Old newspaper excerpts from The Monroe Journal newspaper in Monroeville, Alabama

Tennessee Congressman Finis J. Garrett

13 YEARS AGO

JAN. 27, 2005

711^th Sig. Battalion returns: Local members of the Alabama Army National Guard’s 711^th Signal Battalion returned home Monday and Tuesday after nearly a year on active duty in Iraq.

At 4 a.m. on Monday, about 250 members of Headquarters Company and Companies A and D, located in Mobile and Atmore, touched down at Hunter Army Airfield, near Savannah, Ga.

MC retires jersey, downs Shields: In a night marked by sadness at the passing of a fallen teammate, Monroe County High School’s varsity boys closed out their regular season home schedule with a 50-45 win over in-county rival, J.F. Shields, Saturday night in Monroeville.

Prior to the start of Saturday night’s varsity game, MCHS retired the No. 10 game jersey of 18-year-old Anthony Stovall. Stovall was diagnosed with a cerebral aneurysm on Jan. 6 and slipped into a coma during surgery on Jan. 7, just four days after his last high school game. Stovall died Jan. 15 in a Mobile hospital.

Following the emotional pre-game ceremony, in performances that would have made their former teammate smile, MCHS’s Terrell Armstrong and Gecoby Penn combined for 27 points to put Shields away for the night.

EMA certifications: Rusty Russell presents EMA certifications to Heather Walton, Conecuh County EMA Director; Rennie Raines, special operations and training officer for Monroe County’s EMA; and Chuck Murph, Monroe County EMA Director. They received these certifications during the American Association of Emergency Managers 2005 mid-year conference in Huntsville.

39 YEARS AGO

JAN. 25, 1979

The City of Monroeville apparently won’t be opening an animal shelter any time soon.

All six city council members voted Tuesday night to put the project on the back burner after Councilman Raymond Bayles said that operating a shelter would be too expensive and other projects must take priority.

During the council’s regular meeting, Bayles reported on a recent meeting of a committee Mayor B.C. Hornady appointed in December to study the possibility of opening a shelter. Bayles is on the committee, as well as Public Works Superintendent Lyle Salter, veterinarian John Grider and three Monroeville residents Gail Boros, Carnell Moore and Donna Arkin – who have been trying for about a year to get a shelter established in Monroe County.

Blacksher outclassed the Excel Panthers Friday night in Excel, 54-37.

Calvin English led the Blacksher scoring with 18 points. Willie Bonner topped Excel’s scoring with 10 points.

(Other players on Blacksher’s team that season included Harry Akins, Kevin Barnes, Phil Hollinger, Allen Mack, Timmy Qualls and Bob Weatherford. Other players on Excel’s team included Robert Costic, Earl Hollinger and Jimmy Walden.)

Three Frisco City Police Department employees have been fired because the town cannot afford to pay their salaries, Mayor Harvey Martin said yesterday (Wednesday) morning.

Patrolman Johnny Griffis, hired six weeks ago, and two radio dispatchers, Mrs. Jim Bayles and Mrs. May Beth Bird, were to have received their notices yesterday, Martin said.

64 YEARS AGO

JAN. 25, 1954

FOLSOM SPEAKS TONIGHT AT BEATRICE HIGH SCHOOL: James E. “Big Jim” Folsom, Alabama gubernatorial candidate in the Democratic May primary will speak at Beatrice High School tonight (Thursday) at 7:30.

The Excel High Panther cage quint wrote off the final session of the season in triumphant form last Thursday night by tripping a team seeded second for the current District One Class “A” tournament, Flomaton, by a score of 60-58.

High scorer for Excel was Jack Matchett, forward, with 27 points, while Turner, center, paced Flomaton with 23.

In the “B” game, top netter for Excel was McQueen, forward, with 16 points, while Turner, forward, led Flomaton with 18. The Excel “B” squad was loser however, 59-41.

Miss Ann Mosley and Mrs. George Klepac Jr. of Alabama College, Montevallo, were guests of their parents, Mr. and Mrs. John Mosley, in Peterman recently.

Local Knights Templar Unit To Name, Install Officers On Friday: Officers for the Monroeville Commandery No. 47 of the Knights Templar will be elected and installed at the annual meeting of the organization, M.L. Bergman of Monroeville, Emminent Commander, declared recently.

The meeting is scheduled at 7:30 p.m. on Friday at the local Masonic Lodge.

The local Commandery covers a widespread area in South Alabama. Members are included from Monroe, Clarke, Conecuh, Butler, Baldwin and Wilcox Counties.

89 YEARS AGO

JAN. 24, 1929

Rev. A.F. Howington, pastor of the Frisco City Methodist Church, was among Monroeville friends Wednesday.

Sheriff Kilpatrick is under treatment at a Mobile infirmary for a dislocated shoulder sustained in an encounter with a prisoner was resisted arrest several weeks ago.

Congressman John McDuffie was one of 12 Democratic members of the House invited as guests of Speaker Nicholas Longworth at a dinner given in his home on Jan. 16 in honor of the retiring minority leader of the House, Hon. Finis J. Garrett.

Mrs. Lucian Jones entertained the Three Arts Club at its regular meeting Friday afternoon, Jan. 18. There were 10 members present. Mrs. Lathram was leader. The following program was given:

Placement of Shrubs – Mrs. John Fleming.

Placement of Flowers – Miss Benie Carter.

Placement of Shields, Background, Hedge and Etc. – Mrs. Cliff Hines.

Parliamentary Drill – Mrs. Thos. Walker.

