Alabama History & Culture News: December 20 edition

 

Here's the latest batch of links to just-published Alabama history and culture articles. Most of these items are from newspapers, with others from magazines and TV and radio station websites. Some articles may be behind a paywall. Enjoy!

Tragic romance between Alabama inmate and prison guard chronicled in new movie

WTOK

West Lauderdale history teacher, Ed Abdella, holds up his bike to celebrate finishing his · West Lauderdale history teacher completes 24 hour straight ...

Meet the woman who guides visitors through Selma and was part of its civil rights history Alabama Public Radio As a part of the White House team, she's also a regular on the NPR Politics Podcast. See stories by Ayesha Rascoe. News from Alabama Public Radio is a ...

Antioch Baptist in Greensboro celebrates 125th anniversary The Alabama Baptist Photo courtesy of the Alabama Baptist Historical Commission ... raised in the church, presented the church history and recognized former members.

Critically acclaimed writer and Dothan native holding a book signing in the Circle City | WDHN

WDHN

All of my books are set in Alabama, my beloved Alabama. Charles McNair. While the Epicureans was originally published in 2021, McNair did not have ...

When Chris Farley went to 'the place in Alabama' to get sober - CBS 42 CBS 42 Despite the clinic never being specifically named in the book, Farley had actually been sent to the Mary Lee Zawadski Clinic, a drug rehabilitation ...

Peggy Towns receives Athena Award in Decatur - Yahoo News Yahoo News Her 30 years of public service and her books on local ... ... science from Calhoun Community College and bachelor's in theology from Alabama A&M.

Enterprise native publishes book on former Alabama Gov. 'Big Jim' Folsom - Dothan Eagle Dothan Eagle Enterprise native Jeffrey Smith announces the publication this month of his newest book, “A Pea River Progeny; Alabama's Colorful and ...

Author Leslie Anne Tarabella joins us with her new Christmas book 'Bringing Christmas Home' FOX10 News Available at https://leslieannetarabella.com, Amazon and select bookstores. Leslie Anne Tarabella was born in Alabama and raised along the Gulf Coast.

Meet Alabama thriller author Robert Bailey - Soul Grown Soul Grown Huntsville writer Robert Bailey is releasing a new book in his popular "Rich" series, just in time for the holidays.

Opinion: Celebrating Alabama's 203rd birthday | News | selmasun.com Selma Sun Since our state's admission into the Union on December 14, 1819, the people of Alabama have forged their way into history by overcoming, adapting, and ...

Magic City Grille among historic Birmingham properties acquired by New Orleans firm AL.com Kupperman Companies, known for developing Hotel Saint Vincent and The Drifter Hotel, is entering the Alabama real estate market.

After years in a museum exhibit, Alabama is giving Native Americans their cultural items back WBHM A mix of modern and historical objects line display case at the Poarch Band of Creek Indians museum in Atmore, Alabama, Nov. 28, 2022.

Aerial View of Bryce Hospital in 1943

In a recent wandering through the Alabama Mosaic digital collections I came across this aerial photograph of the Bryce Hospital campus and surrounding area. The description reads, "From a report submitted to Governor Chauncey Sparks on November 9, 1943, by the Tuscaloosa Chamber of Commerce's Committee for the Location and Establishment of a Four-Year Medical School for Alabama." 

So what does all that mean?

In the early 1940's the state legislature began to look for a place to locate a four-year medical college. A two-year college already existed in Tuscaloosa, which meant that students had to leave the state to finish medical education. Naturally, the leaders in Tuscaloosa would want the school to remain there, and would promote Bryce as a large source of potential patients. However, the school ended up in Birmingham, where the huge Jefferson Hospital had opened in December 1939. The Medical College of Alabama's first four-year class began in September 1945.

The Alabama Insane Hospital opened in 1861, and Peter Bryce was chosen as first superintendent. He died in 1892 and in 1900 the facility was officially named after him. Bryce closed several years ago, and the campus was purchased by the University of Alabama in 2010. The site is undergoing major redevelopment and restoration.

Numerous photos related to Bryce have survived, and I explored a few of them in a 2016 blog post. I also wrote a "quick visit" blog post about Bryce in 2014. 

Prominent in the background of this photo is the Black Warrior River. 

