Johnny Vardeman's column
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Indians lost every effort to keep land As white settlers poured into what is now North Georgia in the 1700s and early 1800s, conflicts between them and the Indians were inevitable. The Creeks and Cherokees might not have had legal deeds to those lands, but they considered them theirs because they had lived there for generations. Revolutionary War veterans received land grants, some of which were in Indian territory. Treaties had established Indian boundaries, but the lines often were vague, resulting in claims and counter-claims. A Treaty of 1785 presumably settled some of the issues, but other treaties followed. ... |
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Gainesville’s namesake had his problems Most people familiar with local history know Gainesville is named in honor of Gen. Edmund Pendleton Gaines, but perhaps fewer know why. Still fewer might know little about the city's namesake. Sybil McRay, the late Hall County history researcher, reprinted in one of her works passages from an autobiography by W.J. Cotter. He wrote that he was the second child born in Hall County at Cotter's Store near Gillsville. His father, John V. Cotter, was one of the first members of what was then called the county court, which selected the site for the county seat. ... |
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Pioneer pilot lost over sea in World War II When Gainesville's airport was merely a dirt strip on the hill where the more modern facility is today, Hugh Minor Sr. was among the handful of pilots who flew regularly. Hugh's name is mentioned along with Dean Parks when the history of Lee Gilmer Memorial Airport is discussed. His family lived beside the airport, and he owned property that became part of it. People would pay a few bucks for a ride in Hugh's airplane. He earned a reputation as a daredevil as he would try to scare his passengers with loops or spins ... |
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Baseball skill led to career as textile exec If it hadn't been for Phil Rizzuto, famed New York Yankees shortstop during the team's dominance in the 1940s and '50s, Pat Hallford might have made it in the major leagues. Instead, the Clarkesville man says he played in his shadow in the Yankees minor league organization. Hallford is this year's inductee in the Northeast Georgia Ole Timers and Blue Ridge Sports Hall of Fame. A product of Industrial League baseball that once flourished in the Southeast, Hallford was good enough to advance with such pro teams as Augusta in the Sally League, Binghamton ... |
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Tag fee cut helped launch Talmadge The recent Georgia Legislature's fussing about car tags revives memories of other tussles that became election campaign topics. And this past session appears to be much of that: fueling fodder for candidates at the ballot box, whether it be this year's legislative and local races or future statewide campaigns. Some wanted to eliminate the vehicle tax that happens when you buy your license tags. Some wanted to attach a $10 fee to the tag to upgrade statewide trauma care. Neither happened. Because so many people own vehicles and have to have licenses for them, tags come close to home as ... |
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Step right up: Old-timey medicine show is headed to town Ramblin' Tommy Scott will bring his old-timey medicine show to Northeast Georgia History Center at Brenau University next month, and he'll be selling the snake oil whose formula was passed on to him by his mentor, Doc M.F. Chamberlain, more than 75 years ago. Scott is nearing 91 years of age, but continues to play his guitar, sing and pitch his snake oil, which he says Indians first concocted as a liniment for a variety of ailments. He lives in Stephens County, which he left to join Chamberlain's medicine show after graduating from high ... |
