Newspaper Page Text
THE
CHATTER
...80X...
Local-County-Statc
By the Office Boy
City Officials, County Offic
ials, Woman’s Club, Garden Club
and all civic minded citizens.
Please sit up and take notice!
The Woman’s Club has been
working hard to draw to your at
tention the fact that all cities in
Georgia are Tourist Conscious!
Beautification conscious! The
State Flower, the Cherokee Rose,
has long been sought for planting
within our city. At long last
your Office Boy has found a
source from which they can be
purchased. We have written
them for prices on 2 year roses
in 100 lots; and also in lots of
50. We would like for the Gar
den Club to contact it’s members,
and see just how many they can
use; The City Manager and Mayor
and those interested should get
together and see just how many
we can plant. . .certainly at the
City Hall and Courthouse. . .
even in large urns. . .in the
City Park over at the Springs;
on school grounds throughout the
County, .on our Highways enter
ing the city; Roadside parks. .
we have only one now, that we
are aware of, which was placed
by the Covington Garden Club,
and it certainly needs some at
tention now. Highway entrances
to the city. . .let’s be the Cher
okee Rose City of the State!
May we hear from each one of
you, rather than having to call
each one of you. How many
individuals will plant at least
ONE of Georgia’s State Flower
at their home? This goes for
the entire County. On the High
ways, houses of business, school
grounds, etc. Let’s get some
figure in mind at once as supply
is “scarce”. This is the only
place handling them that we know
of anywhere.
We want every business manto
look at a certain light or tele
phone pole in front of the Bank
of Covington. There must be a
little opening, and dirt around
this pole on the pavement and
we never saw prettier petunias
growing there. Every passerby
“OOOS and AHHHS” at them!
Ramsey Furniture Company has
put two large urns with plants,
in addition to the tall plants by
the new Wrought Iron entrance
to the store.
Wake up “fellers and glrruls”
. . .What about our Post office?
Wouldn’t some Cherokee Roses
be pretty there, and a few formal
boxwoods? Look at the roses in
front of the filling station across
diagonally from McGuires bus
iness! Let that be a challenge
to you. Right down by that
beautiful Colonial Bank with its
new Drive-in Deposit place. .
You certainly make a “show
place”. . .How about it? Come
(Continued F^ge 2)
County Receives
$117,376 From
Title I Project
Disadvantaged school children
in Newton County will benefit
from six special programs un
der Title 1, ESEA, during the
fiscal year 1969, according to
State School Superintendent Jack
P. Nix. J. W. Richardson Is
Newton County School Superin
tendent.
Funds of $117,376 will finance
projects in reading, music, and
natural science instruction in
addition to food, medical and
psychological services.
Title 1 funds under the Elem
entary and Secondary Education
Act are distributed locally on
the basis of the number of school
age children in the school sys
tem from families with less than
$2,000 annual Income. School
leaders plan their own projects
to fill locally determined needs
then submit them to the Georgia
Department of Education Title
1 Coordinator R. C. Beemon for
approval.
Officials Look Over Snapping Shoals Report
M I 4k *—»• ,-'r. i
^L. ’B
4 IbmMHI
LOOKING OVER THE Snapping Shoals Annual Report are these three men who attended the annual
meeting of the REA at Salem Camp Ground Friday. From left: Edwin Hatch, President of the Georgia
Power Company; Walter Harrison, Gen.-Mgr. GEMC: and Ed Robinson, manager of the Snapping Shoals
EMC.
A Prize-Winning
Newspaper
| 1969
y Better Newspaper
Contests
BEST COVERAGE OF JEWS, PICTURES, AND FEATURES OF ANY WEEKLY IN GEORGIA
The Georgia Enterprise, Established "ovington Star, Established 1874—The Enterprise, Established 1902, and The Citizen-Observer, Established 1953
VOLUME 104 NO. 40
FIVE .jURED IN TRAIN WRECK
DIESEL ENGINES, passenger car and freight cars are pictured above after their wreckage Sunday
evening near Covington Mills when the train was derailed enroute from Atlanta to Augusta. A tamp
ered switch routed the cars into the spur track that leads to Hercules in Covington. Two young boys,
ages seven and 12, have confessed to tampering with the switch that caused the wreck. Five passen-
Gas Line Broken
At Housing Project
A natural gas line was broken
at the Covington Low Rent Hous
ing project Monday afternoon
about 4:30 o’clock. Traffic to
Hercules and Mobil Chemical was
re-routed through the back areas
of the project during the emer
gency.
