Monday, September 30, 2013

The Evergreen Courant's News Flashback for Sept. 30, 2013

USS Coral Sea aircraft carrier in 1948.
18 YEARS AGO
OCT. 5, 1995

“Christian Country Music recording artist Jimmy Whitt and his 15-year-old daughter, Jamie, will headline the entertainment at the 15th Annual Conecuh Heritage Day Festival on Sat., Oct. 21, in downtown Evergreen.”

“Missing court records put Repton in the news: Conecuh County once again is making headlines across the state. This time the Town of Repton is under investigation. According to articles and reports, several months work of court records are missing.
“The matter is under investigation by the Alabama Bureau of Investigations. The matter was compounded last week by the resignation of Repton Mayor George Armstrong. Councilman Scott Dees, mayor pro tem, became acting mayor.
“According to reports from Michael Clements of The Monroe Journal Wednesday morning the Repton Council met Tuesday night and Dees has been appointed to fill the unexpired term of Armstrong. The Council will appoint someone to fill Dees’ council slot at their next meeting in two weeks.
“Mayor Scott Dees said no comment on the missing records would be made until the investigation has been completed.”

“A large crowd was on hand last Thursday afternoon for Business After Hours at the Knud Nielsen Company. The Nielsen Co. hosted the regular event where over 100 people came by the reception.”

33 YEARS AGO
OCT. 2, 1980

“Weatherman Earl Windham reports two good showers during the week: .42 of an inch on Sept. 25 and .41 on Sept. 28.”
He reported a high temperature of 94 degrees on Sept. 25 and low temperatures of 62 on Sept. 27 and Sept. 28.

“Aubrey Brown Boykin, 71, of South Main Street, Evergreen, died on Sunday evening, Sept. 28, in a local hospital after a long illness. He and his wife, Luella, have operated Conecuh County’s leading jewelry store for over 30 years.
“Mr. Boykin joined the National Guard as a young man and served as an artillery officer with the 31st (Dixie) Division of the U.S. Army in combat areas of the Pacific Theatre during World War II. He remained in the active reserve and retired several years ago as a Lt. Colonel. He was a member of the Evergreen United Methodist Church. He was a Mason and a Shriner.”

“The folks of the Castleberry area are justifiably proud of the Conecuh County High School Marching Blue Devils Band. Just in its second year, the band and its director, Robert Hulse, are also proud of their new uniforms which parents, patrons and supporters of the school provided.”

“Conecuh County Sheriff Edwin Booker adds ‘fuel to the fire’ as he burns 700 marijuana plants that he and other officers uprooted Thursday in the southwestern part of the county. The plants, four to 12 feet tall, had an estimated street value of $150,000 to $175,000, officers said.”

48 YEARS AGO
OCT. 7, 1965

“The proper form of address for Conecuh’s Robert E.L. Key is now ‘your honor.’ He was appointed the first judge of the newly created 35th Judicial Circuit by Governor George Wallace Wednesday afternoon, Sept. 30.”

“OSCODA, Mich. – Staff Sergeant Ralph M. Tatum, son of Mrs. Georgia R. Tatum of Rt. 2, Evergreen, Ala., will be part of the F-101 Voodo team as top fighter pilots compete in William Tell, the U.S. Air Force fighter weapons meet at Tyndall AFB, Fla., Oct. 1-9
“Sergeant Tatum is a navigation equipment technician at Wurtsmith AFB, Mich. His team is representing the Air Defense Command in the biennial competition.”

“The post office and Sam Lowrey’s Store at Burnt Corn were burglarized Sunday night, Sept. 19, according to state and postal investigators.
“B.R. Wilson, postal inspector out of the Mobile office, and J.F. Gardner, state investigator of Evergreen, said about $75 was missing from the post office safe and an undisclosed amount of money was missing from Lowrey’s Store.
“Wilson said the safe-cracking appeared to be the work of professionals. The burglar or burglars apparently broke a lock on the front of the store to gain entrance. The post office is also located in the store. According to Wilson, most of the $75 taken from the post office safe was in cash.
“The Conecuh-Monroe county line runs through Lowrey’s Store and the safe was apparently on the Monroe side as the Monroe County Sheriff’s office was called to investigate the burglary.”

63 YEARS AGO
OCT. 5, 1950

“Verdell Evans Cunningham, age 46, resident of 11 Bibb Graves Ave., Montgomery, ended his own life here at an early hour Saturday morning, shortly after stepping from an early morning train. Shortly after arriving here he walked into Wild Bros. Hardware and purchased a long butcher knife, then walked to the men’s room at the City Café and slashed his throat. He died instantly.
“His identity was not known here until late Monday. Members of an L&N section crew found a man’s hat on the railroad south of Evergreen with the name ‘V.E. Cunningham, 11 Bibb Graves Ave.’ also a phone number. Investigating officers made inquiry at Montgomery which resulted in the man’s identity.”

“Cpl. Manford Frederick Langley, U.S. Marines, son of Mrs. Frank Langley of Castleberry, has been wounded in action in the Korean War. Cpl. Langley was wounded while serving with the 1st Marines on Sept. 18.
“Cpl. Langley attended Conecuh County High School before enlisting in the Marine Corps in July 1948. He received his boot training at Paris Island, S.C. Since joining the Marines he has served with the 8th Marines aboard the U.S.S. Coral Sea in the Mediterranean Area, with the 2nd Marine Division at Camp Lejune, N.C. and with the 6th Marines overseas.”

78 YEARS AGO
OCT. 3, 1935

“After a lingering illness of over two months, Mr. John Henry Waters, farmer and highly respected citizen of the Ramah community died at his home Wednesday morning, Sept. 25, at 4:30 o’clock. Mr. Waters was 60 years old.
“He united with the Baptist church at Ramah when but a boy and was always a devoted member. He was a Mason, being a member of the lodge at Tunnel Springs.”

“Approval was announced Monday at Washington of the W.P.A. project for the construction of a school building at Castleberry.”

“Cotton ginning reports for all counties in Alabama reflect an early cotton crop for the state, some of the counties reporting ginnings to Sept. 16 of more than twice the number of bales for the corresponding year, according to a report from the United States Bureau of Census.
“In Conecuh County, 6,581 bales had been ginned against 4,119 to Sept. 16 of last year.”

“Construction Begins On New Sepulga Span: Construction of a new truss span steel bridge across the Sepulga river below Paul was begun Tuesday as the first concrete was poured.
“The span is being built across what is known as ‘Bull Slough,’ and is being financed with funds of the third district, which is represented on the board of revenue by J. Frank Pierce of Lenox. The cost is estimated as $6,000.
“The bridge will be 150 feet in length and about 50 feet above the river bed. Attempt is being made to place it high enough to escape all future floods. It will be at least one foot above the high water mark of 1929 and will be located about one mile up river from the former span which was carried away by the flood of that year.
“Contract for its construction has been led to Gregg Gowden of Wilcox, who estimates that it will be complete about Jan. 1.
“Completion of the bridge and about one mile of road necessary to connect it with the road east of the river will provide a connecting link between Evergreen and Andalusia about five miles shorter than the present route and will greatly cut the distance to Evergreen for persons living east of the river.”

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