ALLIE JUSTICE HOLLIDAY

"Fat Granny"

Allie Justice Holliday, wife of John Holliday, commonly known as " Fat Granny" because of her great size, had a special means of transportation or travel. A sled, heavily padded with feather beds as cushion and drawn by a yoke of oxen was used for a period of many years. In this vehicle she made frequent visits among her kinsmen and neighbors spending one to three weeks with her children or grandchildren helping out wherever her services were needed. Popular as a skillful midwife, she was called upon by many of her neighbors as well as relatives. Wherever she went she was a favorite among children because of her boundless generosity and ability to tell stories of real life experiences in the old days. She had an endless collection of folk tales supplemented by hunting, fishing or scouting yarns. One of Allie's brothers had served as a Fifter, another as a Bugler in the Revolutionary War. Many stories were of their experiences in the services. She never tired of telling children or adults about her brothers bravery in the face of grave danger. Among her stories was one of her grandmother, who had come over and was indentured by a Mr. Smith for three and a half years, who found that she was so well educated that she was given the task of teaching his children, along with some of his neighbors. For such services she was given her freedom in half the usual time of seven years. Fat Granny died on Christmas day early in the 90's and was buried in Morgan Co.;. Ky. where she had spent her last years at the home of her son, Walter Holliday. She was brought back in 1894 to the Holliday burying ground and placed beside her husband John Holliday, who had stipulated in the deed of the home farm to his son Walter (made and signed just before his death) that he and his wife Allie Justice Holliday, be buried side by side on the top of the hill and a stone wall be built around their graves. Upon examination of the body it was found that Fat Granny's body was completely petrified and water foam marks in the casket gave evidence that water had seeped in and may have helped in the petrification process.

THE ABOVE INFORMATION CAME FROM A LETTER WRITTEN BY GD HOLLIDAY 516 MCALPIN, CINCINNATI, OHIO, WITNESSED BY MARGARET BOYD, STEUBENVILLE, OHIO WRITTEN DURING SUMMER OF 1943.--G. D HOLLIDAY

Dec 10, 1896 Article in Winchester Democrat , Winchester Ky confirms the about story as being true. It said she had died in 1894 at the age of 104.

It was on Christmas Day, 1902, when Aunt Allie Justice Holliday died. She had come to visit my grandfather, William Holliday. Her husband, John H. Holliday had preceded her in death in 1878. She was staying with her son, Walter Holliday, who owned and lived on the farm where Sambo and Daryl Whitt now live. It was in the winter time and roads were bad, so her son, Walter, took her body and buried her in a graveyard at the back of his house. It was her husband's and her request that she be buried by his side in the family graveyard on Troublesome Creek in Perry County. But this was not possible at the time. But many years later--no one living is sure of the date, but it was sometime after the railroad was extended down Caney to the Licking River. Walter had her body exhumed to take for reburial in Perry County. When they opened the grave, they found the casket was so heavy that they could hardly remove it. On examination they found that Aunt Allie had petrified. The body was shipped by train to Jackson. As they were loading the casket on a wagon to take to Troublesome for reburial, the one in charge was telling the spectators that her body was petrified. As is always the case, there were skeptics in the crowd, and the one in charge took his pocket knife and pecked on one of her fingers and the finger broke off. Aunt Allie was a large woman and the petrified body was so heavy that it took four mules to pull it. So they took the body to Holliday Cemetery on Troublesome Creek and reburied it beside her husband. John H. Holliday was my grandfather's uncle, John H. and Allie were married in Floyd Co. in 1821. To this union eight children were born: Talbert, b. 1822, Bill b 1824, Jemima b. 1830, Prudy b 1833, Green b 1836,--killed or lost in Civil War, John b 1840--died young, Sally b 1838, Walter, b 1843., Ramey died young, and Kathy since found Most of the Hollidays living in Perry, Knott and Breathitt counties are descended from John H. and Allie Holliday. Acknowledgement;--- I wish to thank Mrs. Virginia Holliday of Mineral, Va.,Frances L. Holliday of Florida and Mack Holliday of Emmalena, Ky for the names and dates that made the telling of this story possible.