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Contemplation. In my old dictionary, one of the definitions is “thoughtful inspection”. This seems like an old person’s word. The answer to “what ya doing?” from an old man sitting on the front porch, “Oh, I’m just contemplating.” Perhaps this is how common sense wisdom is gained by many of the elderly, a better insight of life and the world not seen by those younger, just contemplating. In the past years a few with front porch wisdom have shared that wisdom with later generations through their writings. One of these folks was A.V. Culpepper....
Today, Theresa and Jerry Bell of Pineview live on a property named Legacy Acres. Located alongside Hwy. 113 between Flomaton and I-65. The farm has an event barn that is considered an agri-tourism business. The Bells live on and farm 200 acres of the original land purchased by Theresa's Great Grandfather Coleman Strength. A deed for a Land Grant was signed to Escambia County pioneer, Henry Morningstar on September 10th, 1873 by Alabama Governor David L. Lewis. Theresa's Great Grandfather, Coleman Strength bought 320 acres of the grant land...
The Escambia County 4-H and FFA Calf Show starts at 12 p.m., Thursday, March 5, with sale starting right after, at around 6 p.m. In March of 2019, youth from across Escambia County, AL and the surrounding area gathered for the 2019 edition of the Escambia County 4-H/FFA Calf Show at Perdido River Farms in Atmore, AL. The show saw 41 youth show off the work they did with their 8 heifers and 39 steer. For some of those youth, their financial rewards from showmanship or class divisions were enjoyed for a short time before they were invested into...
...CONTINUED FROM LAST WEEK Tony gave some history about the Powell family that needs to be shared here to understand how the family members lived and worked together during the time of the busy Powell's Café years. Grace employed a lady to help with caring for the children and running the house as she, herself was so involved in the operation of the business. Mrs. Carrie McGill from Pollard was the longtime employee for the Powell's and was like family. Tragically, Mrs. Carrie died in a house f...
Welcome to Alabama—where the weather is always in a state of confusion. It may be warm during the day, but take advantage of the waning days of winter and cozy up at night with a warm bowl of soup. These recipes are sure to warm you from the inside out. Quick Potato Soup • 3 cups skim milk •1 cup instant potato flakes •2 tablespoons corn-oil margarine •1 tablespoon instant onion flakes •¼ teaspoon salt •1 teaspoon celery seed•1/8 teaspoon black pepper or to taste Directions Pour milk in a heavy saucepan and heat over medium heat. DO NOT BOI...
One of the more difficult things for assertive people to do is to take a “pause for the cause.” There are times when we actually become victims of our circumstances. Events seem to rush us, press us, move us along at a pace that is injurious to emotional and physical health. Taking a self-restoring timeout is as much about a mental gain as it a physical gain. This "timeout" gives our creative juices a chance to flourish. It gives us a chance to think through ideas and solutions buried under the hustle and bustle of daily activities. A wise mov...
Military dispatches provide an important reflection of the significance of a geographic area during a war. The importance of Canoe Station as a military base and supply point is illustrated through the military dispatches exchanged by various commanders, on both sides, during the War Between the States. The coming of the Mobile and Great Northern Railroad in the 1850s provided commercial and transportation links to the backwoods of rural Alabama and in the process, the numerous small rail stops...
Beginning early in the seventeenth century, settlers from Spain, France, Sweden, Holland, and England claimed land and formed colonies along the eastern coast of North America, and the struggle for control of this land continued for well over a hundred years. By the time the Declaration of Independence was signed in 1776, there were thirteen operational American colonies with independent governments and constitutions. The first permanent settlement was the English colony at Jamestown, in 1607, in what is now Virginia. Similar to the other colon...
Nursing students in biology class at Coastal Alabama Community College were privileged last Thursday to get a visit from LifeFlight to see first hand the medical equipment and capabilities offered when an emergency air lift transport is needed. Students, firefighters, campus police and others gathered in an open field on the campus to wait for the helicopter as excitement grew. An emergency transport call before the scheduled visit to the campus knocked the schedule offby an hour. “We can pretty...
The advent of Highway 31 brought about rapid transportation between the hamlets and towns of the area. Motorists could now travel routes in a few hours that previously would have taken a half day, full day or multiple days to traverse. On April 5, 1934, The Atmore Advance reported the opening of the Highway 31 portion between Sardis Church Road and Canoe. All along 31, truck stops, motels and other tourist attractions began to spring to life. In Canoe, the Lighthouse was an early example of such a tourist attraction. The old Gordon Mineral...
Tony Powell, son of Marvin and Grace Powell, shared his history of Powell's Café & Cabins for this story. In 1943, Tony's Dad purchased some land where the first Powell's Café sat. Marvin met Grace when he was working at the shipyard in Mobile during WWII. The two got married and moved to the Flomaton area to build a home and shortly afterward built the first Café. Grace had experience running a Café as she had worked in Mobile at a Greek restaurant for several years. In July 1946 Marvin and...
Technologies are often viable tools for land owners and managers. A prime example of this is the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), most commonly referred to as drones. Their many uses prove them to be beneficial tools in land and forest management. Benefits “Drones can be flown by natural resource managers to capture aerial imagery or scout tracts for a wide variety of management issues,” said Beau Brodbeck, an Alabama Extension community forestry specialist. “These include monitoring harvesting progress, identifying insect outbr...
