Homegrown History

Rebekah and Richard welcome Pryor Field Airport Manager Adam Fox in a conversation about the history of aviation in Limestone County. They discuss Pryor Field's important role in both the past and future for aviation and other development in North Alabama.
https://limestonecounty-al.gov/departments/archives/

https://www.alcpl.org/
https://flydcu.com/

Reference books mentioned in this podcast are available at the Limestone County Archives or Athens-Limestone Public Library

Music from Pixabay 

Rebekah and Richard host Sandy Thompson, Director of the Alabama Veterans Museum and Archives in Athens, Alabama. They discuss historic events of World War I and II and Limestone County's service both in action and on the home front. Entire families enlisted and many of their stories are told here. Richard remembers his father on the USS Alabama along with several uncles in active duty. Rebekah remembers her Great Aunt Jerene, the first Rosie the Riveter from Athens. The Veterans Museum has exhibits honoring many of these local heroes, including an exhibit on the German invasion of Westerplatte marking the start of WW II in Europe.

https://limestonecounty-al.gov/departments/archives/

https://www.alcpl.org/
http://www.alabamaveteransmuseum.com/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Museum_of_the_Second_World_War#

Reference books mentioned in this podcast are available at the Limestone County Archives or Athens-Limestone Public Library

Music from Pixabay 

Rebekah and Richard discuss the 19th Amendment and history of women's suffrage. A controversial subject, in Limestone County groups of women banded together to register for their right to vote. Rebekah and Richard identify some of these early women and men who championed the cause. Find out why the Tennessee legislature made a run for the Alabama border in a last ditch effort to thwart the amendment!

https://limestonecounty-al.gov/departments/archives/

https://www.alcpl.org/

Music from Pixabay 

Epidemics and pandemics are nothing new. Rebekah recounts the history of infectious diseases in Limestone County and steps the community took (including armed border patrol) to stop the spread of disease. Richard remembers the polio scare in the 1950s. They are joined by Traci Collins, Athens-Limestone Hospital President, who describes the early days of Covid-19 from the very first case in LC and the hospital's ongoing measures to keep the community safe.   

https://limestonecounty-al.gov/departments/archives/

https://www.alcpl.org/

Music from Pixabay 

Homegrown HAUNTED History_2022 –  A 1893 tragic fire on the downtown Athens Square consumed two men and has since sparked stories of haunting visitations. Now, hear compelling new accounts of paranormal activity in an ALL NEW episode of ghost stories with Rebekah, Richard, local author Shane Black, and ghost hunter Jarred Miller.

Links
https://limestonecounty-al.gov/departments/archives/

https://www.alcpl.org/
https://www.visitathensal.com/

Shane Black's book, Spirits of Athens: haunting tales of an Alabama town, is available at the Athens-Limestone Public Library and the Limestone County Archives.

Music and Sound Effects from Pixabay

For more than a hundred years (1865 - 1970) Trinity School served Limestone County's African American students in a time when their educational opportunities were less than ideal. How Trinity graduates from small-town Athens, Alabama went on to make major contributions in the world of arts and sciences, education, government, and medicine as well as civil and human rights is the topic of this episode. Richard and Rebekah are joined by special guests Charlotte Fulton, author of Holding the Fort: A History of Trinity School, and David Malone, 1966 Trinity High School graduate. They also discuss the preservation of the school's buildings and ongoing plans for an onsite museum and archive.

https://limestonecounty-al.gov/departments/archives/

https://www.alcpl.org/

Holding the Fort: A History of Trinity School in Athens, Alabama 1865-1870 by Charlotte Fulton
This book is available for reference at the Limestone Archives and the Athens-Limestone Public Library

Music from Pixabay 

For more than a hundred years (1865 - 1970) Trinity School served Limestone County's African American students, and its history reflects a microcosm of the African American experience. Founded by Mary Fletcher Wells to educate newly freed slaves and their children, the first classes were held only weeks after the South surrendered. The story of Trinity and the determination to keep it open through fires, hardship, and community discord is the story of dedicated educators who taught much more than academics to generations of families in Limestone County. In this episode, Rebekah and Richard talk with David Malone, 1966 Trinity High School graduate, and Charlotte Fulton, author of Holding the Fort: A History of Trinity School. 

https://limestonecounty-al.gov/departments/archives/

https://www.alcpl.org/

Holding the Fort: A History of Trinity School in Athens, Alabama 1865-1870 by Charlotte Fulton
This book is available for reference at the Limestone Archives and the Athens-Limestone Public Library

Music from Pixabay 

Rebekah and Richard host local historian of African American history, Peggy Towns, and Limestone County educator, Chris Paysinger, for Part 2 of the Civil War and its impact on Athens and Limestone County. Taking notes from personal diaries, genealogy research, and other historical records, they localize the history of the Civil War by sharing individual stories of people (including their own ancestors) withstanding the Union occupation of Athens. One former Limestone County resident of note has ties that link to a modern day princess!

Links
https://limestonecounty-al.gov/departments/archives/

https://www.alcpl.org/
https://archives.alabama.gov  Alabama Department of Archives and History
https://www.visitathensal.com/richard-martin-trail.html Richard Martin Trail

Books referenced in the episode are available at Athens-Limestone County Public Library and the Limestone County Archives:
  "Duty Driven: the plight of North Alabama's African Americans during the Civil War" / Peggy Allen Towns
  "Let the family circle be unbroken": the transformation of republican patriarchy, Athens, Alabama, 1818-1870 a thesis / by Christopher   Browning Paysinger
  "Revolutionaries and Rebels" / by Jerry Barksdale
 

Music from Pixabay

Rebekah and Richard host local historian of African American history, Peggy Towns, and Limestone County educator, Chris Paysinger, for a look into Athens and Limestone County during the early days of the Civil War. Originally sympathetic with the Union, find out what triggered the turning point for the city of Athens. Also learn about the United States Colored Infantry stationed at Fort Henderson as well as speculation that the famous short story, "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge," may have been inspired from the Battle of Sulphur Creek Trestle right here in Limestone County.

Links
https://limestonecounty-al.gov/departments/archives/

https://www.alcpl.org/
https://archives.alabama.gov  Alabama Department of Archives and History
https://www.visitathensal.com/richard-martin-trail.html Richard Martin Trail

Books referenced in the episode are available at Athens-Limestone County Public Library: 
  "Duty Driven: the plight of North Alabama's African Americans during the Civil War" / Peggy Allen Towns
  "Let the family circle be unbroken": the transformation of republican patriarchy, Athens, Alabama, 1818-1870 a thesis / by Christopher   Browning Paysinger
  "The Complete Short Stories of Ambrose Bierce" (includes "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge")

Music from Pixabay

LET JUSTICE BE DONE THOUGH THE HEAVENS MAY FALL - the family motto of Judge James E. Horton was emblazoned at the top of his controversial decision in the 1933 Scottsboro Boys case to throw out the guilty verdict and order a new trial. Rebekah and Richard continue their discussion with local author and African American historian, Peggy Towns,  and Steven Brown, author and Professor of Political Science from Auburn University. They recount the aftermath of this case:  what happened to the Scottsboro Boys and the local Limestone County judge that courageously spoke out against the machinery of criminal justice.

Links
https://limestonecounty-al.gov/departments/archives/

https://www.alcpl.org/
http://www.co.morgan.al.us/archivesindex.html   Morgan County Archive
https://archives.alabama.gov  Alabama Department of Archives and History
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4uX8dp5bYfA&t=375s  Pen Strokes of Justice Judge Horton and the Scottsboro Boys

Music from Pixabay