Saturday, May 23, 2020

From Days Gone By June 9, 1922

June 9, 1922.
    Did it rain last week? Yes, and it poured down for 8 or 9 days in a consecutive season that has caused losses after losses which will never be overcome in the crops. The rains of the past two weeks have cause no little amount of damage to growing crops, to public roads and bridges and conditions generally. Streams have been overflowing, roads washed out and bridges swept away all over the county, but in Johnson the main damage has resulted to crops of all kinds.
    Farmers have not been able to get in the fields and the grass is growing fast and thick. Many crops are past redemption already and others are so embedded in it that it is going to be the hardest sort of job to clean them out. The rains started just as the farmers were fixing to work the fields the first time. Last Thursday more rain fell here than ever seen before by many people.
    The county has suffered heavy damage and loss of the grain crop. A lot of grain had already been cut and stacked in the fields. Corn and cotton is little, and anything but encouraging. Sunshine is needed in abundance and then work in more abundance to make anything in this county this year.
    Rev. A. F. Smith, pastor of Brown Memorial went to Macon for the Centennial celebration of the Georgia Baptist Convention. The big day was held at Mercer. The local tax assessors have sent out notices to tax payers and informing them of raises in the returns. Sheriff Lewis Davis is serving the notices.
    Prof. D. H. Gilliam, who has just closed a short but successful term of school at Kite had a fire on his place out from Dublin which cost him several hundred dollars. Mr. Wm T. Scarboro has filed for bankruptcy. Dr. S. J. Harrison has been made manager of Black's Pharmacy in Dublin.
    Wednesday morning about 10:30, Eugene Cook while cranking a big Studebaker car in front of Gannon's barber shop was badly injured. The car had been left in gear and started off immediately, pinning him between the bumper of the car and the front wall of the barber shop. His leg was broken just below the knee and bruised and crushed in a number of places. After examination by Dr. Brantley he was carried to the Dublin hospital. Eugene is the young son of Mr. & Mrs. J. M. Cook, is a recent graduate, a dependable member of the baseball team and is universally popular.
    The death angel visited the home of Mr. & Mrs. L. P. Claxton and took away little Lottie Nell, 15 months old. She was a twin and only sick a short time.
    The scout troop here is doing fine under the leadership of Messrs. W. W. Crow and L. D. Lovett. Mr. W. T. Lockett of Albany was here selling the county rights to agents for the famous Formby Fly Traps which have cleaned up in all counties where they have been offered.
    Mayor E. E. Sanders and the council are highly complimented on their work on the various streets and lanes of the city, most now in fine shape and they intend to keep them that way.
    On the 25th of May Mr. Sam Price was 61 years and on June 14th his wife will 47. They had a dinner at the home. Those there were J. A. Price family, W. F. Price family, Mr. & Mrs. A. C. Price, Mr. & Mrs. E. P. West and Mr. & Mrs. L. E. Parker and children.
   

