Thursday, February 28, 2013

The Look on the Teacher's Face Says It All

This group of pictures were all in one box labeled "Old School." Most of them are copies that Mr. Williams made for customers. This is four rows of boys and girls. On the bottom is written a note. I cannot read all of it but it does read "Grade 5 then the date 1935. No other information is known. -- LLF Library Caption.

Okay, the facial expressions are priceless, across the board.  The teacher looks like he's had it, and the kids look as if they are taking great delight in frustrating the poor photographer.  

I seem to see the word McCall written in white ink at the bottom, which makes me wonder if this is the McCall Creek community.  Then again, the dark shakes on the building resemble the school house that was in Norfield.

The kids, if alive today, would be around 89 years old.  

Comments welcomed here or on Facebook.  

Wednesday, February 27, 2013

Old School in the Too Tall Grass

This group of pictures were all in one box labeled "Old School." Most of them are copies that Mr. Williams made for customers. This is a large group posing for this picture in the tall grass. No other information is known. -- LLF Library caption. 
Love the fashions: the flapper hats, the overalls, the dropped-waist dresses, bobbed haircuts, newspaper boy caps, and the hoot owl celluloid glasses on the older gentleman with the white beard in the front row.

Most likely from the 1920s, just where this photo was taken and who these folks are (a church community, perhaps?) is a mystery.

As always, if anyone recognizes a relative or an old family friend -- even the building, please leave a comment here or on my Facebook page.

Tuesday, February 26, 2013

Little White Corvette

"Kathleen, 1950-1962. Kathleen stands by a white Corvette wearing a soft pink dress. On back 'My dear wife, Kathleen Wolfe Williams. John H. Williams Jr. and Kathleen Wolfe were married in Pastor's Study on April 13, 1924 by Rev. J. A. Taylor, 1st Baptist Church, Brookhaven, Miss.'"-- LLF Library caption.

Monday, February 25, 2013

Gravel Pits -- An Attraction for the Ages

From the Cooper Postcard Collection, MDAH
Based on the hand-tinted linen print and the subjects' Victorian clothing, this postcard of a gathering of people at a gravel pit in Pike County is easily a century old.  It just goes to show that people have long  been attracted to quarries, despite their inherit dangers.

But this being near St. Mary's of the Pines at Chatawa, could there be more to this story?  Perhaps they were looking for the Chatawa Monster, or trying to get a glimpse of the monkeys that nuns who taught at the nearby boarding school swore they saw playing in the surrounding tree tops?

For more on those local legends/mysteries, please see this Walt Grayson link covering those tidbits and more, and for even further reading, including the meaning of the Choctaw word Chatawa, please see this link.

Sunday, February 24, 2013

A High Toned Wedding in Brookhaven


A special thank you to Willie Granston for forwarding this 1928 newspaper clipping.  The location was the grand mansion, variously known as Edgewood, Fairview and House of Lovell, built by lumber baron C.S. Butterfield for his second wife roughly 100 years ago.






The house as it appears today.

Saturday, February 23, 2013

The Gravel Pit, Back When -- Updated

From the Cooper Postcard Collection at MDAH
I originally posted this as a Then and Now contrast, but learned in the dark of the night last night that the area I was thinking was THE gravel pit was not one and the same.

Note the post card brags that in its heyday, it was one of the world's largest gravel pits.

If anyone knows more of its history and who operated it, please feel free to leave a comment here or on my Facebook page.
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Update I: After much debate on Facebook as to which gravel pit the above postcard represents, (whether it is off Nola Road toward Monticello or off Highway 51 North, just south of Wesson) I have decided to include the photograph of a gravel pit lake off Highway 51 North.

Update II: More debate and conclusion: My expert on this matter is convincing with his evidence that the gravel pit in the postcard is the one off Nola Road toward Monticello, as it is older and was served by rail lines that were incorporated in the late 1880s.  He also states that while the northern lake may be the larger body of water, the pit itself off Nola Road (which is northeast of town, as stated in Bobby Jones' book Mississippi Gumbo) was the bigger of the two operations.

Update III: I am told by my impeccable source that the gravel pit off Nola Road has been leased and has resumed operations as a gravel pit on a small scale.  That's good news!

Unfortunately, there is no Google Streetview of that gravel pit, so I'll leave it at that, with the admonition that the picture below is of a different gravel pit after all.
Snagged from Google Streetview, off Highway 51 North, just south of Wesson

Friday, February 22, 2013

Really Angry Birds

From the John Holly Williams Collection, LLF Library
"Two chickens looking at each other and may be getting ready to fight. The only name noted on folder is Mr. Smith and the date is 2/8/1950." -- Library caption.

