Is the old Moore Academy building at Pine Apple haunted by ghosts?

Moore Academy at Pine Apple, Alabama.

Today – June 30 – marks 27 years since Moore Academy at Pine Apple was added to the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage in 1995.

As chance would have it, I was passing through Pine Apple the other day and took a few minutes to stop at the old school for a brief look around. Moore Academy is located on the west side of State Highway 10, and when I first stepped out of my truck, my eye was drawn to the historical marker near the sidewalk. That marker reads as follows:

“MOORE ACADEMY – ‘A Great Adventure of the Mind’ – Founded in 1882 by John Trotwood Moore, who became a famous author, archeologist and poet laureate of the State of Tennessee, the original two-story wood frame building served the Pine Apple area from 1882 until the present brick structure was completed in 1923. The style is eclectic and typical of early 20th century educational facilities with a T-shaped plan, central arched entrance, bracketed eaves and decorative brickwork at each end of the façade. Moore Academy was widely acclaimed as one of the preeminent educational facilities in Alabama until its closing in 1989. The buildings and grounds were donated to the Moore Academy Alumni Association, Inc. in 1994, and restoration began in 1995. This marker is dedicated to those students, teachers and administrators who have passed through these doors, and in the words of John Trotwood Moore, ‘To him that will, faith finds a pathway home.’ Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage – June 30, 1995.”

As I stood there looking at the building, I thought about some of the unusual tales I’ve heard about this old school. In The Progressive Era’s Halloween edition for the past five years, I’ve presented readers with my annual list of “Spookiest Places in Wilcox County.” I compile this list each year after discussing Wilcox County’s “haunted history” with longtime county residents and with local history buffs. Almost every year, someone will tell me that Moore Academy should be on the list.

Over the years, I’ve had people tell me that they’ve seen unusual lights at night coming from the second-floor windows of the school. When investigated, the building would be locked up tight and no one would be inside. Others have told me that they’ve heard unusual sounds inside the building that they could not explain, and others have reported unusual smells.

One man I talked to theorized that John Trotwood Moore, who was a noted archeologist, may have dug up an old Indian relic or skull that caused the school building to become haunted. Moore, who went on to found the Tennessee Archaeological Society, may have stored these artifacts at the school for a time, which is why it’s supposedly haunted today. I personally don’t put much stock in such tales, but who’s to say there isn’t some nugget of truth to the story?

In the end, past graduates and former Moore Academy students can be found all over, and I’m sure that more than a few of them have interesting stories to share. If you’ve had an unusual experience at the school or witnessed something hard to explain, please let me hear from you. I’m also interested in any ghost stories, local legends and Indian lore from anywhere in the Pine Apple area, so if you have a story to share along these lines, please let me know.

Wilcox County, Alabama News Flashback for June 29, 2022

63 YEARS AGO
JUNE 25, 1959

First Cotton Bloom Reported Here: The first cotton bloom of the season to be reported to this paper was sent in from the L.P. Stuart place, east of Camden. It was from a portion of land farmed by a tenant of Mr. Stuart’s, Steve Thomas, who has been farming in this county for many years. The bloom was reported on June 17.

Recreation Benefit Dance – Sat., June 27, 1959 – 8:30 p.m. – Moore Academy Gymnasium, Pine Apple, Alabama – Music by JAMES DALE’S BAND – Proceeds for Swimming Pool Fund – Script $1 Per Person.

Royals, Deacons Win Openers: Camden’s Junior Church League got off to a flying start Friday night with the Camden Royals and the Gullet’s Bluff Deacons posting opening night victories.
In the opening contest, the Royals took the measure of the Beatrice Ambassadors 20-16 and the Deacons closed out the evening’s activities with a 19-4 win over the Camden Saints.
All four teams showed well in the initial game, but most rail-birds pick the Gullet’s Bluff Deacons as the team to beat for the pennant.

FHA Financing Of Fallout Shelters: R.N. Ivey, Civil Defense Coordinator for Wilcox County, says that Home Fallout Shelters may be financed with FHA Title I property improvement loans. Such shelters are eligible for financing with loans having the same terms that are available for financing any other eligible improvements.

74 YEARS AGO
JUNE 24, 1948

Lambert Confirmed As Darlington Postmaster: The Senate of the United States confirmed by voice vote last week several nominations for postmaster of Alabama towns. Among those so confirmed was the name of James Ernest Lambert to be postmaster at Darlington.

Dr. Hollinger’s Vet Office Nears Completion: The new concrete-block building being constructed by Dr. Shannon Hollinger on Planters Street is almost finished, except for interior work. Dr. Hollinger plans to use the building as his veterinary office and hospital. All conveniences are being featured in the building to insure first class treatment of sick or injured livestock or pets. D.A. Tindal is in charge of construction of the building.

Bonner Real Estate Firm Begins New Office: Construction on a new building to be occupied by Bonner Real Estate and Insurance Agency has been begun. The site of the new building is on South Broad Street between the Alco Theatre and the Variety Store. The building is to be of modern concrete block construction and is expected to be ready for occupancy some time during the summer.

CAMDEN 3, DEMOPOLIS 2: Camden was leading Demopolis last Thursday in a Legion game at Demopolis by the score of 3-2 when rain stopped the game. Dunnam was pitching for the Camden Nine and doing a nice job. This game will have to be played at a later date as 4-1/2 innings must be played for the game to count. To Clifford Bradford (Old Reliable) goes the honor of hitting a ball out of the park for a round-tripper.

83 YEARS AGO
JUNE 29, 1939

MR. LEE CAPELL: Mr. Lee Capell, one of Wilcox County’s best and highly honored citizens, passed away Thursday, June 22, at his home in Capell. Interment Friday afternoon at four o’clock in Capell cemetery with Rev. S.T. Trotter, his pastor, conducting the funeral service. The memory of his genial nature and southern hospitality will not soon be forgotten by those who knew him.

PAROLE NOTICE: Notice is hereby given that Mammie Ellis, who was sentenced in the Circuit Court of Wilcox County on Nov. 7, 1936, to a term of four years and six months for arson will make application for parole.

Mr. and Mrs. Jack Cammack, after a honeymoon trip to New York, the Worlds Fair and other Eastern points, have returned to Alabama and are at home in Livingston.

Get your 4^th of July fireworks at W.H. Sessions – Canton Road.

The Camden Motor Company’s sales force has just returned from a three-day fishing trip given them by their company for outstanding sales performance last month. They report a glorious time.

The Casey school will put on a play at the Furman school house Friday night, June 30. The public is invited. The Furman PTA will sell sandwiches and cold drinks.

93 YEARS AGO
JUNE 27, 1929

Camden’s New Ginnery: A new ginnery to serve all the communities accessible to Camden is now being constructed by Messrs. L.C. Hasson and L.Y. Sadler. The building is nearly completed and the most modern and efficient machinery is being installed. The ginnery, which will be operated under the name of “The Peoples Ginnery,” is located on the Monroeville road, at the terminus of the L&N Railroad tracks.

Mrs. Hettie Boykin of Eugene, Oregon, and Mrs. Fred Law of Troy and Miss Helen Boykin, who taught music very successfully for the past two years at Alabama College at Montevallo, arrived today for an extended visit to Mrs. Minnie Bellingrath at her lovely home on Bridgeport road.

JONES-EDWARDS WEDDING SOLEMNIZED ON WEDNESDAY: The wedding of Miss Alice Edwards, daughter of Mrs. B. Edwards of Camden and Mr. Edward S. Jones of Autaugaville, was beautifully solemnized Wednesday morning at 9:30 o’clock. The beautiful and impressive ceremony took place in the Baptist church in the presence of a large gathering of friends.

LOST: One casing, 33x6.00, and rim with Buick cover on same. Joe L. Dunn, Camden, Ala.

NOTICE: I have in my pasture near Camden, one black cow (butt-head) branded on right hip (cannot make out brand). – George Wiggins, Camden, Ala.

Prof. Hugh L. Taylor, who is attending summer school at University of Alabama, spent the weekend here.

103 YEARS AGO
JUNE 26, 1919

Iowa Man Buys Large Tract of Land in Wilcox: Ellwood Macumber of Winterset, Iowa has completed negotiations for the purchase of 1,800 acres of land situated in Wilcox County near Alberta, for which he paid $50,000. The land is partly cleared and partly in timber. Mr. Macumber plans to stock the place with thoroughbred cattle. He is highly pleased with the possibilities of this section for producing livestock.

MASONIC ELECTION: At a regular communication of Dale Lodge, No. 25, Ancient Free & Accepted Masons, the following officers were elected for the ensuing Masonic year: C. Hardy, Worshipful Master; T.M. Baggett, Senior Warden; J.C. Jones, Junior Warden; W.F. McWilliams, Treasurer; H.H. Matthews, Secretary; H.T. Strout, Chaplain; R.R. Jones, Senior Deacon; W.T. Hale, Junior Deacon; W.C. Duke, Senior Steward; J.J. Gerald, Junior Steward; H. Powell, Tiler.

Messrs. Eugene and Carl Watts, sons of Mr. and Mrs. B.F. Watts of Caledonia, have returned home after seeing hard service in the Allied Expeditionary Force. These two Wilcox County boys are well known and popular in their home county, and their many friends welcome them home.

The many friends of Mr. Dell McCaskey will be glad to learn of his safe arrival in the States after active overseas service. Having received his discharge, he has resumed his duties in a responsible position with Shapleigh Hardware Co. in St. Louis.

