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City of Perry 175th Birthday, Nov. 17, 1999, Houston Home Journal Page 8B Boyhood Continued from Page 7 The whistles were loud and ould be heard anywhere in Perry. There was a stria schedule as to vhen the whistle was to be blown, - uid the correct time was most mportant. This required each fire nan to have a good 50 cent pocket va:ch that checked each day with a vlacon radio station. The daily schedule would start at 6:00 a.m. to wake the “hands" (employees) and ■veryonc else in Perry, regardless of heir alarm clocks. The schedule would continue at starting time, unch time, and “quittin’ time.” It would also blow ten minutes before starting time and before lunch time was over. 1 often wondered why it didn’t blow before lunch time and quittin’ time? Maybe they didn’t want the workers to start stopping too early. If there was a fire or trou ble during the night at the mill, the fireman would sound many short blasts to alert the police, because there were no telephones. Time with Dad My father was superintendent of Perry Veneer Company, it produced fruit baskets. It was there that 1 spent many enjoyable hours and days with my Dad. At first, 1 would follow him around very closely for safety. Gradually, he taught me how to use various tools and instructed me as to the places I must not wander. There were very few safety devices on any of the machinery; in fact, the entire mill was an accident waiting to hap pen. His advice was always, “Be careful.” My father was the only white man at the veneer plant, or crate fac tory as it was commonly called. It was there I learned much about dif ferent customs and family life. These wonderful people looked after me as 1 would play or roam around the plant, and they never hesitated to correct or caution me, if necessary, always being there if I needed help. They even taught me how to do many of their jobs. My most fun part was riding the mule and wagon to haul the baskets around the plant. One time I slipped and fell between the mule’s behind and the wagon - one of those slow motion falls. Before 1 could hit the ground, Chester Vance, uncle of Dr. Vance, reached down and, with his mighty hand, lifted me up and said with a smile on his face, “You okay, boy?” Hog Killing Time With the first frost, came hog killing time and some of the employees would take off from work to butcher their hogs. Daddy was always invited to come and get some fresh meat. When the time came, we would head to Will Profit’s home with great mouth-watering expecta tions that had been building up since the invitation. As we neared the house, I could see the smoke and steam rising from the kettle in the backyard. It was a beautiful sight, and 1 could hardly wait to get near the fire and listen to everyone talk ing and laughing about how good it was going to taste that night, and it was. I couldn’t leave without a cup of cold water from the open well which I had drawn up in an old bucket that had a brick tied to the side to make it tilt to fill with water. It was fun. It was simple. It was good. I’m glad I was invited. Thank you Will Profit. Fishing and Hunting Fishing and hunting were my father’s favorite sports, and it was only natural that 1 would become interested and want to go with him. The word “sport” may not be cor rect, after all we were in a depression so “survival” may be a better word. Today, we play with the fish using a light line to be sportsmanlike. Daddy used a heavy line and the fish came straight in after it took the hook. I was taught to cast a rod and reel using my left hand so I could imme diately start cranking the reel with my right hand. “Why switch and every time you cast?” he asked. We even had fish baskets. After work, we would go down to Big Indian Creek and pull up the basket to see what we had for supper. Those left-over were put in the “ice box” until later. The same rule applied to hunting, don’t waste it. During those days together, I was also taught the proper rules of safety. The first gun 1 owned had a visible hammer so 1 could see if it was cocked or uncocked. “No guesswork ,” Dad said. And I still remember his saying, “The first shot is the best shot.” The ice plant The “ice box” was a common appliance during those times, and they did quite well considering we could not afford the expensive elec tric ones. The ice man would deliver ice about two or three times a week from the ice plant at Houston Lake. The first deliveries I remember were by horse and wagon, later they came by truck. Most of the young boys, and some of the girls, would wait with great anticipation for the ice man to come so they could run out Happy 175th Birthday to the City of Perry! C /Pe re proud to (>e part of the rich historic l&jauf and everting o future of QBerrg, Seotgia Chapman 8c Rodgers C. Snyder Chapman, CPA Stephen C. Rodgers, CPA 901 Carroll Street, Perry 987-4994 and get cracked ice to suck on. It fas cinated me when he would take the ice pick, pick a line, and a block of ice would fall off. Mother would buy a ten cent block each time, if she had a dime. (You think I am kidding!) Groceries delivered Mr. Sims owned the grocery store that offered delivery service on Carroll Street. I can still see the deliv ery man on the horse drawn wagon playing a tune with his spoons as the horse meandered down Washington Avenue’s dirt street. Mr. Sims was also in the furniture business as well as being the local undertaker. Caskets and furniture lined the sides of the grocery store. (Undertakers must dabble in a lot of things.) Prior to this time, invitations to funerals were often personally delivered by the horse drawn hearse. An airplane ride My first airplane ride was on a Sunday afternoon in 1939. In those days, young pilots would travel to small towns and take the folks for a ride or perform dare devil stunts. I had a big surprise one Sunday when Daddy gave the pilot a whole dollar for me to take a ride. I still feel the excitement as we taxied down to the far end of the cow pasture (now the Georgia National Fairgrounds and Agricenter), turned around, rewed up the engine, and started down Mother Nature’s runway. The flight did not last very long; after all, Perry was not very large. I was telling the pilot all about the different land marks and directed him over our home. He turned around and flew over again very low, and I pointed out my white chickens in the back yard (now the Bank of Perry’s ATM and Drive-In windows). He told me I would make a good pilot and then let me take hold of the co-pilot’s con trols. Wow! On another occasion, the Bat Man was planning to do his death defying stunts. Posters displayed him See BOYHOOD, Page 9 lg \ — ~ ~ mill' A downtown scene - just across Ball Street from the Courthouse mi i ■SB pi «i * JpiUpß Gardner Watson with his toddler son Draper at the dedication of the current court house. Dudley L. Heath Happy 75th V ice PmiJent/Brauch .Yumaga Birthday, I’ls MACON ROAP • IX) BOX 10H PSTTV! PERRY, GKORGIA MO6M Phone: (Ml2' MR?-14 >4 • Fax |MJ2> 'KT6I2.' ♦ Georgia Farm Credit , AC A Happy 175th Birthday to the City of Perry! We!** ifv&Ad t® caJU!/ Walker-Rhodes S. Tractor Co. Kubota. 912 Jernigan Street, Perry, GA 987-1173