Pine Mountain Settlement School
Series 09: BIOGRAPHY – Students
Series 19: STUDENTS
Billy Sunday Cox (1920-?)
Student, 1931-1935

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TAGS: Bill Cox, students, Billy Cox, Billy Sunday Cox, Glyn Morris, Kenvir KY, Dryden VA, Billy Sunday, preachers, electrical work, electrician, student application form, Robert “B.J.” Cox, Ida Garrett Cox

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BILLY SUNDAY COX Student, 1931-1935

Named for the famous preacher Billy Sunday*, Billy Sunday Cox (or Bill Cox) was born in Dryden, Kentucky, in 1920. He was attending Kenvir Elementary School when he applied to go to school at Pine Mountain Settlement School. He is not to be confused with an earlier Billy Cox who attended Pine Mountain in 1926.

Preacher Billy Sunday

*William Ashley Sunday was born on November 19, 1862/63, in Ames, Iowa. The preacher known as “Billy Sunday” was well-known in the early years of the twentieth century. He died on November 6, 1935, in Chicago, in the same year that Bill Cox was accepted as a seventh-grader at the settlement school.

Preacher Billy Sunday held revivals throughout America and influenced many to evangelical religion. One of Billy Sunday’s favorite topics was the stress that many Americans  experienced while undergoing the change from a rural agrarian society to an industrial society. Bill Cox was a classic example of the children caught up in this complicated social upheaval. 

BILLY COX Student: HIS PMSS APPLICATION

Bill Cox, born on August 8, 1920, came from a family of three brothers and four sisters, most of them older than he. Only the youngest, nine-year-old Bobby Jr., and Dexter, an older brother of 18, were living at home at the time of Bill’s departure for Pine Mountain. On his entrance assessment, he indicated that he liked arithmetic, history and geography and a variety of sports. He also indicated that his father wanted him to become an electrician and that his mother agreed with that ambition, saying he, “likes to fool with electricity — Wired the Charterhouse 3 years ago.” She also notes that his father said that Bill would “…make a mean lawyer.”

Interestingly, he shows no religious preference on his application. His duties in the household were to haul water and kindling for the home stove.

He indicates on his application that his 49-year-old father, Robert “B.J.” Cox, was born in Lee County, Virginia, and was a carpenter, a tinkerman, and a farmer. His stepmother, age 42, was Ida Garrett Cox and was also born in Lee County, Virginia. She indicates that her interests were raising poultry, flowers and sewing. The home visit by Pine Mountain staff describe the home as “tidy” and “well kept — flowers.”

Kenvir, Kentucky, was one of many coal camps in Harlan County, but it is not clear what the family connection to the mining company was unless the father was a carpenter for the mine. According to the information gathered about Bill, he was a gregarious young boy.

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Title	Billy Sunday Cox
Alt. Title	Billie Cox ; Billy Cox ; Billie Sunday Cox ; Bill Cox ;
Identifier	https://pinemountainsettlement.net/?page_id=35223
Creator	Pine Mountain Settlement School, Pine Mountain, KY
Alt. Creator	Helen Hayes Wykle ; Ann Angel Eberhardt
Subject Keyword	Billie Cox ; Billy Cox ; Billie Sunday Cox ; Bill Cox ; Glyn Morris ; Kenvir KY ; Dryden VA ; Billy Sunday ; preachers ; electrical work ; electrician ; student application form ; Robert “B.J.” Cox ; Ida Garrett Cox ;
Subject LCSH	Cox, Bill, — 1920 – ? Pine Mountain Settlement School (Pine Mountain, Ky.) — History. Harlan County (Ky.) — History. Education — Kentucky — Harlan County. Rural schools — Kentucky — History. Schools — Appalachian Region, Southern.
Date	2019-12-12 hw/aae
Publisher	Pine Mountain Settlement School, Pine Mountain, KY
Contributor	n/a
Type	Collections ; text ; image ;
Format	Original and copies of documents and correspondence in file folders in filing cabinet.
Source	Series 09: Biography ; Series 19: Students
Language	English
Relation	Is related to: Pine Mountain Settlement School Collections, Series 09: Biography and Series 19: Students.
Coverage Temporal	1920 – 1935
Coverage Spatial	Pine Mountain, KY ; Harlan County, KY ; Dryden, KY ; Lee County, VA ; Kenvir, KY ;
Rights	Any display, publication or public use must credit the Pine Mountain Settlement School. Copyright retained by the creators of certain items in the collection or their descendants, as stipulated by United States copyright law.
Donor	n/a
Description	Core documents, correspondence, writings and administrative papers created by or addressed to Bill Cox; clippings, photographs, publications, illustrations by or about Bill Cox.
Acquisition	n/d
Citation	“[Identification of Item],” [Collection Name] [Series Number, if applicable]. Pine Mountain Settlement School Institutional Papers. Pine Mountain Settlement School, Pine Mountain, KY.
Processed By	Helen Hayes Wykle ; Ann Angel Eberhardt ;
Last Updated	2020-06-04 aae ; 2021-06-04 aae ; 2021-11-08 hhw ;
Bibliography
Source	“Bill Cox.” Series 09: Biography and Series 19: Students. Pine Mountain Settlement School Institutional Papers. Pine Mountain Settlement School, Pine Mountain, KY. Internet resource.

See Also BILL COX Student Records 1935 – Password Protected
NOTE: Images of the full set of student records are considered private material and are not generally publicly displayed.
Their access may be provided on request, pending approval of Pine Mountain Settlement School and the archivist of the PMSS Collections.
Contact the main PMSS Office for information.

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