During the social hour, the hostess served delicious refreshments.

Rev. M.E. Grant, 52, a superannuated Methodist minister who was reared in Conecuh County, died at Gantt, Ala., in Covington County Saturday and was buried Sunday afternoon in Gantt cemetery. Funeral services were in charge of the Masonic order, of which he was a member.

Rev. Grant was born in Monroe County, but his parents moved to Brownville, Conecuh County, near Owassa, shortly thereafter. Because of ill health, Rev. Grant was superannuated at the last Methodist conference.

114 YEARS AGO

JAN. 28, 1904

The Journal Delayed: The Journal has been issued a little late the past few weeks on account of the overcrowded condition of our job printing department, and is late again this week, due this time, however, to a slight breakage of the engine by which the press is driven. We ask the kind indulgence of our readers until the difficulty is remedied. We hope soon to get the paper out with greater promptness than ever.

Cotton sold on the streets of Montgomery Saturday at 14-1/2 cents, the highest price known since the war and the few years of abnormal agricultural conditions immediately succeeding the war. For large lots of cotton, the papers state, 14-1/2 cents could have been easily obtained.

Robbers attempted to wreck a passenger train on the P&A division of the Louisville & Nashville Railroad at Mulat on the night of the 17^th. Crossties and other obstructions were piled on the track but were fortunately discovered by a section hand.

Dr. L.E. Ray, the specialist, will spend one week at Jones Mill for the accommodation of patients in that neighborhood.

PETERMAN NEWS: We are pleased to note the quietude of our little town since the occurrence of the homicide on the night of the 1^st inst. We regret for the unfortunate man that he had to be the victim caused by the lawlessness carried on in the community, but if it required this to break up this lawlessness, we can spare one.

DREWRY NEWS: C.W. Burton returned on Sunday evening’s train from a trip to Peterman. He was entertained by Messrs. L.C. Baggett and Ed Green, who returned to Drewry with him.

Today in History for Jan. 28, 2018

The USS Constitution, aka, 'Old Ironsides'

Jan. 28, 1624 – Sir Thomas Warner founded the first British colony in the Caribbean, on the island of Saint Kitts.

Jan. 28, 1777 – British general John Burgoyne submitted an ill-fated plan to the British government to isolate New England from the other colonies.

Jan. 28, 1781 - General Daniel Morgan reported to General Nathanael Greene that his men had observed the British army moving towards the Catawba River.

Jan. 28, 1798 – Future University of Alabama President Basil Manly Sr. was born near Pittsboro, N.C. He went on to serve as the University’s president from 1837 to 1855. He died at the home of Basil Manly Jr. in Greenville, S.C. at the age of 70 on Dec. 21, 1868 and was buried in Springwood Cemetery in Greenville.

Jan. 28, 1813 – Jane Austen's “Pride and Prejudice” was first published in the United Kingdom.

Jan. 28, 1820 – A Russian expedition led by Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen and Mikhail Petrovich Lazarev discovered the Antarctic continent, approaching the Antarctic coast.

Jan. 28, 1821 – Alexander Island was first discovered by Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen.

Jan. 28, 1828 - Confederate General Thomas Carmichael Hindman was born in Knoxville, Tenn. Hindman was raised in Alabama and educated in New York and New Jersey. He fought at Chickamauga and Atlanta, and was wounded twice.

Jan. 28, 1841 – Welsh-American explorer and journalist Sir Henry Morton Stanley was born in Denbigh, Wales, UK. He went on to become a journalist and explorer famous for his exploration of central Africa and his search for missionary and explorer David Livingstone. Upon finding Livingstone, Stanley allegedly asked, "Dr. Livingstone, I presume?"

Jan. 28, 1846 - Montgomery was selected as the capital of Alabama by the state legislature on the 16th ballot. Montgomery won the final vote largely because of promises of Montgomery city leaders to provide $75,000 for a new capitol and because of the emerging prominence of the Black Belt region of the state.

Jan. 28, 1855 - The Panama Railway, which carried thousands of unruly miners to California via the dense jungles of Central America, dispatched its first train across the Isthmus of Panama.

Jan. 28, 1856 - Alabama author and dramatist Joseph M. Field died in Mobile, Ala.

Jan. 28, 1858 – Welsh-Australian geologist and explorer Tannatt William Edgeworth David was born in St. Fagans, near Cardiff, Wales.

Jan. 28, 1861 – During the Civil War, Federal property in New Orleans and Ft. Macomb, near New Orleans, were seized by the 1st Regiment, Louisiana Infantry.

Jan. 28, 1862 - The tenth president of the United States, John Tyler, passed away at the age of 71 in Richmond, Va.

Jan. 28, 1862 – During the Civil War, six days of Confederate operations between Greensburg and Lebanon in Kentucky began.

Jan. 28, 1863 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought at Indian Village, La. and at Collierville, Nashville, and Yorkville in Tennessee. A four-day Federal operation between La Grange, Tenn. and Ripley, Miss. began.

Jan. 28, 1864 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought at Dallas, Ark.; and at Fain’s Island, Indian Creek, Island Ford, Kelley’s Ford and Swann’s Island, near Dandridge, and at the Lee House on the Cornersville Pike, all in Tennessee. Two days of skirmishing also began near Jonesville, Va. A 14-day sustained operation began in the vicinity of New Berne, N.C. A 12-day Federal operation between Gallatin and the Cumberland Mountains in Tennessee began.

Jan. 28, 1865 – During the Civil War, the Confederate torpedo boat St. Patrick attacked the USS Octorara in Mobile Bay, Ala.