The Evergreen Courant's News Flashback for June 28, 2022

Willard Scott

11 YEARS AGO
JUNE 23, 2011

Local weather observer Harry Ellis reported 1.68 inches of rain on June 16 and 0.78 inches on June 17. He reported highs of 99 degrees on June 13 and June 14 and a low of 66 on June 16.

The Conecuh County Board of Education recognized a number of retirees during a meeting last Thursday at the Conecuh County Resource Center. Retirees recognized during the meeting included Hillcrest High School principal Preston Fluker, Conecuh County Junior High School teacher Isabelita Green, Evergreen Elementary School teacher Willie Mae Williams, Lyeffion Junior High School aide Geraldine Maxwell and Repton Junior High School William D. Stallworth.

The Sepulga River is the lowest it’s been in living memory due to dry conditions throughout Southwest Alabama in recent months. In the above photo, members of the Mobile Rock & Jem Society search the river’s right bank for fossils last Thursday above the Bull Slough Bridge at Brooklyn. According to the U.S. Geological Survey flood monitoring station near McKenzie, the Sepulga River was down to a depth of 2.69 feet last Thursday. Going back to 1976, the Sepulga’s lowest annual depth was 3.729 feet in 1986.

The Evergreen City Council voted to spend an additional $140,000 to repair termite damage to the L&N Depot at their regular meeting Tuesday night.

36 YEARS AGO
JUNE 26, 1986

Evergreen weather observer Earl Windham reported 0.34 inches of rain on June 20. He reported a high of 93 on June 19 and a low of 63 on June 15.

Rev. Rankins celebrates 107^th: Wednesday, June 18, was the 107^th birthday of the Rev. Henry H. Rankins. On a segment of NBC’s Today Show, aired on June 17, Willard Scott made mention of this fact. Rev. Rankins is believed to be Conecuh County’s oldest citizen.

Maintaining approximately the same lead he had in the first primary, Sheriff Edwin L. Booker turned back Glenn McDaniel to win re-election Tuesday to a fourth term of office. The complete, unofficial count as compiled in Judge of Probate Frank T. Salter’s office showed Booker with 3,659 votes and McDaniel with 2,861. On June 3, Booker led 2,810 to 2,077 with John Brock getting 809.
Interest in this race and the governor’s race and the runoff for State Representative brought substantially more voters to the polls Tuesday than voted June 3. A total of 6,520 voted for sheriff Tuesday compared to 5,696 on June 3. Total vote in the governor’s race was 6,502 compared to 5,833 on June 3. The totals for Representative were 6,032 and 4,793, respectively.

Dewayne Simpson, son of Lizzie May of Repton, has been promoted in the U.S. Army to the rank of Specialist-Four. Simpson is a cannon crewman with the 77^th Field Artillery in West Germany. He is a 1983 graduate of Repton High School.

61 YEARS AGO
JUNE 22, 1961

Masons Will Hold Conference July 5: Conecuh County will hold a Masonic Conference in Evergreen on July 5, it is announced today. The conference will be held at the Greening Lodge on South Main near the hospital. All Masons and their wives are invited to come and asked to bring a lunch.

‘Mr. Mac’ to retire, successor named: Guy S. Kelly, Superintendent of Education in Conecuh County, announced this week that Marcus J. O’Gwynn will be the incoming principal at the Evergreen City School. He will succeed Paul W. McMillan, who will retire in September.
A native of Flomaton, O’Gwynn attended Flomaton High School and received his B.S. Degree from Troy State College in 1955 and an M.A. Degree from the University of Alabama in 1957.
Prior to accepting the position here, O’Gwynn taught school in Santa Rosa County, Fla. and will come to Evergreen from the Enterprise City School System.
Having served two years with the United States Army, O’Gwynn is now in the National Guard. He is a member of Kappa Delta Pi and Phi Delta Kappa.
The new principal is married to the former Ilda Ruth Traweek of Flomaton who is a graduate of the Saint Margaret’s School of Nursing, Montgomery.
The O’Gwynns are expected to move here in the near future in that his appointment is effective, July 1. They are members of the Methodist Church.

Billy Kendall and Kenny Harper left Wednesday for Camp Rotary on Lake Martin for four weeks.

86 YEARS AGO
JUNE 25, 1936

Prime Coat Laid On All Improved Streets: During the past week and the first part of this week, the prime coat of the asphalt surfacing was laid on those streets of the city which are being improved. According to Mayor C.A. Jones, the next coat will not be placed for about 10 days or two weeks, depending upon just how fast the first coat cures and gets in proper condition.
Following the laying of the prime coat, all streets affected were closed for several days to traffic but were reopened Tuesday to light traffic. All wagons, buggies and heavy traffic are prohibited. Cars and light trucks may pass over the streets but drivers are cautioned to drive slowly and carefully in order that no damage may be done to the surfaces of the streets.

Masonic Conference To Convene Here July 8: The Conecuh County Masonic Conference will be held with the Greening Lodge No. 53 in Evergreen on Wed., July 8, opening at eight o’clock a.m. The conference will be in session for one day only. All Masons of Conecuh County are urged to attend and all other Masons cordially invited to attend.

Castleberry: The annual meeting of the Masonic Blue Lodge was held Friday afternoon and the following officers were elected for the ensuing official year: E.B. Brewton, Worshipful Master; L.W. Kirkland, Senior Warden; E.L. Conner, Junior Warden; C.T. Kirkland, Treasurer; R.H. Meacham, Secretary; J.R. Glass, Senior Deacon; P.S. Ellis, Junior Deacon; M.L. Conner, Tyler.

The Evergreen Courant's Sports Flashback for June 27, 2022

Wendell Hart

11 YEARS AGO
JUNE 23, 2011

Nared receives Hart Scholarship: The Evergreen Rotary Club presented recent Hillcrest High School graduate Justin Nared with the 2011 Wendell Hart Scholarship last Thursday afternoon.
Nared graduated from Hillcrest with honors on May 26 and finished his high school career with a 3.9 GPA.
Nared is perhaps best known for being one of the most outstanding athletes in Hillcrest history. A five-year starter in football at the Class 4A school, Nared played quarterback and led the highest scoring offense in school history during his senior season. As a senior, he threw for over 1,500 yards and rushed for over 1,000 yards.

Twelve players make up this year’s Castleberry Bay Bears baseball team. They are Tyrus Bruce, Elijah Cobb, Dontavious Finklea, Orlanda Gandy, Abbigal Henry, Nathan Henry, Logan Johnson, Megan Johnson, Andrea D. McMillian, Nevaeh Sims, Preston Sims and Ronald Stallworth.
Eleven players make up this year’s Panthers girls softball team. Players on the team are Lexus Alverson, Ashley Anderson, Donna Brewton, Brianna Gorum, ShaDoris Johnson, Amber Kirksey, Kadajah Perry, Avie Etheridge, Paige Schreiner, Elizabeth Webb and Cassie Riley. Coaches include Darwin Covin, Deanna Covin and Al Etheridge.
Twelve players make up this year’s Crush softball team. Players on the team include Lauryn Bolton, Maggie Brock, Caitlin Elam, Chayton Gorum, Karde’jah Lane, Shantoria Lane, Dyani McMillian, Cerries Nicholes, Najwa North, Brianna Pugh, Alexis Riley and Bethanie Wilson. Robbie Bolton is the coach.

36 YEARS AGO
JUNE 26, 1986

These were the winners at the annual Evergreen Rotary Club Fish and Wildlife Camp held last week at Tal Stuart’s Pond at Belleville: Kevin Sims, Best Junior Camper, who received a watch given by City Drug Store, Inc.; Brandon Monk, Best Fly Caster, fly casting rig given by Carter Hardware & Supply Co.; Ernest Murphy, Best Shotgun Shot, camouflage shirt given by Bank of Evergreen; Michael Smith, best canoeist, life protector given by Sears Catalog Merchant Gerald Salter; Jason Smith, Best Archer, archery set given by Knud Nielsen Co.; Danny Brown, Best Spin Caster, spin casting rig given by The Evergreen Courant; Chris Smith, Best Bait Caster, reel and rod given by Drapery Outlet; Chris Lanier, Best Senior Camper, watch given by Veronica’s Jewelers; and Wayne Crutchfield, Best Rifle Shot, camp stove given by Conecuh Quick Freeze.

Jackson brings championship boxing here July 4: Barring any pre-fight injuries the boxing card for the July 4 World Championship Boxing card here is set. It will be at Evergreen High School’s Brooks Stadium.
The main event, a 10-round bout, will feature Evergreen native Clint Jackson as he goes against Billy Thomas.
At 15 and 2 with one draw, Thomas is a formidable opponent in the supper middle weight division at 168 pounds. Thomas fights out of a stable in New Orleans.
Jackson, who served as co-captain of the 1976 United States Boxing team with Sugar Ray Leonard, will put an end to his boxing career with this bout and will retire as the World Boxing Senior Classic Champion. His professional record stands at 27 and 5, 20 of his wins coming by knock outs.

61 YEARS AGO
JUNE 22, 1961

For the first time in 16 years, the Evergreen High School Aggies will have a new head coach when they report to football practice in August. John Law Robinson has been named head coach to succeed Coach Wendell Hart.
Coach Hart took over the Aggies in 1946 and during his 15-year span led the Evergreen teams to considerable success, posting one of the better won-loss records for this size school in the state. He was one of the state’s senior coaches on point of years of service.
Robinson played his high school football under Hart and has served as his assistant coach on two occasions, including last season. At Evergreen High School, the new head coach was a three-sport athletic star, earning his letter as a football quarterback and also playing basketball and baseball.
Robinson graduated from Auburn University and then served as an officer in the Army. After discharge, he returned here as an assistant coach and teacher, then resigned to accept a position in Brundidge. Returning home a couple of years ago, he stepped in as assistant coach when a vacancy occurred just as school opened last year.
At present, he said there were no announcements as to who his assistant will be, although he is in contact with a number of prospects.
Robinson is married to the former Mary Northcutt and they have a son and a daughter.

