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Got Figs? Both Mrs. Frances Rallings and Johnny Hall of Brewton do! They have an abundance of figs on their trees this year. Johnny plans to have his first canning experience making Strawberry Fig Preserves and Mrs. Rallings will continue treating her family members to an old family recipe for Fig Newtons. They love receiving homemade batches of cookies in the mail. I’m really impressed! For health conscious people, figs are one of the most highly sought fruits in the United States. Research has shown figs to be a good source of dietary fiber,...
Housing was scarce in the early days of our area as the virgin pine forests awoke from their primordial slumber and the last shots of the War Between the States faded into memory. Sawmills began to dot the landscape and workers, who often arrived in the area with not much more than the clothing on their backs, needed living arrangements. Boarding houses filled this need and soon each community had several. A boarding house typically provided meals to the occupants and common areas were shared....
If it hadn't been a blue frost night on January 31, 1941, I may have been born on the front porch of that little faux brick, tarpaper-wrapped shack that sat smack-dab beside and facing the railroad tracks in the Rose Hill area of Flomaton, Alabama. On the wrong side of the tracks. Mama chewed her knuckles, clawed the sheets and sweat buckets while Dr. Sally used forceps to deliver my sweet little noggin. Three older siblings lay in beds in the back room having competitions with the dreaded whooping cough. Dr. Sally told Mama that I would be...
I've been reading lately about this being the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing. I'd like to share my memories of the time. In July 1969 I was not quite 20 years old, recently graduated from Pensacola Junior College and working as a summer employee at Monsanto. One of my hobbies that summer was enjoying my first born nephew, who was born in July 1969. As I heard the words, “Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.” I was reminded that in 1961 John F. Kennedy had committed us to landing men on the moon and bringing the...
The 2019 Blueberry Festival is a long, gone, happy memory; however, many of you are still finding fresh blueberries. My neighbor Marcia White recently surprised me with delicious and healthy blueberry muffins. The muffins were plump full of blueberries for me to enjoy. WOW! When you think of the nutrient content of blueberries – they are considered a natural superfood, are rich in fiber and a great source of antioxidant vitamin C, vitamin K and manganese. Research has found that blueberries may help prevent prostate cancer, protect against h...
Distinguished Young Women is a national scholarship program that inspires high school girls to develop their full, individual potential through a fun, transformative experience that culminates in a celebratory showcase of their accomplishments. Distinguished Young Women strives to give every young woman the opportunity to further her education and prepare for a successful future. The program will be at 6:30 p.m., Saturday, July 27 in the Woodfin-Patterson Auditorium on the Brewton Campus of...
The years between 1861-65 were a trying time for those involved in the War Between the States. Adding to the turmoil was the misery experienced by those in captivity on both sides of the Blue and the Gray. Among the worst prisoner of war camps was Camp Douglas, Illinois which was located in what is today's Chicago city limits. In late December 1862, a very young Monroe County lad by the name of Private John William McKinley was captured at the Battle of Murphysboro and sent to the camp. In those...
At Century’s ASHS Museums treasures abound. Although the monetary value of almost everything here is minimal, the historical merit of many items cannot be measured because they offer unique windows to our past. One artifact placed on a glass shelf among several other trinkets here is a small ring of keys. It is typical of most, attached are a few keys to unknown doors and locks. But, also on the ring is a brass fob, and engraved on the fob is a simple epitaph: Levi Sampley 1935 I.O.O.F. Lodge. Such things stir my curiosity and make me think ...
I'm taking this advice from Rick Bragg: "I'm tired of explaining myself and I ain't doing it no more; just write from the heart." So here’s to you, my writing hero. I don't know how else to write except my own experience. So, in mid June when the peaches were bending the limbs, we ate them fresh off the trees as we sat afork in-between. Mama had us toting big old galvanized washtubs of peaches to the work bench under the shade of the Chinaberry tree so as to prep them for canning. The peaches kept ripening and falling to the ground, some c...
Last Thursday, July 4, almost 90 runners came to participate in the 20th Celebrate Freedom 5K and One Mile Fun Run/Walk in Jay at Bray-Hendricks Park. The annual event was cancelled, then fortunately made a comeback. In 1980, the ‘running boom’ had spread across the U.S. and the Town of Jay decided to host a community road race on the 4th of July. They called it the ‘Jay Oil Run,’ since oil had been discovered within the city limits and neighboring communities just 10 years earlier. Former...
WHOA! It is so-oo-ooo HOT! Every time I have stepped outside the last few days, I imagined that I stepped into a room in which someone was pouring water on hot rocks. It's hot, steamy, and hard to breathe. But I'm not really in a sauna—I'm just in Lower Alabama on a HOT summer day! Even though this article was written last summer it’s very relevant now!. According to the National Weather Service (NWS), one or more parts of the United States will experience a heat wave each summer. Heat waves in our part of the country tend to combine high tem...
As you read this, I am in the midst of a 4-month, 6,000 mile trip through 19 western states. Presently, I am in the beautiful state of Utah. I am traveling back to all the cities west of the Mississippi River where I played pro baseball. I have been blessed to have been in all the states with the exception of Alaska. Over the years, my travels have taken me to every city in our great country with over 150,000 people. I have seen some beautiful sights along the way…many of which will mean a great deal more to me now as I revisit them. As I t...
