Newspaper Page Text
m. '. v
+ ■
*
t S[B■lb
i| U 1 M.fHK ' |E£9Fj|m(£rW
"Bp j 4 * i
Shown above is the construction work underway on the new Cumming Post Office. The Mickey
Swims Grading Company has completed clearing the site at the intersection of Tribble Gap Road
and Canton Highway. E.B. Collett has been awarded the building contract by Carl Jackson. Jack
son was low bidder on the new facility and will lease it to the government. Jackson was also
awarded the contract recently for the Monroe, Ga. Post Office 1 and the E.B. Collett firm will
build that post office.
Governor Ok’s Money
For Lanier Islands
Governor Lester Maddox an
nounced Monday he is granting
the Lake Lanier Island Devel
opment Authority $550,000 from
his contigency fund over the next
two years.
The money 5275,000 per
year is to be used for capi
tal expenditures. It supple
ments $310,000 in operating
funds appropriated for the au
thority by the 1969 General As
sembly.
Registration
For Arts
Course Set
The last day of registration
for the summer Language Arts
Kindergarten program is June
6. If your child is not registered
by this date he or she will not be
eligible to take part in the sum
mer program. You may regis
ter your child by contacting the
Elementary school nearest you.
The child must be five by May
31 to be eligible.
Transportation will be fur
nished allchildren in the pro
gram. Buses will begin their
routes on the first day of Kin
dergarten which is June 16.
Suspicious Fires Destroy Lake Homes
Was there a connection bet
ween two house fires which
occurred in the Six Mile Creek
area of Forsyth County? The
houses were the lake homes of
Robert L. Myrick of Atlanta and
Jack E. Summers of Decatur.
The circumstance thatassocia
tes the two fires, other than
the fact that they occurred dir
ectly across Six Mile Creek
from each other about a half
a mile apart, is that both own
ers reported being approached
by a local man who wanted to
clear off their property for
them and do other handy work.
That is not too unusual but
some other facts are. Mr.
Summers, who is a contractor
in Decatur, declined the man’s
offers because his price was
“Outrageous,” and brought em
ployees up to do the work in
stead. A local man of the
same description, whose name
we will withhold, approached
Mr. Myrick in the Fall of 1968.
He said he wanted to do the
clearing off and handy-work
around the house, but Mr. My
rick replied that he intended
to bring his own help from
Atlanta to do the work. Mr.
Myrick said, “the man smiled
and said, ‘You don’t want your
house burned, do you?’ Myrick
said he had considered the
statement about the fire to be
in jest until his house actually
did burn only a few months
later. He also felt that the
man’s price was too high and
refused to hire him again.
Myrick’s white frame house
burned on Friday, January 17,
1969. Three Forsyth County
youths were passing the house
on Highway 141 en route to
a basketball game in Cumming
when they saw flames on the
side porch of the house. The
boys said they saw a light
in side, and fearing that some
one was trapped by the flames,
one of them crawled through a
window, but found the house
empty. The boys could not get
the fire stopped, so they called
the Fire Department in Cum
ming and the Forestry Service.
Cumming’s fire department
does not make calls outside the
city limits, but the forestry ser-
On the basis of the appro
priation, the authority has se
cured an $860,000 grant from
the Economic Development Ad
ministration for construction of
water and sewer systems.
The island authority sought
$l.B million over the next two
years from the legislature, but
the request was slashed along
with most others by lawmakers
who refused to approve Mad
dox’s spending programs.
Maddox said he will request
an additional $600,000 from a
special session of the General
Assembly which is expected to
be called in June. He said
that money would also be used
for construction of public fa
cilities.
Both Banks
Observe
Holiday
Both the Bank of Cumming and
The Forsyth County Bank will
be closed for celebration of
Memorial Day, Friday May 30.
Business will resume as usual
on Saturday May 31.
vice did respond to the boys’
plea for help, although by the
time they arrived they couldn’t
do anything to save the house.
They did prevent the fire from
spreading to the outbuildings,
however.
Myrick said that he was pos
itive he had turned off all the
lights and all the power in the
house and had left it securely
locked. He had not been at the
house since the previous Sun
x ; : $ .
day, so it is doubtful that an
accident or oversight by him
would have caused the house to
burn after that length of time.
The law enforcement agen
cies responsible for investiga
ting the fire have been unable
to establish definite causation.
The Forsyth County Sheriff’s
Department reported that an
agent of the Alcohol and Tax
Division of the Internal Revenue
Service had been on the premi
ses the afternoon before the fire
and had reported seeing lights
on in the house. The agent said
the windows were shuttered so
that he could not tell if anyone
Kiwanis
Sponsors
Supper
The Cumming Kiwanis Club
is sponsoring a Chicken Dinner
Friday, May 30 on the Court
houe lawn from 11 a.m. till
8 p.m. Proceeds go to Boy
Scouts and other community ac
tivities. Donation is SI.OO.
Tickets may be obtained from
Kiwanis members and Scouts
in the area. Support this worthy
cause.