86 YEARS AGO
JUNE 25, 1936

Lions Tamed Twice By Local Merchants: The local entry in the South Alabama League roared down the home stretch on the strength of two wins over the Lions from Monroeville in their service last week. Cinching a possible tie and a win if a protest submitted by Monroeville is thrown out the Merchants have brought home bacon for the first half. Atmore’s Oilers are conceded only a mathematical chance of overcoming the lead the local lads have piled up. Only one more victory is needed for the locals to put things absolutely on ice.
The win Sunday was an aftermath of a close game Thursday which the Merchants took in Monroeville, 7-6. Pitching on even terms and bearing down in the pinches, Ripper Williams, former Tigertown tosser, and Lefty Reynolds, Monroeville portsider, hooked up an it was nip and tuck with Williams getting the edge. Fanning eight, giving up only nine hits over nine innings and slamming home Evergreen’s first marker with a three-base blow to left, Ripper ran his winning streak to five games compared to no losses. Evergreen scored their counters on bunching base hits in the third, eighth and ninth with Tom Melton and Clifford Harper carrying the burden. Every local played heads up ball afield and only one miscue was credited to them. Red Dean, former keystoner for Fort Deposit, was outstanding for Monroeville, helping himself to three hits, handling four chances in the field perfectly.

Old newspaper excerpts from The Monroe Journal newspaper of Monroe County, Alabama

Henry Alonzo Baggett

36 YEARS AGO
JUNE 26, 1986

Andress, Adams two new city policemen: Two new police officers – Ronald Andress and William Adams – were hired by the city of Monroeville during May, according to Charles Colbert, chief of police.
Andress, 35, formerly of the York Police Department, is a graduate of Southwest Alabama Police Academy at Faulkner Junior College in Bay Minette. He is a certified Intoxilyzer 5000 technician.
Adams, 38, of Excel, is a former employee of Container Corp. in Monroeville and has been a member of the Monroe County Sheriff’s Auxiliary for 10 years. Adams plans on attending the Police Academy at Faulker in October.

The South Monroe Babe Ruth Baseball League Saturday named its 1986 all-star team, which is scheduled to compete in the tournament for 13-year-olds Saturday in Atmore at 6 p.m. The team will be playing the all-stars from Brewton. The members of the South Monroe team are John Bradley, Willie Anderson, Mack Ross, Drexel Lambert, Mike Dailey, Tim Salter, Brian Waters, Shane Stafford, Byron Kemp, Bo Minchew, Keith Montgomery, Jerry Lee, John Gulley, Shawn Till and Craig Ivey. Coaches were Tom Bradley and Julius Lambert.

First cotton: Jeffrey Wilkins, son of Mr. and Mrs. Micky Wilkins of Goodway Junction, holds the first reported cotton bloom of the season, which came from his father’s cotton field at Goodway Junction. Jeffrey is the grandson of Mr. and Mrs. Floyd Saucer of Goodway Junction and Mrs. Irene Wilkins and the late J.B. Wilkins of Huxford.

61 YEARS AGO
JUNE 22, 1961

Members Of Rescue Squad Join Search For Missing Plane: The Monroe County Rescue Squad joined in the search Wednesday for Gene McGill of Mobile and John Leu of Nashville, who have been missing in a private plane since Saturday night.
Claude Wilkerson reported that the Monroe County Rescue Squad is making an intensive search in the Barlow Bend section.
The plane, owned by the Security Life Investment Co. of Nashville, Tenn., was reportedly piloted by Mr. McGill, who worked for the firm. Mr. Leu is treasurer and his father is president of the Nashville company. The plane is a Cessna 182.

Hendrix Is Elected Worshipful Master: G.E. Hendrix was elevated to the office of Worshipful Master of the Frisco City Masonic Lodge No. 702 Thursday evening when the election of officers was held.
Other officers elected at this time to serve with Mr. Hendrix were: Claude Wilkerson, senior warden; Harold Hendrix, junior warden; Rayford Sawyer, senior deacon; Wilbur Brooks, junior deacon; John C. Ikner, tyler; George Burns, treasurer; Morton Carpenter, secretary; Grady Barnes, chaplain; Erple Wilson, senior steward; Wally Byrd, junior steward; and W.C. Majors, marshal.

COTTON BLOOMS ARE REPORTED IN COUNTY: The first cotton bloom in Monroe County reported to The Journal office came from the farm of Jim and Charles Williams, who live near Uriah. Their bloom was reported to A.V. Culpepper, county agent, on Fri., June 16. Raymond Ward of the Megargel community brought the second bloom reported in the county to The Journal office Monday morning. This bloom was discovered Sun., June 18.

86 YEARS AGO
JUNE 25, 1936

Prominent Citizen Is Claimed By Death: People of Monroeville were grieved to learn of the passing of Henry Alonzo Baggett, which occurred about 10 o’clock last Saturday evening. Few people ever in a lifetime make more friends than did Mr. Baggett, who had filled the office of tax collector in Monroe County for nearly 20 years.

Jitney-Jungle In New Location: The Jitney-Jungle is now located in its new home on the west side of the square in the building formerly used as a show room by B.H. Stallworth Jr. The building has been remodeled and many improvements made before the stock of the “Red and Green front” grocery store was moved in. In its new location, the Jitney-Jungle, operated by E.S. Gardner, will include a market. The Stallworth showroom has been moved to the location of the Stallworth Implement Co.

Large Catfish Landed At Davis Ferry: The largest catfish ever caught at the Davis Ferry, about four miles from Franklin, was landed on Sat., June 20, by Leo Dees and Roy McKinley. The fish measured four and one-half feet in length and was 14 inches across the head. It was caught on a short 10-hook line.

The Alabama Lodge No. 3 at a regular meeting held last week elected the following officers to serve during the ensuing year: M.R. Sowell, worshipful master; J.M. Johnson, senior warden; A.L. Nettles, junior warden; L.L. Hendrix, treasurer; L.L. Dees, secretary; E.M. Salter, senior deacon; J.A. Jackson, junior deacon; and John Lamb, tyler.

112 YEARS AGO
JUNE 23, 1910

Monroeville is now enjoying the privilege of Sunday mail service, the new departure having been inaugurated last Sunday.

There will be a public installation of the officers of Alabama Lodge No. 3, Perdue Hill, at 6 o’clock p.m. on Fri., June 24. An address will be delivered by Hon. John McDuffie. The public is cordially invited.

Dr. J.F. Busey of Jones Mill was in to see us Tuesday. Dr. Busey reports a case of pellagra in the vicinity of Jones Mill, the victim being a four-year-old child, the first case that has come under his observation in that section. He is arranging to take the patient to Mobile for transfusion treatment.

There will be an ice cream supper at the home of Mr. and Mrs. Marion Brown, Excel, Wednesday night, June 29, for the benefit of Excel school building. Everybody is cordially invited.

BRIDGE LETTING: I will attend at Little Escambia Creek on the Excel and Repton road Sat., June 25, 1910, for the purpose of contracting for the building of a bridge at said place. Specifications will be furnished on the ground. – W.R. Blackwell, Commissioner.

Mr. A.J. Petty of Monroeville RFD No. 1 sent to The Journal office Tuesday, a five-pound beet that beats any beet that has yet come under our observation. Who can beat this beet? The beet was grown this spring without any special cultivation or fertilization.

136 YEARS AGO
JUNE 24, 1886

Sheriff Johnson of Santa Rosa County, Fla. and Deputy Dawe of Conecuh passed through town last Friday in pursuit of one McDonald, a white man charged with murder in Santa Rosa County. McDonald was last seen near Evergreen, and was making his way toward the Alabama River, intending to cross at or near Claiborne.

Masonic Notice – The Masonic Fraternity are invited to attend the funeral of Bro. Nathan Bell on second Sunday of July at 10 o’clock a.m. from Masonic Hall at Monroeville. – F.M. Jones, Secretary.

Killed – A little boy was killed near town last Wednesday by a falling tree.

Masonic – The following are the officers elected for Monroeville Lodge No. 153 for the ensuring year: S.H. Daily, Worshipful Master; T.L. Sowell, Senior Warden; W.W. McMillan, Junior Warden; D.J. Hatter, Treasurer; A.M. Leslie, Secretary; J.F. Fore, Senior Deacon; G.W. Salter, Junior Deacon; and Isaac Andress, Tyler.

Public Installation – There will be a public installation of officers of the Monroeville Lodge No. 153 on Saturday before the third Sunday in July 1886, at 10 o’clock a.m. The Fraternity and public are invited to attend. – F.M. Jones, Secretary.

Died – At his home near Monroeville, on Monday night 21^st inst. after a lingering illness, Mr. George W. Metts, a brother of our townsman Mr. F. Metts, in the 50^th year of his age.

Cadet B.F. Wiggins, who has been attending Howard College, returned home last week to spend vacation.

Singleton tells of 'picturesque stream' off Ajax Road in Monroe County

Stream beside rest area: dancing waters, empty beer cans.

(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 “Picturesque stream on Ajax Road marred with dumpings, debris” was originally published in the Sept. 11, 1975 edition of The Monroe Journal in Monroeville, Ala.)

Man has through the years returned to the wilderness to relax and refresh himself when the problems of our society become too great a burden.

