Steven Bradley makes local Bigfoot Calling Contest history on Saturday

Kyles, Sims, Coleman, Upton and Bradley.

Steven Bradley of Repton made local Bigfoot Calling history on Saturday when he captured top honors in two Bigfoot Calling contests on the same day.

Steven is well over six feet tall and is built like an SEC lineman, and those of you who have heard him belt out one of his famous Bigfoot calls knows that he’s hard to beat. During Saturday’s Collard Green Festival at Evergreen Regional Airport, Steven claimed top honors against some stiff competition in the festival’s Bigfoot Calling Contest. Gary Coleman finished second, James Sims came in third and past-champion Tony Kyles received honorable mention honors.

Steven’s first-place winnings amounted to $200, and Coleman received a $100 prize. Sims received $50 for his efforts.

Loretta Bradley, Steven Bradley and David Busby.

Later on Saturday night, at the Baggett’s Chapel 14^th Annual Wild Game Supper, Steven also captured first-place honors in a Bigfoot Calling Contest that featured five adult competitors. Steven’s sister, Loretta Bradley, came in second, and David Busby finished third. Other competitors included Logan Blake and Matthew Kirkland. Loretta’s performance was noteworthy and memorable because she incorporated sticks and rocks in her performance.

In the youth division contest, Hunter Nichols came in first, Grady Busby came in second and Will Acreman finished third. Other competitors included Anna Bradley, Payton Adams, McKenzie Nichols, Colt Busby, Gunner Busby, Isabella Johnson and Kinsley Spencer.

Bigfoot expert Ashley McPhaul of Excel and I judged the competition at Baggett’s Chapel, and we had our work cut out for us. All of the contestants did a good job and deserve a pat on the back for their willingness to take the stage in front of such a large crowd.

Here at The Courant, Butch and I are maintaining the “Official Conecuh County Bigfoot Calling Record Book,” and those of you familiar with previous contests will recognize many of the names in this so-called book.

Many in the reading audience will know that the first-ever Bigfoot Calling Contest in county history was held during the Conecuh Sausage Festival on Oct. 21, 2017. Contestant John “Little John” Davis captured top honors in that contest, winning a $500 grand prize and a “Yeti Stick” hand-crafted by Ricky Upton of Excel, the brother of Evergreen City Councilman Luther Upton, who MC’d the contest.

Tim Stewart of Greenville won the $100 second-place prize, and Tony Kyles came in third. Bigfoot witness Carl Pugh and Benjamin Whatley received honorable mention. Other contestants in the contest included Katie Brand, Jacob Baggett, Dakota Coleman, Gary Coleman and Ricky Hicks. Judges in that contest included McPhaul, local Bigfoot skeptic Stacey Turner Middleton and myself.

On March 3, 2018, McPhaul and I judged another Bigfoot Calling Contest during the 13^th Annual Baggett’s Chapel Wild Game Supper. There were seven contestants in the youth division, and there were five contestants in the adult division. Contestants in the youth division included Will Acreman, Tristan Bradley, Hunter Nichols, Robert Farish, Bucky Farish and Brady Busby. Adult competitors included Sue Brown, Bobby McInnis, Steven Bradley, Dennis McKinley and Will Driver.

In the adult division, Steven Bradley was named the Grand Champion Bigfoot Caller, and Dennis McKinley finished a close second. Hunter Nichols took home top honors in the youth division, and Tristan Bradley came in second. All of the other contestants were honorable mention winners in my book.

During the Conecuh Sausage Festival on Oct. 25, 2018, Tony Kyles of Evergreen won Grand Champion honors and a $200 grand prize during the 2^nd Annual Conecuh Sausage Festival Bigfoot Calling Contest. Terry Crook of McKenzie finished second, and Anna Kay Bradley of Repton came in third. Honorable mention honors went to Steven Bradley and Gary Coleman. Judges in the competition were Evergreen Mayor Pete Wolff, Probate Judge-elect Steve Fleming and Olivia Ballard.

Expect Bryce Harper hoopla during March 28 Braves-Phillies game

One of the biggest things to affect the Atlanta Braves this week didn’t directly involve any of the Braves players or the team itself.

Last week, Washington Nationals free-agent right fielder Bryce Harper signed a record-setting, 13-year, $330 million contract with the Philadelphia Phillies. Harper is a 26-year-old Las Vegas native, so many Braves fans were hoping that he’d sign with the Dodgers or Giants, which would get this formidable player out of Atlanta’s division, the National League East. Unfortunately, Harper’s move to Philadelphia keeps him within the division, which means that Atlanta will still have to see him 19 times during the upcoming regular season.

