Zachariah ABNEY III
M, b. 20 October 1917, d. 29 March 1990
- Relationship
- 2nd cousin 1 time removed of John Kennedy BROWN Jr.
Zack, Nell and Lina Abney
Zach married Nell Frances Chandler circa 1939 in Prattville, Alabama.1 Zachariah was a rural mail carrier. He started as a part time carrier and he and Nell operated a service station at the Red Devil Lake on Hwy. 31 south of Prattville. She was run it while he completed his route.
Red Devil Lake and Stuart’s Water Park opened on June 16, 1934, and included a lake, a pavilion where they served barbecue daily, a bathhouse, a 50-foot-high slide, a grist mill powered by an old water wheel, and a small pool with a beehive-shaped fountain which was made of concrete set in the center of it. A restaurant located on the lake’s dam featured a chute that routed bream and trout into a fish tank inside the restaurant, where patrons could choose the fish for their dinner. Free admission to Red Devil Lake was also offered to those who purchased five gallons from any Red Devil filling station.
The lake and park were closed due to heavy damages from floods in 1938 & 1939. Various businesses operated there until the late 2000s. Although the structures on the property lay derelict and the lake has long been drained, the tin-sheet metal neon ‘Red Devil’ that marked the Tan-Kar gas station at Red Devil Lake was salvaged decades prior by W. S. Newell. You can still see the large sign on I-65 of a red devil along with the words, “Go to church or the devil will get you.”.2,3
Zach grew up in the house his grandfather built and continued to live there until about 1991. When he retired from the Post Office, he gave the house to his son and had it moved a few miles away to land he had given Sam. Zach then built himself and Nell an air-conditioned house on the same spot under the same old trees that generations of Abneys had called home. Meanwhile his son and grandson are the fourth and fifth generation of Abneys to live in the Zach Abney house.
Although Zach's vocation was being a postal carrier, his real passion was raising hunting dogs. At any time Zach might have dozens of beagles in trainig. The happily barking dogs provided quite a welcome to visitors to the home. He showed his dogs at field trials around the country and one of his females was a national champion.
Zachariah ABNEY III died on 29 March 1990 in Prattville, Autauga County, Alabama, at age 72. He was buried in Oak Hill Cemetery.
At his funeral Zach was honored in a tribute by the Rev. Al Finch of First Baptist Church in Prattville:
"In recent days, as one, we came; judges, lawyers, doctors, men of the cloth, rich and poor, educated and illiterate, black and white. We had one thing in common -- we know Zach Abney.
Zach was a man of an era... if the era changed, Zach was slow to realize the change and even slower to change. He was a man of opinions... stated opinions... whether we wanted to hear them or not.
Opinions about beards, haircuts and mustaches... birddogs, hounds and horses... veterinarian medicine and veterinarians... about places, women and rearing children.
Zach was expressive and colorful of language. In an age when story telling is a lost art, Zach never lost the art of making story come alive.
He was at home in king's palaces or peasant hovels.
All men were welcome to his home and table. It was his delight to do you a favor... and he never hesitated to ask one of you. He made lasting friendships... because wherever and with whomever. he was Zach.
Zach was a winner... he won a national championship with his beagles. He studied animal bloodlines... and developed them.
The Abney family was close... for fifty years, he lived with his life long companion, Nell. When the Golden Years were celebrated, he missed the celebration because he was in the hospital. Yet he gained great pleasure, even then, from the event. Nell has been, in the Biblical sense, a "help-mate"... literally a help corresponding to him... corresponding in the sense that they were equal beings and again as opposites correspond. They complimented each other as only opposites can compliment... one was made more full in the other. In the days of his illness, his children, Sam, Ann and Lina, with their families, were faithfully by his side.
In the passage of time, Zach mellowed and changed. He was possessive, yet generous to all men... he never took more than he gave.
He was conservative with his money... almost tight... yet generous. In most circles where sporting men thread, somebody knew Zach.
All of us have our stories... I include two:
When Lina married, Zach refused to give her away. He had no objection to George, he just refused to give Lina away to anyone. That job was to fall on Sam. At the last minute, Zach did show up... dressed in his suite and tie... and performed the honors. As he and Lina walked down the aisle, a man stood up and shook hands with Zach. Though unrehearsed, it gives insight into the character of Zach and his friends.
Zach got things done... but his favorite position was meditating in a parallel position on his couch. Once when he fell and broke his shoulder, his cousin, John Brown, asked... "What happened to Zach? Did he fall off the couch?"