Source: Alabama Dept of Archives & History 

Alabama History & Culture News: December 12 edition

 

Here's the latest batch of links to just-published Alabama history and culture articles. Most of these items are from newspapers, with others from magazines and TV and radio station websites. Some articles may be behind a paywall. Enjoy!

Book Review: 'Freedom's Dominion,' by Jefferson Cowie - The New York Times The New York Times ... sobering new history, “Freedom's Dominion,” traces the close association between the rhetoric of liberty in an Alabama county and the politics ...

Ann Hodges gave the University of Alabama a gift like no other Alabama NewsCenter Ann Hodges' grapefruit-sized space rock — the Sylacauga Meteorite — can be viewed at the Alabama Museum of Natural History.

Relatives of Courtland's famous historic residents visit Courtland Cemetery | - Moulton Advertiser Moulton Advertiser ... in Courtland, Alabama, but they are still important to us even today. ... relatives and visiting the graves of Courtland historic citizens, ...

Work continues on turning Gus Mitchell store into a museum where folks can step back in time

Selma Sun

17 to discuss development of the historic Gus Mitchell store and ... “Last month we got a grant from the Alabama Historical Commission to do more .

Deborah Oberkor made history at the University of Alabama, aims to bring representation to sororities AL.com Montgomery native Deborah Oberkor made history in November after being elected the first Black woman to lead the Alabama Panhellenic Association.

Ridgeview Baptist in Talladega celebrates 75th anniversary The Alabama Baptist Congregational singing was led by Joseph Strickland. Sonja Adams presented a certificate on behalf of the Alabama Baptist Historical Commission. “We ...

FBC Clanton celebrates 150th anniversary - The Alabama Baptist

The Alabama Baptist

Sarah Walters (right), wife of former pastor James Walters, presented a certificate on behalf of the Alabama Baptist Historical Commission to ..

Pike County Historical Society receives grant - The Troy Messenger

The Troy Messenger

Jaine Treadwell | The Messenger The Pike County Historical, Genealogical & Preservation Society has been awarded a grant from the Alabama ...

Family remembers Alabama Navy doctor killed in attack on Pearl Harbor - WSFA

WSFA

“I think it's so important that we remember our history, whether we have a family member or relative, that was directly involved,” said Elizabeth ...

James Braziel - "This Ditch-Walking Love" | Alabama Public Radio Alabama Public Radio This 187-page book has 16 stories, if you want to count them that way. Some are full-length stories, and several are sketches reminiscent in their ...

Program teaches kids about local Native American history | Alabama Public Radio Alabama Public Radio So far, Heidi's stories have included the impeachment of Lauderdale County's coroner, and a Black History Month book drive to benefit Alabama's Black ...

Review: 'Lowndes County and the Road to Black Power' chronicles the fight for civil rights

Los Angeles Times

... the American South, especially in the long politically-charged state of Alabama. From the Montgomery bus boycott to the historic Selma march, ...

From Martin Luther King Jr. to Black Lives Matter: On the Civil Rights Trail in Alabama Euronews Alabama is home to food, fun and history; a state whose importance around the globe is secured by its Civil Rights Movement legacy.

Dr. Tony G. Waldrop, 1951-2022 - University of South Alabama University of South Alabama Dr. Sean Powers, professor and director of the School of Marine and Environmental Sciences, considers Waldrop an important president in the history of ...

Jefferson County Cemetery Board Shadowlawn Memorial Park - WVTM 13

WVTM 13

He visits the cemetery every few weeks to trim their burial plot. Advertisement. So, he knows how the neglected graveyard can frustrate the loved ones ...

“You Are My Sunshine: A Story of Love, Promises, and A Really Long Bike Ride” By: Sean Dietrich Alabama Public Radio Publisher: Zondervan Books ... honestly, even though the reader knows this is going to be a horror show, the book carries one along.

Hermes Guided Missile in Huntsville

If you've ever driven Memorial Parkway through Huntsville, you may have noticed the small missile standing at the intersection with Airport Road. This A-1 rocket was part of Project Hermes, the second missile program of the U.S. Army which operated from November 1944 until December 1954. White Sands Proving Ground in New Mexico was the Army's test site, where U.S. missile research was combined with parts for 100 V-2 rockets and scientists such as Werner Von Braun, all captured in Germany. 