Carry - out boxes for those
who wish to carry their dinner
to the Lake or other picnic areas
will be available.
Boosters Supper
The Forsyth County Band
Boosters Club is sponsoring a
Pancake Supper Saturday night,
May 31, at Lower Elementary
School cafeteria. Serving hours
are 6 to 9 p.m. Tickets may be
bought in advance, or at the
door. For advance'tickets, con
tact Buck Roper or Lon Turner.
Price is 50? for children and
SI.OO for adults. This is the
Club’s final fund-raising pro
ject of the year, and support
of local citizens is needed to
assure a continued outstanding
Band Program in the County.
was in the house. The inves
tigator for the insurance com
pany that carried Myrick’spol
icy, D. B. Eskew, said that the
agent had been suspicious of
several 55-gallon drums in the
barn behind the house and had
been checking to make sure
they were not being used for
some illicit purpose. Myrick
said he had intended to use the
drums to build a dock.
Walt Massengill, State Arson
RUINS OF THE MYRICK HOME
Investigator for the eighteen
counties of the Gainesville dis
trict, has been unable to turn
up any leads in the case either.
His superior, C. A. Bowden of
the State Fire Marshall’s office
said that the arson Investigators
are so overworked that “unless
they have pretty good evidence,
it is very hard to determine
whether a fire was set by arson
ists; and it is even harder to
find the arsonist if arson was
involved.”
Mr. Myrick feels that the
fire was started by an arsonist,
and has offered a reward for
information leading to the ar
IWWTI FORSYTH MPHTg
inii county nxivv9
Dedicated to the Progress Cumming and Forsyth County
CUMMING, GEORGIA
Federal Government Approves SBOO,OOO
Loan For City Of Cumming Water System
City Says Water Line Tied
To City System Secretly
The City Council of Cumming
is currently investigating awa
ter connection into subdivisions
and a trailer park near the town
limits.
The subdivisions and trailer
park --outside the city limits
were connected to the city water
system without the knowledge of
the water department or the
Council.
Mayor George Ingram said
last week that the developer of
the subdivisions -- County
Commissioner Loyd Smith
was called before a special Ci
ty Council meeting and asked
to explain.
Ingram said Smith said he
thought the water being supplied
to his subdivisions was passing
through a meter at the Eagle
Creek Subdivision nearby.
The water line supplying the
Bald Ridge Shores development
and the Driftwood Trailer Park
was tied onto the Eagle Creek
water system near Lake La
nier. Plastic pipe crossed a
small Lake Lanier cove under
water and connected to the
trailer park.
The City said the water was
not metered and, subsequently,
the City received no pay for the
amount used.
The Council asked Smith to
disconnect his water line from
the City water system within
30 days. Ingram said a meter
was installed on Smith’s water
line and added that he will be
assessed for nine months’ wa-
By Jim Butler and the NEWS staff
rest and conviction of the person
or persons involved. Myrick
said that the burned-out shells
of two six-gallon outboard
motor gasoline tanks were found
where the entrance to the dining
room of the house had been.
He said the tanks had been full
of gas and were stored in a
utility closet quite a distance
from the dining room. He
feels that the gasoline was used
to start a fire in the side porch,
where the three youths reported
they had first seen flames.
The insurance invesigator,
Mr. Eskew, also believes the
fire was started by an arson
ist although he was unable to
find out why the house was
burned or who burned it.
Mr. Myrick had been the
victim of repeated burglaries
before the fire. The burglars
had stolen furniture, a chain
saw, an outboard motor and
accompanying gasoline tanks,
powfer tools such as electric
saws, drills, and sanders, and
three lawnmowers. The bur
glaries were reported to Car
ter based on an average 30
days’ usage through the newly
installed meter. Ingram said
the Council will also levy “a
penalty” for Smith’s having
connected to the City system
without proper authority. In
gram said that, in all likeli
hood, the City will not file cri
minal charges in connection
THE WATER line in question crossed this cove
roll Tallant, who was Sheriff
when they occurred, but he was
unable to solve the cases. The
man who had cleared off My
rick’s property last fall paid
Myrick a visit just before
Christmas last year and asked
Myrick what he was going to give
him for Christmas. Myrick
said he was shocked; for he
certainly had not intended to
give the man anything and saw
no reason to. Feeling that it
* jfaWHn mi a# • ■ c * ■ I
F**— ~ a
was a joke, Myrick asked the
man what he wanted.
Myrick said the man smiled
and pointing to the house, said,
“You’ve got a nice little .410
shotgun in there.” Myrick said
this shocked him even more,
because the man had never been
in the house to his knowledge,
and the shotgun had never been
taken outside when the man was
there. When asked how he knew
about the shotgun, Myrick said
the man “beat around the bush”
and Changed the subject.
Later the .410 shotgun, two
other shotguns, and a rifle were
all stolen from the house.
TEN CENTS PER COPY
with the incident.
About 47 families were being
supplied water through the pipe.