Jan. 28, 1865 – During the Civil War, a 13-day Federal operation against Indians began in the vicinity of Fort Zarah, Kansas, and a skirmish was fought at Combahaee River, S.C. A three-day Federal expedition from Strawberry Plains to Clinch Mountain, Tenn. began with a skirmish being fought at Athens, Tenn.

Jan. 28, 1873 – Novelist Colette was born Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette in Saint-Sauveur-en Puisaye, France.

Jan. 28, 1878 – The Yale Daily News became the first daily college newspaper in the United States.

An. 28, 1884 – Swiss physicist and explorer Auguste Piccard was born in Basel, Switzerland.

Jan. 28, 1887 – In a snowstorm at Fort Keogh, Montana, the world's largest snowflakes are reported, 15 inches wide and eight inches thick.

  

Jan. 28, 1904 - The University of Chicago awarded blankets with the letter “C” to all seniors that played football during the 1903 season. This event marked the beginning of the sports letter tradition.

Jan. 28, 1905 – Residents of Gadsden and Attalla in Alabama felt an earthquake around 10:20 p.m. The quake “shook houses, rattled windows and doors, broke up glassware and frightened the superstitious.”

Jan. 28, 1906 – The Rev. J.B. Kilpatrick filled his regular appointment at Pleasant Hill Church and “preached a most excellent sermon.”

Jan. 28, 1912 – Artist Paul Jackson Pollock was born in Cody, Wyoming.

Jan. 28, 1915 – The Monroe Journal reported that the contract for the construction of a railroad bridge across the Alabama River near Pine Hill, Ala. had been awarded to the American Bridge Co. by the Gulf, Florida and Alabama Railroad.

Jan. 28, 1915 – Will “Willie” Ellis, 49, of Evergreen, Ala. died on this night from consumption and he was buried the following day. The local Masonic lodge, of which he was a member, conducted the funeral at his home and he was buried in the cemetery at Antioch Church. He was raised to the degree of Master Mason on May 2, 1896.

Jan. 28, 1915 - The Coast Guard was created by an act of the U.S. Congress to fight contraband trade and aid distressed vessels at sea.

Jan. 28, 1915 - In the country’s first such action against American shipping interests on the high seas, the captain of a German cruiser ordered the destruction of the William P. Frye, an American merchant ship.

Jan. 28, 1918 - Private Eugene English of Conecuh County was run over and killed by an automobile at Camp Wheeler on this Monday. Another soldier, who was with him at the time, was seriously injured. Private English was a son of Joe English of Conecuh County.

Jan. 28, 1920 – H.P. Lovecraft completed “The Terrible Old Man,” which was originally published in Issue No. 4 of The Tryout, 7 in July 1921.

Jan. 28, 1922 - The National Football League franchise in Decatur, Ill. transferred to Chicago, and the team took the name “Chicago Bears.”

Jan. 28, 1927 - Alabama author Thomas Turner was born in Oxford, Ala.

Jan. 28, 1932 – The Monroe Journal reported that Howard Hunt and Jack Dees had opened a barber shop on the south side of the square in Monroeville and “bid for a share of the public patronage.”

Jan. 28, 1932 – The Monroe Journal reported that Monroe County High School’s band had received notice that they would be invited to come to Mobile Mardi Gras if sufficient funds could be raised. If the band went that year, it would be their second trip to Mardi Gras, which showed the “high standing held by our band in the state.” The band from Auburn was the only other band invited that year so far.

Jan. 28, 1932 – The Monroe Journal reported that Mr. W.M. Lindsay had chaperoned seven boys scouts to Mobile to see “Old Ironsides,” including Armistead Harper, John Barnett, Walter and Clifton Lindsay and three Scouts from the Uriah troop. “The boys experienced quite a thrill in seeing a battleship which had been through 84 years actual service, 42 battles, and had never known defeat. In fact, she had more life and action than any battleship ever put out by any country.”

Jan. 28, 1938 - German race car driver Bernd Rosemeyer, known as the “Silver Comet,” reached the speed of 268 mph on the Autobahn, just before his death.

Jan. 28, 1941 – Evergreen High School’s basketball team was scheduled to play Lyeffion High School in Lyeffion, Ala.

Jan. 28, 1941 – The Evergreen Courant reported the following Confederate Pensioners in Conecuh County as of Jan. 1, 1941: Veteran: Brown, John T., McKenzie, Ala., Rt. 1; Widows: Brown, Emma, Evergreen, Ala.; Carter, Drucilla, Evergreen, Ala., Rt. 2; Castleberry, Susie M., Castleberry, Ala.; Crosby, Janie, Evergreen, Ala.; Floyd, Virginia B., Evergreen, Ala.; Hardee, Virginia, Belleville, Ala.; Kendall, Rebecca J., Brooklyn, Ala.; McKittrick, Margaret, Evergreen, Ala.; Nichols, Fannie, Evergreen, Ala., Rt. 2; Nored, Susan H., Repton, Ala.; Raines, Mary E., Repton, Ala.; Salter, Eugenia A., Evergreen, Ala.; Thomas, Mary C., Herbert, Ala.; Worrell, Ardella Viola, Castleberry, Ala.

