Sanders Family History

From “Family Ties and Memories”, 1977.  Contributed by their daughter Myra Sanders Cunningham. 

The first time that James Marshall Sanders saw his future wife was when they were both quite young and lived on adjoining hills.  He decided at that time that he was going to marry her someday and he eventually did.

He was completely uneducated until his marriage when Emma taught him to read and write a very good hand.  He eventually went on to become a businessman, assistant mail carrier, president of the school board, and at all times a farmer.

At one time while he was plowing, his family was burning off some terraces.  Myra was quite young and caught her dress on fire. He leaped through the terraces and grabbed her to him to smother out the flames.  This is one of Myra’s first memories of him.  

In later years he became a heavy set man and picking cotton was hard for him so he designed a four-wheel, low-set wagon that he sat on and pushed backward while he picked cotton.  He also owned two sets of tools –one which he loaned out and one which he kept just for himself.

He became very interested in singings and went each Sunday with his family in tow somewhere to conduct a singing.  He went on to become a singing teacher and also a non-denominational preacher, who in later life, built his own tabernacle near Vernon, Alabama. (Picture at left)