A bulldozer broke the line while
doing some grading near the com
munity building now being con
structed, according to Fire Chief
Rodney Floyd. The city gas de
partment soon fixed the disrupt
ed main.
Temperatures
Temperatures in Covington
during the past week, according
to Jack Chapman, weatherman,
were;
High Low
Wed., July 23rd 88 69
Thurs., July 24th 85 70
Fri., July 25th 90 68
Sat., July 26th 91 69
Sun., July 27th 90 71
Mon., July 28th 90 69
Tues., July 29th 88 70
©fye Glnuingtnn New
“Story Hours”
At Library
August 5-8
The library is happy to an
nounce the Story Hours to be
held at the Newton County Lib
rary Tuesday, August 5, Thurs
day 7, Friday 8.
Mrs. Allison Roberts of the De-
Kalb library system will be with
us on Tuesday and bring a most
delightful program. Mrs. Gree
ley Ellis and Mrs. Pierce Cline
will be present the other two.
Regretfully we have to confine
the age limit of those attending
to children entering first grade
and kindergarten. The time is 10
to 11 o’clock.
"The Vacation reading club is
still going strong. Is your name
on our "Big Top” bulletin board?
If not be sure to complete your
reading lists and bring them to the
library and receive your certifi
cate and place your name on the
bulletin board. The reading pro
gram will continue unti Septem
ber 2 so come and join your
friends,” said Mrs. Harry Dietz,
librarian.
UNGTON, GEORGIA, THURSDAY, JULY 31, 1969
Population Stops Getting Younger
For a number of years, up to
1967, residents of Newton
County were getting younger
all the time. Not individually—
only collectively.
The median age of the local
population, which Is the point
at which there are as many
persons above that age as be
low It, had dropped about 7
percent in a period of 7 years.
It went from 26.4 years In
1960, as determined by the cen
sus taken at that time, to ap
proximately 24.8 years, where
it remains today.
That is neither younger than
Springtime nor older than Me-
Electric Power Cutoff
Sunday From 2-4 P.M.
All City of Covington electric
lines (including sections of Ox
ford) will be out of service Sun
day afternoon, August 3 from 2
until 4 p. m., according to an
announcement by the Covington
Electric Department.
Break Os Day
Brings Breakin
At Paint Center
Sometime around 6 a. m. Tues
day the Christian Paint Center
on U. S. Highway 278 East was
robbed of $l2O In money, checks
and a heavy-duty power saw.
Jimmy Gardner of the Paint
Center discovered the break
in about 7;20 a. m. when he re
ported for work. He said that
the thief or thieves had made
their entry via forcing open an
over-head door in the back of the
building.
Mr. Gardner said that Coving
ton Police had checked the build
ing about 6 a. m. and everything
seemed to be in order at that
time.
Wednesday there had been no
arrests in the case. Local pol
ice are working on the case.
gers were Injured slightly. The passenger car may be seen on its side immediately behind engine No.
754. Engineer John Clontz said that he did not receive a warning of the open switch. The train was
traveling about 40-50 miles per hour, according to crewmen.
thuselah. It compares with a
median age of 27.4 years in the
nation as a whole and with 24.3
in the State of Georgia.
Why the sudden end to the
growing-younger process? It is
all tied up with the nationwide
drop in the birth rate, which is
attributed in part to the new
attitude of the young women of
the "now” generation toward
child-bearing.
This is borne out by Census
Bureau findings that women un
der 30 are having children at
lower rates and are spacing
them to a greater extent than
The power cutoff will be for a
major sub-station change. If
weather prohibits the change this
Sunday, the change will be made
on the following Sunday, August
10, at the same time.
Band Members
Report Monday
Basil Rigney, band director
of the Newton County Blue Ram
blers, announces drill sessions
for all new members of the
band will start Monday morning,
August 4, at 7 a.m. Only new
band members not having
marched with the band before
(Continued Page 7)
Oxford Town
Hall Closed
The Oxford Town Hall will be
closed next week, August U th
rough August 16.
Persons who have emergency
business to transact during that
week may contact Tom Dial at
786-2859, or E. V. Moss at 786-
2511.
did women of the previous ge
neration.
While the report does not
indicate the extent to which the
pill and other relatively new
techniques of family planning
are responsible for this drop,
it declares that these techni
ques "undoubtedly have been
a contributing factor.”
The lower birth rate and the
trend toward smaller families
is ascribed by the Population
Reference Bureau to an aware
ness among young couples that
"rearing children In this com
plicated and expensive world
presents big problems.”
The figures bear out this
trend, according to a recent
survey by the Census Bureau.
It finds that there are 20 per
cent fewer young children per
mother than In 1960.