General Electric was the American contractor for the program; development of the A-1 began in 1946. The Hermes A-1 was similar to the  German anti-aircraft Missile Wasserfall, which was about a fourth the size of a V-2. Five were launched at White Sands between May 1950 and April 1951.

As the Wikipedia entry notes, "None of the Hermes missiles became operational, but did provide experience in the design, construction, and handling of large-scale missiles and rocket engines." An historical marker near this missile explains that this particular Program Hermes rocket was the first American guided missile put on public display on May 13, 1953. The marker itself was erected by the Huntsville Chamber of Commerce in 1956. 

This relic has stood near the old airport site while the city around it has grown tremendously. A 1951 color film about Project Hermes can be watched on YouTube. GE's final report on the project can be read at the Internet Archive. 

Source: Historical Markers Database. The entry there has more photos, including one of a Hermes display at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center. 

Melinda Dillon Once Lived in Cullman

Among her many other acting roles, Melinda Dillon played the mother in two very well known American films, Close Encounters of the Third Kind and A Christmas Story. As these things work out, Alabama connections abound. Close Encounters did lots of filming in the Mobile area, and A Christmas Story was directed by Bob Clark, who spent some of his childhood in the state. "Where I grew up in Birmingham, Alabama, we were lower middle class, but we actually had a maid.  I used to go with the maid on weekends to what would have been called 'Coloured Town' to play with the kids there—I loved them," he noted in a phone interview not long before his 2007 death in a car crash. Finally, Dillon herself spent some of her childhood in Cullman. Let's investigate.

According to her entry in the Encyclopedia of Arkansas, Dillon was born October 13, 1939, in the town of Hope. "Information about her early life is sparse, and Dillon remains an intensely private person." The IMDB and Wikipedia repeat this information about her birth. I'll come back to all this later in the post.

Her career began on stage. She was a member of the improvisational troupe The  Second City in Chicago in 1961. Alumni of that group include a roster of stars such as Alan Alda, Bill Murray and John Belushi. The following year she made her Broadway debut in the original production of Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? alongside Uta Hagan, Arthur Hill and George Grizzard. Dillon was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Tony award for her performance. By 1971 she had made a few more appearances on Broadway. 

In the 1960's she also had guest roles on such TV shows as The Defenders, East Side/West Side and Bonanza. Since then she has alternated television work with  films including Bound for Glory (1976), Slap Shot (1977), Absence of Malice (1981), Harry and the Hendersons (1987), The Prince of Tides (1991) and Magnolia (1999). Her final work seems to be three episodes in the Treat Williams TV medical drama Heartland in 2007. The Wikipedia entry for the recent sequel A Christmas Story Christmas noted that she retired in that year and thus did not participate in the film. 

OK, let's dig a little deeper into her family background for that Alabama connection. Her parents were Floyd Cardy, Jr. [March 22, 1912-August 14, 1978] and Essie Norine Barnett [April 15, 1915-February 16, 2006]. Floyd was a Jonesboro, Arkansas, native; Norine was born in Cullman. The two were married in Alabama City, Etowah County, on July 1, 1937. I found this information in U.S. Census and marriage records at Ancestry.com 

Dillon gave a rare interview with Robert Wahls in conjunction with her Broadway debut that was published in the New York Daily News on October 28, 1962 [Sec. 1, p. 16]: "90-Day Wonder: An Unknown Only Three Months Ago, 23-year-old Actress Melinda Dillon Shot to Stardom in Broadway Debut" In it she notes that her father Fred Clardy was an oil company representative working out of Cullman, where her mother ran a beauty shop.  

In the Wahls interview Dillon claims the Hope, Arkansas, birthplace because "daddy knew a doctor there and mother had lost one baby." Her parents divorced when she was five, and her mother did not remarry until May 17, 1947, in the town of Lipscomb in Jefferson County. Dillon's stepfather was Wilbur Samuel Dillon, whom she described as a provost marshal in the military police. The family spent 1948-1951 in Nurnberg, Germany, and moved often after that posting. At some point they settled in Chicago, where Melinda graduated from Hyde Park High School. She decided to remain in the Windy City when her parents moved again. 

