March 26, 2015Chevy Chase, Maryland Back in the mid-1980’s, when I was a year or so out of journalism school with some experience writing for daily newspapers under my belt, I got the itch to move on to a bigger newspaper market, with a more interesting beat, and more exciting […]
August 4, 2020Chevy Chase, Maryland I think the most useful tool I’ve had in putting together Emmett Wilson’s research is an extensive timeline, broken down across the decades of Emmett’s life, in which I’ve organized every single article or information source, by chronological date. Anything that mentioned Emmett in any […]
June 2, 19047:50 a.m.Marianna, Florida When I got off the train from Chipley this morning, the first thing I did was head over to Cephas and Lula’s house, to drop off my satchel, change clothes and then to head to the office. I put on my best three-piece black suit […]
October 2, 2015Marianna, Florida After touring St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, Sue and I continue to walk around downtown Marianna; she points out several buildings that are still standing from Emmett and Cephas’ time — The Acme Restaurant, Dr. Wilson’s office (no relation to Emmett, Cephas or Frank Wilson of Chipley), […]
October 2, 2015Marianna, Florida Sue and I walk down Lafayette Street, also known as US 90, towards Jefferson Street, where we turn right, and walk for two more blocks. It’s mostly businesses and a church; there were homes here once upon a time. There’s an old house or two that […]
October 2, 2015Jackson County CourthouseMarianna, Florida Sue Tindel, the Jackson County Court Archivist, is one in a million. She’s also someone I’d been corresponding with regularly over a year, and so, when I met her, I’d felt like we’d been friends for a long time. Sue is a fantastic lady. […]
June 1, 1904Marianna, FloridaThe Law Offices of Wilson & Wilson I sit at an empty desk in a back room at Ceph’s law office, going through case files and organizing boxes of old case documents which the law clerk brought down from Ceph’s dusty attic. The window is open, but […]
May 29, 1904, late afternoonChipley Florida After Walter and Frank Mayes left the house, I picked up my satchel, put a book and an apple in it, and took a walk downtown. I didn’t expect anything to be open late Sunday afternoon; I wanted to get away from the house, […]
In the early 1900s, if you got your name in the newspaper, it was a big deal. It indicated prominence in your community. In Pensacola, these columns were mostly found in the Society section of the paper, with little headings over each news blurb; if you were a businessman or […]
May 29, 1904Chipley, Florida No one met me at the depot in Chipley when my train pulled in right before 11 am, but I didn’t expect anyone to on a Sunday morning. Most everyone around here is in church at this time. The few who are milling around are here […]