The political history of the U.S. is filled with a variety of scoundrels, although few rise to the blatant level of today. One of the nation’s earliest such political scoundrels had a slight connection to this region of the South. His name was Arron Burr. Arron Burr was born in 1756 in New Jersey. He graduated from Princeton College as a young man in 1772 and then enlisted in the Continental Army, rising from the rank of private to lieutenant colonel as a result of bravery and leadership in several major battles. After the war he became a l...
Newspapers in our area have always profiled local residents and their human interests pursuits. Yet in an era when most people were "closer to the earth" it was well thought of to cover farms and agricultural interests. It is almost a forgotten fact of local history but our area was once awash in peach orchards, produce growing and strawberry patches. The area between Canoe and Malta was no different and many farmers made their livelihood growing such crops. The Brewton Standard was one in a lon...
The political history of the U.S. is filled with a variety of scoundrels, although few rise to the blatant level of today. One of the nation’s earliest such political scoundrels had a slight connection to this region of the South. His name was Arron Burr. Arron Burr was born in 1756 in New Jersey. He graduated from Princeton College as a young man in 1772 and then enlisted in the Continental Army, rising from the rank of private to lieutenant colonel as a result of bravery and leadership in several major battles. After the war he became a l...
January has come and gone. This writer has been given another birthday to look forward for rounding towards 80. The CEO of this outfit has gathered 1099 forms like a greedy squirrel. Don't want the IRS coming ‘round here asking questions. "Nawsiree…!" Punxsutawney Phil crawled out to look for his shadow somewhere in a Pennsylvania village and allowed those selfish Yankees to hold him up for the hordes and cameras to see his fat little self mid-slumber. This year Fat Phil blinked, the top hats declared an early Spring, and here we wait. Feb...
Whether is a juicy peach or a sweet apple, there are many fruit trees that make a perfect addition to the back yard. In order for them to grow and produce fruit, growers must properly plant and care for the trees. When done correctly, the tree’s bounty is a wonderful reward at the end of the process. Selecting The first step to growing fruit trees is selecting the correct variety for the area in which the tree will be planted. Dani Carroll, an Alabama Extension home grounds, gardens and home pests regional agent, said buying trees from a l...
Quency B. Adams (not his real name) was a Prisoner of War during the Viet Nam conflict for five years. He shared with me the inhumane treatment that his captors inflicted on all the prisoners. It was horrific to say the least. I met Quency, several years after his return from Viet Nam. He had taken a position with a firm I worked for in Chicago. While a prisoner-o-war, Quency, learned to play the piano without the benefit of a piano. Let me explain. Learning to play the piano had been a lifetime desire of Quency’s. He approached a fellow p...
When Hilary Casey, a second grade reading teacher at Brewton Elementary School, returned from Christmas break she told them she had a secret to tell. Instead of simply telling the students her secret, she designed a puzzle that her students had to figure out. The solution to the puzzle was 'my teacher is having a baby'. "I told them it had been six years since I had a baby and I needed them to give me some advice," Mrs. Casey said. So the students' assignment was to write down what advice they...
While walking the trails and streets of Wilcox County one could be forgiven for seeing the boundaries between the past and present becoming blurred before their very eyes. At places like Reaves Chapel, a quaint one room church on a wind-swept ridge near Gullet's Bluff, on a cold January day visions of children playing in the church yard and church members sharing dinner on the grounds was close to the mind's eye; although in our reality it was quite except for the sound of the wind whipping...
I have written about family research several times but I'm always finding new information about not only my family but others in this area. I got interested in my ancestors at a early age. I remember talking to several family members about my family. I first started taking notes with a regular school notebook and pencil back in the 1970's, when I would talk to the older people in the family. One of the best sources of information back then was libraries, where you could look up old records. A older family member who was also very interested in...
Mr. Robert Watts, born Dec. 5, 1883 died Jan. 10, 1965. Buried at Amity Cemetery in Tunnel Springs, Alabama. This writer remembers this man circa 1947-48 when he lived with, and worked for the second time, in the home for the Eric & Lottie Odom family here in Barnett Crossroads Community. The home of Mr. Eric and Mrs. Lottie Johnson Odom had half of their fourteen children still living at home when Mrs. Lottie was again in need of domestic help. Mr. Rob Watts lived in the Odom home where his main duty was washing clothes and helping cook. Rob...
Bullying is common in children and youth. Research shows that one in three young people admit to bullying others. An Alabama Extension family and child development specialist said it is important parents be alert for warning signs that their child is bullying others. “How young people behave at home is often a reflection of how they behave with others at school,” Adrienne Duke said. “Children who bully others tend to feel a need to have control over situations, push boundaries, and are often unaware of the consequences of violent behav...
"The transformation thats been going on here is really exciting for us," said (GRECS) Gulf Regional Early Childhood Services President Wendy McEarchern. "We are excited to be here in Brewton. Once we have a more clear date to open, we will have a grand opening to let the community know we are here." McEarchern is referring to Brewton's Head Start, which has been open under Community Action of Alabama 1207 Belleville Avenue for 10 years, but recently the five-year grant wound up in the...
This was one of the times I was drawing a blank for column ideas. Among the many things I tried while searching for triggers was looking through my picture files on my computer. This picture of a group of men and boys in front of J.R. Parker's Store (I think from the 1930's) brought back memories of my time in McDavid, Florida in the 1950's and 1960's. In my time Parker's Store was ran by Mr. Parker's daughter, known to all of us as Miss Edith. Miss Edith also operated the McDavid post office...