I am going to go out on a limb and predict that Animal Rights activists would be all over this today.  

But, back in the 1950s, not much would have been said.  There is quite a story to this and another local breeder who were known far and wide for their fighting birds.  These birds were shipped, via rail lines, to the far reaches of the continental US, and even beyond, according to local lore.  

(Click on the embedded link above to see an earlier posting of Mr. Charles Smith and a little boy, standing at the rail depot with his chickens in crates.) 

Not wishing to ruffle feathers, I will leave this story at that.

Thursday, February 21, 2013

A Trellis of Roses

From the John Holly Williams Collection, LLF Library
"A house with a rose growing up the front and across the house is seen with four people. The woman in front of the door wears a longer style dress." -- Library caption.

The man in the proper hat on the right appears to be holding a cane and his coat tails seem longer than ordinary.  The ladies' long dresses implyVictorian times, as does the architecture of the home -- note the distinctive porch rail and the "Italianate" window.  

I have cross checked the architectural features of the home against picture postcards of known Queen Anne homes in the town and have come up empty.  

As always, if someone recognizes the people or the home, please leave word here or on my Facebook page.

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

In a Three Piece Suit and Tie

From the John Holly Williams Collection, LLF Library
"A copy of a (photo of a) man was made for Mrs Robert Covington. This copy shows the man dressed in a suit with a tie and a vest. He is sitting in a wicker chair. The copy was made on 2/6/1945." --  Library caption.

Quite a few Covingtons lived in Summit, and I am curious as to whether this man is related to them.  If 
anyone recognizes this man, please leave a note here or on Facebook.


Update:  A chance encounter in my reading shows that there was a Robert Covington of Hazlehurst.  His home was designed by architect George Franklin Barber.  Here is a photograph of that home via Wikipedia, from MDAH.  Not certain that this is the SAME Robert Covington, but I have a hunch it might be, since my Summit Covington connections are drawing a blank, and my first impression of him was that he appeared to be a banker.  

The home was built by contractors from Brookhaven and was completed circa 1907.  It is on the National Register of Historic places -- please see the link for more information on the home.

Robert Covington's father, John A. Covington, founded the Bank of Hazlehurst and served as president from 1891 to 1904.  His son and Robert's brother, George W., succeeded him and served as president until 1928, when Robert assumed the presidency.  He stepped down in 1960.

Thursday, February 14, 2013

With Love on This Valentine's Day

"A young man has written a note on a photo of himself. It reads, "I love your darling" and is signed, "Bob." Kathryn Beasley had this copy made. No date was noted." -- Library caption, from the John Holly Williams Collection at LLF.

This photo has a timeless quality to it.  I would be curious to learn the date it was taken.  If anyone recognizes this man, please leave a comment here or on Facebook.

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Families of Four



For a change, these photographs are from the Don Jackson collection at LLF Flickr account.  No names, dates are available, but based on the eyeglass frames alone, I would bet that they are from the late 1940s or early 1950s.

If anyone recognizes these folks, please leave word here or on my Facebook page.

Tuesday, February 12, 2013

More Bathing Beauties


Smaller Contestants, 1947-1952. (l-r): Sidney "Butchie" Mize Nations, unidentified, and Gretchen Gartman stand in front of a floral set. -- Library caption.
More bathing beauties from the Lions Club Water Carnival when it was held at the City Pool.  We have identities of two, but the middle contestant is unidentified. 

If anyone recognizes her, please leave a comment here or on my Facebook page.

Update: Seems there is some question as to the identity of Gretchen as well.  Perhaps the last name was Hartman, sted Gartman?

Monday, February 11, 2013

The Power Behind a Mighty Pen

They met in a most unusual way.  It was the 1920s and he was reporter for the Vaudeville News, assigned to do a human interest story on a young, out-of-work actress who had taken in a homeless child and was struggling to support them both in a W. 46th Street rooming house in Manhattan.
Photo may be subject to copyright
and is used here for educational
purposes only.

Their meeting didn't go as he anticipated.  The actress, Elizabeth June Magee (Astor), refused to open the door.  The reporter, Walter Winchell, was forced to shout his questions through the open transom above.

He never laid eyes on her that day, but he was impressed by her quiet voice and her smart answers.  He was intrigued.  He told a friend later that he really wanted to meet the face behind the voice, so he became a pest.

