Uncle Ted Miner

In my past posts, I’ve mentioned that my Uncle Theodore Miner only had the mental capacity of a child in the fourth grade. While he was walking along the highway near my grandparent Miner’s farm, two men stopped their car and tried to get Ted to drink some alcohol. When he refused, they beat him severely. The assault was so intense that he developed brain damage because of the damage he couldn’t continue his education. His mental capacity to learn was stymied.

The one thing he had going for him was a great work ethic. He always found odd jobs to earn spending money. In the summer, Ted often walked for miles pushing his bright green “Lawn Boy” mower. He had several customers and made his way to their various homes and manicured their lawns.

In autumn he would gather nuts and store them until winter, then he would crack open walnuts, butternuts, and hickory nuts. Sitting in the basement, he would pick out the nut meat goodies, weigh them, and bag them. Ted had regular customers who ordered the nut meats well ahead of time to finish their baking projects of Christmas cookies and cakes.

Ted owned a small scroll saw. He used it to shape pieces of wood from deconstructed apple crates. Fitting the cut pieces together, he’d nail them tightly with small brads, then paint the assembled project in bright red. The red sleigh was about 12 inches long by 8 inches wide by 10 inches high. It could be used as a nut bowl or hold Christmas ornaments for display.

Ted collected old tube radios that people would discard. He would check each tube in the radio  to find which tube was causing the problem and make repairs, replacing the “burned out” tube. Radios that were too far gone to save, he would salvage the “good” tubes to use in other radios. He stored the usable tubes in baskets of all sizes then he would sort through the collection until he could find the replacement. Once repaired, he would sell the repaired radios for a few dollars.

Ted would sometimes allow me to trail along with him as he searched the wooded areas around the small town of Indian Head, Pennsylvania hunting for ginseng plants. He would wander through the rocky, leaf covered hills looking for the arched green stalks and clusters of red berries that would identify the elusive root. After digging out the roots, Ted would dry them thoroughly before selling them at Resh’s Red and White store in Indian Head. Resh’s was once a company store that still sold a variety of things from clothing to hardware and food.