50 and 100 Years Ago.
Tuesday, Aug. 5, 1969 Optimist takes city 9-12 title
Andy Jones did it with both his arm and his bat Monday night to pace Optimist to the citywide 9-12 baseball championship at Ransom Field.
Optimist defeated Georgia Kraft, 6-2, for the title after the Kraft boys had whipped Motor Contract, 3-2, in a preliminary game to reach the finals.
Jones was the man of the hour of the winners. He fired a six-hitter at Georgia Kraft for the pitching victory, and also aided his own cause with a perfect three-for-three night at the plate.
His three hits were a single, double and a home run.
Georgia Kraft scored in the top of the first to take a temporary 1-0 lead. Optimist came back to tie the score in the first and then went to stay with three runs in the third.
Two more runs in the fifth boosted the margin to 6-1 for the winners before Georgia Kraft got its final marker in the sixth.
Terry McAbee had two hits, including a double, for the winners. Mark Collins and Michael Edwards banged out a pair of hits apiece for the losers. Dennis Bratcher was the losing pitcher.
In Monday’s preliminary game, Bratcher and Bubba Morrison engaged in a pitching duel that was decided in the early innings.
Motor Contract got both of its runs in the top of the first and held this advantage until Georgia Kraft tallied all three of its runs in the bottom of the third. The two teams matched goose-eggs the rest of the way.
Georgia Kraft picked up six hits, including two each by Johnny White and Edwards. Motor Contract managed just two hits with Him Hewitt and David Leech collecting them.
Twenty-two teams had started play in the tournament last week. The favorites fell by the wayside one by one through the single elimination part of the tournament. Then when only four teams were left, double elimination was installed to decide the city champ.
All tournament teams from the four leagues now will begin practice for the annual district tournament, which is scheduled to get underway next week.
Thursday, Aug. 7, 1969 Morrison’s Campground meet to open
Plans are being completed for the 103rd annual camp meeting at Morrison’s Campground.
The camp meeting begins Friday and will continue through Aug. 17, with hundreds of worshippers from throughout Georgia and much of the Southeast expected to attend.
Evangelists will be the Revs. Jim Winn, J. Leo Bailey and Bob H. Jones.
Special preaching at the campground will be held at 11 a.m., 3 p.m. and 8 p.m. daily with a number of guest ministers to participate.
Adults will hold prayer meetings prior to each evening service and youth will meet at the same time at the springs which run near the campground. Activities will be planned for the camp meeting period.
Morrison’s Campground is located three miles off Georgia Highway 20 between Rome and Kingston.
Mr. Winn is pastor of the First United Methodist Church of Cedartown, Mr. Bailey is pastor of Moore Memorial Methodist Church in Winona, Miss., and Mr. Jones, a former minister of the Fifth Avenue Baptist Church in Rome, is minister of music and youth at the First Baptist Church in Gulfport, Miss. Friday, Aug. 8, 1969 Columnist’s version of tragedy
WASHINGTON (AP) – Columnist Jack Anderson says Sen. Edwards M. Kennedy asked his cousin, Joseph Gargan, “to take the rap” for driving the car in which a young secretary drowned.
In his copyrighted column today, Anderson said Gargan “grimly said he would admit to driving the car.”
“In the cold light of dawn, Kennedy decided to face the consequences himself, and then he filed his terse statement with the Edgartown police at 10 a.m.,” said Anderson, who co-authors the column with Drew Pearson.
The Washington Post quoted Gargan as saying in Hyannis Port., Mass., there was “no truth whatsoever” to Anderson’s story.
Anderson, attributing his story to “reliable sources” and Kennedy “intimates,” said the senator had invited Mary Jo Kopechne to go for a midnight swim the night the car wet off a narrow bridge.
The columnist described the swim as “a nocturnal adventure not uncommon on Martha’s Vineyard.”
“Nor are these summer night swims necessarily viewed as evidence of immoral conduct,” Anderson added. He said Kennedy knew where he was going but the car was going too fast and went off into the water.
Mary Jo drowned despite Kennedy’s efforts to free her.
100 years ago
as presented in the August 1919 editions of the Rome Tribune-Herald
Commander John H. Towers will be at Rome on Oct. 7, to be honored by his fellow citizens of Rome and Floyd County, and to dedicate Towers Flying Field, named in his honor.
And a magnificent medallion commemorative is of his achievement in planning and executing under his direction the first successful transatlantic air flight will be presented to him by the people of this section on that day.
Senator Harris has already wired that Secretary Daniels has given the official approval to Commander Towers visit to Rome, at the same time paying him a great tribute.
--The Dalton Citizen newspaper says “Uncle Bob” Knox’s domestic troubles are again being aired in the courts, and this time, for the first time on record, it appears that “Uncle Bob” instead of one of his numerous wives, has beat a retreat.
A month or so ago, Uncle Bob up and married his eighth wife. There was nothing of the spectacular in this wedding like there was in the seventh when the old Mexican War veteran and a large number of his friends met the seventh tobe Mrs. Knox at the train and extended a cordial welcome, with the quickly following rapid and ardent wooing which culminated in the marriage. This time, Uncle Bob just married without any show.
Things apparently rocked along all right for a time and when the eighth Mrs. Knox refused to leave his domicile when trouble arose, and Uncle Bob found it necessary for the first time in his long and eventful life to retreat. He went to Gordon County to stay with relatives, leaving Mrs. Knox in the undisputed possession of the field, which she is still holding.
It has been hinted that Uncle Bob, when he gets out of this marriage, if he does, is already figuring on Mrs. Knox IX, but that rumor hasn’t been verified.