Throughout our country, one finds many places where he can get away from the hustle and pressure of everyday life. Such a place can be found beside a small crystal stream on what is called Ajax Road.

Much time and effort has been spent by the large timber company that owns this property so the people of this area may enjoy this picturesque location. I have many, many times camped beside the rushing waters of the swift, clear stream and listened to the music of the dancing waters.

Winds’ lullaby

I have slept under the protective branches of the young water oaks many nights while the sighing winds hummed a sleepy lullaby. I have awakened in the morning and watched the first rays of dawn chase away the last dark shadows of the night before.

I have watched nature’s children come alive with the rising sun and begin their day with purpose and harmony. I have smelled the aroma of breakfast cooking over an open fire as I watched the pale blue smoke from the burning wood drift slowly skyward.

I have felt the cool tingling feeling after bathing my face in the cold, clear waters of the rushing stream.

It was these fond memories that prompted me to return to the area by Ajax Road one week after Labor Day. But things were not the same as I remembered.

Where once the sweet smell of the woods welcomed, the stench of decaying garbage rent the air.

Plates, spoons, forks

Soiled paper plates and plastic spoons and forks littered the area. Scattered beer cans and food wrappings lay here and there as though a giant unseen hand had cast them to the winds.

Man with all his filth and carelessness had arrived. What once was a place of beauty and tranquility had become a dumping ground for the waste of a few whose eyes were blind to the majestic surroundings. A few whose love for nature could only be seen in the dirt and filth left behind in their wake.

As I waded the stream and picked the empty beer cans and food wrappers from the cool water, I thought of the vanity of it all.

No more like this

Soon man would cover the good earth with his waste and debris. No more would there be places like this little park where one could come and rest and embrace with nature.

No more could man sleep beside a cool, clear stream without the smell of decaying garbage. No more could he rest his eyes on the soft green grass without the reflections of rusting beer cans flashing in the sun.

As I turned from the filth and rubbage that lay before me, the feeling of despair and sorrow came over me. I felt a part of the agony that man will feel when the earth rebels against our carelessness, and the shadows of decay and destruction darken the sun.

(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 to Vincent William Singleton and Frances Cornelia Faile Singleton, 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 paratrooper 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. He was promoted from the enlisted ranks to warrant officer in May 1972. 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 also helped organize the Monroe County Museum and Historical Society and was also a past president of that organization. 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.)

Former Monroe County, Alabama slave lived to be 113 years old

Last Thursday afternoon, I got the itch to do some riding around, so I set off for Old Claiborne to visit one of the county’s most unique graves, the final resting place of Louise Cooper. Cooper, who lived to be 113 years old, is buried in the Mount Zion Missionary Baptist Church at Claiborne. This historic church and cemetery are located on the Grain Elevator Road, less than a mile south of U.S. Highway 84.

Cooper, the oldest of three children, was born into slavery at Claiborne on June 5, 1863. A few months after she was born, her parents were sent to Mobile on a steamboat, but their stay was short lived. Not long after they arrived, they were called back to Claiborne and were ordered to leave infant Louise in Mobile because Claiborne was under quarantine due to a smallpox outbreak.

Sources say that rather than leave baby Louise behind, her parents put her in a small trunk and hid her aboard the Claiborne-bound steamer. The story goes that her mother only opened the trunk twice during the trip back to Claiborne to make sure that Louise was still alive. It’s said that Louise received no food during the trip upriver because her parents were afraid of getting caught with the baby.

When the boat docked at Claiborne, Louise’s father quickly carried the trunk up the steep bank to the small house where they lived. Afraid that the child was dead, her parents opened the trunk and found Louise contentedly sucking her thumb. Despite the long voyage, Louise had not cried the entire time.

It should be remembered that all of this happened during the height of the Civil War and that Mobile and Claiborne were bastions of Rebel forces during that time. Even though Abraham Lincoln had issued his famous Emancipation Proclamation in January 1863, this had little effect on enslaved people in the Deep South. Slavery wasn’t officially abolished in Alabama until December 1865, when Cooper was just two years old.

Cooper, who was known as both “Lou” and “Big Mama,” lived to the ripe, old age of 113, passing away just two days shy of her 114^th birthday in 1977. She lived all of her long life in Monroe County and was a faithful member of the Mount Zion Baptist Church. At the time of her death, she was survived by a grandson, a granddaughter, two great-grand-children and eight great-great-grandchildren.

It should come as no surprise to learn that Mrs. Cooper has many descendants living in and around Monroe County today. Popular Frisco City town councilman Woody Bullard is a direct descendant of Louise Cooper as are many others in the Frisco City and Perdue Hill area. Her memory appears to remain strong in the hearts of those descendants as evidenced by how neatly her grave is maintained by her loved ones today.

In the end, let me hear from you if you have any additional information about the life of Louise Cooper. She lived though some of the most tumultuous times in American history and saw many, many changes during her long life. I’m especially interested in any old photos of Cooper, so please let me know if you have anything along these lines.

June 1897 marked a momentous time in the history of Lower Peach Tree

The old Mobile Cotton Exchange building in 1906.

June 1897 marked a momentous time in the history of Lower Peach Tree.

The June 23 edition of The Wilcox Progressive Era that year carried the momentous news that Lower Peach Tree was “now connected with the outside world. The Lower Peach Tree and Pine Hill Telephone line was opened for business yesterday (June 17).”

The board of directors for this telephone and telegraph exchange included K.A. Mayer, President; R.O. Hicks, Treasurer; S.P. Stabler, Secretary; L.D. Bryant, E.A. Culpepper, Dr. E.D. King and M.I. Stabler, board members.

The first telegraph message received over this new line read as follows: Mobile, Ala., June 17^th, 1897. To K.A. Mayer, Lower Peach Tree: The Mobile Cotton Exchange hails telegraphic connection with Lower Peach Tree, linked to Mobile by commercial ties for many years. (Signed) B. Kahn, President.”

This was big news at the time in that it came 21 years after Alexander Graham Bell was granted a patent for a method of transmitting speech by telegraphy, what would later be known as the telephone. Prior to this invention’s arrival at Lower Peach Tree, the fastest way to communicate between that part of Wilcox County and Mobile would have been by mail or messenger. The arrival of the telephone at Lower Peach Tree would have had a significant impact, especially when it came to business.

Lower Peach Tree was a major point of cotton production in the 1800s and a direct link between that location and the Mobile Cotton Exchange would have been profitable. Sources say that the Mobile Cotton Exchange was in operation between 1871 and 1942, and it was the third oldest cotton exchange in the country behind those in New Orleans and New York. The primary mission of the Mobile Cotton Exchange was to maintain control over cotton sales, storage and shipping out of Mobile Bay for the benefit of cotton brokers and merchants like those in Wilcox County.

The board of directors of the new telephone exchange in Wilcox County included some of the most prominent men in Wilcox County at the time. K.A. Mayer was a prominent businessman and was widely known in Masonic circles. In fact, K.A. Mayer Lodge No. 703 still bears his name today in downtown Pine Hill.

Dr. E.D. King was also a member of one of the most prominent families in the Black Belt Region. He was the grandson of War of 1812 general, Edwin Davis King, who was also a first cousin to Vice President William Rufus King. His grandfather was also one of the founders of Howard College, which we now know as Samford University, in Birmingham.

The president of the Mobile Cotton Exchange in 1897 was Bernard Kahn, who was the brother of Moses Kahn. Bernard and Moses were born in Bavaria, and Moses came to the United States in 1846. He lived in Camden for a number of years before eventually moving to Mobile, where his brother ended up being president of the cotton exchange.

In the end, it would be interesting to know what these men would think of today’s modern communications system. No doubt they would be amazed by the internet and cellular phones, which make their early telephone and telegraph systems seem almost prehistoric. With that in mind, one can only wonder what people 125 years from now will think about our technology today.

Wilcox County, Alabama News Flashback for June 22, 2022

Benjamin Meek Miller

62 YEARS AGO
JUNE 23, 1960

First Cotton Bloom Reported For County: The first cotton bloom for the 1960 season in Wilcox County to be reported to the Progressive Era was brought in Mon., June 20.
The bloom was brought in by J.M. Brooks of Coy.
The bloom was from a field of 11.2 acres located on the Malinda Brooks place at Coy. Cotton in this field was planted on April 11, and shown a good stand. The field has not been poisoned yet, it was stated.

Methodist Building Air Conditioned: The Sunday School annex of the Camden Methodist Church is having air conditioning equipment installed. The work is being done by the Campbell Roofing Co. of Selma, low bidders on the project. The project will include cooling for the hot weather months, and heating for the winter. The present heating system by gas unit heaters will be retained as an auxiliary.
Work should be complete on the cooling system by early in July, it was announced by Rev. Frank Scott, pastor of the church.

Annual homecoming services at Old Scotland Presbyterian Church, near Tunnel Springs, have been set for Sun., June 26. The service of worship will begin at 11 a.m. with the sermon by Henry Lewis Smith, minister-in-charge. Former members and those having family connections with the historic church are cordially invited to be present for this occasion.

P.C. Jenkins attended the Sheriffs Convention in Mobile this week.

73 YEARS AGO
JUNE 23, 1949

Plans Made For Camden Gymnasium: Mr. B.A. Bond, architect, of Montgomery will meet Friday night with the local trustees, F.G. Hollinger Sr., Dr. J. Paul Jones, P.D. Burford, Chad B. Hawkins, Coach Connie McKelvey, Supt. W.J. Jones and J.M. Moore, to make plans for a new gymnasium at the Camden High School. The gymnasium will be located on the site of the old water tank. Construction is planned to begin just as soon as the tank is moved.

