Joe Payne
I noticed when I first picked up the diary way back in 1992 that the mention of my Grandmother Birdie began several years before my Grandfather Joseph, referred to as Joe in the diary, and her married. Many stories and in some cases anxieties have occurred as to just how Birdie was adopted or came to live with Thomas W. Stone and his second wife Harriet (Hurt) Stone. Some speculation that was first told to me was that her mother was killed somewhere near Middlesboro, KY or Harrogate, TN and that a Lawyer named J. Frank White had contacted Judge Thomas W. Stone who agreed to take Birdie in but never officially adopted her. Another was that she may be the daughter of Thomas W. Stone's son Leander Daniel Stone.
At any rate the transcriber of the diary failed in recognizing just who Birdie was. I will add more information as time permits. I have added the Complete Diary of Bettie (Phillips) Toomey.