Jan. 28, 1941 – The Evergreen Courant reported that the recent ratings of enlisted men in Battery C, 117^th Field Artillery, who formerly were stationed as a unit of the Alabama National Guard at Evergreen, Ala., had been announced that week by Captain William D. Lewis, battery commander. The ratings were as follows: Sergeants, George H. Joyner; Corporals, Floyd H. Purnell, Robert Salter, Marvin Kindig, Elmer Morrison and James Tanner; Privates First Class, Herman Armstrong, Walter Bower, Walter Holland, Cecil Padgett, Olon Padgett, Winton McIntyre, Wesley Shefield, James Bryant, Lee Cole, Hagood Ellis, Bennie Gatlin, James Henderson, James Logan, Richard Potts, Rufus Burt and James Weaver. Besides Captain Lewis, other commissioned officers in the unit were First Lt. John C. Holman and Second Lt. Leon A. Salter.

Jan. 28, 1948 – German SS officers Hans Aumeier, 41, and Arthur Liebehenschel, 46, were both executed by hanging in Krakow, Poland.

Jan. 28, 1949 – Evergreen High School’s varsity boys basketball team improved to 6-4 on the season by beating Georgiana, 47-38, in Evergreen.

Jan. 28, 1953 – The Alabama Historical Association erected three historical markers in Autauga County. Those markers were erected in memory the Pratt Gin Factory, Albert J. Pickett and Alibamo Indians.

Jan. 28, 1957 - The Brooklyn Dodgers announced that circus clown Emmett Kelly had been hired to entertain fans at baseball games.

Jan. 28, 1958 - Roy Campanella of the Brooklyn Dodgers was seriously injured in an auto accident in New York. He would never return to play again.

Jan. 28, 1959 - The Green Bay Packers of the National Football League signed Vince Lombardi to a five-year contract as the team's coach and general manager.

Jan. 28, 1960 – The National Football League announced expansion teams for Dallas to start in the 1960 NFL season and Minneapolis-St. Paul for 1961 NFL season.

Jan. 28, 1960 - Alabama author Zora Neale Hurston died in Fort Pierce, Fla.

Jan. 28, 1971 – The Evergreen Courant reported that Sandra Owens, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Ray Owens of Evergreen, Ala., was to be a contestant in the Lurleen B. Wallace State Junior College’s first annual Beauty Pageant to be held on Feb. 6, 1971 at 7:30 p.m. in the Andalusia High School Auditorium. Sandra, a freshman majoring in elementary education, was a popular student at Evergreen High School, where she was chosen class favorite; served as a majorette; and was selected to appear in the senior Superlatives in the annual. She was Miss Evergreen for 1970 and was selected to attend Girls State.

Jan. 28, 1973 – During the Vietnam War, a cease-fire went into effect at 8 a.m., Saigon time (midnight on Jan. 27, Greenwich Mean Time).

Jan. 28, 1975 - President Gerald Ford asked Congress for an additional $522 million in military aid for South Vietnam and Cambodia.

Jan. 28, 1976 – Basketball player Mark Madsen was born in Walnut Creek, Calif. He went on to play at Stanford and the Los Angeles Lakers and the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Jan. 28-30, 1976 - Conecuh County High School of Castleberry was scheduled to host the Conecuh County Basketball Tournament on this Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. Varsity and B teams were to participate. Varsity action was scheduled to begin on Thurs., Jan. 29, with Castleberry and Repton meeting at 6:30 p.m. and Evergreen and Lyeffion playing at 8 a.m.

Jan. 28, 1985 – Supergroup USA for Africa (United Support of Artists for Africa) recorded the hit single “We Are the World,” to help raise funds for Ethiopian famine relief.

Jan. 28, 1986 - The U.S. space shuttle Challenger exploded just 73 seconds after takeoff from Cape Canaveral, Fla. All seven of its crewmembers were killed.

Jan. 28, 1989 – The Bank of Andalusia on South Court Square and the Covington County Courthouse and Jail were added to the National Register of Historic Places.

Jan. 28, 1990 - Aaron Neville sang the U.S. national anthem at Super Bowl XXIV. Joe Montana got his third MVP award. The San Francisco 49ers beat the Denver Broncos, 55-10.

Jan. 28, 1991 - On this Monday, Hillcrest High School’s basketball teams were scheduled to host T.R. Miller, starting at 5 p.m.

Jan. 28, 1996 - Diana Ross performed as the featured halftime performer at Super Bowl XXX in Tempe, AZ. The Dallas Cowboys beat the Pittsburgh Steelers, 27-17. It was the fifth Super Bowl for the Cowboys.

Jan. 28, 2002 - J.U. Blacksher High School’s girls basketball team improved to 11-3 on this Monday with a 52-48 win over Flomaton High School in Flomaton. Alisha McGhee led Blacksher with 22 points, six rebounds and four steals. Gretta Gregson scored 15 points. Other standout Blacksher players in that game included Lora Fralick, Brooke Harrison, Lindsey Harrison and Jennifer Silcox.

Jan. 28, 2006 – Iraqi-Israeku rabbi Yitzhak Kaduri died around 10 p.m. in the Bikur Holim Hospital in Jerusalem after being hospitalized with pneumonia.

Jan. 28, 2006 - A clean-up for the Belleville area destroyed by a tornado two weeks before was planned for this Saturday, according to Belleville Volunteer Fire Department Chief Sid Lambert. The firehouse was totally destroyed when an estimated F1 strength tornado tore through the community on Jan. 13, leaving a path of debris and structural damage a half-mile wide and a mile long along U.S. 84.

Jan. 28, 2010 - Sparta Academy recognized its senior basketball players before the final home game of the season on this Thursday night in Evergreen. Senior players that season included Erica Palmer, Nick Andrews, Rebekah Coleman, Nicholas Hardin, Dwayne Hardin, Cody House and Drayton Rodgers.