Final Inspection On Pine Hill Auditorium: Final inspection was made on the auditorium building at the Pine Hill school Wed., June 22. This building was constructed by Ford Building & Supply Co. of Selma, Ala. at a cost of $50,000. W.E. Campbell of Montgomery was architect. An elementary building, consisting of six classrooms and a lunchroom, at Camden Academy, is now under construction and will be completed by Sept. 1. J.H. McClelland is in charge of building operations.

Johnston Boys’ State U.S. Senator: Jimmie Johnston of Gastonburg, representing Wilcox County in the annual Boys’ State at Tuscaloosa, was named as the group’s United States Senator. Elections were held Tuesday with boys from various parts of Alabama trying their hands at handling state posts. The group left Tuscaloosa Wednesday for Montgomery where their “administration” will take place at the State Capitol.

Tap Sadler and Clip Albritton left Monday for Camp Grist, to be gone 10 days.

82 YEARS AGO
JUNE 27, 1940

Barbecue and baseball double header, July 4, at Tills Place, Braggs, Ala. Barbecue and ball games all for 75 cents. Dance extra – come.

Charles and Junius Cook of Birmingham are visiting their grandmother, Mrs. Lola Cook on Sterritt Lane. They are fine boys and Charles wishes to know where he can buy a pony for 50 cents. Any information regarding one will be appreciated. – A.C.F.

Edwin W. Morris, Camden, Wilcox County, is learning to fly an airplane this summer at Auburn, where he is enrolled in the Civilian Pilot Training Program conducted by the College there and the Civil Aeronautics Authority. The Auburn pilot training program is part of the national plan to train 45,000 civilian pilots during the next 12 months.

Mr. Bob Gay Passes: Mr. Bob Gay, erstwhile resident of Camden, passed away Tuesday morning, June 25, 1940, at 2 o’clock, at his home in Montgomery, after many months of ill health. He resided here several years after his marriage to Miss Pauline Brown, one of Camden’s popular and loveliest girls. He was a close relative of the late Dr. Gay of Selma, a well known and beloved physician.

Rev. R.C. Kennedy returned Wednesday from Norman, Okla. While there he held services Sunday evening in the University of Oklahoma and Monday addressed the Rotary Club at Norman.

92 YEARS AGO
JUNE 26, 1930

American Legion Post Organized at Camden: On Friday night, June 21, about 20 men met at the Court House and organized a local post of the American Legion. All of the ex-service men were enthusiastic and determined to make the post a successful one.
The following officers were elected: E.E. Dunn, Post Commander; Dr. J. Paul Jones, Vice-Commander; Robert Smith, Post Chaplain; Earl Bryant, Sgt. of Arms; Carl M. Watts, Post Historian; and C.A. Skinner, Adjutant.

Mrs. Lee Youngblood and Misses Mary and Alice Ashley Kyser of Carlowville attended the meeting last Thursday of the Charter Chapter, United Daughters of the Confederacy, which met at Mrs. Geo. H. Strother at Canton with Mesdames. Geo. H. and Purnell F. Strother as joint hostesses.

Houston “Pop” Dunn left Sunday for Linden, where he has accepted a position with the Democrat Reporter. Pop is one of the best printers in this section and we fell sure that his work will be highly satisfactory to the manager of the Reporter as he will find him on the job early and late.

SPEAKING AT MAGNOLIA: Hon. J. Miller of Camden will speak to the citizens of Marengo and adjoining counties at Magnolia on Thurs., June 16, at 11:30 a.m. in the interest of the candidacy of Judge B.M. Miller for Governor. The people of Magnolia and surrounding territory will have a barbecue on this date and a large crowd is expected.

Misses Addie Lee Farish and Louise Matthews are at home after a vacation spent in Cuba.

102 YEARS AGO
JUNE 24, 1920

The first load of water melons of the season was sold here on Wednesday by R.G. Campbell.

Mr. Pinkston Albritton has accepted a position with McLeod Drug Store as chief soda dispenser.

A large delegation of Monroe citizens appeared before the Wilcox Board of Revenue on Thursday of the past week for the purpose of determining a route for the Camden-Monroeville Highway. The route designated leads through Bellview and Franklin to Monroeville.

First Cotton Bloom – Mr. C.D. Thompson of Canton Bend brought the first cotton blooms of the season to Camden Saturday. They were taken on the fifth from the field. Both were free of boll weevil punctures.

At a regular communication held with Beatrice Lodge No. 691, Ancient Free & Accepted Masons, Wed., June 16, the following officers was elected for the ensuing year: J.M. Holloway, Worshipful Master; J.J. McMillan, Senior Warden; J.N. Andress, Junior Warden; J.R. Carter Jr., Senior Deacon; I.J. Robins, Junior Deacon; D.R. Andress, Secretary; S.D. Andress, Treasurer; J.F. Harper, Senior Steward; Lee Fountain, Junior Steward; Mack H. Helton, Tyler.

LOST – About June 11, one bunch of six or eight keys with Coca Cola key on bunch. Finder please return to W.F. McWilliams and receive reward.

The Evergreen Courant's News Flashback for June 21, 2022

SIX YEARS AGO
JUNE 16, 2016

Local weather observer Betty Ellis reported .02 inches of rain on June 6 in Evergreen. She reported a high of 93 degrees on June 12 and a low of 62 on June 8.

Work continued this week on the new fire station at Johnsonville. This new fire station will replace the community’s old fire station, which was completely destroyed in the powerful Presidents Day Tornado that ravaged the community on Feb. 15.

Evergreen Mayor Pete Wolff signed a proclamation on Monday that declared June 15 as Elder Abuse Awareness Day in the City of Evergreen. Pictured from left at the proclamation signing ceremony are Department of Human Resources (DHR) Adult Services Worker Lindsey Johnson, DHR Director Lou Boykin, Wolff and DHR Adult Services Supervisor Kimberly Guidroz-Oputa.

Water project proceeds: Conecuh County commissioners unanimously approved earlier this week a resolution that will allow one of the biggest water system improvement projects in recent memory to move forward.
During a commission meeting Monday morning at the Conecuh County Courthouse, commissioners voted 5-0 in favor of a resolution regarding a Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) for $350,000 in water infrastructure improvements in northwest Conecuh County.

31 YEARS AGO
JUNE 20, 1991

Evergreen weather reporter Harry Ellis reported .25 inches of rain on June 16. He also reported a high of 90 degrees on June 14 and June 15 and a low of 63 on June 10.

Eight people were injured in a two-vehicle accident which occurred Saturday afternoon on County Road 29, approximately three miles from Evergreen.

Miss Lizbeth McMillan, a much loved and respected citizen of Evergreen, passed away last Saturday, June 15. She was a resident at Evergreen Nursing Home during the past few years. Graveside services were held at Bethel Cemetery in Bullock County.
“Miss Lib” retired as a school teacher in 1969 after 46 years of service. Forty-three of her years as a teacher were spent at the Evergreen City School, where she taught the fifth grade from the same classroom. She came to the Conecuh County School System in 1926 when her brother, the late W.P. (Paul) McMillan, was named principal of the city school.
She received a two-year teaching degree from Troy Normal School in 1923. When the State of Alabama required that teachers have a four-year degree, she continued her education at the University of Alabama, earning a bachelor’s degree in 1933. In 1960, she took additional classes at Auburn University.

On June 9, 1991 Mrs. Susan Harper of 226 Elizabeth St., Evergreen, celebrated her 100th birthday with a party at her residence. Evergreen Mayor Lee Smith is shown presenting Mrs. Harper with a Key to the City during her birthday celebration.

56 YEARS AGO
JUNE 16, 1966

The first cotton bloom of the 1966 crop was brought to The Courant this week by Leslie Crosby, who has had this honor and also that of the first bale to the gin on a number of occasions in the past.
Crosby is a well-known farmer of Rt. E, Evergreen, and has enjoyed good success over the years with cotton and other crops as well as livestock.

Final rites held for local merchant Elbert Northcutt: Elbert Calloway Northcutt, 73, died in a Mobile hospital Thursday morning, June 9. He was a leading merchant of this city who had been active in the clothing business here for over 54 years.
Mr. Northcutt was born in Monroe County, the son of the late Sarah Tom Morris Northcutt and James Nelson Northcutt. He moved with his family as a young boy to Conecuh County, residing here until his death. He was married to the former Ella Henderson on Dec. 25, 1915, they having celebrated their Golden Wedding Anniversary this past Christmas, and she survives him.
Mr. Northcutt began working as a clerk with F.L. Riley Department Store as a young man of 19. After several years association with this firm, he joined the staff of I. Long & Sons Dept. Store and worked with them until he opened his own business, Northcutt’s, also known as the New York Cash Store, in 1935. Although his business was twice destroyed by fire, Mr. Northcutt through good management and personal knowledge of the people of the area, built up over the years one of the leading men’s and boys’ stores in this area.

We Buy Old Coins of All Kinds – Western Auto Store – Pete Wolff.

81 YEARS AGO
JUNE 19, 1941

DIXIE DAIRY FEED BARN DESTROYED BY FIRE: Fire, believed to have been caused by spontaneous combustion, completely destroyed the Dixie Dairy feed barn and all contents Wednesday night. The fire had gained such headway when discovered about nine o’clock that it was impossible to bring it under control or to save any of the contents.
The building contained about 300 bushels of corn, a quantity of oats, cotton seed meal, hulls and a feed mill.

