RolleyHoleMan

https://vault.si.com/vault/1994/09/05/rolley-hole-heaven-an-age-old-game-of-marbles-is-still-the-rage-in-kentucky-and-tennessee Found what I was after. This was written for Sports Illustrated by John Grossmann in 1994. I will also add a PDF in case the link fails or ever breaks. Rolley-Hole Heaven - Sports Illustrated Vault _ SI.com.pdf

So this document I will send anyways despite it not having the story I wanted. I will have to see what I was reading that had the story. Regardless this document was written by Bobby Fulcher and is another very good one I have not posted yet. The main thing with Rolley Hole and documents is a lot I have had to dig up, and a lot I find by accident searching national archives and the Smithsonian. Sometimes I find something and then it seems its back lost to the depths again. Bobby Fulcher Marbles.pdf

I do not seem to have those it seems. I don't know how I missed that. Despite that, there is nothing to spanning and the scoreboard section that is missing can be covered by the attachment score sheet as the score sheet is the exact same as the scoreboard. On the sheet, you put an "X" in the box when that hole is made, while on the board we hang an "X". Spanning is easy as well and covered better in the videos I believe, but I will explain it out. Spanning is what you do before your shot. You place your thumb on the marble (where it lies) and make the "surfer hand sign" also known as a Shaka sign or the "hang loose" sign. You stretch your hand and draw a line in the dirt in front or around your marble in a circle (I like to so a circle). You can then place your marble anywhere within span, or shoot anywhere in your span. If you are within span of the hole, you may place the marble in that hole. From there, since you made the hole, you have earned an extra shot and can then span out of the hole to stay for defense, or span to shoot where you would like to go. That all depends on how the game goes and what is happening. Some may decide to "lay" in the hole which is a form of defense. Laying in the hole is tricky because your opponent may shoot you out of the hole and then gain a second turn because they hit your marble. I have personally been hit, then the person was within span and was able to span into the hole and earn another turn. They then used this turn to hit my marble again on the way to their next hole, which is called "riding" or "riding the marble". Bud Garret called the marbles horses because "everyone was always riding them". Section 7 on "Going out" is one that I would like to see. Going out is making the last hole (both you and your partner), thus winning the game. This is a very tricky spot because of the order of gameplay. You could make that hole, and then the next person to go (who is your opponent) can wack your teammates marble away and play defense. Its a hard moment of strategy and making sure your opponent has no/little chance of making it back to you. The defense and offense can be intense with a player defending the hole while their partner catches up, or the team which is behind can take turns with one player making holes, and the other player catching up. Then they may switch to allow the other team mate to catch up. The battle around that last hole can be intense. The final game played at the last tournament was intense around the last hole, with players continually knocking each other out of bounds. I will post another document which is an article written by Bobby Fulcher (father of the tournament) that has an account of a game like described in section VII. One team was behind a good ways, but they fought their way back. The age difference between teams is also an interesting point.

As an update I am back at the park and the marbles are rolling. Today I did a couple marbles programs and we had a pretty good time. As things progress I may be posting more. There’s not a lot more info I can share regarding the game, but will try to update on Rolley Hole news as we inch closer to the 40th Rolley Hole in September. The 40th will be held at Standing Stone State park in Livingston TN as is tradition.

Hey all, this video popped up in my recommended and oddly enough I had not seen a single local reference to it. Usually when a new video is posted, the Rolley Hole Facebook page and the Standing Stone Page will share it. This video is made by a local news network and what it lacks in the fancy shooting of the CBS video it makes up for in information. This video I really like. In the CBS video they only give Bobby Fulcher a tiny little snippet, while this video lets the father of the tournament actually speak of the game. Enjoy! Hopefully some of y’all can make it to this event. I have been rehired to this park and will be teaching marbles and working this event again (unless something crazy happens knock on wood). Come on by!

The other day I realized the score card is incorrect. It should be: Team A player 1 Team B player 1 Team A player 2 Team B player 2 My bad. Though I doubt anyone took off playing Rolley Hole in my absence haha. Watching gameplay should confirm this pattern.

Hey all, here’s a link to an excellent small article on making Rolley Hole marbles. I have shared a few resources here and there but this one does a pretty good job explaining the process, though the best way to learn is to come on out to the 40th Rolley Hole this September! https://www.craftcouncil.org/magazine/article/rocks-roll?fbclid=IwAR3HDf9-qBWemiGLIv8GhpR9F4OAnMbpWzM-O_L6yhliSvqX5zcdnlpQdzY&mibextid=Zxz2cZ I like this link because it does a good job explaining some of the tools and processes, along with a good failed attempt involving a brick, a pickup truck, and a head injury. Making a marble is a labor of love and requires a lot of work. I won’t go into it but will let the article speak for itself. Past this point I will probably not be posting much until it gets closer to Rolley Hole time (unless some more resources pop up or old documents are found). Resources on this game are hard to come by but luckily over the past few years there’s been quite a few small articles here and there. for those who don’t know, the Rolley Hole tournament is at Standing Stone State Park in Hilham, Tennessee in September. There’s some resources online, in YouTube, and in my posts. Come June please check the Standing Stone site for marbles related programs and smaller events leading up to Rolley Hole.

