Epistles from Pap

Douglas N. Hay Mill Rift, PA April 22, 1997

SOME BACKGROUND ON 'PAP'

"Pap"--Andrew Everett Durham--was born May 3, 1882, the youngest son of James V. Durham and Sarah A. (Black) Durham, of Russellville, Indiana. His paternal grandfather, Jacob, had emigrated from Kentucky to become one of the early settlers of Russell Township--a farmer, store-keeper, state legislator and mover and shaker in his own right, as described in one of Pap's papers.

Pap's father was also active in local affairs, and supplemented his farm income by starting a private bank in Russellville along with Pap's older brother, Ernest. The Russellville Bank stayed in family hands for about 70 years. Pap was fond of recounting how, as a youth, he got his start in business there--as janitor, for $2 a week. He eventually worked his way up to chairman of the board. The bank survived t