This is an open letter to all who travel Hwy. 42, crossing the bridge at Lenarue.

This bridge crosses the former Morris farm once owned by our parents, Albert and Laura Morris, who first settled in that valley around 1925.

Little now remains of this once productive farm. The old homestead and hemlock barn were destroyed by arson and burned.

I am the only living relative of the original Morris family. My father met his death at the railroad crossing in 1976 due to a train which did not blow. My mother passed in 1996.

As you drive across the valley on the bridge now crossing the valley, please take a moment in memory of Albert and Laura Morris, two good and honest people who preserved that land for many years through good and bad times, always helping those around them.

To all in Harlan County, I send my heartfelt wishes! I am proud I grew up in those mountains. To all, I wish you well!

Vesta Jean Morris Leinhart

Hendersonville, N.C.