Miss Elizabeth Burson of Furman has accepted a position with the Farm Loan Association and is at the home of Mrs. E.C. Deal.

Local Body Works Changes Hands: The Evergreen Body Works, organized and operated for several years by L.W. Price, was sold recently to C.P. Strong and Stanley Green, two of Evergreen’s newest citizens but “old timers” in bus body building experience.
Mr. Strong, for many years connected with the Flxible Co. in Loudonville, Ohio, comes to Evergreen from Fort Valley, Ga., where for the past several months he held a responsible position with Blue Bird Body Works. Mr. Strong was one of the co-designers of the first Greyhound cruiser body, designed and built while he was with the General Motors Truck Co. He also designed the Fxible Clipper, a streamlined bus body seen on many of our through highways today.
Mr. Green, a native of LaGrange, Ga., was operator of LaGrange Coach Lines before coming to Evergreen. He has had much experience in the organization and operation of bus lines and is well known in transit bus circles.

The Evergreen Courant's Sports Flashback for June 20, 2022

Lovie Smith

SIX YEARS AGO
JUNE 16, 2016

All-Stars drop two tourney games: Evergreen’s 11-and-12-year-old Cal Ripken All-Star baseball team came up short in a pair of games last week in the district tournament in Andalusia.
Evergreen suffered a 14-0 loss to Opp’s all-stars last Thursday night, and they were eliminated from the tournament on Saturday after a 12-7 loss to the Covington County all-stars.
Players on Evergreen’s all-star team included Javen Bradley, Dalton Coleman, Jackson Conway, Daiyon El-Amin, Rafael Gonzalez, KeSharvis Jones, Willie Likely, Christian Locke, Caleb Riley, Timothy Rudolph Jr., Malik Simpson, Ronald Stallworth and Victor Taylor. The team was managed by Timothy Rudolph and assistant coaches included Andrae McMillian, Delarius Simpson and Quentin Simpson.

Players on Evergreen’s 7-and-8-year-old Cal Ripken all-star baseball team in 2016 included Aubrey Baggett, Amber Boykin, Jacob Byrd, Jordan Byrd, Samuel Cook, Blaine Delaney, Cameron Hall, Cameron Ingram, Keontra Palmore, Hagen Robinson and Justin Sessions. The team was managed by Joseph Baggett. Assistant coaches included Tyrone Boykin, Charles Mooney and Jason Robinson.

Hillcrest High School football players Joshua Jackson and Jeremy Dees traveled this week to Champaign, Ill. to take part in a football camp at the University of Illinois. During the event, Jackson and Dees met several football VIPs, including Illinois head coach Lovie Smith, who is former head coach of the Chicago Bears and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Jackson and Dees traveled to the camp with Hillcrest head coach Clinton Smith and assistant coach Quinn Hambrite.

31 YEARS AGO
JUNE 20, 1991

Members of the 1991 13-year-old Babe Ruth All-Stars were announced Saturday night. Team members are Reggie Boykin, Tommy Byrd, Josh Scott; Lavon Merrills, Detrick Womack, James Johnson, Kevin Riley and Chad Wilson. Not pictured are Joey Griffin, Henry Holt, Lewis Lowe and Gabriel Potts. The team will represent Conecuh County during the area tournament, June 27, in Brewton. They will face Atmore’s all-star team at 7:30 p.m.

The Most Valuable Player trophies were handed out Saturday night at the Evergreen Municipal Park for the Babe Ruth Baseball League. The MVP winner for the 14-15 year olds was Rhett Wilson. Shannon Shufford was the runner-up. The winner of the MVP award for the 13-year-olds was Detrick Womack. The runner-up is to Detrick’s right, Reggie Boykin.

Members of the 14-15-year-old all-star team was announced Saturday night. The Evergreen Babe Ruth All-Stars will play South Monroe’s all-stars in Atmore, July 5, at 7:30 p.m. Team members are as follows: Sedrick Fluker, Shannon Sims, Eric Owens, Matthew Jones, Marlo McDaniel, Rhett Wilson, Willie Womack, Robert Ball, Isaac McMillan, Shannon Shufford, Britt Ward, Bryant Robinson, Steven Bledsoe and Robert Rabren.

56 YEARS AGO
JUNE 16, 1966

Lyeffion QB Club is sponsoring Little League: The Lyeffion Quarterback Club is sponsoring Little League Baseball as a summer recreation program for boys in the elementary school at Lyeffion. There are four teams with approximately 50 boys participating.
Officers of the Lyeffion Little League are President, Bernard Powell; Vice President, Harold Ryals; Secretary, Jane Brooks; Chief Umpire, R.J. Davis.
The teams with managers and assistant managers are: Braves, Harold Ryals and Woodrow Pate; Giants, Herbert Oakley and James Cowart; Dodgers, Joe Varner and Alvin Quinley; Cardinals, Jack Daniels and Eugene Davis. Each team plays twice a week on Tuesday and Thursday nights.
The Quarterback Club would like to express its appreciation to all those who have given donations to make this program possible, also to the mothers and fathers of the boys who are playing and to the others who are helping.

81 YEARS AGO
JUNE 19, 1941

1,673 Arrested For Violation Of Game And Fish Laws: Montgomery, Ala. – Arrests for violation of the game and fish laws during the eight months ending May 31 totaled 1,673 with 1,354 convictions recorded and fines paid, according to Ben C. Morgan, chief of the Game and Fish Division of the State Conservation Department. Only 59 cases were appealed, nolle prosed or acquitted, while 260 cases are pending in the courts, Morgan said. These figures are for the first eight months of the state’s fiscal year which began October 1, 1940.
The state is divided into four districts in the enforcement of game and fish laws, with a field supervisor in charge of each district. Individual figures for the districts during the eight-months period were: District 1 (Northwest Alabama) Ted Cottrell, Supervisor, 384 arrests and 330 convictions; District 2 (Southwest Alabama), W.G. Wharton, Supervisor, 462 arrests and 365 convictions; District 3 (Northeast Alabama), Morgan Loyd, Supervisor, 355 arrests and 250 convictions; District 4 (Southeast Alabama), Graham Hixon, Supervisor, 472 arrests and 409 convictions.

Old newspaper excerpts from The Monroe Journal newspaper of Monroe County, Alabama

USS Mazama (AE-9)

31 YEARS AGO
JUNE 20, 1991

Board rehires school principals: Several personnel decisions were made when the Monroe County Board of Education met last Thursday, and all principals were rehired for the 1991-92 school year.
Principals rehired are Leon Stallworth, Beatrice Elementary School; William Andrews, J.F. Shields High School; W.B. Williams, Monroe Senior High School; Clayton Hale, Monroeville Elementary School; Darnell Payne, Monroeville Middle School; Jimmy Dale Lambert, Monroeville Junior High School; John Burton, Monroe County High School; John Ross, Excel School; William Royster, Frisco City Elementary School; Vance McCrory, Frisco City High School; Bennie Rhodes, J.U. Blacksher School; and Al Brown, who heads the Area Vocational Center.

Melvin Pete Jr. to coach football at J.F. Shields: Melvin Pete Jr. has been hired by the Monroe County Board of Education to coach football and teach physical education at J.F. Shields High School this fall.
Pete, who is replacing Herbert Blackmon as the Panthers’ head football coach, spent last year as an assistant football coach and B-team basketball coach at Georgiana High School in Georgiana.
Pete was selected after several applicants had been screened by Shields’ principal W.F. Andrews.

A grand opening for The Old Courthouse Gift Shoppe in the Old Monroe County Courthouse will be held June 29 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., according to Kathy Painter, Heritage Museum director. The shop is located next door to the Heritage Museum. Monroe County Probate Judge Otha Lee Biggs will cut the ribbon at 9:15 a.m.

56 YEARS AGO
JUNE 16, 1966

First Cotton Bloom Is Found Thursday: T.L. Brown of Mexia had the first cotton bloom in the county with Clyde Blanton of Frisco City Route a close second.
Mr. Brown found the bloom last Thursday in his 10-acre field and said it should be ready for picking about the last of July or the first of August.
The blooms found by Mr. Brown and Mr. Blanton were beautiful blooms to the farmers’ delight.

UC Coach Praises Joe Cardwell’s Play: Coach A.C. “Scrappy” Moore, head coach of the University of Chattanooga Moccasins, has tagged Joe Cardwell of Uriah as one of the best young running backs to come to UC in many years.
Cardwell, a 1965 graduate of J.U. Blacksher, is a fullback with the Moccasins and is expected to see plenty of action with the Tennessee school this fall. The Uriah lad was one of the leading rushers in the University’s annual intra-squad game following the close of spring training.

Uriah Man Heads Ammunition Ship: Capt. Glenn E. Lambert, U.S. Navy, son of Mr. and Mrs. George E. Lambert of Uriah, is serving as commanding officer of the USS Mazama, which is a unit of the U.S. Seventh Fleet.
The Mazama is an ammunition ship and is responsible for replenishing depleted supplies of ammunition for the other units of the Seventh Fleet, which are participating in the Vietnam War. The Mazama is operating in the South China Sea.

81 YEARS AGO
JUNE 19, 1941

Frisco Bank Robber Caught in Texas: Federal agents arrested Orby Truman Cannon, 45-year-old ex-convict, who served time in Alabama and Texas, on Monday, according to reports received by Federal agents in Mobile on Tuesday. He has been identified by J.A. Hayles, cashier of the Frisco City Bank, who held him up at the point of a gun on May 12 and made his escape with $13,239 in cash. Cannon was arrested in Austin, Texas and is now held in custody of Texas State Police at San Antonio.