We find a few more details about Dillon's father Fred Clardy, Jr., at his Find-A-Grave page. That source notes he was a World War II vet who worked as district manager for Alabama for the AMOCO company. Presumably after his divorce from Norine he returned to Arkansas, where he owned the Clardy Oil Company in Hot Springs, and where he is buried. 

The Clardy family appears in Cullman in the 1940 U.S. census. Presumably Fred and Norine [spelled Norene on the census sheet] had moved there sometime after their 1937 marriage in Etowah County. Perhaps as a district manager Floyd could live where he wanted in that area, and after all Cullman was Norine's home town. Why they were married in Alabama City also remains a mystery.

Other mysteries appear. The census enumerator, who questioned the family on May 2, 1940, listed Melinda Ruth as being seven months old, which fits her October 13, 1939, birth date. However, the birthplace is listed as "Alabama". So we are left to wonder about Dillon's actual birthplace.

Norine and daughter Melinda did live in the state until Norine's second marriage in 1947. Why the nuptials took place in Lipscomb, a town near Bessemer, is unknown. Norine died in 2006 in Leavenworth, Kansas. I have been unable to find any more information so far about Dillon's stepfather. 

UPDATE 5 February 2023

Dillon passed away on January 9, 2023. An article reviewing her career from The Hollywood Reporter can be found here. 

Source: Encyclopedia of Arkansas 

Dillon in Close Encounters. She was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Academy Award for this performance. 

Dillon in A Christmas Story. She should have won an Oscar for this one. 

Alabama History & Culture News: December 1 edition

 

Here's the latest batch of links to just-published Alabama history and culture articles. Most of these items are from newspapers, with others from magazines and TV and radio station websites. Some articles may be behind a paywall. Enjoy!

10 Things You Will Learn At USS Alabama Battleship Memorial Park - TheTravel TheTravel Looking to learn more about naval history, technology, and warfare? It's time to explore USS Alabama Battleship Memorial Park!

Dr. Jim Brown, Author of Distracted by Alabama - thehomewoodstar.com The Homewood Star Dr. Brown is a native Tennessean. He earned his PhD in European history from Vanderbilt and taught history at Samford University from 1971-2016.

Visit Cheaha Mountain, the highest point in Alabama Alabama NewsCenter Cheaha Mountain offers Alabama's most majestic views as well as history, hiking and abundant recreational opportunities. (Alabama State Parks).

Alabama's execution problems are part of a long history of botched lethal ... - The Conversation The Conversation Alabama has paused the carrying out of death sentences after a series of cases in which the state struggled with the procedure.

“Afternoons with Harper Lee” By: Wayne Flynt | Alabama Public Radio Alabama Public Radio At a “History and Heritage” festival in Eufaula, in 1983, Lee was, ... to discuss or a particular southeast Alabama historical event, ...

Visit Cheaha Mountain, the highest point in Alabama

Alabama NewsCenter

Cheaha Mountain offers Alabama's most majestic views as well as history, hiking and abundant recreational opportunities. (Alabama State Parks).

Daniel Moore shares process behind creating art inspired by Alabama football's biggest moments WHNT.com “The neat thing about that book is that I collaborated with Keith Jackson, the famous sportscaster, and The Birmingham News, where you get the ...

Teen kills 'monster' deer in Alabama. Mystery remains how this rare species got there Columbus Ledger-Enquirer Randolph County, Alabama, teen Coye Potts of Handley High School in Roanoke shot and killed a red stag deer while hunting in Rock Mills.

Arbor Springs Baptist in Reform celebrates 150th anniversary The Alabama Baptist Ricky Morris was the guest pianist. David Nelson of the Alabama Baptist Historical Commission, Mike Jackson of the State Board of Missions and Lyle ...

The Iron Bowl and its weather history - WBRC WBRC The weather can vary quite a bit for Alabama's biggest football game.

Book Review: Ancient Life in Alabama | Opinion | auburnvillager.com

Auburn Villager

... followed up his acclaimed work on Alabama rivers with a new book titled "Ancient Life in Alabama: The Fossils, the Finders & Why It Matters.".

Marbury's Confederate Memorial Park to host Santa's Post Office - Elmore-Autauga News Elmore-Autauga News (Marbury, AL) Confederate Memorial Park, a historic property of the Alabama Historical Commission, will host a special seasonal event on Saturday, ...

