Jimbo Justice speaks at May Meeting
ASHS Column for May 25, 2006
Margaret Collier

   Before we get into the next
exciting chapter of the Winding
River Road, there are a couple
of items for your attention.
1. Those of you who missed the
May meeting of the Society
missed a real treat when
"Jimbo" Justice took us back
to some early times, places
and people in Flomaton.
Drugstore memories with
five-cent Cokes and
gatherings at Justice
Drugstore and awe at
all of the goodies in Mr.
Drury's store brought
out many responses from
the members of the
Society.
    His main theme, though,
was about the Drury family.
He gave out two handouts
with ever so much
information and pictures.
We treasure those. This was
one of those "warm and
fuzzy" meetings.
                                 ****
    The second item is about
the Brown-Agerton family
reunion that was held in the
Walnut Hill Community Center
on Saturday, May 13. You see,
Jerry Simmons and I became
adopted cousins after
encouraging Ethel McKinley
and Jessie Mae Smith with
their work in writing and
publishing the book, "The
Mind Still Sees, The Heart
Remembers."
    Being the good cousins
that we are, we attended
this heartwarming event
and were able to meet all
nine out of the remaining
Brown siblings. You would
not believe the entangle-
ment of cousins, second
cousins, etc. but every-
body, young and old attended
and had a great time.
    My family never had a
family reunion. The genera-
tions before me were too
scattered. I had one sister,
now deceased, and my husband
was an only child. Now we
did have some gatherings of a few family members that were always connected to weddings, anniversaries, or funerals, but never on the scale of this Oak Grove clan, so I was properly impressed that we were so warmly received. Hopefully, they will keep up this tradition.
                                ****
    Now let's take up the River story.
    "At an early age I traveled a few stretches of this road in company with my Grandfather John T. Diamond, Grandfather Neil Campbell, Uncle Gabe Capers and Uncle Tom Sunday. They were among the earliest pioneers in the area. They were here during the last years of the Spanish occupation and when the Creek Indians walked the old Trading Trail. They knew the history and traditions of the road and could give interesting information.
    "As a boy I traveled many stretches of this road with men in the middle pioneer class among whom may be mentioned, Uncle William Diamond; Uncle George Diamond; Mr. William Morris (Uncle Bud), Esquire; J. W. Mann; Hon. E. V. McCaskille; Uncle James W. Nelson; and Mr. Louis Jones.
    "Many of these men lived for years in sight of the road. They knew the road and the area it served. They knew the location of all the wolf pits and pens, panther hideouts and runs, bear traps and deer stands, and took great delight in passing this information on to an interested lad who wished many times he had been here during the days of Indians, panthers, wolves and bears.
    "The above information has been given to show how I came to know the history and traditions of the historic road and the communities it served."
                               ****
    Next time he will give more details about who lived along the road and describe some of the work and uses of the side roads. Don't miss it.
    Need more information about the Alger-Sullivan Historical Society? You may email ashs@algersullivan.org or call Margaret Collier at 850-256-2029, Jerry Simmons at 850-256-2661, or Jerry Fischer at 850-256-3980. Most days you can call the Leach House Museum at 850-256-2447 and reach either Altha Scott or Dorothy Newton who mind the store for us during the week.
    Recently, Mr. Darryl Searcy of Range, AL gave us permission to resell his fabulous book on DVD, "Wildflowers of the Escambia." There are in excess of
3,000 photos and descriptions of flora and fauna from South Alabama and NW Florida - a superb example of the beauty of this area - you won't be disappointed! Only $15.00 plus shipping for mail order. Take a look at http://www.algersullivan.org/bookstore.html to see some of the other books and collectibles we have for sale, too.

The crew at the Justice Rexall Drugstore in Flomaton ca. 1970s: L-R, "H" (Hank) Coleman, his son Hank, William Reaves (rear), "Doc" Justice, and Jimbo.

This page last modified on Sunday, June 04, 2006