Remembering Betty Jo Pyle Davis of Alto (January 2015)

Remembering Betty Jo Pyle Davis of Alto
By Deborah Burkett

When I heard Betty Jo had passed away, sadness forced me to stop what I was doing and pen this column. I experienced the kind of heartache that comes when one realizes there will be no more visits with a friend. Hadn't known her long only since 2010, but Betty was the kind of person that made you feel like family. First met her when I spoke to the Thursday Study Club in Alto, her bubbly personality was evident that day and soon we bonded over her quilt collection.

Had the pleasure of visiting Betty at her home on multiple occasions where I conducted oral history videos. Betty talked of many things and our conversations were always "wrapped up in quilts". Betty explained, "Talking about these quilts, is like walking down memory lane for me…remembering family stories so special…"

Born June 1, 1938, Betty enjoyed looking back, sharing memories of her mother, Sallie Compton Pyle, "At mother's house you never threw anything away…all the fabrics used in some of the early quilts were scraps from her and my Granny, Nora Anna Pyle..."

Two of the photos included here are pertinent to Betty's childhood. In one image is five year old Betty in her "flour sack" dress; the second shows Betty holding a 1943 Honeycomb or Hexagon Quilt made by her mother. Betty is pointing to a portion of the quilt, a patch made from the same flour sack Betty's mother used to make the dress. Betty recalled, "We were living in Weches at the time and would come into Alto to shop. I'd get to help pick out flour or feed sacks, if there wasn't enough material for a dress or whatever…next time we came to town we'd try to find another sack that matched..."

I soon realized Betty's quilt collection spanned many years. A Thousand Pyramids Quilt was a wedding gift made by Betty's mother, "My folks weren't rich people and couldn't afford to go buy a gift so mother made a quilt for our wedding…meant more than any gift that would have cost a lot of money."

While we both marveled at the tiny pieces in the Thousand Pyramids, Betty pointed to one row of fabric, "This brown material is from a dress I made in Home Economics class in Houston County…"

Larry Davis and Betty married on June 25, 1955, "in the old, tall two-story church in Alto…the steps almost touched the highway when the road was widened…later it was condemned and a more modern church built. The picture taken at our wedding reception was at the home of Betty Wallace, Larry's grandmother…"

Both Betty's mother and mother-in-law were accomplished sewers. Betty shared a doll quilt made for her daughter, Teresa, by Sallie Pyle and a Butterfly Quilt made by Dorothy Wallace Davis. Betty elaborated, "This Butterfly Quilt was made by Dorothy and women of A. Frank Smith United Methodist Church in Alto…several of the appliquéd butterflies are from Teresa's dresses which Dorothy made…"

The last image is a photo I took while Betty was talking about her boys, Larry Joe and Chris. Since there weren't any quilts made from their dresses (just kidding) thought I'd include their picture instead.

An embroidered Iris Quilt started in 1973 tells the story of Betty and Larry's traveling life. "Mother died before she finished the quilt. While Larry and I were in Ohio on a construction job, we stayed in an RV Park. I met this lovely lady-we called her Granny. She finished mother's quilt in 1996..."

Betty Jo lovingly cared for her quilts; did the same for people. She passed away January 8th and will definitely be missed. Cherokee County is a little darker now and not just because of the winter weather.

(Many in Cherokee County send condolences to Betty Jo's family. To Larry, her husband of 59 years, sons Larry Jo and Chris (Cherokee County Judge) and daughter, Teresa Cox.)