 His persistence paid off.  A few weeks later, they were married, according to Let's Go to Press, A Biography of Walter Winchell by Edward H. Weiner, 1955.

She, according to the above biography, was the real power behind  the gossip columnist of all gossip columnists.  She was her husband's staunchest ally and harshest critic who waited patiently in Scarsdale for him to return home from the bright lights of the city every dawn, where he mined juicy tidbits about celebrities for his newspaper columns and radio broadcasts.

Photo may be subject to copyright and is
used here for educational purposes only.
Elizabeth June Magee was the child of Brookhaven native Mamie Hoskins and a rather handsome rake named Maximillian Maxie C. Magee of the Mount Moriah community near Bogue Chitto.  That marriage, according to at least one genealogy site, took place quickly and ended in divorce.

Records online show the couple was married on July 20, 1903 in Lincoln County, traveled to St. Louis, MO, and Elizabeth June was born there (or Mississippi, according to some accounts) in September 1903.

At some point, daughter June and mother Mamie wound up in New York City and worked together in Vaudeville. Mamie either took the stage name Astor or subsequently married someone with that famous last name.  (More research is needed on that thread.)

Daughter and mother can trace their roots to the Rev. Milton J. Whitworth, the founder of the female college in the heart of downtown Brookhaven.  Whitworth's daughter Ann Elizabeth "Lizzie" married James A. Hoskins, the scion of a sawmill family in town, in the 1800s.  They had several children, including Isaac Hoskins, who married Pauline Watts, after his first wife, Ella McLean, died in 1890.

As much as I tried, I could find little more information on Mamie Hoskins Magee Astor and no gravesite has turned up on Findagrave that I could locate, although there are reports that she is buried somewhere in New York.

The Winchells' story has many twists and turns, and I feel I would be remiss if I did not mention that many other biographical accounts dispute whether Winchell, whose first wife was fellow Vaudevillian Rita Greene, actually ever married June Magee.

But, absent any real proof to the contrary, we'll give the couple the benefit of the doubt here, especially since their children carried the Winchell last name.

Sadly, the children's lives were intertwined with tragedy. Their adopted daughter Gloria died of pneumonia at age 9; their daughter Walda Joan spent time in psychiatric hospitals; and their son Walter Jr. committed suicide in the family garage on Christmas night 1968.  He had been working as a freelance writer for an alternative paper in California, but had also been on welfare and worked as a dishwasher.

Elizabeth June Magee Winchell died of a heart condition in Arizona, where the couple had made their permanent home, in 1970.  Survivors were her husband, daughter Walda and a sister, Mary M. Mayor of Manhattan. (For more information click on the link.)

Walter Winchell, who had made the career-killing mistakes of aligning himself with conservative Sen. Joseph McCarthy and later getting into a public dispute with Jack Paar, announced his retirement in 1969 and spent the last two years of his life as a virtual recluse in a Los Angeles hotel room.  According to Larry King, he was a sad figure, seen handing out mimeographed copies of his columns on the street corner in his waning days.

Winchell died of prostate cancer at age 74.  His daughter Walda was the only person present at his funeral, although it has been reported that she turned away several of his former colleagues who had expressed an interest in attending.

Walda, born in 1927, died in 1987 in Los Angeles.

Please see this link to a 1931 Baltimore Sun photograph of the two girls and their mother, frolicking in the surf off Miami, during much happier times in their lives.

Update: Maxie Magee was the son of a planter and a graduate of Ole Miss, and had quite a career for himself in the banking industry after his marriage to Mamie dissolved. 

Sunday, February 10, 2013

J.B. Nalty -- His Home and Businesses

All three illustrations are from the MDAH Cooper Postcard Collection
Without the mature trees that surround it today, at first I did not recognize this landmark "Old Towne" home.  The witch's hat is long gone, and some of the second floor fretwork is missing, but, by and large, this house at 328 South Jackson Street, Brookhaven,* is still easily recognizable as the same house in the above linen postcard from 100+ years ago. 

Although most Brookhavenites today have always known this house to be the McGrath home**, the picture postcard shows that it originally was the home of J.B. Nalty, the son of Irish immigrants who settled in Copiah County before the Civil War, and where he was born May 23, 1857.

The Nalty family moved to Brookhaven after the war.  J.B. Nalty was educated in a private school, attended college in New Orleans and returned home to open a mercantile business that catered to the lumber industry.

