Grandpa Lyne and Me Sharing a Love for Canes

Those who know me are aware that I’m something of a cane fighter.  Coincidentally, my great-great-grandfather on my mother’s side, one “Captain” James E. Lyne, is somewhat famous for his hand-made canes.

James and his wife operated a general store with an apothecary and a Civil War relic shop.  He ran the relic stand and did the heavy lifting at the general store, while she ran the counter, operated the apothecary, and kept the books.

I don’t believe he was really a captain in the Confederate army though.  To hear my great-grandma tell it, he was so young they wouldn’t let him fight in the “War of Northern Aggression” as they called it.  She always said all they’d let him do was carry messages and blow a bugle.  Rumor has it he said whatever he needed to say to make his battlefield tours fun and entertaining.

Anyway, great-great-grandpa Lyne liked to carve and sell souvenir canes.  Here are some pics of his canes by way of canequest.com.

At some point he was also a caretaker of Seven Pines Battlefield.  Somewhere around here I have a newspaper article about it.  If more folks are interested, I’ll see if I can dig it up and scan it.