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CALENDAR
NOVEMBER MEETING
Sun., Nov. 13, 2016, 2:30 p.m.
WMHS 40th Anniversary
Archives & Hamilton House
JANUARY MEETING
Sun., Jan. 22, 2017, 2:30 p.m.
ANNUAL MEETING
Reports from committees
Old Spring Place Methodist Church
"Our greatest responsibility
is to be good ancestors."
--Jonas Salk
IS YOUR FAMILY HISTORY ON FILE AT ARCHIVES?
If not, start today by sharing copies of basic information & photos. You can always add to your file at your convenience. We can make the necessary copies & scan photos. Help your descendants have an easier time tracing their family tree than you’ve had!
Please share your family research
&/or articles of interest on
Whitfield & Murray county history.
OUR RUMMAGE PARTNERS
The Salvation Army began work in Dalton in October 1912, according to the Oct. 3, 1912 issue of the Dalton Argus. WMHS helps this historic local group by donating items remaining from our rummage & Christmas sales. We thought you’d like to know that we partner with a group that has helped Dalton for over 100 years!
We have also passed items along to the Dalton Regional Library, Little Local Libraries, & the Habitat for Humanity Restore.
JOIN US FOR WMHS’S 40th ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATION
ON SUN., NOV. 13
WMHS will celebrate the 40th anniversary of our reactivation on Sun., Nov. 13 at 2:30 p.m. at the archives. Our president, Tim Howard, says:
“WMHS has come a long way in 40 years to become the largest & most active historic preservation organization in all of North Georgia. We are busier than we've ever been & doing more good than ever--assisting researchers, maintaining our properties, getting more & different people interested in local history. Let’s celebrate our successes at our headquarters on Nov. 13.
“Conway Gregory, our speaker for the event, was just a budding historian working at the relatively new Dalton Junior College when he & a handful of "young" people joined forces with a formidable but delightful group of senior residents of both counties to reactivate a dormant WMHS. He has gone on to work in other colleges & in government, have a family, & earn a doctorate, but has never forgotten his roots. He is still researching local topics, still preserving local & family history, & helping WMHS.
“At the meeting, we will recognize our original members, elect officers & trustees for next year, eat tasty treats, & share memories with longtime friends. I look forward to seeing you!”
If you’d prefer to receive your newsletter electronically.
SOUTHERN TUFTS RECEIVES AWARDS
Dalton native Ashley Brown Callahan has recently received two recognitions for her book, Southern Tufts: The Regional Origins and National Craze for Chenille Fashion. The Georgia Historical Society honored Southern Tufts with the Lilla M. Hawes Award, given for the best book in Georgia county or local history published during the previous year.The Georgia Center for the Book named Southern Tufts as one of ten Books All Georgians Should Read.
Callahan is an independent scholar and curator in Athens, GA, with a specialty in modern & contemporary American decorative arts. Her chenille fashion research was WMHS’s March 2016 meeting program.
The Polar Express returns to the Chatsworth Depot on Sat., Dec. 3 from noon until 4. We will have stories, trains, refreshments, & a visit from the main guy of the North Pole (who bears a striking resemblance to the WMHS president).
Intern Elaine Dickie
DICKIE SERVES AS INTERN
Elaine Faith Dickie is currently serving as an intern at the headquarters. The Dalton State College student is a history major who will complete her degree in 2017. She has performed a number of tasks at the archives & conducted tours at the Hamilton House.
The daughter of Bill & Angie Dickie, Elaine is a 2012 graduate of Northwest High School. She is engaged to Bryson Hunter Warnix.
About her career goals, Elaine says, “I would love to work for the National Park System in their heritage centers or museums, perhaps live in a camper so I can work for & travel to several different parks. Or work for a non-profit organization.”
Sympathy to . . .
* Toby Westmoreland & family in the death of his mother, Linda Blankenship Westmoreland.
* Caroline Brown in the death of her husband, Jack.
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RUMMAGE & XMAS ITEMS
ARE WELCOME
YEAR-ROUND!
We can pick up if needed.
RECENT BOOKS ON LOCAL HISTORY FOR SALE AT WMHS
Three books are available through WMHS to complete our members’ local history/local authors collections or give in time for Christmas!
Local author Faye Gibbons's latest book, Halley, has won several state awards. With its local setting, it gives a great picture of growing up in our area in the first third of the 2oth century and is available at Crown & at Pat's Antiques for $20.
Robert Smith's scholarly work An Evil Day in Georgia describes the social & judicial patterns of North Georgia in the 1920s using a Murray County murder as its focal point. Cost is $35 if purchased from WMHS.
Eula Branham's biography, From Murray County to Margaret Mitchell, is a wonderful story of overcoming obstacles to receive an education in a segregated society--here in Murray & Whitfield counties. Miss Branham was born in Murray, graduated from Emery Street School, & went on to become media specialist at Margaret Mitchell Elementary School in Atlanta. This great read is only $16.
HISTORICAL QUESTION #21
In each newsletter, we ask a question about local history. To check your accuracy (or to find the answer!), just go to our website: www.whitfield-murrayhistoricalsociety.org.