The trailer park and the sub
division involved were without
water for a time last year when
a well supplying the private w a
ter system for the developments
went dry.
Mr. Myrick had been very
proud of the house, which was
known as the old Kellogg home
place. The house had been
built originally around 1874 out
of hand hewn lumber and wooden
pegs, although it had been mod
ernized somewhat since then.
The house had originally been
situated further from the road
but had been moved when the
lake covered up that area. The
Kellogg family were reportedly
RUINS OF THE SUMMERS HOME
the original purchasers of the
property on which the property
on which the house is situated,
having bought the land from the
Cherokee Indians early in the
Nineteenth century.
Jack Summers’ house burned
in May of 1967. Some people
who lived across the highway
from the house called Mr. Sum
mers late that night to tell him
the house was burning, and was
too far gone to save.
Mr. Summers does not know
how the fire got started. It
was heated by a propane gas
furnace that he feels might
have malfunctioned and started
Word camelastweekfrom the
offices of Senators Russell and
Talmadge and Congressman
Phil Landrum that Cumming has
received an $805,000 loan for
water system improvements.
This means that the city will
immediately begin engineering
and construction of the water
system which has been on the
drawing boards for many
months. The loan has been ob
tained through the Department
of Housing and Urban Devel
opment.
The money announced in last
week’s loan will be combined
with a $350,000 grant received
last year.
Mayor George Ingram said
this week that it is hoped to
have the water system expan
sion ready for contract lettings
‘‘very soon”.
Cumming has been plagued
with water system problems for
some time and Mayor Ingram
said he expects the expansion
of over $1,000,000 to‘‘adequate
ly supplyour water needs for
some time to come”.
The loan from HUD is a low
interest, long term loan which
was secured after attempts to
place bonds with brokerage
companies had failed for vari
ous reasons. After the origi
nal grant was announced last
year, city officials had hoped
to sell water revenue certifi
cates to raise the remainder
of the needed money. This had
failed, so the water system ex
pansion was stalled until last
week’s announcement.
Ingram had praise for the
Georgia Mountains Planning and
Development Commission and
its Chairman Jeff Walraven, for
their assistance in securing the
loan and grant.
Ingram said the city officials
the blaze. The house had been
broken into between eight and
twelve time over the years, and
often had been left looking like
someone had had a party there.
Summers feels that some of the
burglars may have started the
blaze, although there is no way
to tell for sure now. The list
of stolen items from the Sum
mers’ house is almost endless
and Summers said he finally
grew so discouraged that he
quit bringing anything to the
house. He says he had install
ed supposedly burglar-proof
bars but they had been bent
out of shape to facilitate entry
into the house. Once someone
drove a four-wheel drive ve
hicle around the chain across
his driveway, Mr. Summers
said. None of the burglaries
were solved. The Sheriff's
department was unable to lo
cate the burglars, and the cause
of the fire was never determin
ed, either.
Mr. Myrick commented about
the adverse effect of such law
lessness upon the prestige and
MAY 29, 1969
are now seeking a solution to
the city’s sewage problems.
The Water Quality Control
Board a few weeks ago told the
city to ‘‘clean up” the Wilson
and Company Poultry process
ing plant oxidation pond. The
state had said the pond is not
effectively disposing of the
poultry plant waste and is caus
ing pollution downstream.
One Charged
By Sheriff
Forsyth County Sheriff Don
ald Pirkle reported this week
that 17-year old Ernest Gra
veley of Forsyth County has
been charged with possessing
stolen goods
Pirkle said items taken in
the burglary of the home of
Harry Crim on Lake Lanier
were found in the youth’s pos
session.
School Out
Saturday
Last day of school for For
syth county youngsters will be
Saturday, May 31. This will be
a regular school day, with lunch
being served in the cafeterias.
Graduation ceremonies for
Forsyth County High School will
be held Sunday, June 1 at 2:30
p.m. in the gymnasium.
Speaker for the occasion will
be Rev. Eddie Rickenbaker.
Post - planning period for all
teachers will be Monday, June
2 through Wednesday, June 4.
prosperity of Forsyth County.
He says he knows a lot of
people from the Atlanta area
who have decided not to develop
property in Forsyth County be
cause of the crime problem.
The crime problem is so bad,
he said, that a lot of people
who already own property on
the lake are selling out. Mr.
Myrick himself had planned to
develop his property, but now
he “is not too sure.”
Forsyth
Countians
Honored
Several 1968 graduates of
Forsyth County High School re
ceived honors at the annual Hon
ors Day Program at Gainesville
Junior College on May 20.
Jim Butler, an employee of
the FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS,
was honored as having the high
est academic average in the
Freshman class at the college,
and also received honors for
being a member of the Honor
Society at the college, Phi The
ta Kappa.
Michael Harris was honored
as being a member of Phi The
ta Kappa.
Ray Westbrook was honored
for being in the top five per
cent of the Freshman class.
18 Pages
IN THIS ISSUE