George T. Jones Wins Tournament: George Thomas Jones was winner of the top flight in the invitation tournament held by the Monroeville Club last Thursday.
The first rain in about two months started falling early in the morning and held the number qualifying down to three flights. All players were served a delicious plate lunch at the Home Café.

FINE HOGS KILLED BY EATING COCKLEBURS: Mr. Tom Perry, who is farming on the J.F. Dusenbury place, west of Frisco City, reported Tuesday that out of a herd of 50 hogs he had lost 18 fine ones on Monday afternoon and after examining some of the carcasses it was found that the hogs died from eating cockleburs.
Many farmers have never heard of such a thing, and it is said to be rare for the reason that hogs are kept out of cultivated areas at this season of the year.
Mr. Perry allowed his hogs to run in the fields, which he planned to plant a late crop and after the showers last week, cockleburs started sprouting. The hogs ate these sprouts and the old bur with them, and the bur was the things that caused all the trouble. Examination showed that the intestines in these hogs were badly lacerated and hard mats of burs were also found.

131 YEARS AGO
JUNE 11, 1891

COTTON BLOOM – The first cotton bloom of the season was sent to The Journal on the 8^th inst. by Mr. Wesley Ballard, living near Monroeville. Mr. Ballard is one of our most energetic and successful farmers and if this is an index to his entire crop, he stands a good chance to enjoy the distinction of marketing the first bale.

OFF TO THE ENCAMPMENT: The Monroeville detachment of the Monroe County Corps left Tuesday for Claiborne, where it was met by the other members of the company to take the boat for the Encampment at Mobile. The company was accompanied by its Sponsor, Maids of Honor, and a number of young lady friends, whose sunny presence will lend encouragement and inspiration to the boys.

The cornerstone of Monroe Lodge No. 485 will be laid June 24 with usual ceremonies, also public installation of officers. Sister lodges invited. – W.J. McCants, Worshipful Master; C.C. Nettles, Secretary.

DIED – At the home of his father near Monroeville, on Sat., June 6, Willie, eldest son of Mr. and Mrs. W.J. Faulk, after a brief illness. He was buried at the Baptist church Sunday afternoon with Alliance honors.

STRAY HORSE: There is at my place near Kempville, Ala., a stray small iron grey mustang horse. The owner can get same by proving property. – R.B. Dennis.

ICE CREAM SUPPER – We are requested to announce that the Ladies’ Aid Society of the Baptist church will give an ice cream supper at the courthouse on Friday evening, July 3, 1891 at 8 p.m. Everybody should attend.

157 YEARS AGO
JUNE 15, 1867

CLOSE OF VOLUME FIRST: The readers of The Journal will note the important epoch in the history of Journalism, the end of the first volume.
To the editor, it is matter of interesting reflection. He is thus enabled to sum up both the income and the expenses, and his balance sheet shows how the profit and loss compare.
But this is not all. He is enabled to review the past and profit by his experience. He remembers what subject matter, both original and selected, he has for 52 weeks laid before his readers, and it is a source of some satisfaction that they too are equally acquainted with the same.

Our subscribers who find the cross mark (x) on the margin opposite their names will understand by it that their term of subscription has expired.

TIN SHOP – J.M. MERRY has opened a Tin Shop at his old stand (next door above Agee & Co.’s store) where he is now prepared to do everything in that line of business, better and cheaper, than it can be bought elsewhere, for cash.

UPPER LANDING – I have completed my warehouse and am now receiving and shipping cotton at 50 cents per bale. – T.J. Stephens.

BEEF AND MUTTON! I am now prepared to furnish the citizens of Claiborne and vicinity with fresh beef and mutton on short notice. POSITIVELY no beef or mutton delivered without the CASH. – J. Goldsmith.

Singleton wrote that old-timey drivers needed both skills and desire

Hill between Monroeville, Ridge

(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 “Old-time drivers needed skills, desire” was originally published in the Sept. 4, 1975 edition of The Monroe Journal in Monroeville, Ala.)

In our fast-changing world, few remember about the road conditions that befell the local motorists of yesterday. We step into our air-conditioned automobiles and press a lever or push a button, and the auto goes along with little or no effort.

We travel our hard-surfaced roads with little thought about what it was like not too many years ago when one hit the roads of yesteryear with travel on his mind.

It took a pretty good judge of the elements for one to be a successful motorist. Not only did you have to be a good driver, but you also had to know how to fix a flat and how to make the necessary repairs along the way.

You had to know when a road was passable and when the time was right to try to climb some of the steep hills along the way.

For strong at heart

Such a hill was to be found near what is now Ridge Road, north of Monroeville. One can look for a moment at this hill and see the agony of trying to get an early-model automobile up and over it on a wet, rainy day.

This was a job for the strong at heart with a very great desire to ride – or an emergency that was of grave necessity.

Many of these hills that dealt the motorist untold hours of hard work and misery were named. They carried names most times that revealed their characteristics. Such names as Soaprock Hill, Bear Creek Hill, Limestone Hill, Pea Gravel Hill and many many more.

Since most roads followed the high ridges, there weren’t many miles of road that didn’t have a bad hill or two.

Back-breaking outing

What would start out to be a fine Sunday outing might end up being a day or two of back-breaking labor.

Try to imagine a family of three or four dressed in their Sunday best, out for a drive on a spring day.

It hadn’t rained for several days, so you anticipate another day of dry weather. As you jolt along, you keep looking over your shoulder at that thunderhead to the east.

Your visit at a relative’s is a pleasant one, and you forget to watch the clouds that have grown darker and darker by the hour. You are halfway home when raindrops the size of hen eggs hit the fenders of the Model T.

The rain continues to fall as you slip and slide from one ditch to the other. The added strain on the engine has caused it to begin to run hot. Steam vapor has begun to escape around the radiator cap, and Soaprock Hill is yet to be tackled.

As you approach the bottom of the hill, a small pain begins to climb your spine. You can see that you are the first to try the hill since the rain.

The high point of the road is near the middle, and you know that the least amount of pressure will start the car sliding to either side and the ditches.

A short distance from the bottom, the Model T begins to slide to the side. You cannot back up because this will carry you farther toward the ditch.

You sit there and try to keep the car from sliding while your wife, in her Sunday best, gets out in the mud and tries to push.

Closer to ditch

The Model T moves closer to the ditch. You yell above the sound of the engine and escaping steam from the radiator for her to get a chunk from the side of the road and put it behind the rear wheel. This she does – after falling down twice in her best dress and shoes.

As you walk the rest of the way home, carrying the sleeping children in ankle-deep mud, with a mad, mad wife following behind, you wonder if it is worth the effort to return for the car. Because it will take a day of sunshine on the hill and three buckets of water for the radiator before this marvelous invention can be returned to its rightful place in the shed by the barn, to await a loss of memory of yesterday’s happenings and to look ahead to another clear day.

(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 to Vincent William Singleton and Frances Cornelia Faile Singleton, 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 paratrooper 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. He was promoted from the enlisted ranks to warrant officer in May 1972. 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 also helped organize the Monroe County Museum and Historical Society and was also a past president of that organization. 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.)

Uriah Masonic lodge is last ‘Moon Lodge’ in all of Alabama

Blacksher Masonic Lodge No. 593

One of the most historic buildings in all of Monroe County – Blacksher Masonic Lodge No. 593 – is located in the heart of Uriah. This two-story, wood frame structure is secluded on County Road 3, a short distance off State Highway 59. It’s just far enough off the beaten path that most travelers through Uriah have never laid eyes on it.

This Masonic lodge is remarkable for a number of reasons, but it is most noteworthy for being the last remaining “Moon Lodge” in all of Alabama. Harkening back to the days before electric lights, when men had to travel dark roads by foot, horse or wagon, to and from lodge meetings, the lodge at Uriah meets on the Saturday night before the first full moon of each month. There were many lodges of this type at one time, but with the advent of electric lights, they all faded away, that is, except for the lodge at Uriah.

Blacksher Lodge was founded on Sept. 3, 1902 and will celebrate the 120^th anniversary of its founding later this year. The lodge was named after wealthy landowner, farmer and businessman, James Uriah Blacksher of Mobile. In addition to being a Freemason, Blacksher was also a philanthropist, having donated the funds and land to construct the school at Uriah, which still bears his name today.

News of the lodge’s establishment was first published in the Sept. 25, 1902 edition of The Monroe Journal, which reported that a “new Masonic Lodge, Blacksher No. 593, was instituted at Maros, this county, a few days since by N.A. McNiel, Worshipful Master of Enon Lodge, under the authority of a dispensation granted by Grand Master R.M. Cunningham.”

The use of the name “Maros” is interesting because that’s what Uriah was called before its name was changed a few years later. The Maros post office opened in 1901 and closed in 1902. The Uriah post office, which is still in operation today, was established in 1914.

Enon Lodge was located at Goodway and existed from 1895 to 1934. N.A. McNiel was likely Noah Alexander McNiel, who died in 1920. He is buried at Enon Baptist Church, which is also located at Goodway, a short drive from Uriah.

D.C. Mims was the first Worshipful Master of Blacksher Lodge No. 593. The lodge’s other original officers included L.B. Farish, Senior Warden; J.F. Lambert, Junior Warden; W.H. Pearce, Treasurer; W.T. Dees, Secretary; J.A. Brown, Senior Deacon; H.R. White, Junior Deacon; and C.S. Dees, Tyler. No doubt these men probably have many descendants still living in the Uriah area today.