Daily Rainfall Observations from SW Alabama for Sun., Jan. 28, 2018

Rainfall (Past 24 Hours): 0.50 inches.

Week to Date Rainfall: 0.50 inches.

Month to Date Rainfall:  2.40 inches.

Winter to Date Rainfall: 3.00 inches.

Year to Date Rainfall: 2.40 inches.

Notes: Today is the 28th day of 2018 and the 39th day of Winter. There are 337 days left in the year.

Readings taken at 0700 hours Central Standard Time (1300 GMT) daily, just west of the Monroe-Conecuh County line and south of U.S. Highway 84, near Excel, Alabama, USA, in the vicinity of Lat 31.42834N Lon 87.30131W. Elevation 400 feet above sea level. CoCoRaHS Station No. AL-MN-4, Station Name: Excel 2.5 ESE.

George Singleton, Aaron White investigated Franklin's 'well that won't stay filled' in 1971

George Buster Singleton

(For decades, local historian and paranormal investigator George “Buster” Singleton published a weekly newspaper column called “Somewhere in Time.” The column below, which was titled “The well that won’t stay filled” was originally published in the July 8, 1971 edition of The Monroe Journal in Monroeville, Ala.)

No one knows for sure just who dug the well. It has been abandoned since the early 1800s, according to Mrs. B.H. Bailey of Franklin, who owns the property on which the well is located.

Mrs. Bailey, who celebrated her 85^th birthday this year, said, “We used to throw rocks and such in this well when I was a small child. We would try to hear them hit the bottom… Along about this time, my father became concerned about the well. He was afraid that some of us would fall in it, and being that it was not in use, he decided to fill it up.

The field in which the well is located was then covered with timber. He held a “log rolling” to cut the timber and clear the land for farming.

“Instead of burning the big logs, my father would have them cut up into short pieces, about six feet in length, and drop the pieces into the well. After dropping in what he thought was enough to fill the well, he was amazed to find that none of the timbers could be seen or touched. After several days of putting timbers into the well, and all the land near was cleared, a certain air of mystery became connected with the well.

“Over the years, trash and junk of one kind or another has been thrown in the well to get rid of it, but no trace has been found as to where all this has gone. Several years ago, some long poles were laid across the top to keep anyone from falling in. Some people say the well connects with an underground river; some say that it’s quicksand in the bottom. I don’t know.”

After visiting Mrs. Bailey, Aaron White and I visited the well. A small ironwood tree is growing at the edge, where one notices the old handmade bricks that make up the curbing. We threw in rocks, as was done many years ago, and waited to hear them hit the bottom seconds later. The sound we heard was one of an object hitting something soft, like wet sand. There was no splash of water; nor was there the sound of rocks hitting a solid surface.

What is behind the mystery of the well? Beneath the cover of rotten logs and down the curbing of the old bricks that were fashioned by unknown hands many years ago, the secret lies. Some day we may find the answer: then again, we may never.

(The story above was accompanied by a photo with the following caption: Vine-covered mystery well is located beneath this tree in a field on Mrs. B.H. Bailey’s property at Franklin.)

(Singleton, the author of the 1991 book “Of Foxfire and Phantom Soldiers,” passed away at the age of 79 on July 19, 2007. A longtime resident of Monroeville, he was born during a late-night thunderstorm on Dec. 14, 1927 in Marengo County, graduated from Sweet Water High School in 1946, served as a U.S. Marine in the Korean War, worked as a riverboat deckhand, lived for a time among Apache Indians, moved to Monroe County on June 28, 1964 and served as the administrator of the Monroeville National Guard unit from June 28, 1964 to Dec. 14, 1987. For years, Singleton’s columns, titled “Monroe County history – Did you know?” and “Somewhere in Time” appeared in The Monroe Journal, and he wrote a lengthy series of articles about Monroe County that appeared in Alabama Life magazine. It’s believed that his first column appeared in the March 25, 1971 edition of The Monroe Journal. He is buried in Pineville Cemetery in Monroeville. The column above and all of Singleton’s other columns are available to the public through the microfilm records at the Monroe County Public Library in Monroeville. Singleton’s columns are presented here each week for research and scholarship purposes and as part of an effort to keep his work and memory alive.)

Today in History for Jan. 27, 2018

Jan. 27, 1302 – Italian poet Dante Alighieri was exiled from Florence for his political sympathies.

Jan. 27, 1593 - The Vatican opened their seven-year trial against scholar Giordano Bruno, accused among other things, of believing in the existence of a plurality of worlds.

Jan. 27, 1596 – English captain and explorer Francis Drake died at the age of 55 at Portobelo, Colon, Panama.

Jan. 27, 1606 – In connection with the famous “Gunpowder Plot,” the trial of Guy Fawkes and his fellow conspirators began, ending with their execution on Jan. 31.

Jan. 27, 1756 – World famous musician (and prominent Freemason) Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was born in Salzburg, Austria.

Jan. 27, 1776 – During the American Revolutionary War, Henry Knox's "noble train of artillery" arrived in Cambridge, Mass.

Jan. 27, 1785 - The Georgia General Assembly incorporated the University of Georgia, the first state-funded institution of higher learning in the new republic.

Jan. 27, 1807 – Prominent Wilcox County physician John Daniel Caldwell was born in Sumterville, S.C. and he went on to graduate from the Medical College of South Carolina in Charleston in March 1830. He married Mary Anderson Bowen on June 5, 1833 and moved to Linden, Ala. in 1836. They moved to Barboursville in Wilcox County in 1838. When the county was incorporated in 1841, Caldwell, as intendent, suggested that they change Barboursville’s name to Camden in honor of his hometown of Camden, South Carolina. Caldwell died in Camden at the age of 71 on Sept. 21, 1878 and he is buried in the Camden Cemetery.