From Days Gone By June 2, 1922

June 2, 1922.
    The Wrightsville Highschool takes a break now after one of the best commencement programs ever staged. Rehobeth, near Kite, gets the next session of the Johnson County Singing Convention just beating out Gumlog.
    Sell the roosters along with the hens that doesn't pay their board. That's the advice from Miss Clemmie Massey. She suggests all the people who have chickens to thin out the unprofitable ones by marketing them at the upcoming sale on June 6th. Fryers are bringing good prices and are in much demand all over the country. Miss Massey wants to make this the biggest chicken and hog sale ever had here.
    Messrs. Lovett & Hutcheson, saw mill men, have recently put out a goodly amount of cash for a tract of timber located near the city upon which they will soon locate their saw mill plant. It is the timber that belongs to Mr. W. N. Snell they purchased and contains about a million feet of fair lumber or some less possibly.
    Cotton has gone up to $4.00 peer bale higher than it was a year ago at $3.75, but who has any to sell? Most all the farmers of this county have sold out, but few holding on to any of the staple.
    Dr. W. J. Flanders is demonstrating his farming ability this year and recently exhibited at the Headlight office a stalk of cotton from a field he is tending. This cotton is knee high by now and is maturing squares a plenty and with an absent enemy will make brag returns.
    Mr. David King, now of Atlanta and one time a ball player in Wrightsville was in the city for a short visit. He lived here a while in 1916 and played baseball and his many friends were glad to see him. He had came to the burial of Mrs. Kitchens.
    The LaGrange Graphic quoting notes from their college, says, "The last recital of the year, but certainly one of the most enjoyable, was given by Miss Mary Moore Johnson and Miss Ora Dominey." Miss Johnson received a certificate in music from LaGrange College.
    According to a report from Ford Motor Company in Detroit, a daily average of 5,210 retail sales of Ford cars and trucks had been reached by the close of April in the United States alone. Sales both domestic and foreign totaled 127,249 a new high for Ford.
    What about putting in the sewerage in Wrightsville? The best interests of the city and the health of its people are compelling forces that back every act of the officials who have any great desire for the advancement and uplift of it in everything that pertains to the continued upbuilding of the industrial and civic life of the town.
    It does seem quite a task and a huge undertaking for a place no larger than Wrightsville to put in a thorough system of sewerage but our city ever lays aside its swaddling clothes and becomes a full pledged up-to-date place, such improvements must come and the sooner the better. The advancement of our business interests demands it.

Saturday, May 9, 2020

From Days Gone By May 26, 1922

May 26, 1922.
    The capturing of Charles Atkins, the 15 year old colored boy confessed to the cold-blooded, dastardly deed of shooting Mrs. Elizabeth McAfee Kitchens, last Thursday morning as she was carrying the mail on her route out of Davisboro. The posse captured him and lynched him by burning and shooting and all the details incident to the awful tragedy which aroused this end of Georgia, are thoroughly familar to Johnson County people.
    The dead woman was known by many of Johnson people and was a relative of some of its leading families, and this, coupled with the awful crimes more recently committed in the county, created a wide-spread interest in the crime in Washington County, and people from every part of the county visited the scene of the crime to view the surroundings, learn full particulars and later to see the dead body of the criminal youth.
    The press of the state has carried news daily from the different near-by points and Johnson people are familiar with every late occurance connected with the crime and its results.
    Gainor Atkins, his wife, father and stepmother of the boy, and Sim Atkins, his brother, were hurried Friday evening to Macon where they were lodged in the Bibb County jail for saftey reasons. Since then quiet has prevailed and no further trouble had been anticipated.
    People visiting the scene declare the armed citizenry went about the inquiry and final conclusion of their work with no boisterousness, swearing, cursing, drinking, that all the time the crowd was quiet and orderly.
    Mrs. Elizabeth McAfee of Harrison was married to Mr. William R. Kitchens and had been a rural mail carrier since 1917 and had been married only five weeks. Her father has been postmaster at Harrison for 25 years. Her body was interred at Davisboro.
    Charlie Atkins was only 15 years old. When he was captured he had the stolen money, and the automobile and admitted to the crime.
    Gertie Lee Davis, a colored girl of Wrightsville, was adjudged guilty fully of stealing about $40 in money from Mrs. J. D. Martin several days ago. She got 11 months on the State Farm from the court and with Gladys Jackson will be taken there soon. George Lewis, prosecuted for getting goods through fraud, drew a limit fine on the county gang.
    William V., the 18 month old son of Mr. & Mrs. William V. Tyson, died after about a week in their home near Wrightsville. He was buried at Westview.
    Reuben, better known as "Doc" Dent, with the tractor and street machinery, is getting the streets of the city in good condition. Rube is good when it comes to road building.
    If you want good meal bring your corn to N. D. Norris' mill, also get your vehicle's tires shrunk while he grinds your corn. You can also buy your groceries there. He sells as cheap as anyone.