Dental Care in Golden Valley

Avery Towery and Doctor Cleveland McClure Peeler brings dental care to Golden Valley. A true story written by Elizabeth Whisenant Towery.

Dental Care in Golden Valley

Every one that needed a tooth pulled went to Uncle Avery Towery’s. Even if they had quite a bit of their home made whiskey in them, Uncle Ave still gave them a straight-backed chair that he had ‘sort of’ re-enforced to sit in The patient could hold onto the bottom rounds of the chair and brace themselves when Avery pulled their tooth.
If you ever took notice to the older ‘straight ‘chairs they were built smaller and not as high off the floor. A lot of the men that went to Uncle Avery Towery’s house for a tooth to be pulled were tall, lanky and about ‘three sheets in the wind ‘and a site to see sprawled out in that little low chair of Uncle Avery’s.

Every one called the man Uncle Ave whether he was related to them or not. However I think most could tell you some way that they were indeed related. Ave lived on the right side of Brier Creek Road just above where Jim Deviney today has a lake. Only the road separated Uncle Avery’s house from Big Brier Creek. Uncle Avery or Ave is what the Higgins Towery children called the man that pulled teeth and although he was kindred he was not their uncle.

Uncle Ave took care of the tooth pulling for all of his family, friends and the community for many years with a pair of ordinary pliers. At about the close of Avery’s career ,a young doctor Cleveland McClure Peeler began a practice in the front room of the Elijah Monroe Jones home. He came by Higgins Towery’s house one day and stopped his horse and while still seated in his buggy he asks Higgins daughter Cleo, if she would like a ride?

Cleo said ‘she had heard her Pa speak of the young doctor but she didn’t know him so she answered him saying , ‘I’ll just walk but I thank you for asking me.‘ The young doctor then said,‘ you aren’t afraid to ride with your kin folk are you‘? He went on to tell her how they were related and with that she climbed in the buggy and road with him.

(The doctors explanation of kinship will be found below although I found it in my research as Cleo had forgotten what he had told here that day on the road.)

After that introduction of the doctor every time he passed their house and he saw any one of the family walking along the road he stopped and they road with him.

Elijah Jones and his brother Hampton had swapped home places. It was about a mile from Higgin’s home to where Elijah lived ,so many times Cleo was grateful for the ride

The Towery’s and the doctor became good friends. He soon became their dentist. Cleo had gold fillings in her teeth that McClure put there while carrying on his profession in the front room of the Elijah Jones house. She still had them when she died at the age of ninety years old.

Until Doctor Peeler came there was no dental care for the people here in Golden Valley. Uncle Avery wasn’t a dentist he only pulled teeth. About the closest thing they had for dental care was going into the woods and finding a Birch Tree twig. They cut young twigs from the tree and chewed the ends to form what they called a ‘tooth brush,’ then with their Sweet Dental Snuff they would brush their teeth. No cleanings, no fillings, nothing to do but get the tooth pulled when it began to hurt. That was the extent of the dental care.

When snuff was put up and sold in glass containers they saved their ‘snuff glasses’ to use for drinking glasses at the table. The snuff glass came with a tin top or cap and the yellow paper labeling with black lettering was glued to hold the cap on. When the top was removed the glass had a smooth edge.

I still have one of the glasses and I sampled the product once. But NOW THAT is a whole new story and I’ll tell it someday.

Note: I have tried to use the words and the language that was used in telling the story to me. I first heard it in the 1950’s and have copied and rewritten this from a handwritten page of a note pad dated September 9,1968.



Source :Cleo Towery. Written April 18,2003.

Note:1-Avery Towery and Higgins Towery were third cousins.

2- McClure Peeler and Cleo Towery’s mother Alice Jones Towery. were third cousins.

3- Elijah and Hamp (Hampton) Jones were second cousins of Cleo Towery’s mother Alice Jones Towery.

Source : My personal research.

Note: 1- Cleo Towery’s Great Grand mother Elizabeth S. Hunt Waters and McClure Peeler's great grandmother Nancy Hunt Carpenter were sisters. That made Cleo and McClure third cousins.

Note.2- In 1968 Joseph Cletus Walker and his mother Nettie obtained 52 acres of land on Little Briar Creek and Big Briar Creek. Beginning at a stake in Briar Creek below Avery Towery’s Mill, and runs with Avery Towery’s land. The corner of Avery Towery's land on the waters of Little Brier Creek, where his grist mill stood was joined by Muskmelon and Mr. Deviney, and was located just below the old schoolhouse the corner later became the land of Noah Dempst Walker and his wife Genettie ’ Nettie ‘Davis Walker. Then the wife Nettie and son Joe Cletus Walker owned it.

Elizabeth Towery October 31,2002.