
school term was June to December, as the winter and spring months brought lots
of rain, making deep mud that was dangerous and most impossible for children to
trudge. There was no paved roads there at the time. Puckett's Creek
had been re-routed in the early twenties to allow easier construction of the
railroads. Many folks thought that "messing with Mother Nature" accounted
for the massive damage.
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