It was through that 10-year association that Nalty gained valuable knowledge about the inner workings of King Lumber.  He soon tired of the restrictions of his store, sold it, formed a partnership and bought a small lumber mill four miles east of Brookhaven.

Nalty assumed the role of secretary and general manager of the East Union Lumber and Manufacturing Company.  Incorporated in 1890, East Union grew to be one of two of the largest sawmills in the state -- the other one being the Pearl River Lumber Company, also located in Brookhaven.

By now an entrepreneur, Nalty expanded his lumber business to Hammond, Louisiana, and also served as president of the Crystal Ice Company and Dixie Creamery, established in 1907.

He married Mamie Halpin, a native of St. Louis, in 1885, and they reared five sons, Louis D., Willie H., Eugene, Ray, John Bernard Jr., and daughter, Naoma.

For those who wish to read more, this link contains a detailed biography of J.B and a small thumbnail photo portrait of him.  Written in 1906, it notes his hobbies, his disinterest in political ambitions, that he was a member of the Catholic Church in Brookhaven AND, among other fraternal organizations, was an officer in the Concatenated Order of Hoo Hoo, a lumberman's association that counted Teddy Roosevelt and Warren G. Harding among its members and whose motto was "Health, Happiness and Long Life,"

J.B. Nalty lived to 78, dying on March 16, 1936.  His remains are in the family plot at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Cemetery in Brookhaven.  To see a photograph of his memorial, please see this Findagrave link.


Further details on his lumber operations can been found in Early History of Lincoln County, Mississippi, by Dr. Jack E. Tindall -- available for sale at the museum in the old synagogue in downtown Brookhaven.

*This link is a Google street view -- the landing is approximate and is just down the hill from the actual address.  Click on the arrows to travel left up the hill to see the house as it appears today.  It's on the right and at the corner.

** Update: Mystery solved!  The John W. McGrath IV family lived in the house in the 1950s and early 1960s, which is how it came to be known as the McGrath house. Prior to that, the Naltys owned the properties from corner to corner, and the house that overlooks the elementary school evidently belonged to one of the Nalty sons -- this, according to Bettie Hatcher Cox, who conferred with Caroline Cohen Passmore who was friends with a McGrath daughter.  Additionally, Bettie noted that most of the McGrath homes were clustered together near the Teen Tavern at the end of Cherokee Street and most of them were demolished to make way for Brookway Boulevard.

Saturday, February 9, 2013

Southern Belles in Bathing Suits


"1958-1962. Three girls from the class of 1961 compete. (l-r): Becky Leary Sartin, Judy Williams (Wood), and  Wanda Foster Evans." Library caption.  From the John Holly Williams Collection.
Nor'easter Nemo's snow, wind and icy temps have me wishing for Fort Lauderdale.  I found these Lions Club Water Carnival photographs and decided that if I cannot be in the sunshine and warmth of the Souf, then I'll travel vicariously through Mr. Williams' photos.
UPDATE: These lovely lasses are from the BHS Classes of 1961 and 1962. I was able to find all three of them, and they are close to home, and still as lovely as ever.  Judy, the under classmate, went on to become Junior Miss Mississippi.


Friday, February 8, 2013

Tater Brown and Family



"Tater" Brown Family, Undated -- A couple sit with 3 young men standing behind them, an adolescent boy on each end beside them, and a small girl between them. Handwritten on back "Tater Brown 
Family - Wesson." -- Library caption.

Another fun one from Mr. Williams's collection.  I do believe I have seen Tater's picture elsewhere in the LLF feed, but just where, I am not sure. It's going to take some digging to connect those dots.  That, or I have simply stared at this photo enough over the past year that I simply THINK I've seen his face before! 

My takeaway from this one is that I love their clothing -- it reminds me of the characters in one of my favorite movies: "A Christmas Story."

Yesterday's posting got a hit from a schoolmate who declared, "That's my uncle Coot!"  I am hopeful I will get a similar response with this photo.  

Please let me know if you know these folks and their "story," either here or on my Facebook page.

Thursday, February 7, 2013

Coot Buckels Celebrates His Birthday

From the John Holly Williams Collection -- LLF Library
"Blowing Out the Candles, Undated. Coot Buckels leans over to blow out the candles. A young boy and girl stand on each side." -- Library caption.
This is another one of those fun photos from the library collection about which I wish knew more.  First, there's the man's name -- Coot Buckels brings to mind a sidekick to a 1950s cowboy movie star.  Even the cake draws the imagination further in that direction with the likeness of a horse.

