Billy and Carter Hicks

JUNE 13, 2006 Interview by Les Ward

Billy and Carter Hicks are Jane Hicks Williams’s older brothers (see Jane’s interview). Billy was born in 1948 and Carter was born in 1943.

HISTORY OF ECLIPSE/CRITTENDEN:

Billy Hicks remembers the main streets (Eclipse Drive and Dixon Drive) being paved when he was young. But, Rivershore Drive, Bleakhorn Drive and Martin Drive were dirt roads.

A two-story house owned by Miss Annie Pippins used to be located on land where Billy and Debbie Hicks currently live (Eclipse Drive across from Bunkley’s driveway.

Captain Claude Corson lived in another two-story house next to Miss Pippins. The captain had a woodshed behind his house and would pay Billy Hicks 25 cents to put the weekly delivered fire wood in the shed. .

Bunkley’s Store not only had a dock where goods and mail were delivered each day, but also had two large gasoline tanks at the dock’s end for fueling all the oyster boats working out of Chuckatuck Creek.

Baseball

Carter said that the neighborhood ballpark from the early 1930’s was located between Bleakhorn Drive and land now owned by Carter and his neighbor Christine Wright on Eclipse Drive. Billy and Debbie Hicks’ first house after marrying was on part of this land at the corner of Bleakhorn and Eclipse drives.

In the 1950’s, Dolly Daniels had a local ball team that played teams from Smithfield and other surrounding areas. Some of the local children playing on Dolly’s team were Bert Hazelwood Jr., Carter Hicks, Mathews Mathis, Paul Preston, and Johnny Hicks. Ball games were every Sunday and the whole town turned out.

Grocery Stores

Also in the 1950’s, Mr. Gayle owned and ran a grocery store (old TV store across from J.C. Gray’s on Eclipse Drive). The store had the old style gasoline pumps with the glass cylinder on top that would fill up with gas by turning a hand crank.

At the corner of Eclipse and Dixon drives, the old Kemp residence used to be an ice cream store before Billy was born. (See G.B. Martin).

In the early 1950’s, Teddy Fields ran a marine railway on the point known as Sheffield’s at the end of Dixon Drive. Billy and Carter’s father, Carlton Hicks, worked at this railway.

U.S. 17 (Bridge Road) was widened to four lanes in the early to mid 1960’s.

BEING RAISED IN ECLIPSE:

Growing up in Eclipse meant swimming and playing in the water. Billy and his siblings and all neighborhood children played in the “Creek” and James River, swimming all the time. Besides playing on and swimming around Bunkley’s dock, neighborhood children played ball in the field in front of Aubrey Sheffer’s home on Eclipse Drive.

Billy and Carter remember three grocery stores while growing up in Eclipse. Bunkley’s was at the end of Eclipse Drive, Gayle’s was in the old TV store on Eclipse Drive, and Martin’s was at the corner of Bleakhorn and Dixon Drive (Miss Emma Martin, who ran Martin’s Grocery was G.B. Martin’s grandmother.

Also in the 1950’s, Boosey Maddrey operated an oyster house on property now owned by Betty Keeling at the end of Bleakhorn Drive. Boosey’s workers canned and shipped oysters from local waters. Billy and Carter’s father also worked at Boosey’s. Carter remembers walking through the woods to the take lunch to his daddy at the oyster house. Since there were no houses in that part of Eclipse and Bleakhorn Drive was a dirt road, Carter remembers being “scared to death” on his daily walk to the oyster house. Boosey later moved his oyster business to the property now occupied by the Volvo Test Facility on Chuckatuck Creek. Billy worked at the new Boosey’s Oyster House in the mid-1960’s.

Darden’s Clubhouse, located in the woods where Wigneil Drive is now, had to be moved twice while Billy was growing up. The cliff overlooking the James River was constantly eroding away, resulting in constantly moving the clubhouse. Billy and Carter remember the clubhouse being vacant most of the time.