Atlanta won’t have to wait long to face Harper this season. Just four days after Opening Day, Atlanta is scheduled to play the Phillies on March 28, the first of a three-game series that will wrap up on March 31. The March 28 game will be Philadelphia’s home-opener, so there will be a lot of hoopla over Harper’s debut in the “City of Brotherly Love.” It’ll be fun to tune in and listen to the crowd’s reaction to Harper’s initial introduction.

For the record, Harper’s contract is the highest contract in the history of North American professional sports – football, basketball and hockey included. In the world of sports contracts, the number $330 million might not sound like a lot, but consider this: Harper will be paid $25,384,615 per year before taxes. When you consider that the average professional baseball game is about three hours long and that the regular season is 162 games long, Harper will be paid $52,231 per hour for the next 13 years under his current contract.

I’ve enjoyed watching Harper play over the years because he’s a true “five-tool” player. He hits for a high average, hits a lot of long balls, steals a fair number of bases, can throw you out from just about anywhere on the field and can field his position at a high level. Classic five-tool players include such greats as Ken Griffey Jr. and Willie Mays.

With that said, many fans don’t like Bryce Harper. He’s somewhat of a villain, and at times he can be very intense and abrasive. To me, he’s somewhat of a modern-day Ty Cobb – a salty old outfielder who gets booed just about everywhere he goes.

Cobb made nowhere near $330 million, but he did end up in the Hall of Fame. I suspect that Harper will also one day be enshrined in the Hall. In the meantime, he’ll be laughing all the way to the bank, despite all of the folks who don’t like him.

Personally, I enjoy watching the game well played, so I plan to enjoy watching Harper continue to do what he’s been doing, that is, playing the game at a high level. Even though he’s on a team that competes against the Braves, he won’t play them every night. Even when the Phillies do face the Braves, Harper likely won’t be able to carry the team each and every time. His teammates, for the most part, will have to carry their own weight. If not, they’ll have a hard time having much success, despite their high-paid right fielder.

Daily Rainfall Observations from SW Alabama for Thurs., March 7, 2019

Rainfall (Past 24 Hours): 0.00 inches.

Week to Date Rainfall: 1.35 inches.

Month to Date Rainfall:  2.15 inches.

Winter to Date Rainfall: 16.30 inches.

Year to Date Rainfall: 12.70 inches.

Readings taken at 0700 hours Central Standard Time (1300 GMT) daily in Monroe County, Alabama, USA, in the vicinity of Lat 31.405783N Lon -87.479861W. CoCoRaHS Station No. AL-MN-6, Station Name: Frisco City 5.0 WSW.

Post office misunderstanding leads to unusual name for Alabama town

The former Driscoll's Store building in Awin, Alabama.

My ramblings took me this week to Awin, a crossroads community in southeastern Wilcox County that sits smackdab in the middle of the intersection of State Highway 10 and State Highway 47, just north of the Monroe County line and a few miles west of Butler County.

Folks have been living in the Awin area for more than a century, and the community even had a post office as far back as 1881. In fact, the U.S. Postal Service is said to have played a major role in how the community got its name.

According to the book “Place Names in Alabama” by Virginia O. Foscue, the “local explanation for the name (Awin) is that the first postmaster, Jack M. Williams, after asking for suggestions for a name for the post office, wrote ‘A win’ beside the one the majority of residents had favored, and post office officials took his comment to be the chosen name.” The rest, as they say, is history.

I’ve been through Awin many times, but on Friday I took the time to scout around slowly with an eye toward taking in all the things that make this community remarkable and unique. One thing that jumped out at me right away is that there’s a church in just about every direction from the central crossroads. On State Highway 10, you’ve got the Awin Church of Christ to the west and Awin Baptist Church to the east. To the north, on Wilcox County Road 61, you’ll find Macedonia Baptist Church.

Another interesting feature of “downtown” Awin are the remnants of two old, abandoned country stores that sit just a stone’s throw apart at the main intersection. In the wedge of land at the intersection of Highways 10 and 47, you’ll find what used to be Driscoll’s Grocery. If you’re standing in front of that store and look north, just a handful of steps away you’ll find a squat, cinderblock building that was once Jones Grocery.

On Friday, I pulled off the road to snap a few pictures of these buildings and had the unexpected pleasure of meeting Mr. Daniel Driscoll Jr., the retired, former proprietor of Driscoll’s Grocery. Driscoll now lives in a cozy dwelling behind his old store and was kind enough to invite me up on his porch to shoot the breeze. As he rocked comfortably in his porch swing, he told me of how he closed his store in the early 1980s, a few years after Johnny Jones closed his store across the road.