Zach Abney! I thought him strange, interesting, generous, curiously different, friendly, informative, informative... he was my friend!
I loved him and I'll miss him!"
Zach was a man of an era... if the era changed, Zach was slow to realize the change and even slower to change. He was a man of opinions... stated opinions... whether we wanted to hear them or not.
Opinions about beards, haircuts and mustaches... birddogs, hounds and horses... veterinarian medicine and veterinarians... about places, women and rearing children.
Zach was expressive and colorful of language. In an age when story telling is a lost art, Zach never lost the art of making story come alive.
He was at home in king's palaces or peasant hovels.
All men were welcome to his home and table. It was his delight to do you a favor... and he never hesitated to ask one of you. He made lasting friendships... because wherever and with whomever. he was Zach.
Zach was a winner... he won a national championship with his beagles. He studied animal bloodlines... and developed them.
The Abney family was close... for fifty years, he lived with his life long companion, Nell. When the Golden Years were celebrated, he missed the celebration because he was in the hospital. Yet he gained great pleasure, even then, from the event. Nell has been, in the Biblical sense, a "help-mate"... literally a help corresponding to him... corresponding in the sense that they were equal beings and again as opposites correspond. They complimented each other as only opposites can compliment... one was made more full in the other. In the days of his illness, his children, Sam, Ann and Lina, with their families, were faithfully by his side.
In the passage of time, Zach mellowed and changed. He was possessive, yet generous to all men... he never took more than he gave.
He was conservative with his money... almost tight... yet generous. In most circles where sporting men thread, somebody knew Zach.
All of us have our stories... I include two:
When Lina married, Zach refused to give her away. He had no objection to George, he just refused to give Lina away to anyone. That job was to fall on Sam. At the last minute, Zach did show up... dressed in his suite and tie... and performed the honors. As he and Lina walked down the aisle, a man stood up and shook hands with Zach. Though unrehearsed, it gives insight into the character of Zach and his friends.
Zach got things done... but his favorite position was meditating in a parallel position on his couch. Once when he fell and broke his shoulder, his cousin, John Brown, asked... "What happened to Zach? Did he fall off the couch?"
Zach Abney! I thought him strange, interesting, generous, curiously different, friendly, informative, informative... he was my friend!
I loved him and I'll miss him!"
His obituary appeared 3 April 1990 in the Prattville Progress, published in Prattville, Alabama.
"Thursday afternoon, March 29, our phone rang. Arlene, our receptionist, said Sam Abney was calling. We knew before we answered that Sam was calling to tell us that his Dad, and our longtime friend and hunting partner, had died.
Zach had undergone surgery on January 3 and the doctors said cancer had spread to all of his vital organs, so as Zach himself told us after he was released from the hospital, "they sent me home to die." But Zach didn't give up easily. He managed to get up and around and after he was home a couple of weeks he invited several friends in for a catfish dinner.
We talked to him several times and he was sure he was going to win the battle, but a week ago he finally told us goodbye.
We first met Zach at the 1956 IBF Mid-Winter meeting. He and Sam had come in with John White. It goes without saying, that when the weekend meeting was over, everyone there knew Zach Abney.
This was where he also met the late Jack Wilson, who became a close friend of Zach's. He and his sister, Louise "Hap" Clifton, spent a lot of winters with Zach and Nell. Jack trained his hounds for the spring events and hunted coon at night with Will, Zach's "hired man."
It was on the way home from the 1966 Mobile licensed trial that Zach asked us to stop off at his place for a couple of days. This was when we first went bird hunting with Zach. The late George Ritzer had given Zach a setter pup the previous spring. "Ritzer," as Zach called the pup, and an old time blue-ticked setter bitch, where the dogs we first hunted with.
Over the following 22 years, Zach and I hunted a good many miles on horseback behind a lot of fine setters and pointers.
In 1968 Charles Thomas, the Midway, Alabama mail carrier, helped Zach and the writer acquire a lease on 3.000 acres of some of the best quail hunting land in Bullock County. A few years later, due to a raise in the rental fee we dropped 1,000 acres, leaving us 2,000 of the best bird country anywhere. We fixed up an old tenant house where we stayed for days at a time.
We enjoyed the best hunting in the country until 1983. We were late a couple of days in renewing and some people from Birmingham picked up our lease.
This didn't stop our hunting. Zach had a lot of friends who were large land owners. Federal Judge Robert Varner, David Tutt, owner of the Corner Plantation at Union Springs, Alabama; Sonny Cauthen and the Rutland Brothers Plantation were some of Zach's friends who invited us to hunt.