While it's hard to make out, my best guess is the candles signify his 90th birthday, given his cane and the concern that the woman seems to have in steadying his balance over the cake. If my guess is correct, then this photo is likely from the fall of 1973.  
A quick Google search of his nickname revealed a genealogy site that shows his given name to be Charles Houston Buckels, born on Halloween 1883. He married Catherine Luvenia (Katie) Calcote. 
If the information on the web is accurate, they had at least two daughters, Ethel Buckels Lee, 1903-1979, and Vincie Viola Buckels Norton, who was born Feb. 28, 1907, in Franklin County and died October 4, 1993, in Brookhaven.  

A search of FindaGrave reveals that after this photo was taken, Coot lived another 10 years, dying just shy of his 101st birthday on Aug. 7, 1984.   
I would love to know more about this man with the memorable name.  As always, if anyone out there can tell us more, please pipe up here or on my Facebook page.

Wednesday, February 6, 2013

The L.O. Crosby Family and Their Legacy ...



 "L. O. Crosby and wife and Brother & wife. The group sit on a couch in front of a lace curtained window." -- Library caption. 

The date is most likely from the 1930s, possibly 1940s, although the date range is far greater in the 
Lincoln, Lawrence, Franklin Library records regarding this John Holly Williams photo.

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Today's presentation is a tie-in to yesterday's posting of Cody Batch-who?   

The L.O. Crosby family was the second lumber mill family to occupy the erstwhile Batchelder mansion overlooking the Illinois Central Railroad tracks in the northern part of town. (Please see yesterday's post for a picture postcard of that once magnificent home.)

It is not clear if this picture was made inside the Batchelder home or elsewhere.  Wherever the photo was taken, I find the walls quite interesting.  At first I thought they might be sitting on a porch, but the curtains and the pictures on the wall quickly knocked down that theory.

As far as Brookhaven native Lucius Olen (L.O.) Crosby (Feb. 22, 1869 -- Nov. 24, 1948), it is not clear from the caption whether he is on the left or the right, although I suspect that he is on the left.  

This link gives more information about the man and his role in the lumber business with Miles Goodyear and Lamont Rowlands.  Interestingly, the company was on the verge of liquidation but was saved by the outbreak of World War II.  It diversified its offerings and changed its name to Crosby Forest Products Company in 1950.

Further Googling and the story just kept on getting even more interesting:  

An arboretum in Picayune, MS, was built by the family and named in honor of L.O. Crosby Jr. (1907-1978).  Please see this link for more information on that jewel, the narrative of which also drops the name of Frank Lloyd Wright.   

To see photographs of the arboretum, please click on this link, and to read more about how the arboretum came to be, please see this link.


This link provides details of the son who grew up to be a nature lover and philanthropist.  He served as mayor of Picayune, and a hospital was named after him.  

My favorite of all the links I have bombarded you with is this last one, featuring a narrative and a photograph of a rare Shay locomotive purchased by L.O. Jr. and donated to the city of Picayune. If you had to click on only one link provided herein, this would be the one I would recommend, just because I love old trains.

As always, if anyone has other information on these folks or the Batchelder home that they lived in, please leave a comment here or on my Facebook page.

UPDATE:  This photo was taken in February 1948 in a home in Norfield, where a 50th wedding anniversary was being celebrated, according to a friend on Facebook. She identified the people, L-R, as L.O., Margaret, Mary and N.L. Crosby.  Just nine months later, L.O. would pass away.  

Tuesday, February 5, 2013

Cody Batch-Who?

From the John Holly Williams Collection
"This man is wearing a white shirt with the top button open. His hair is slicked back. His name may be Cody Batchelus. The last few letters of the last name are questionable. No date is noted." -- Library caption.
Hmmm, there was a prominent lumber family in town -- by the name Batchelder, alternately spelled Bachelder.  I have to wonder if the handwriting on this photo's envelope might have missed the mark, and that Cody might have been a member of that family.  


The Batchelders lived in a magnificent old mansion built roughly 100 years ago during the height of the lumber boom, but, sadly, it was among those many large luxury homes lost to bulldozers in their later years. 



The second occupants of the home were the L.O. Crosbys, yet another family associated with big lumber. 

(The above picture postcard was gleaned from the Cooper Postcard Collection at the MDAH site, with caption information based on Durr Walker's history book about Lincoln County.)  