Driscoll noted that at one time the heavy traffic through the intersection was enough to support both stores, but that changed over time. He also noted that even though he and Jones had competing businesses right across the road from each other, the two men got along well and were friends. Jones passed away a number of years ago, but Driscoll remains friendly to this day with his son, Henry Jones.

While sitting on Driscoll’s porch, I noticed what looked like a tombstone in a patch of tall, green grass, a few steps from the main door to his old store. I asked him about this lone grave in the middle of this busy crossroads, and he proceeded to tell me about what may be one of the most remarkable and unusual graves in all of Wilcox County. But that is a story for another day.

In the end, I thanked Driscoll for his time and eased on down the road. As I headed home, I could not help but think about all the people who have lived in Awin over the years. No doubt, even though many years have passed, they would agree that Awin is still a nice place to call home.

100-year-old news highlights from The Evergreen Courant

Grave of Julia A. Thomas at Mt. Union.

What follows are 100-year-old news excerpts from the March 5, 1919 edition of The Evergreen Courant newspaper in Conecuh County, Ala.

Miss Ruby Kendall, one of Evergreen’s choice girls, is now in Coblenz, Germany. She is with the American Expeditionary Forces and seems to be going on to Berlin.

Memorial Service: A goodly number of the friends of the late Rev. George E. Mize assembled at the Baptist Church on Sunday night last to pay tribute to his memory. The music furnished by the choir, appropriate to the occasion, consisted of songs of which deceased was specially fond. Dr. Dickinson presided. Rev. D.W. Haskew spoke of Mr. Mize as a man, Rev. Kempton as a friend and Dr. Dickinson as a minister.

Dr. J.R. Brooks spent last week in Detroit, Mich. He was accompanied on the trip by C.S. Rabb.

Dr. B.F. Riley came down from Birmingham on Saturday last for a visit with his brothers, W.G. and R.I. Riley, going from here to Monroe County to see Capt. T.M. Riley.

The Burgamy community is taking on new life. They now have a good school and one of the best buildings in the county. They are going to repaint in the spring. Walter Lee is a builder.

W.T. Sheehan, editor of the Advertiser, and Mr. Spangler, better known as “Spang,” cartoonist for the same paper, are distinguished visitors to Evergreen today. These gentlemen are always cordially welcomed to Evergreen. While here, they are guests of C.P. Deming and Mayor Ivey.

L.D. King reports that the rains and bad roads of the winter have almost blacked his shipment of lumber. The bad roads have also greatly reduced the output of the Jackson Lumber Co.

Miss Julian Thomas died near Herbert on the 26^th of February and was buried at Mt. Union on last Thursday. She was a woman of unusual ability and numbered here friends by the scores.

Judge Gamble came down yesterday from Greenville to draw the jury for the spring term of the circuit court, returning home in the afternoon.

Dr. Dickinson is presenting the claims of Evergreen to retain the Baptists Orphanage to the Baptists of Alabama in a masterly way. He is using they Alabama Baptist to get his claims before the folks, and his arguments can not be refuted.

The famous “Rainbow Division,” now in Germany, will set sail for America and home on April 15, according to official announcement. A strong effort is being made to get the war department to permit the Alabama boys to be mustered out of service at Montgomery and this in all likelihood will be done. It is also planned to have a large delegation of Alabamians to meet our boys in New York when they arrive.

Mr. Hatfield, who recently removed from Montgomery County and purchased a farm three miles from town on the Brooklyn road, has a large acreage planted to early peas. We need more such farmers as our newcomer from Montgomery County. The Courant hopes his bank account may not cease to grow.

Mr. J.C. Cheney left on Friday last for New Orleans where she will spend a month with her sister.

Daily Rainfall Observations from SW Alabama for Wed., March 6, 2019

Rainfall (Past 24 Hours): 0.00 inches.

Week to Date Rainfall: 1.35 inches.

Month to Date Rainfall:  2.15 inches.

Winter to Date Rainfall: 16.30 inches.

Year to Date Rainfall: 12.70 inches.

Readings taken at 0700 hours Central Standard Time (1300 GMT) daily in Monroe County, Alabama, USA, in the vicinity of Lat 31.405783N Lon -87.479861W. CoCoRaHS Station No. AL-MN-6, Station Name: Frisco City 5.0 WSW.

