Published: November 25, 2009 01:50 pm      

A blast from the past

Lebanon — A former Lebanon resident visited his childhood home Tuesday morning, Nov. 10, amid an audience, camera flashes and video equipment.

The fuss was because his childhood home happened to be The Cragun Home, a historically preserved house now owned and operated by the Boone County Historical Society.

Ben Cragun, grandson of Strange Nathaniel Cragun who originally owned the home, and Ben’s wife Mary Jane, stopped by the house he lived in through his teenage years to reminisce with members of the historical society.

“It looks different,” Cragun said during his visit Tuesday, “but I certainly wouldn’t get lost in here.”

Cragun told the historical society about what rooms had been used for what purposes and how holidays and birthdays were celebrated. But, he said, his memory isn’t what it used to be. He turned 80 years old in August.

“The tree and I are both 80,” Cragun said of the tree behind the house that was given to his mother by Ester Donaldson when Ben was born.

Historical society members were full of questions for Cragun, such as what the kids did for fun, what the neighborhood was like growing up, and why they had found metal soldiers in the house.

After it was discovered that lead pipes were dangerous, Cragun explained, he and his brothers melted their old pipes down and made toy soldiers out of the lead. The gas stove in the basement was their soldier-making area.

“And don’t tell anyone this,” Cragun said, “but when I skipped school, I’d go up in the attic and read until it was time to come home. My mother wouldn’t know the difference.”

The group laughed as they shared stories and made connections from mutual friends, remembering events like the big Saturday evening promenade on the Courthouse square. Cragun used to sell popcorn on the square for a dime a bag.

Cragun said he has no idea this house would survive this long, but he’s very glad it has. The family never wanted to sell it because they didn’t want it to be broken up into apartments.

“I never realized how fortunate we were to live in a house like this,” Cragun said. “You have done remarkable work here. It turned out much better than I’d hoped or expected.”

Cragun and his wife stopped in Lebanon during a road trip visiting family, starting with a reunion in Illinois and seeing family members in Indiana, Ohio, Virginia and North Carolina before heading home to Florida.