Blacksher Lodge is still an active lodge today with Barry “P.B.” Etheridge as the current Worshipful Master. The present-day members take a lot of pride in their lodge and enjoy carrying on the tradition of being the last remaining “Moon Lodge” in Alabama. I strongly suspect that the lodge’s original members would be proud to know that what they started so many years ago continues to this day.

Many prominent Wilcox County, Alabama pioneers are buried in the historic Camden Cemetery

Confederate monument in Camden, Ala.

Tomorrow (Friday) marks 14 years since the Camden Cemetery was added to the Alabama Historic Cemetery Register. It was on June 17, 2008 that officials with the Alabama Historical Commission added the Camden Cemetery to the register, recognizing its historic significance to Wilcox County and Alabama. Currently, there are 11 Wilcox County cemeteries on the register, but the Camden Cemetery is no doubt the largest.

To date, the Camden Cemetery includes nearly 1,600 marked graves and possibly many more that aren’t marked with a headstone. Those of you who have been to this cemetery before will know that it’s hard to walk very far without passing graves of great historical significance to Wilcox County. In fact, many prominent early Wilcox County pioneers can be found within the confines of this historic cemetery.

A week or so ago, I found myself in the area and pulled over for a quick look around the cemetery. My first stop is always the grave of Margaret Beck, who died in 1822. She was the sister of U.S. vice president William Rufus King, and I believe that her grave is probably the oldest marked grave in the cemetery.

Some might say that the grave of Lt. Joseph Morgan Wilcox is the oldest, and they might be right. Wilcox was killed by Indians in 1814, and most sources say that he was originally buried at Fort Claiborne in Monroe County. Today, some people say that his remains are still at Claiborne in an unmarked grave, while others say that his body was moved to Camden at some point in the distant past.

Not far from the grave of Lt. Wilcox, you’ll find the grave of Dr. John Daniel Caldwell, who was one of the most influential citizens in Camden’s history. Not only was he Camden’s first mayor, but he also named the town “Camden” after his hometown of Camden, South Carolina. Prior to the name change, Camden was known as Barboursville.

A short walk from Caldwell’s grave is one of the more interesting graves in all of Alabama, a pile of bricks that marks the mass grave of the victims of the Orline St. John riverboat fire. About 120 people were aboard the riverboat on March 1, 1850 when sparks from a furnace ignited a fire that sank the Montgomery-bound riverboat. Forty people died in the accident, including all women and children on board. The incident was reported worldwide at the time.

From there, before leaving, I walked over to the Confederate Memorial Statue, which was erected in April 1880. Built to honor the Confederate dead from Wilcox County, the monument was erected by the Ladies’ Memorial and Wilcox Monument Association. It has sat there silently for 142 years, a solemn reminder of the terrible war that sent so many citizen soldiers to an early grave.

The few historic graves mentioned above just scratch the surface of what you’ll find when you visit the Camden Cemetery. If you a local history buff, it behooves you to visit this cemetery, especially if you’ve never been there before. After a few minutes of walking around this cemetery, you’ll quickly see why the Alabama Historical Commission placed it on the state’s historic cemetery register.

Wilcox County, Alabama News Flashback for June 15, 2022

Gov. Benjamin Meek Miller

61 YEARS AGO
JUNE 15, 1961

FIRST COTTON BLOOM: David Mingo farmer on H.H. Wilkinson’s plantation near Boykin, brought the first cotton bloom of the season to the Wilcox Progressive Era office June 13, 1961. He stated that he had blooms on Sat., June 10.

New Principal Is Employed At Pine Hill: Curtis W. Self of Hanceville has been employed by the Wilcox County Board of Education to succeed George Davis as principal of Pine Hill High School for the coming school year.
Mr. Self is a graduate of Jacksonville State College at Jacksonville, Fla. and holds a master’s degree from the University of Alabama. He has been principal at Hanceville for the past four years. This school had an enrollment of over 800 pupils with 33 teachers.

Dean T. Tait Opens Airport: Dean T. Tait, planter-cattleman of Route 1, Camden, has completed the Plantation Airport, which was licensed by the Alabama Department of Aeronautics as a commercial airport on May 16, 1961.
Asa Rountree Jr., State Director of Aeronautics, has listed Plantation Airport in his records as being located five miles west of Camden and lying East-Northeast, West-Southwest. Plantation Airport is 2,500 feet long and 200 feet wide and meets state requirements for a commercial license. Aviation gasoline with a minimum octane rating of 80 percent will be available as well as aviation oils, tie-downs and hangers.
Plantation Aviation is now available to fill this need of Camden and vicinity.

71 YEARS AGO
JUNE 21, 1951

Capt. Elmer H. Kelley is back as company commander of Camden’s Heavy Mortar Co. in the 200^th Infantry Regiment, Fort Jackson, S.C. He has completed a 14-week Associate Officers Advanced Course at the Infantry School, Fort Benning, Ga. During his absence, the company was commanded by 1^st Lt. Tony Holman, who was recently transferred, and 1^st Lt. Jasper Hayles. All three officers are from Camden.

If you want to drive a Powerglide Chevrolet, visit the showrooms of the Camden Motor Co. from now until June 30. J.S. Bodiford, local manager, has set aside special demonstrators for use of the public and the period will be devoted to giving as many people as possible rides in the cars.

Black Belt Study Made At Duke: Dr. Glenn N. Sisk, head of the department of social sciences at the Georgia Institute of Technology, formerly of the State Teachers College, Livingston, Alabama, and a graduate of the University of Alabama, was awarded the Ph.D. degree at Duke University June 4, 1951 on his dissertation entitled: “Alabama Black Belt, A Social History, 1875-1917.”
The research for the study was done largely in the county seats of the 10 Black Belt counties and at the State Department of Archives, Montgomery. Dr. Sisk received a Carnegie Grant-in-Aid in the amount of $600 to prepare the manuscript for publication.
It is an interesting personalized account of the social life in the Black Belt during those years and contains references to many families still living in the region. A manuscript copy is in the library at the State Teachers College, Livingston, Alabama, as well as in the Library of Duke University.

81 YEARS AGO
JUNE 19, 1941

Navy Recruiting Officer In Camden Monday: G.G. Kitchens, Chief Machinist Mate, U.S. Recruiting Officer from Montgomery, Alabama, was in Camden all day Monday. Mr. Kitchens opened a temporary recruiting office in the Sheriff’s office in the County Court House. The recruiting officer stated that he interviewed several applicants for the Navy and the Naval Reserves, two of whom was accepted for enlistment.

PINE HILL: Mrs. C.F. Davis, Mrs. Jack Hitchcock, Misses Helen Poter, Emily Swearingen and Catherine Sheffield were Thomasville shoppers last Friday afternoon.

FURMAN-SNOW HILL: Friends of “Sonny” Newsome are sorry to know of the accident he suffered in a ball game Saturday. A finger was broken. He’s wished a speedy recovery by all.

A Good Woman Is Dying In Awin Today: Last Lord’s day Mrs. Lucy (Williams) Petty, when coming home from church, was stricken with paralysis. It seems she cannot live through this day Wednesday. She has always lived to be prepared for this transition from earthly to celestial life…
As I write here under the pecan trees at the Williams home, I feel the influence of the prayers that have  been kept up here from days of yore in accordance with the words above quotes from the Baptist minister and author who wrote them. – Flavil Hall.

91 YEARS AGO
JUNE 18, 1931

BOYS – Be sure to attend the Big Dance in Camden on Tuesday night, June 23. Louis Clancey and his seven-piece orchestra will furnish the music. He is “Just from the middle West.” Miss this one and always regret it.

Mrs. M.E. Curtis represented the Lt. Joseph M. Wilcox Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution, at the unveiling of the LaFayette marker by the Cherokee Chapter, DAV, at Selma Monday.

Hand-Carved Desk Set Is Miller Gift – Governor Exhibits With Pride Handiwork of Troy Man: No proud parents ever exhibited a firstborn with more pride than Gov. B.M. Miller Wednesday exhibited a beautiful hand-carved desk set presented by a Miller man down in Troy.
The graceful piece of handiwork, carved from mahogany and walnut, carried across its face the inscription, “1931 – Gov. B.M. Miller – 1935.”
Above the inscription was carved the seal of state, even to the wording, “Here We Rest,” on the banner in the eagle’s mouth.
The set was four inches high, three feet long and four inches wide, all hand-carved and shaded in light brown, in the center section, a fountain pen extended from a holder and on either side was a container for pen points.
The set was a gift from Grady Owen, Troy. – Montgomery Advertiser.

BARBECUE – Thurs., July 2, at River Bridge, Miller’s Ferry, Ala. – Baseball, Dancing, Air Planes – Come and Be With the Throngs – Sponsored by the American Legion Post, Camden, Ala.

101 YEARS AGO
JUNE 16, 1921

BASEBALL – Camden vs. Demopolis – Monday, June 20, High School Campus, Game Called At 3:30 – Admission: 25 and 50 cents.

A nice grand stand has been built on the High school campus to accommodate the fans of the ball games. It has a seating capacity of about 500 and it was filled to overflowing Monday afternoon to witness the game with Uniontown. The score was 10 to 0 in favor of Camden.

The first watermelon of the season was presented to The Era office Wednesday by Mr. Walter Campbell of Mt. Hope. Mr. Henry Roberts also had a few on the market on the same day.

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 as no insurance.

One of Camden’s star ball players, “Sut” Jenkins, has entered professional ball, he is playing with the Tennessee league.

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.

Miss Annie Brice Miller of Camden is leaving for a trip to New York and Europe. Mrs. Thomas Gray of Selma and Mrs. Lee of Birmingham will accompany her. Her friends wish her a safe voyage and return.