If you find yourself with several days off work and desire to vacate the familiar scenery of our area, northern Mississippi might be calling your name. On a recent June weekend travelled north and discovered untapped gems of local color and history in previously unviewed locales. Our good friends Bruce and Cathy graciously allowed us to stay with them and soon the four of us were touring the area. After spending the night in the charming town of Tishomingo, Mississippi and a stop at a local...
I have written several times about family history. Back in the 1980's when I was just getting started in family research it was trips to libraries other places where records were kept. Some time during the mid 1990's there was these things called computers and the internet coming into play. Some smart people saw a way to use the computers and internet to do family research making everything much easier for us. This made finding your relative from all over the world somewhat easier. Then several years later a thing called DNA research came...
So today I saw a post of Texans washing their prize longhorn in the local car wash. Pros and cons of comments set me to remembering my childhood and how Mama & Daddy saved time and energy by doing things the easiest way possible while letting us enjoy life to the fullest. As the slight cool opening of the hot summer day ahead I remember hearing Mama & Daddy talking in the kitchen as they made breakfast for us. Somewhere in the bluish time of day-breaking: the smell of bacon and sausage frying, the smell of coffee as the old aluminum percolator...
“Summertime and the livin’ is easy. Fish are jumpin’…and we want to handle all foods safely before we cook, grill or fry”! (A play on words from one of my favorite songs by George Gershwin) Summer holidays provide a break from school and work, but we shouldn't break from being smart about food safety. More care is needed since foodborne illnesses increase during the summer. July is National Picnic month and summer picnics are a great way to enjoy the outdoors and each other's company. Keep your picnics with family and friends healthy and safe...
On the last day of jumpstart, Thursday, June 27, a program intended to prepare incoming Flomaton Elementary School kindergartners to attend school, the children were treated to a special surprise. Flomaton Fire Chief Steve Stanton along with other firemen and EMS drivers, arrived with their fire engine to spray the children with the water hose. Chief Stanton and his crew had visited with the children prior to Thursday's visit to educate the kids on fire safety and emergency awareness. As the...
As I write this I am in the middle stages of a 100 day, 7,000 mile motorhome trip across the western states. My goal is to revisit those cities where I played during my professional baseball career. Obviously, I will visit many great sights and locations on this trip, as well. Going back into the past reminds me that it is easy to look back at yesterday and the days before that and say, "If I had only…," isn’t it? But where will it get us? We know that we can't go back in time. We know that we can't live our “yesterdays” again. But there is a t...
Are You Drinking or Eating Enough Dairy Foods for the Health Benefits? Did you know June is National Dairy Month? It is a great time to learn more about dairy foods and how they fit into a healthy-eating pattern. All age groups except for young children 1–3 years old are below the recommended intake for dairy foods according to the 2015–2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Dairy provides many health benefits, so it is important to add more fat-free and low-fat dairy foods to your meals and snacks. DAIRY IS NUTRITIOUS Milk is the fou...
The Great Depression had a profound impact on those who lived through it. It was a test by fire and hardened the resolve of those who made it through those dark days. The times were dark in that jobs were hard to find, starvation was right around the corner, and for some, hunger and despair were ever-present companions. At this point in history Franklin Roosevelt was elected President. Although many of his policies resulted in a dramatic increase in government programs and entitlements, these programs were not such that they rewarded inaction...
18 summer rolls around to find myself facing the honor of starting school in September, a 7th grade nobody special. Classroom for 7th graders was assigned to the musty basement of our 1928 built A. D. Kelly School at Wallace, Alabama. My summertime field work gave me time to save my cotton picking money to start the year all dressed in whatever Sears & Roebuck would sell me for my pennies on the dollar along with any Atmore cousins hand-me-downs that may come to me in a care bundle. Loved those hand-me-downs. Nobody at dear old Wallace had...
As part of the Flomaton Public Library 2019 Summer Reading Program's 'A Universe of Stories', the Yarbrough Reptile Show from Oxford, Ala. introduced guests to lizards, snakes, a tortoise and an alligator last Friday! Owner Becky Tucker showed non-poisonous snakes, such as the King Snake (also called the false Coral snake because of the markings), gray and red rat snakes and an albino Burmese Python. There were also poisonous snakes, such as a copperhead, a "cottonmouth" moccassin, a timber...
During the early 1900s a series of local newspapers did much to preserve the history and local news of the infant communities which dotted the landscape of Escambia County Alabama and Northwest Florida. R.W. Brooks, a reverend and a newspaper man, wrote many spirited accounts of history he witnessed first hand and, in doing so, provided a glimpse into the past for those of us reading his articles 90 plus years later. R.W. Brooks was the template for other journalist in the area. Some were...
The Alger-Sullivan museums are over-packed with items that recall the history of Century and the surrounding area. Many of these are photos, some are pieces of machinery or tools, others only trinkets, but almost all of these things have a story attached. Among these artifacts, in a frame hanging inconspicuously on a crowded wall, is an old letter. This is the story of that letter. Robert Coon was born in 1872 in Michigan. After completing only the fifth grade, he began work at about the age of eleven. As a young man, he held a series of jobs...
I decided to write about my connections to fiber. My earliest experiances was with COTTON, then NYLON, now at age 78 I mostly deal in Raisin Bran or Honey Bunches of Oats if you get my drift. I have written mostly about my childhood expriences with all the ups and downs of life in the poor lane while living and loving every minute of it. I'm moving into the years of my forced adulting. 1959.......... A year filled with things like Prom, senior trip to Washington, DC, final exams and graduation night when W. S. Neal Principal T.G. Price handed...
