100-year-old Wilcox County news highlights from June 1921

Camden Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church.

It’s that time of the month again, time to take a trip down memory lane and review some of the interesting things that took place in Wilcox County 100 years ago, way back in June 1921.

In the June 2, 1921 edition of The Wilcox Progressive Era, publisher Stanley Clifford Godbold reported that the newspaper was “in receipt of a cotton bloom and boll from Mr. J.W. Curry of Fatama. The boll is well developed and so far seems to have ignored the boll weevil. The first bloom appeared on May 28 on Mr. Curry’s farm. This is unusually early for cotton in this section, and is the first bloom of the season to be reported.”

In a front-page story in the June 9, 1921 edition of The Progressive Era, under the headline “CAMDEN TRIMS BAY MINETTE,” readers learned that the “Camden Baseball Club maintained its past traditions on Monday afternoon last when they handed Bay Minette a stinging defeat to the tune of 9 to 4. Bay Minette came here with a string of victories to her credit but at least she lost one feather from her plume during the sojourn. A large crowd was present and followed the team with the keenest of interest.”

In the June 16, 1921 edition of the newspaper, it was reported that Dr. George I. Adams “of the Geological department of the University of Alabama is in Camden, conducting a survey of the vicinity. This survey is being made for the Tiger Creek Oil Co. and will determine the oil indications around Camden. If the indications are favorable, as is expected, it is thought that a well will be drilled in this neighborhood very soon.”

Readers that week also learned that the “lumber mill at Yellow Bluff, operated by Ball-Sims & Co., was totally destroyed by fire last week. It caught in a dry kiln. Three dry kilns with lumber and the saw mill machinery were burned. Loss five to six thousand dollars. There was no insurance.”

In the June 23, 1921 edition of the paper, under the headline “Big Day at McWilliams,” it was reported that the “citizens of McWilliams are making extensive preparations for a big celebration on Sat., July 2. The school grounds will be the center of the gathering. Two baseball games are scheduled for the day as an entertainment to the visitors, besides other features on the program that are calculated to furnish a pleasant time for all. Mr. J.A. Winters, who is chairman of the celebration, is expecting a large delegation from over the county and extends a most cordial invitation to everyone to join with them in their celebration of The Fourth.”

In the June 30, 1921 edition of the paper, readers learned that “one of the most notable events of Camden society was the marriage of Miss Mary Marcella Moore and Mr. Will Evans Nicholson, which was solemnized Wednesday evening, June 22, at 8 o’clock at the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church. Several hundred invitations were issued and the wedding was one of the largest and most brilliant ever witnessed in Camden. Rev. B.H. Grier performed the ring ceremony, and it was as impressive and eloquent as any that ever linked together the hearts and lives of two happy young people.”

Well, I guess that’s all that space will allow for this month. On the first Thursday of next month, I plan to take a look at the events of July 1921 in Wilcox County. Until then, if you get the urge to research the county’s past yourself, take advantage of the Alabama Department of Archives and History’s excellent selection of old newspapers on microfilm and other resources. Their friendly and courteous staff will be more than happy to get you started.