Along with being a good wing shot and a fine hunting partner, Zach was also a top trainer of both bird dogs and beagles.
During his years of beagling, Zach was one of the charter members of the Central Alabama Beagle Club. The club was first located on Zach's farm, where successful licensed trials were held for several years. Some of his members didn't know a good thing when they had it. They decided to move the club to another location. It was only a few years until the club folded.
Zach finished several field champions. Some that come quickly to mind were Shady Hills Hoss, Shady Hills Lina, who also won the International, and Shady Hills Lora.
There was seldom a day that one or more friends or acquaintances didn't stop at Zach and Nell's, usually at mealtime. Whether they came at breakfast, lunch or dinner, they were never sent away hungry. Nell is a fine cook and Zach was a good host.
We could go on and on, but to sum it up, Zach had friends from all walks of life, from all parts of the country, north and south. He was a fine gentleman and a true friend.
He is survived by his wife Nell, one son, Sam, two daughters, Lina Waldrop and Ann Weldon, and nine grandchildren."
Zach had undergone surgery on January 3 and the doctors said cancer had spread to all of his vital organs, so as Zach himself told us after he was released from the hospital, "they sent me home to die." But Zach didn't give up easily. He managed to get up and around and after he was home a couple of weeks he invited several friends in for a catfish dinner.
We talked to him several times and he was sure he was going to win the battle, but a week ago he finally told us goodbye.
We first met Zach at the 1956 IBF Mid-Winter meeting. He and Sam had come in with John White. It goes without saying, that when the weekend meeting was over, everyone there knew Zach Abney.
This was where he also met the late Jack Wilson, who became a close friend of Zach's. He and his sister, Louise "Hap" Clifton, spent a lot of winters with Zach and Nell. Jack trained his hounds for the spring events and hunted coon at night with Will, Zach's "hired man."
It was on the way home from the 1966 Mobile licensed trial that Zach asked us to stop off at his place for a couple of days. This was when we first went bird hunting with Zach. The late George Ritzer had given Zach a setter pup the previous spring. "Ritzer," as Zach called the pup, and an old time blue-ticked setter bitch, where the dogs we first hunted with.
Over the following 22 years, Zach and I hunted a good many miles on horseback behind a lot of fine setters and pointers.
In 1968 Charles Thomas, the Midway, Alabama mail carrier, helped Zach and the writer acquire a lease on 3.000 acres of some of the best quail hunting land in Bullock County. A few years later, due to a raise in the rental fee we dropped 1,000 acres, leaving us 2,000 of the best bird country anywhere. We fixed up an old tenant house where we stayed for days at a time.
We enjoyed the best hunting in the country until 1983. We were late a couple of days in renewing and some people from Birmingham picked up our lease.
This didn't stop our hunting. Zach had a lot of friends who were large land owners. Federal Judge Robert Varner, David Tutt, owner of the Corner Plantation at Union Springs, Alabama; Sonny Cauthen and the Rutland Brothers Plantation were some of Zach's friends who invited us to hunt.
Along with being a good wing shot and a fine hunting partner, Zach was also a top trainer of both bird dogs and beagles.
During his years of beagling, Zach was one of the charter members of the Central Alabama Beagle Club. The club was first located on Zach's farm, where successful licensed trials were held for several years. Some of his members didn't know a good thing when they had it. They decided to move the club to another location. It was only a few years until the club folded.
Zach finished several field champions. Some that come quickly to mind were Shady Hills Hoss, Shady Hills Lina, who also won the International, and Shady Hills Lora.
There was seldom a day that one or more friends or acquaintances didn't stop at Zach and Nell's, usually at mealtime. Whether they came at breakfast, lunch or dinner, they were never sent away hungry. Nell is a fine cook and Zach was a good host.
We could go on and on, but to sum it up, Zach had friends from all walks of life, from all parts of the country, north and south. He was a fine gentleman and a true friend.
He is survived by his wife Nell, one son, Sam, two daughters, Lina Waldrop and Ann Weldon, and nine grandchildren."
Last Edited=20 Sep 2022
Child of Zachariah ABNEY III and Nell Frances Chandler
- Lina Marion ABNEY b. 10 Sep 1943, d. 2 Jun 2018
Citations
Information on this site has been gathered over many years from many sources. Although great care has been taken, inaccuracies may exist. Please contact [email protected] with corrections or questions..