I realize I may be committing yet another "stretch" of information/imagination by linking this man's last name with this home, SO ... if anyone recognizes this man and knows what his last name may have been, please leave a note here or on my Facebook page, and I will update and correct any mis-impressions as soon as information to the contrary is presented.  Of course, if he WAS related to the lumber family, I will post that information as well. 
Let the comments begin!

Monday, February 4, 2013

Trick Photography




Mrs. Louise Ruby and Baby
A young lady has her photo taken without her baby.   Her name is Louise Ruby ...  Jayess (MS) and she is wearing a plaid suit with a white sweater under the jacket. 
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The baby is sitting alone. -- Library captions, consolidated.
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As I mentioned in yesterday's post,  John Holly Williams' children's studio portraits can be captivating.  I have noticed that  with very youngest children, the background is often black, whereas most of his other studio work features a pale, unadorned backdrop such as the one of the mother, Louise Ruby, in the photograph to the left.
Just why this difference was a lingering question in the back of my mind.

The aha moment came today when I noticed the slivers of black under the infant Ruby's sweater in the second photograph.  A closer look and the shadow revealed the outline of the mother's left hand under the baby's arm.

Evidently, Mr. Williams employed an old photographer's trick that dates back to Victorian times -- mothers would stand behind dark drapes and hold a wobbly, fidgety infant steady while the photographer worked to capture the perfect picture.  

My guess is Mr. Williams had his touch-up artist work the photo to remove all lingering evidence of a shrouded mother in the background.  

As always, if anyone knows more about Mrs. Louise Ruby and/or the name of her baby, please leave a note here or on my Facebook page.

Sunday, February 3, 2013

Say Cheese, Boys and Girls!


Mother and daughter photos taken separately. Name of mother Mrs Bertha Bethea. Little girl has dotted swiss dress and her hair is plaited on top with a ribbon. -- Library caption.

Single pose of little boy. Son of J L Calcote. Mother and father's picture taken separately. Little girl's photo also taken separately. No date. -- Library caption.
Single pose of little girl. Daughter of J L Calcote. Mother and father's picture taken separately. Little boy's photo also taken separately. No date. -- Library caption.
Three small children. The two oldest are together and the baby is by herself. Mother is Luberta Brown. No date. -- Library caption.
I have been nosing around the Library's Flickr feed almost daily for about a year now, and certain photographs stand out in my mind, especially those of children who were brought to John Holly Williams' studio by their parents and made to sit in front of the camera without Momma or Daddy at their sides.

Some of them look bewildered or afraid, some, confident and happy, and still others have that "Can we go home now?" look.  Today's offering is of four of those pictures that I stop on every time I pass them in the feed.

I marvel at these kids and wonder what came of their lives and where they are now.  Though we don't have first names, their surnames are in the accompanying captions.

Comments welcome here or on my Facebook page.

Saturday, February 2, 2013

Water Carnival -- 1948




Photos by John Holly Williams -- LLF Library

I like these photos as much for the glimpses of the old city pool as the bathing beauties and their swimsuits, shoes and hairstyles from July 1948.  This series of photos is not the best work I have seen by Mr. Williams.  There are exposure, framing and what appears to be dark room issues, and even a few shots in which the top of the little girl's head is cut off.  I suspect he forgot his step ladder that day, or perhaps he was simply distracted by all the pretty girls. He wasn't the only one -- note the young man sneaking a peek in the first photograph.  

There are no names accompanying these photos, so if anyone out there recognizes any of these three lasses, please leave a comment here or on my Facebook page.

UPDATE: From a Facebook Friend: For the record, the Lions Club Beauty Pageant is still going strong and well attended in Brookhaven.  When the City Pool was removed, the name was changed to the Beauty Pageant and it was moved to the BHS Auditorium.  Now they hold it every year, about a week or two before school starts, at the Lincoln County Civic Center.  There are grandmothers who were in it in their day and their granddaughters enter now.  Still a big deal for residents of the county.

My reply: There's just something about a night canopy over a shimmering aqua pool, lights dancing underwater, the smell of chlorine, the summer air, a small orchestra playing live tunes, and the sound of high heels clicking on the concrete and plywood runways.

Friday, February 1, 2013

Double Take

From John Holly Williams Collection -- LLF Library
No date is noted.  Several photographs of these ladies show up on the LLF Flickr feed, both individually and together. I am still having trouble telling which one is which.  Their names are not certain, but based on the sketchy clues on the various photos of these ladies, they are most likely Gladys and Winnie Britt, but which one is which is anyone's guess.

UPDATE: Based on the jewelry, it appears that Gladys is the one on the right, Winnie on the left.