Jan. 27, 1814 – During the Creek War, Capt. Samuel “Sam” Butts, 39, was killed at the Battle of Calebee (Chalibbee) Creek in Macon County, Ala., 50 miles west of Fort Mitchell. Butts County, Georgia and Buttsville, Ala. (present day Greenville) was later named in his honor. Born in Nov. 24, 1774 in Southampton County, Va., he was taught for some time at a private school by the Rev. George Guerley, in Southampton County. He was a captain in John Floyd's militia army during the War of 1812, and was killed when the American camp was attacked before day by the Indians. Butts was shot while he was leading on his men. An officer who was wounded in that battle reported that Butts was “up rousing his men, and thus became a fair mark for the Indians.”

Jan. 27, 1826 – Confederate Lt. General Richard Taylor was born in Springfield, Ky.

Jan. 27, 1832 – English author Lewis Carroll was born in Daresbury, Cheshire, England. His most famous writings are “Alice's Adventures in Wonderland” and its sequel “Through the Looking-Glass.”

Jan. 27, 1834 – Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev, who created the Periodic Table of Elements, was born in Tobolsk, Siberia.

Jan. 27, 1840 - The Alabama legislature passed a joint resolution accepting the disputed boundary line with Georgia. In recognizing the line marked by a Georgia commission in 1826, the legislature stated that “a fixed and known line between this State and Georgia, is of far higher consequence to us, than the acquisition of an inconsiderable portion of territory.”

Jan. 27, 1862 - U.S. President Abraham Lincoln issued General War Order No. 1, which ordered all Union land and sea forces to advance on Feb. 22, 1862. This bold move sent a message to his commanders that the president was tired of excuses and delays in seizing the offensive against Confederate forces.

Jan. 27, 1863 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought at Bloomfield, Mo.; Germantown, Tenn.; and in the vicinity of Suffolk, Va. Five Federal naval vessels attacked Ft. McAllister, at Genesis Point, on the Ogeechee River, south of Savannah, Ga. A two-day Federal reconnaissance took place along the Neuse, Dover, and Trent Roads in North Carolina.

Jan. 27, 1864 – During the Civil War, skirmishes were fought on the Cumberland River at Lebanon, Ky.; at Kelley’s Ford and McNutt’s Bridge, in the vicinity of Dandridge, Tenn. and along the Strawberry Plains Road, near Knoxville, Tenn.; and at Thoroughfare Mountain, Va. A 12-day Federal operation took place in Hampshire and Hardy Counties in West Virginia.

Jan. 27, 1865 – During the Civil War, a skirmish occurred at Elrod's Tan Yard in De Kalb County, Ala. and a skirmish was also fought at Ennis Cross Roads, S.C. A Federal operation also took place between Fort Pinney about the Federal gunboat, Number 28, to Kimball’s Plantation, Ark. Federals also refloated the Confederate torpedo boat, Scorpion, on the James River below Richmond, Va.

Jan. 27, 1865 - General Robert E. Lee wrote a letter to Richmond. In it he pointed out that absenteeism, and frequently outright desertion, from his Army of Northern Virginia was reaching critical proportions. While it was hardly unknown on either side for men to go absent with or without leave to deal with family emergencies, the problem now was that they were neglecting to come back. Lee stated “the ration is too small for men who have to undergo so much exposure and labor as ours,” and suggested the Commissary Department be encouraged to provide more and better food.

Jan. 27, 1886 - W.G. McCorvey brought to The Monroe Journal’s office on this Wednesday morning, a bullet taken from the center of the trunk of a hickory tree measuring five feet in diameter. “It had, doubtless, been there a hundred years or more, probably fired at a blood-thirsty Indian by some bold adventurer who had trespassed upon the hunting grounds of the Red Men of the Forest, who laid claim to this, then, wild and uninhabited region,” The Journal reported.

Jan. 27, 1888 - The National Geographic Society was founded in Washington, D.C. for "the increase and diffusion of geographical knowledge." Nine months after its inception, the Society published its first issue of National Geographic magazine.

Jan. 27, 1901 – Pro Football Hall of Famer Art Rooney was born in Coulterville, Pa.

Jan. 27, 1905 – O.L. Peckham, a truck farmer who had moved to Evergreen, Ala. from Missouri, was found dead shortly after noon near where he was building a home in front of D.G. Rutland’s house in Evergreen. Rutland discovered Peckham’s body leaning against a tree and moved the body to his house. The ensuing investigation revealed that Peckham had apparently committed suicide by drinking carbolic acid, which he’d purchased from an Evergreen drug store on Jan. 21. Investigators found the empty bottle and a dipper by Peckham’s side. He was buried in the Evergreen Cemetery on Jan. 28 at 10 a.m.

Jan. 27, 1907 – The Rev. C.H. Motley was to fill his regular appointment at the Methodist church on this Sunday, according to The Monroe Journal.

Jan. 27, 1915 – The Evergreen Courant reported that Prof. C.C. Smith of Healing Springs had been elected superintendent of the Orphans Home in Evergreen, Ala., succeeding M.C. Reynolds, who had resigned to move to Birmingham. Smith was expected to reach Evergreen the following week with his family.