Slavery's ghost haunts cotton gin factory's transformation | AP News

AP News

(AP) — There's no painless way to explain the history of a massive brick structure being renovated into apartments in this central Alabama city ...

FBC Alexander City celebrates 150th anniversary throughout October - The Alabama Baptist

The Alabama Baptist

Calvin Milford of the Alabama Baptist Historical Commission presented a certificate Oct. 16. “The celebration was a reminder that we have been ...

Hartford Square to be named Alabama Historic location - WDHN WDHN Recently, Alabama Historical Society members came to Hartford and fell in love with the city's downtown square. Mayor Neil Strickland says they ...

Folks light the way on first Africatown Historical Lantern Walk - FOX10 News FOX10 News People came from all across the state for the Africatown Historical Lantern Walk to learn about the history of Africatown and remember its ancestors.

Historic home Woodside 'completely gone' due to fire | WHNT.com

WHNT.com

SVFD Chief Dustin Tucker says Woodside, a home that was part of the Belle Mina plantation formerly owned by Alabama's second governor Thomas Bibb, ...

Lifelong Huntsville resident and author Antonio Howard discovered 'Cousins by the Dozens ... AL.com What inspired you to write this family history? I wanted to share the story of a WWII veteran who I discovered was my uncle, my great uncle, ...

Cheer Up! Sam, or, Sarah Bell

Wikipedia has this opening for its entry on the minstrel show, or minstrelsy, "an American form of racist theatrical entertainment developed in the early 19th century. Each show consisted of comic skits, variety acts, dancing, and music performances that depicted people specifically of African descent. The shows were performed by mostly white people wearing blackface make-up for the purpose of playing the role of black people. There were also some African-American performers and black-only minstrel groups that formed and toured. Minstrel shows caricatured black people as dim-witted, lazy, buffoonish, superstitious, and happy-go-lucky.^[1][2]"

^{As the entry notes, the minstrel show was the first original form of
American theater. The first shows appeared in the northeast in the
1830's, but spread across the country and remained a fixture of American
culture well into the 20th century. Some small tours continued in the
Southeast and the Midwest into the 1930's. Amateur productions 
are known to have continued in high schools and local venues until the
1960's. The form had been largely replaced, however, by 1910 as the
less racist vaudeville gained in popularity. I've done a blog post on one minstrel
show, "J.C. Lincoln's Sunny South Minstrels in Alabama in 1836."}

Minstrel shows included comedy skits, dances and songs. Minstrelsy's legacy continues to permeate American culture today in many ways. Fast paced gags and puns are one example. Some jokes, such as "Why did the chicken cross the road?" continue to be told.

^{I recently came across the song below that appeared in minstrel shows
and has an Alabama connection. According to one source, "Cheer Up!
Sam. Sara Bell" was popularized by Christy's Minstrels which formed in
Buffalo, New York, in 1843. The group was so popular its show ran in
New York City in  a single venue from March 1847 until July 1854.} 

^{You can read the lyrics about "deceitful Sarah Bell" and see a printed 
version below. An 1856 version with sheet music can be found here.} 

CHEER UP! SAM. SARAH BELL

Music published and sold by ROBINSON SON, No. 24 South Fifth Street.

Oh! down in Alabama,

Before I was set free,

I loved a dark eyed yellow girl,

And thought that she loved me;

But she has proved inconstant,

And left me here to tell

The sorrow that my heart feels

For deceitful Sarah Bell.

CHORUS.

Cheer up Sam! now don't let your spirits go down

For there's many a belle,

That we know well,

Is looking for you in the town.

I had not much to give her,

Yet all I had I gave;

But wealth and fortune don't belong

To one that's born a slave.

A white man came with dollars,

She fled with him to dwell,

And broke the vows she made to me,

Oh! perjured Sarah Bell.

Now all day while I'm working,

And hoeing up the corn,

I sigh and wish within myself

I never had been born.

Perhaps she's gay and happy,

Wherever she may dwell,

While my poor heart is breaking

For deceitful Sarah Bell.

Printed and Sold Wholesale at

CARD JOB PRINTING OFFICE,

Philadelphia.

JOHNSON, Song Publisher, No. 7 N. Tenth Street

 

Source: Library of Congress