The Hollow

The small gathering of thee clan of Allens back in the 1859's was witnessed by myself (as a teen), and my mom. We distributed clothing to each home, at least once a month. That's where I become friends with a gal named Sharon Allen. Every time we came, she would always run outside to greet me. We were warned by her mom not to go further up into the dirt road, as the house at the end of the road was off limits. She explained that the occupants had been drinking all night, and if anyone went near them , they would get shot at. She also explained that this is why even the police had a difficult time going on the dirt road, as they did not want to be target practice. We went inside some of the cabins, and saw that much of the clothing we had give to the lady folk was used to cover or be pushed into the holes in the walls, as insulation. When my mom saw that she stopped going. Also, if any of the clothing, bedding, and other things we brought were very nice, some of the menfolk would take them away from the women and sell them to get some beer. My friend Sharon, in later years managed to contact me, and said she was getting married at the Rev. Burroughs Babptist church down the road. She knew I play the piano, and asked if I would play for her wedding. I accepted. .A few years later, my parents bought the large victorian house (the "Johnson House") across from the cemetery and the church. The Johnson General store was there for many years. (not any more.) One day As I was sitting inside the house at night, I heard a screech of tires, and told my then husband about what I heard, and he went out to investigate. There was a car driving around the curve in front of the house too fast. The car hit the guard rail. Sharon's husband was driving too fast, ...the passenger side door flew open, and both Sharon and her baby flew out the door, and both landed down the embankment into the tall grass. (weeds). My husband went searching for her, as he heard her screaming, , they at first couldn't find the baby, but finally did. He then took her and the baby to see Dr. Pitkin in Corinth where they were checked out. We called ahead, so the Dr. Was alerted. That's when the Adirondack Regional Hospital was in operation back then, or shortly thereafter. We lost contact with Sharon after many years, and then, someone told me that she was living in town, and there was a Bovee connection as to the last name. She later had tragedy as one of her children moved on into Gloryland. That's all I do remember for info as of now. Also my best friend's sister married a fellow named Percy Allen for a number of years. He visited her home during a Holiday, and he spoke to both Sue, and my friend as he was suffering from a life taking sickness. I also said "hello" to him, but he did not remember those earlier years, as he was too ill. He's gone, Sue Allen still lives today, a bright, cheerful, extremely hard working lady ! Still residing at the large "Johnson House" one day, a group of guys from Allentown, were walking down the road to go to the General Store. It was noticed that they were pushing and shoving one young fellow ahead of them. They walked past the house, and we noticed that the young fellow had been beaten up by the group, he was all bloodied and cut and could hardly walk. He sat on our lawn, they continued on to the store, left him there. So, he was taken to Dr. Pitkin's office in Corinth by the husband. Never heard anything from anyone after that. Then I was introduced to this pleasant person who was raised in Chestertown along with his sister Sue. He was born in New York City, but don't know about his sister. That's all I can relate at this time.

"The Hollow" is a brief documentary about the lives of people living in a small town in the Adirondack Mountains of New York state. A note at the beginning of the film tells us that two families moved into a hollow in the mountains while most people worked in the valley below, on farms or in mills. After the depression, work dried up in the valley and it was later dammed. The Kathan and Allen families remained where they were, isolated in their meager township with little work and few prospects. The town is referred to as Allentown but near the end of the documentary one indignant boy claims the town's real name is 'The Hollow'.

The film-makers point the camera, roll the film, and simply allow the townspeople to speak. This is one of "The Hollow's" most endearing features. I found myself fascinated by the simple, honest, humble thoughts and stories of these people. Some parts will break your heart. Others will put a warm smile on your face. Old Harmy Kathan--one of the more prominently featured townsfolk--tells a story of how he was "visiting with a woman" in a bar and a jealous rival pulled him off his stool and he broke his ankle. Harmy had liquor in him so he ignored the pain and had a fist fight with his jealous attacker. This aggravated his injury, unsurprisingly. The doctor fixed it but Harmy "jumped right off of the operator's table and walked again right out the door, broke it right out again." This was 35 or 40 years ago, he tells us. Harmy doesn't like crutches--"I can't do nothing on crutches, only walk"--so he pulls himself around on what looks like a mat.

There is little 'shape', I suppose to the film; it just shows us some of these people, tells of their reactions to a newspaper article written about the town, and then it just stops. At only around an hour running time, it's quite short. I wish there had been more. But I can't really take that as a criticism. The film is what it is. It's the residents of Allentown who leave their stories in this time capsule. I wonder how the town is today? Are the youngsters we meet still there, all grown up? Do they remember the day the film crew came into town and started speaking with their parents and uncles and old Harmy Kathan up the street? I loved this unassuming film because I came to love these people. Track it down if you can.