I just watched it an meh, there’s some odds and ends I didn’t care for. The starting out about ancient Egypt wasn’t really in line with Rolley Hole. It’s correct when it comes to marbles but I saw it as confusing. There was also a few details regarding Bobby Fulcher’s employment at Standing Stone, while also not covering all the amazing things that man has to say. He’s a walking resource of amazing amounts of info. Also marble making wasn’t the best in the segment. It made it sound like you just tossed marbles in the river. That’s not right at all. There were special portable rigs for this even.

I picked it up in two days, but still have to ask questions. I’ve had park guests come to programs and get it for the most part in an hour. It’s not that bad.

Making a quick post as I wake up. This morning I got notified that CBS Sunday Morning News will be airing a story on Rolley Hole Marbles on Sunday tomorrow. This year they came and filmed for 3 or 4 days and they sure put in a lot of work. That being said, we are a little worried how it will be portrayed and all that. We did expect this to air sometime a little before the Rolley Hole Championship to drum up local interest and attendance, so this sudden notification has surprised us. Anyways if anyone can catch it, please post what you think. I will likely be working and unable to catch it until later (if I can find a way to watch it).

If you flip through the book and see an image of the Queen of England, it may be a book we don’t speak of due to it having many issues. Unfortunately that’s all I know of the book we had hidden away somewhere at the park. I can’t cite the issues but my boss said it wasn’t bad, but someone could make much better. In the end we are always thankful someone even tried at all. That’s all said with uncertainty because I’ve not gotten hands on the book. Like a lot of info I posted, it was spoken of but no one could get it in my hands. It took months of sorting through filing cabinets, forgotten tapes, and photos to get anything since, like the book, it was “lost”. seeing your post does remind me that I have a ton of photos to post, though I’m not sure how to go about posting 100+ marbles photos.

This is also why I recommend to those who can attend a game, to do so. The last game played at this years tournament (the one that got cut off the stream), was the best played on that yard in the 39 years they’ve been doing it. That is from the man who started the tournament at Standing Stone.

I believe it’s 3/4”. The Rolley Hole marble isn’t really checked or regulated. It’s an honor system here. Play with something large you may be shamed, however you’re a bigger target. Play with something smaller you will be a harder target, but you won’t have the force. Looking at marbles you can often see some small differences but nothing too much. I did have an issue with kids Rolley Hole because a local decided to try different materials. He was given unknown stones and made one that was a heavy metallic marble with considerable mass. My boss would not let me call out the player as she was a kid, but she was able to shoot opponents far away and the mass of her marble ensured little effect against the hit of opponents. That’s the only dishonesty I’ve seen in Rolley Hole. Since I am new and not local there is also an extra taboo there. This is a regional game and the people here are serious about it, and it’s a game of honor. Players are silent besides teammates whispering directions and both sides saying “good shot”. Anyways to answer your questions, It may be a possibility German marbles were used but I would say it is unlikely. Most players either made their marbles or knew someone locally who made them. It’s kinda like moms cooking. Nothing beats it, and it’s right there. This game was also played by the enslaved people of this area and the freed people (during the time of slavery) who had their own community in Free Hill, Tennessee. Their owner would grant freedom and give them a place to live. These people would probably not be getting German marbles. They had areas for making marbles and portable stones with a hole drilled in them they could move under waterfalls along with bow drills. Bud Garret was a decedent of these people and later created a machine known for the best marbles. Hopefully this helps some. As a fun side note, the current normal price for a Rolley Hole Marble is low end $15.00, and we sell some in the Standing Stone gift shop for that price. There are some fancier ones though which I will show. Sometimes makers polish them real shiny but these are difficult to hold onto. Here is a photo of mine. I always carry them as I am education based. So when people tell me they’re going to Standing Stone, I’ve got a speech and demonstration ready to go. 3 of mine are flint, one is Agate, and one is Dalmatian Jasper. The Dalmatian Jasper is the one people love to see, however due to its softness it would not be recommended for gameplay. Since I don’t have the years of experience I can’t shoot with the insane force and accuracy everyone else can, so for teaching the game it does well. When teaching I will have it, a white flint, a yellow flint, and the agate. That way everyone can remember which marble is theirs. As another side note, many parks do ship merchandise so those interested may be able to get one that way. However the best way to get one is to... Come to the National Rolley Hole tournament! There you can see your marble made before your very eyes and even have a part in its creation. Nothing beats that.