The 20th question appeared in the Sept. newsletter: What famous Georgian was born in Dalton & went on to become a successful Atlanta businessman & civic leader & who also donated Fort Mountain for a State Park? (He also helped save the Vann House in the 1950s.) ANSWER: Ivan Allen
Here’s question 21: What celebrity & child star on television's “Facts of Life” has ancestors buried at Spring Place Cemetery?
Sunday, Nov. 13, 2:30 p.m.
at the archives & Hamilton House
Preserving your family photos & documents
If you don't have the time for genealogy, try taking a few small steps to start preserving your family history. Shanee' Murrain, University Archivist at the University of West Georgia, offers tips on how to keep your photos & documents safe from damage & deterioration.
· If your photos are stuck between a plastic sheet & cardboard page in an album, remove them gently with a micro-spatula or dental floss. Wear nitrile gloves to handle photos. Keeping the original arrangement, place each photo inside a folded sheet of paper labeled with relevant names, dates, & location.
· Newspapers can be very acidic, so use acid-free paper to separate clippings from other items.
· Keep your family's vital documents (wills, trust documents, marriage licenses, adoption papers, & death certificates) in a secure area like a bank vault or in a safe at home. Enclose them in plastic bags to protect them from floods. File copies at home, too.
· Do not laminate your family papers. Laminated items cannot be de-laminated, & over time, lamination can lead to deterioration.
· Store family documents in a cool, dry, clean room with stable temperature & humidity. Avoid attics, basements, & locations with risks of leaks & environmental extremes.
Source: Georgia Humanities
Gardener Sue Woodward
WOODWARD GARDENS
Sue Woodward has been busy with the archives garden & the front yard at the Hamilton House, all in preparation for the upcoming 40th anniversary. Weeds have been eliminated, & perennials have been cut back & tidied. Pansies & zinnias have been planted to celebrate fall. Finally, pine straw has been added to the beds to retain moisture.
At the Hamilton House, the round iron pots & the sidewalk urns have been cleaned out & replanted with fall flowers. Clay pots now have leafy plants & creeping jenny. Mulch was spread around front boxwoods. Several members of the WCSO work crew helped Sue with some of the yardwork.
Many thanks to Sue for all her hard work!
A special thank you
* to the many who have made recent donations toward the restoration of the caboose & the preservation of the Chatsworth Depot.
* to the volunteers who kept the Wright Hotel, the Chatsworth Depot, & the Section House open during the Black Bear Festival in Chatsworth. We were very busy & reached many folks who had never been in the historic buildings.
RECENT DONATIONS
If you need tax donation letters for your contributions, be sure to fill out the appropriate WMHS form & retain a copy.
To the General Fund
* Ellen Thompson
To the Hamilton House
* Alyssa Misner donated an antique ladies’ hand mirror.
* Mr. & Mrs. Larry Grant donated a Magic Chef antique gas stove.
* Mr. & Mrs. Charles Crump donated an original serger invented by Mr. Crump’s father, photos, & family history.
* Bruce Davies donated locks, lights, cleaning services, mulch, & plants.
To Crown Gardens and Archives
* WalMart donated funds for garden purchases.
* David Beck’s family donated his Dalton Little Theatre scrapbooks & photos of children’s theatre productions.
* Mary Gene Dykes & family donated her historical photos & files.
* Carlton McDaniel donated a book set: Records of the Moravian Among the Cherokee.
* John Densmore donated vintage books, including A. J. Showalter books.
* Loretta Campbell donated A History of St. Joseph’s Catholic Church.
* Ellen Thompson donated Brush Brooms & Straw Ticks.
To the Huff House
* Ellen Thompson donated an antique bed & dresser & a metal plant stand.
WELCOME, NEW MEMBERS!
* Tristan Stanley--Dalton
* Anne Hammontree--Dalton
* Lisa Williams--Colcord, CO
* Jeff & Sara Davis--Dalton
* Elle Shirah--Dalton
* Carolyn O’Rourke--Urbana, IL
* George & Linda Miller--Webbers Falls, OK
* Jo Brock: Rocky Face
ARE YOU AN AMAZON CUSTOMER?
Order through amazonsmile.com, & designate your order to benefit the Whitfield-Murray Historical Society!
HISTORIC RURAL CHURCHES
IN OUR AREA
The Historic Rural Churches of Georgia Association will add churches in Murray & Whitfield counties to their upcoming projects. The requirements to be considered are as follows:
· Must be at least 100 years old.
· Must be located in a rural area.
· Must still have its historic integrity intact (not have been remodeled to the point that the original structure is unrecognizable or no longer historic).
· Does not matter if it is in use or not.
Possible churches that have been suggested thus far are:
Murray: Doogan, Cisco, SPM, Eton Methodist, Ball Ground.
Whitfield: McGaughey's Chapel, St. Andrew’s AME at Cohutta, Cohutta First Presbyterian, Five Springs, Mill Creek, Tilton Baptist, Swamp Creek Baptist.
Persons with additional information are encouraged to call Vallarie at the archives.
CONTACT US
Whitfield-Murray Historical Society
P. O. Box 6180
Dalton, GA 30722-6180
706-278-0217
www.whitfield-murrayhistoricalsociety.org
Physical address: 715 Chattanooga Ave.
Open Mon-Fri., 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Open weekends by appointment
or special events.
Ó 2016 Whitfield-Murray Historical Society
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