The Evergreen Courant's Sports Flashback for March 4, 2019

Evergreen's Chris Hines.

EIGHT YEARS AGO

MARCH 3, 2011

Evergreen’s Chris Hines scored a career-high 15 points, grabbed seven rebounds and was named the Player of the Game after a conference game between Alabama’s men’s basketball team and Ole Miss Saturday in Oxford.

In 33 minutes of play, Hines sank six-of seven field goals and also had two assists and two steals. In the second half, he sank two-of-two field goals, including a three-point play that capped a 12-0 Alabama run that gave the Tide its biggest lead of the game.

Three Sparta Academy senior basketball players took part in the AISA’s annual all-star basketball games on Saturday.

Devlin Crosby, 5-foot-10, was among the 15 players named to the West Boys All-Star Team. He scored four points and grabbed a rebound.

Madelyn Black, 5-6, and Savannah Brown, 5-8, were among the 15 players named to the West Girls All-Star Team. Black finished the game with five steals, one point and a rebound. Brown had two rebounds, one point and a steal.

The AISA’s All-Star basketball games were played on Saturday at Huntingdon College in Montgomery.

Hillcrest High School’s varsity boys basketball team assured itself of a spot in this year’s Class 4A state basketball tournament by claiming the South Regional title Saturday in Mobile.

Hillcrest (26-6) beat No. 2-ranked Andalusia, 68-57, in the regional tournament finals Saturday, avenging an early season, two-point loss to the Bulldogs and securing a spot for the Jags in the state tournament.

33 YEARS AGO

MARCH 6, 1986

These Lady Warriors of Sparta Academy won second place in the State Class A Basketball Championships of the Alabama Private Schools Association: Julie Johnson, Stacey Holmes, Shawn Hammonds, Jennifer Brown, Jeannie Vonderau, Tracy Holmes, Baby Girl Floyd, Susan Ward, Kim Searcy, Leah Carrier, Carol Kendrick and Coach Robert Cumbie.

Leah Carrier of Sparta Academy’s Lady Warriors Basketball Team was chosen to play in the State All-Star Game and Coach Robert Cumbie was chosen to coach in the classic at Huntingdon College in Montgomery. Leah is also an All-State Cheerleader. Leah is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Walter Carrier of Evergreen.

58 YEARS AGO

MARCH 2, 1961

Jr. League Elects Fore As President: Howard Fore, local life insurance agent and prominent civic worker, is the new president of the Evergreen Junior Basketball League. He succeeds Wendell Hart, EHS coach.

Fore and other 1961 officers were elected at the annual meeting last Thursday. Jones Sasser is vice president, Leslie Huggins is secretary and John H. Ellis is treasurer. Ray Owens will again serve as player agent.

Fore said that a meeting will be called right away for the coming season which opens shortly after the end of the school term.

Lime Hill Captures Tourney: The Lime Hill Hawks, coached by Leon Randolph, captured the Conecuh County Junior High basketball championship Sat., Feb. 25, in the Conecuh County Training School gymnasium. The second spot went to the China Junior High team, coached by John Floyd.

Evergreen will take on third-seeded Fairhope in the Class AA basketball tournament in Atmore Thursday afternoon at 2:40.

83 YEARS AGO

MARCH 5, 1936

WILD HOG LAW KILLED: News dispatches from Montgomery Wednesday state that Representative Forrest Castleberry’s proposed law to restrict the hunting of wild hogs to the month of December was “buried under a flood of ‘no’ votes.”

Many of us here in Conecuh County did not know there were any wild hogs in the county and furthermore, we had no idea in the event there were some, that anybody would object to them being hunted any time and captured. However, Mr. Castleberry stated that he was very urgently requested to secure the passage of the bill by some good citizens, who told him that those who posed as hunters of wild hogs sometimes got mixed up and caught tame ones.

Well at any rate, members of the house did not feel that it was necessary to enact Mr. Castleberry’s bill, so we still have an unrestricted season on wild hogs. Better be sure you know your hogs though and not hunt the domesticated kind, else you might run afoul of laws which already exist.

F.F.A. NEWS: The Evergreen Chapter of F.F.A. attended the Andalusia District Basketball Tournament Sat., Feb. 29. We were defeated but played well. The tournament was won by Pleasant Home.

108 YEARS AGO

MARCH 1, 1911

While out hunting on Saturday last in company with Thomas Jackson, Glenn Mills, son of C.E. Mills, accidentally shot himself with his rifle, the bullet penetrating the leg just above the ankle. The wound is not of a serious nature.