I will go ahead and add some more here. The jar I’m pretty sure are 1990s marbles and they are the smallest size I have seen. The others are of interest but so far this batch seems to be nothing special. No wonder the marbles guides weren’t helping as I don’t have any of the rare or old ones haha. My marbles room at the park has over 100k marbles stored in 25 gallon buckets, and that’s the low end of the estimate. So this lot caught my eye because none are like the many many varieties I have access to.

Thanks! Here’s some more photos, though my camera struggles to really capture these.

The next group is a little odd as most of the marbles aren’t perfectly round, and many are lemon shaped or have a single “nipple” protruding from them. This I haven’t seen.

Hey all, I have a ton of marbles I’m looking for a rough idea on. I’ve been able to divide them into groups with many to come. long story short, I teach people to play marbles. Usually with Rolley Hole and Georgia Rolley Hole I use marbles made from flint or agate, while with ringer and schoolyard I use glass. Because of this I often end up with marbles from the locals, and this coffee can has me a bit lost. I’ve gone through marbles guides and something hasn’t clicked, so I’ve got a lot to share. Anyways I’ll be posting a few groups here.

Here are 7 videos of Rolley Hole coverage from the 1980's. Some videos will tell you more about the game than others, so be on the lookout for the video containing graphics and gameplay. Time ranges from a couple mins to over 20 mins for videos.

Went in on my off day to get this together. Here is the playlist of Rolley Hole videos from the 1980's. If there is an issue with them please let me know and I will try to resolve it. I will also be posting this elsewhere on the forum for those who haven't been in this thread or this section of the forum.

Hey all, new here. Some of you have more context about me and marbles so I will keep it short. I digitalize photos for Tennessee State Parks and teach people how to play marbles games such as Rolley Hole at Standing Stone State Park. We have a rich marbles history both in the park and locally. In 1992 we sent a marbles team to the UK to play marbles. Here is a photo of the late Junior Strong and Queen Elizabeth where he is showing her how to hold a marble and shoot. For years my boss thought it was a fake with a cardboard cutout but well, we don’t think so. Judge for yourselves. This one was digitalized from a Kodak 35mm color slide and appears to be a photo of a photo, as I had to crop it and a white background.

Luckily this photo is on my phone.

Here is the live stream that was later uploaded. Now there is a lot of good footage here HOWEVER the last game that determined the champs was cut from the stream. The kid who did the videos originally only posted the last game, then when editing he cut the last game and posted the rest. The last game was described by Bobby Fulcher (the father of this tournament) as the best game he’s seen in his 40 years. It was intense and we all stood there in silence. Every shot was a hit and it was an insane battle. When the last marble was in, one of the winners ran around hootin’ and hollering while CBS news dismounted their camera and they, and the locals all stormed the field.

It can be very confusing but the livestream by Overton events on YouTube isn’t too bad. The ESPN videos I need to post have computer generated graphics and coverage of a game that’s very good. It’s made for the general public so it has some good breakdowns. The major obstacle is I have digitalized thousands of photos and many videos and am struggling to find the best way to get them into the hands of the general public. I have everything from unknown photos of Cordell Hull (father of the UN) to a photo of Junior Strong (local marbles player) showing the queen of England how to hold and shoot a marble. I also have coverage of the 1998 international marbles event here with many many photos of marbles and people enjoying games. It’s nuts and I haven’t found an appropriate platform to get these out in a place where they’re not hidden in some corner of the internet.

Yep those are the shots! There’s some comic strips that ran in the 90s somewhere I have to find. Some should be saved to my laptop. We used to be allowed to make and sell Peanuts shirts with the strips on them and some people do wear them. They used to sell is the rights for a symbolic $1.00, then after Schultz passed they upped the price, then didn’t allow it at all. In Tompkinsville they sell Dumus Walker shirts as well.

Hey all, new here. I see I have some pending messages to get to but while I have access to my laptop I am sending some documents about Rolley Hole marbles. One is an interpretative program, and the others are handouts we give to guests who visit and have no idea what is going on. The Rolley Hole tournament is ongoing and occurs every year at Standing Stone State Park in Hilham, TN, usually in September. We have live music, food, live marble making, glass blowing, etc. There are also some youtube videos up along with some live streams of gameplay. 1873_001.pdf Rolley Hole Rules.pdf Rolley Hole score.pdf