Jan. 27, 1915 – The Evergreen Courant reported that Charles Savage Jr. was “painfully injured several days ago by being caught in some part of the machinery at the oil mill.”

Jan. 27, 1916 – According to The Conecuh Record, a partial eclipse of the sun occurred on this Thursday at 9:30 a.m.

Jan. 27, 1916 – The Conecuh Record reported that the tax assessor’s books showed a “multiplicity of dogs” in Conecuh County, Ala.

Jan. 27, 1916 – The Conecuh Record reported that Emmitt Lee Stallworth, the son of Dr. Stallworth, had been chosen to represent the Evergreen Baptist Church at the Sunday School Convention in Selma, Ala. The Evergreen Methodist Church was to be represented at the convention by Bryan Northcutt, the son of W.B. Northcutt.

Jan. 27, 1916 – The Monroe Journal reported that Walter S. Harper, a “gifted member of the staff of” The Montgomery Advertiser, had spent several days in Monroe County, Ala. that week, “visiting various towns and communities in the collection of data for the adequate representation of Monroe County’s resources in the forthcoming ‘All-Alabama’ edition of The Advertiser.”

Jan. 27, 1916 – The Monroe Journal reported that railroad contractor J.T. McCarthy was in Monroeville, Ala. for a few days that week. McCarthy “will probably keep his construction outfit in the county until the work of putting the Deep Water road bed in apple pie shape for regular train service is completed.”

Jan. 27, 1918 - Plagued by hunger and increasingly frustrated with the continuing Great War, hundreds of thousands of long-suffering German workers prepared for a massive strike in Berlin.

Jan. 27, 1920 – Rennie R. Elder, a well known resident of the Flat Rock, Ala. community, passed away in Conecuh County at the age of 24. Born on Aug. 27, 1895 at Old Town, he was buried in the Flat Rock Cemetery at Flat Rock in Conecuh County. (Some sources indicate that he died on June 21, 1920.) 

Jan. 27, 1927 - United Independent Broadcasters Inc. started a radio network with contracts with 16 stations. The company later became Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS).

Jan. 27, 1933 – Conecuh County High School’s boys basketball team won their second game of the season on this Friday night by beating Evergreen, 17-13. Archie Barfield led CCHS, and was followed by Gaston King. Coach Thomasson was CCHS’s head coach.

Jan. 27, 1944 – The Evergreen Courant reported that Staff Sgt. Meldon R. Holland, 26, of Castleberry, Ala. had been awarded the Purple Heart. Holland, a mechanic, was injured by shrapnel in the spring of 1943 during a Japanese bombing raid in New Guinea.

Jan. 27, 1945 – During World War II, the Red Army liberated the remaining inmates of the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp built by the Nazi Germans on the territory of Poland.

Jan. 27, 1949 – Evergreen, Ala. Postmaster Mary Cunningham announced that the Evergreen Post Office would be painted inside and out in the “very near future.” The Evergreen Post Office was one of the few in the state to be approved for this type of work.

Jan. 27, 1950 – Evergreen High School’s boys basketball beat Pleasant Home, 53-22. John Greel Ralls led Evergreen with 19 points.

Jan. 27, 1951 - Forcefully marking the continued importance of the West in the development of nuclear weaponry, the government detonated the first of a series of nuclear bombs at its new Nevada test site, the flash from which was seen as far away as San Francisco.

Jan. 27, 1958 - Little Richard entered Oakwood College in Huntsville, Ala. This was after he announced that he was giving up Rock & Roll so he could serve God.

Jan. 27, 1959 – Members of the Dyatlov expedition departed Vizhai, the last inhabited settlement so far north, on their way to Otorten, a mountain 6.2 miles north of the site of the Dyatlov incident.

Jan. 27, 1959 – NFL wide receiver Cris Collinsworth was born in Dayton, Ohio. He played college ball at Florida and his entire NFL career with the Cincinnati Bengals.

  

Jan. 27, 1964 – Evergreen High School’s varsity boys basketball team beat Frisco City, 63-62, at Memorial Gym in Evergreen, Ala. Sid Lambert led Evergreen with 18 points, and Joe Sasser scored 15.

Jan. 27, 1966 The Monroe Journal reported that Mrs. T.M. McMillan had resigned as the librarian at the Monroe County Library, it was announced by the Monroe County Library Board. McMillan’s resignation was to be effective March 15, 1966. Members of the library board also announced that Mrs. M.L. Bergman had been appointed librarian in McMillan’s place.

Jan. 27, 1967 - Paige Cothren became the first player to sign with the New Orleans Saints.

Jan. 27, 1967 - Specialist Four Donald W. Evans, a 23-year-old medic from Covina, California, was awarded a posthumous Medal of Honor for action on this day in the Kontum Province.

Jan. 27, 1968 – The Minerve, a French submarine, disappeared in the Mediterranean, never to be found.

  

Jan. 27, 1973 - The United States, South Vietnam, Viet Cong and North Vietnam formally signed “An Agreement Ending the War and Restoring Peace in Vietnam” in Paris.

Jan. 27, 1973 - The last U.S. serviceman to die in combat in Vietnam, Lt. Col. William B. Nolde, was killed by an artillery shell at An Loc, 60 miles northwest of Saigon, only 11 hours before the truce went into effect.

Jan. 27, 1976 – Actor and writer Clint Ford was born in Fort Worth, Texas.

Jan. 27, 1978 – Weather observer Earl Windham reported a low of 20 degrees on this day in Evergreen, Ala.

Jan. 27, 1985 - Weather observer Earl Windham reported a low of 21 degrees on this day in Evergreen, Ala.

