Glenna Clifton left an enduring legacy

The Owen County Historical Society lost one of our own last week, and the impact that she made — not only upon the historical society but also upon her family and all of Owen County — left an enduring imprint on the many folks who knew and loved Glenna Rose Miller Clifton.

It was amazing that so much historic knowledge of Owen County — of its cemeteries and of the people who call Owen “home” — could be contained in such a small lady with a ready smile and a big heart.

Most of us know Glenna retired as a supervisor in the intelligence department of the Kentucky State Police. She was one of the first three women to serve on the Owen County Volunteer Fire Department. Over the years, volunteers on Owen County fire departments have selflessly served the county and its citizens.

Information on the Owenton Fire Department, first organized in 1893, was collected and compiled in a book by Glenna, which is available at the Owen County Library.

Glenna was a founding member of Owen County Search and Rescue and a lifetime member of the Owen County Historical Society.

What many don’t know are all the wonderful, little-known Glenna stories that give a glimpse into the incredibly strong character of this amazing Owen Countian.

For decades, Glenna and Doris Riley have been involved with cemetery preservation and have documented locations and names of many long-forgotten cemeteries in the county, many of which were located on family farms.

On many occasions, out-of-town visitors calledGlenna for assistance in searching for one of Owen County’s many small, family cemeteries. These visitors claim that the cemetery where their ancestors are buried is said to be located right off of a main road. Chuckling, Glenna informs them that the cemetery is indeed off a main road, but they have to traverse several fields and climb fences to reach it.

Glenna and her husband, Sollie, would spend many hours traipsing through cemeteries to find the grave stones of their ancestors.

Glenna tells the story of the two, both carrying long, metal rods to poke in the ground, hoping to hear the clink of a gravestone, scouting one cemetery for Sollie’s great-grandfather, Josiah. Many cemeteries contain old gravestones that have fallen and are buried under layers of dirt.

Laughing, Glenna recalled that the two were walking and calling out, “Josiah, Josiah, where are you?” Suddenly, they stopped, poked their rods in the ground and discovered a gravestone deeply buried in the dirt.

After digging out the stone and cleaning it, the Cliftons discovered, much to their amazement, the long-lost Josiah’s name engraved on the surface.

Love has always made its rounds in every Owen County community, and Owen county love stories have been shared time and again.

Following a wedding tradition established by their parents, Glenna Rose and Sollie Clifton, Jr., chose Christmas Eve as the special day on which to exchange wedding vows. Glenna said, “When we were deciding which day to get married, we both agreed Christmas Eve would be a perfect choice since both my parents and Sollie’s parents were married on Dec. 24.”

Glenna recalls that, at a young age, her parents would take her to play with the children of the caretakers who ran the poorhouse in Owenton.

One Valentine’s Day, Glenna’s father took her to visit her friends and told her he would have a big surprise for her when he returned. Envisioning a large, heart-shaped box of delicious chocolate candy, imagine Glenna’s disappointment when the “surprise” turned out to be a new baby brother.

Another Glenna story describes one Christmas season when she saw Junior Grisham’s daughter, Pam, at a local drugstore. Junior’s love of farming and tractors was only surpassed by his love of chocolate-covered cherries, which his daughter purchased for him every Christmas.

Pam had searched all over Owenton and had found no evidence of her father’s favorite confection. Glenna had two unopened boxes in her home and offered them to Pam if she would stop by.

A grateful Pam Grisham declared, “Only in Owen County would someone who was unable to find something in a store be offered that item from a local Owen Countian, who had it on hand in her own home.”

Though Glenna has passed, her stories remain. And as her stories, like all of ours, are shared with others, their cadence and color weave indelible threads into the fabric of life.

To celebrate the history of scrapbooks, the historical society is offering a class, scrapbook days. Everyone is welcome to come to the historical society museum the first and third Thursday of the month, from 10 a.m. until noon.

Board member Tom Strassell will be on hand to help folks copy articles from our scrapbooks, our books or documents, and any picture from our collections to paste in their own old-fashioned scrapbook, which will be provided by the historical society.

The first class was on Thursday. There’s no need to sign up ... just show up. Enjoy a few hours of Owen county memories and take home a scrapbook to share with your family.

The historical society will hold a fish fry at the Independent Order of Odd Fellows (IOOF) hall, beginning at 5 p.m. The menu includes fish, hushpuppies, coleslaw, baked beans, dessert and a drink. Attendees can dine in or carry food out. Come and enjoy a delicious dinner, and help the historical society continue our mission.