This so-called "fertility ra
tio” refers to the number of
children under the age of 5
per 1,000 women of child-bear
ing age.
In Newton County, in 1960,
his ratio was 483. It is now
Long-Range View Os Train Wreck Scene
I
t
I -
fit m
_ --1 /^HESiSDO k K*
. - IC
THIS IS A LONG-RANGE view of the Georgia RR Train Nd. 2 that wrecked near the Covington Low
Rent Housing Unit and Covington Mill Sunday evening. The switch for the spur track leading to Her
cules plant (shown at left), was apparently thrown and the passenger-freight train derailed and wreck
ed. The line at right is the main line from Atlanta to Augusta.
Editorial 2
Obituary 6
Society 9
Sports 17
Legal 24, 27
Classified . 25-27
estimated at 386.
The local ratio, although con
siderably lower than before, as
is the case generally, is still
well above that in many sec
tions of the country. The Uni
ted States average is 376. In
the Southern States it is 368.
Man Held In
Shooting Death
Newton County Sheriffs depart
ment Is holding a man In the
local jail In a shooting affray that
took place In Covington Saturdav
afternoon.
Otis Johnson, about 38, of Cov
ington will get a preliminary
hearing sometime next week on
a murder charge. Killed was
James Simpson, about 25 of Cov
ington, who was originally from
Arkansas.
Law enforcement officers said
that the men became engaged in
an argument before the death
shot was fired. The Incident
took place on Guinn Street in
Covington.
SINGLE COPY PRICE 15<
Local law enforcement officers
moved swiftly early Monday
morning to apprehend the per
sons who cut wires and tore up a
railroad siding switch device in
Covington that caused the derail
ment and wreck of Georgia Rail
road Train No. 2 late Sunday
evening. The passenger-freight
train was enroute from Atlanta
to Augusta when the unexpected
wreck happened near the new
Covington Low Rent Housing Unit
and the old Covington Mill prop
erty about 7:15.
The Newton County Sheriffs
Dept., Covington City Police, FBI
and Railroad officials were on the
case immediately and Monday
Sheriff Henry Odum stated that
two young Negro boys, ages 7
and 12, who live In the nearby
housing complex, had confessed
that they tampered with the sig
naling device that failed to warn
the engineer of an open switch.
Five passengers were on the
train and none were injured ser
iously. They received treatment
at Newton County Hospital. En
gineer John Clontz, 63, and a
woman passenger suffered sev
eral cuts and bruises, however.
Others treated at the hospital
were Mrs. Elizabeth Mansfield,
52, of Augusta; Albert Hoard,
62, of Augusta; Bobby Jones,
10, of Tucker, and John Ful
cher, 50 of Mcßeen, Ga., the
baggage master.
Crew members of the train
said that it was traveling about
40-50 miles an hour when they
hit the spur. Both diesel en
gines, the passenger car, and
two freight cars were overtur
ned and damaged considerably.
The caboose and two other frei
ght cars d<d not leave the track.
Several residents of thenelgh
borhood saw and heard the wreck.
The R. H. Anglins live across
the railroad tracks In the Cov
ington Mill area and they said
they were sitting on the front
porch with several members of
their family. A granddaughter,
Kim Anglin, daughter of Mr. and
Mrs. Pat Anglin, had especially
wanted to see the train pass by.
When it left the main track Rufus
Anglin commented, "Oh, the train
has left the track.” Mrs. Anglin
then called police and reported
the catastrophe. Sam Williams,
another resident of the section,
said he was one of the first per
sons to reach the wreckage and
that the engineer and another
crewman were already out of the
engine cab. He said there was
a big noise and a big cloud of
dust from the Impact.
Removing the wreckage and
getting the spur line, which leads
to the Covington Hercules plant,
repaired and back In order was
accomplished In relatively short
time. Covington Depot Agent
J. B. Gheesling said that the
work should be completed in a
few days. Charles Kitchens of
Almon, Assistant Roadmaster of
the Georgia RR here, has worked
on the wreckage Incessantly since
Sunday night. Cranes and heavy
equipment from Atlanta and Aug
usta have been here since early
Monday.
Walter Wilson of Thomaston
works on cleaning up the cargo
hauled by the trains of the Geor
gia RR. He said that he has
had more calls from the RR in
the past 60 days than in the three
years previously. One of the box
cars was loaded with "shorts”
and another with flour, he stated.
Officials of the railroad called
Mr. Wilson at his home in Th
omaston about 3 a. m. Monday.
He came directly to Covington
and started his crew on the clean
up operation.
Bobby Jones of Tucker, the
(Continued Page 3)