Jan. 27, 1990 – Roy Lee Moorer, 99, of Evergreen, Ala. passed away. He pitched for the University of Alabama in 1911-1912 and played professional baseball in Evansville and for the Birmingham Barons. He was buried at Magnolia Cemetery in Evergreen.

Jan. 27, 1991 - Whitney Houston sang the "Star Spangled Banner" at Super Bowl XXV.

Jan. 27, 1994 – The Evergreen Courant reported that the Conecuh County (Ala.) Commission had approved the recommendation of the Conecuh County Emergency Medical Services, Inc., and had chosen City Ambulance, Inc. as the contract holder for Conecuh County.

Jan. 27-28, 1994 – Hillcrest High School hosted the annual Hillcrest Invitational Basketball Tournament in Evergreen, Ala. The tournament featured Hillcrest, Excel and T.R. Miller.

Jan. 27, 2001 – According to this day’s edition of the Agence France Presse, an airport in southern Siberia was closed down for 90 minutes when a UFO hovered above its runway, preventing conventional aircraft from flying. The crew of an I1-76 cargo aircraft refused too take off when they sighted a large glowing object hovering above the runway of Siberia’s Barnaul airport, and the crew of another cargo plane refused to land when they spotted the same luminescent UFO above the runway, choosing to take their jet to another airport. After the mysterious object had performed whatever unknown mission constituted its unknown agenda, it left the airport and disappeared.

Jan. 27, 2002 - Stephen King's three-part, six-hour miniseries "Rose Red" began airing on ABC-TV.

Jan. 27, 2003 – The first selections for the National Recording Registry were announced by the Library of Congress.

Jan. 27, 2010 – Author J.D. Salinger passed away at his home in New Hampshire at the age of 91.

Jan. 27, 2010 - Evergreen’s Chris Hines started for the Alabama Crimson Tide men’s basketball team in a 57-38 win over LSU at Coleman Coliseum in Tuscaloosa. In the win over LSU, Hines played 21 minutes, scored three points and grabbed four rebounds, including three boards on defense and one on offense. He also had an assist and two steals.

Jan. 27, 2015 – Around 6 p.m. in Birmingham in Jefferson County, Ala., a UFO witness was driving home from the grocery store when he saw an “object hovering in the distance, blinking and changing colors.” He pulled over and attempted to film the object without success.

Daily Rainfall Observations from SW Alabama for Sat., Jan. 27, 2018

Rainfall (Past 24 Hours): Trace amount.

Week to Date Rainfall: Trace amount.

Month to Date Rainfall:  1.90 inches.

Winter to Date Rainfall: 2.50 inches.

Year to Date Rainfall: 1.90 inches.

Notes: Today is the 27th day of 2018 and the 38th day of Winter. There are 338 days left in the year.

Readings taken at 0700 hours Central Standard Time (1300 GMT) daily, just west of the Monroe-Conecuh County line and south of U.S. Highway 84, near Excel, Alabama, USA, in the vicinity of Lat 31.42834N Lon 87.30131W. Elevation 400 feet above sea level. CoCoRaHS Station No. AL-MN-4, Station Name: Excel 2.5 ESE.

'WALK TO MORDOR' UPDATE: 1,649 miles down and 130 miles to go

I continued my (virtual) “Walk to Mordor” during the past week by logging eight miles since my last update. I walked/jogged three miles on Saturday and five more today (Friday). So far, I’ve logged 1,649 total miles on this virtual trip to Mount Doom, and I’ve got 130 more miles to go before I reach Mordor. All in all, I’ve completed about 92.7 percent of the total trip.

 

In relation to Frodo Baggins’ overall journey to destroy the One Ring at Mount Doom in Mordor, I’m on the 21st day of the trip past Rauros Falls, which is March 16 on the Middle Earth calendar. I left off my last update on March 16 at Mile 1641, which was two miles from the point where Frodo and Samwise Gamgee continued to walk in the dark along the eastern edge of the valley, headed toward Mount Doom.

 

I’ve traveled eight miles past this point and the next significant milestone comes two miles later, at Mile 1651, where they reach a stagnant pool, which they can’t see in the dark.

 

For those of you reading this for the first time, I began this “Walk to Mordor” fitness challenge on Jan. 1, 2015. Using a book called “The Atlas of Middle-Earth” by Karen Wynn Fonstad, fans of “The Lord of the Rings” created this challenge by mapping out Frodo’s fictional trek to Mordor, calculating the total distance at 1,779 miles. They also used the original "Lord of the Rings" text to outline the journey, so you can follow their route by keeping up with your total mileage.

 

The folks who worked out the nuts and bolts of this virtual journey have divided it into four parts. It’s 458 miles from Hobbiton to Rivendell, 462 miles from Rivendell through Moria to Lothlorien, 389 miles from Lothlorien down the Anduin to Rauros Falls and 470 miles from Rauros to Mount Doom. (Those locations should sound very familiar to “Lord of the Rings” fans.) The hobbits averaged 18 miles a day, but if you walk (or jog, as I sometimes do) five miles a day, it’s possible to cover 1,779 miles in a year.

 

If you’re interested in learning more about the “Walk to Mordor Challenge,” I suggest you check out two Web sites, http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2012/07/23/walking/ and http://home.insightbb.com/~eowynchallenge/. Both of these sites provide a ton of details about the challenge, including how to get started.

 

In the end, check back next Friday for another update and to see how much closer I am to Mordor. I hope to knock out at least 10 more miles next week, and I’ll include all that in my update next week.