In the late 1950’s – early 1960’s, Carter used to work for George Causey at Bunkley’s Store fueling oyster boats each morning before going to school. Carter also remembers working several summers overhauling and painting the oyster dredge-buy boats Delphine and Dora. In addition, on Saturdays during the year, Carter helped E.H. Newman Sr. working on the Delphine oystering in local waters.

Another local marine railway was the Dick Adams Railway on Chuckatuck Creek located on at the end of Moores Point Road. Every summer, the Delphine was overhauled at the Adams Railway.

Edward Mertig operated a shucking house at the bottom of the hill behind the property now owned by Charles Mertig on Eclipse Drive. This business shucked and packed oysters, steamed crabs and made crab cakes. Carter remembers spending a lot of time at the shucking house since his grandfather, John Rowe, worked for Mr. Mertig. Local children called Mr. Mertig “Big Noise” since he spoke with a loud voice.

Carter and Billy both went to school in Chuckatuck, but their daddy went to the Crittenden School (now the C.E. &H. Ruritan Club building on Eclipse Drive in Crittenden). Carter remembers his sister Jane Hicks Williams not wanting to go to school when she was young. In order for Jane to make it to school each day, Carter said he had to pick up Jane and put her on the school bus. This lasted through the second or third grade (Jane remembers Carter putting her on the bus like it was yesterday). Carter and Billy also remember that if you got in trouble on the bus, the driver would put you off and you had to walk home. Then, you would be punished again upon arriving home late.

Having no automobile, Hilda Crittenden (Paul Crittenden’s wife) who lived in the old gray house behind Mildred Turner’s house on Eclipse Drive, went into labor and delivered her own baby at home. Hilda then sent her oldest daughter Polly to get her grandmother after the baby arrived.

To earn spending money, Carter remembers cutting everyone’s grass in Eclipse while growing up. He did not have a lawnmower of his own so he would use home owners’ mowers to cut their grass. In the late 1950’s, Carter also delivered the Suffolk News Herald newspaper. Since he couldn’t afford a bicycle to deliver his papers, the Herald bought him a bike with a large front basket for the papers. Carter then paid the Herald a dollar a week until the bike was paid for. Carter remembers that he then had 10 cents left for each 25 cent newspaper he delivered.

In addition while waiting for his newspapers to be delivered each day, Carter swept floors at Keeling’s Store and Service Station on Bridge road. Keeling’s Store sold gasoline and was also a Greyhound Bus stop. In the late 1960’s, Keeling’s became Moger’s Store and Service Station. This store, while closed for many years recently opened up again as “The Market.”

Carter and Billy remember a “beer joint” called Captain Al’s on the corner of Bridge and Crittenden roads. They said some local men would stop there after work to get a cold one. A 7-11 convenience store was later built on this site, which is now closed.

Local oyster inspectors while Carter and Billy were growing up in Eclipse were Ollie Richardson and Milton Richardson (Delma Staylor’s first husband).

PICTURES: ((We have these pictures on disk from Addison Group)) A.Two pictures of Sam Walker House (small white building next to Bunkley’s Store – owned by Mack McLean). Sam is shown in one picture outside the house and one inside. Sam swept the floor in Bunkley’s and did odd jobs for the Bunkley’s. When Bunkley’s burned down in 1954, the Sam Walker house was saved. However, shortly after the fire, Sam died.

B.Picture of Johnny Hicks throwing young Billy Hicks. Steel garage in background was next to house that was on left side of Bunkley’s driveway (owned by Shirley Masters). C.1957 picture of Billy Hicks and Jane Hicks Williams at the corner of their house. Nurney Gayle’s house is in background. D.Color picture of Bertram Hazelwood’s dock in 1970’s. E.Picture of oyster boat coming into Chuckatuck Creek with the day’s catch. F.Picture of Billy Hicks with crab pot in 1980’s. G.Picture of three boats at dock: a.Oyster (Charles Gray Adams oyster boat) b.Battens Bay dredge boat c.Bateau owned by Boosey Maddrey H.Painting of Brenda Carol (Billy Hicks first oyster boat)