by Lynn Murphy

Created on: June 18, 2008   Last Updated: October 31, 2008

Fourth of July at the Heiberge House is the quintessential Independance Day celebration. In its hey day this celebration of the Moore family and all its offshoots in the tiny town of Heiberger, AL hosted close to 200 family members, all gathered around Mam-maw's big wood house with the tin roof. The house itself cried out to people and invited them in for a family gathering, with its wraparound porches and rocking chairs and swings. It is one of those old Southern homes; not a plantation, but a country syled house with the traditional dog-run through the middle and the rooms off that hallway. Mam- maw framed every wedding picture that was sent to her, but if you got divorced, your picture came down. During the weekend of the fourth of July, the house's three bedrooms were overflowing with relatives and people slept wherever they could. As someone who married into the family, it took quite some getting used to.I had never witnessed such a celebration before.

The day's festivities usually went something like this. People would arrive mid to late morning, those who weren't staying at the house, that is, and the food was set up in tables in the family owned lot across the street. There was fried chicken and every casserole known to church potluck style cuisine. There were hams and every dessert you could think of. The entire clan gathered to sevre their plates and eat together. The first time I went, my husband kept telling me "Whatever you do, don't set down your plate and then go back to get your drink." I soon found out why. If you put your plate down, someone would steal it, leaving you with no food and having to get back in line. This kind of practical joke was part of the daily antics. When everyone was sufficiently well fed, the family gathered again on the porch and the music fest began. Grandaddy Moore played every instrument by ear and had a full band to accompany him. The "band" , all composed of cousins and uncles would play and everyone else sang from hand typed song sheets. When we'd waited a full hour to let our food digest (as Mam-maw, long since dead when I joined the family had said we must) then the Race to The River began.
The Race was the highlight of the day and was taken very seriously. The rules were that there were no rules. You raced to the river and you raced back. To get to the fast flowing Cahaba, everyone loaded into pick-ups and drove across the farm land. It was legal to close gates behind you so your opponents had to stop and get

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