Steve Cole (Sugarlands, Gatlinburg, Sevier County, Tennessee) was

							Steve Cole (Sugarlands, Gatlinburg, Sevier County, Tennessee) was age 70 when interviewed.
He had some education and was literate. He had worked as a farmer, and logger.

This is Steve Cole that lives in the Sugarlands near Gatlinburg in the park, been a-livin' here
ever since the park was established, sev-, about seventy-one years old. Him and his brother-
in-law one night back years ago, about forty, went out a-bear huntin', a-possum huntin' or
other, treed a bear. He minded up the tree till it come down. I shot it. It rolled off down the
mountain a piece, tore loose from the dogs, and run away on down the flat and treed up
another tree. We minded hit up there a good long while. Finally it come down from up there.
We had us a big fire made up at the root of the tree. When it come down, why we had a good
fire light to fight it by. When it come down, I shot again, didn't hit it the last time. When I
shot it the last time, shot at it, why, just throwed my gun down and jumped a-straddle of it,
grabbed it by both ears, me and my dogs. I thought I could help them and make them kill it,
but I couldn't do that. I broke the dog's hold, seed I couldn't hold it myself, and I let it loose,
started to run back around the tree. The bear took after me, just as I got around next to the fire
the dogs caught it again. I turned around and jumped on it again a-straddle of it, called for the
axe, and my brother-in-law, he'd had the axe to fight the bear with, and he'd laid it down and
burnt the handle in two. He couldn't hardly find the axe, but he hadn't holp me a bit. He
hadn't fit none of the time. When I got to hunting for the axe and reaching for the axe, I
knocked it in the head ever so many licks before I could get it to roll over and hush hollering.
Finally we got it killed, drug it up around next to the fire. I got to looking at it, just looked a-
scared, to look at a bear a-thinkin' a man of my age and size would jump on a bear to fight fist
and skull without something to fight with. So we killed it, brought it in home that night about
daylight next morning. About as far as I can go with that.