Detroit Weekly (Detroit, Tex.), Vol. 33, No. 32, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 17, 2014 Page: 2 of 8
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Page 2
April 17, 2014
All
Flashes.. .Cunningham
By Jackie Ballard
My first recollections of Cun-
ningham include a basketball,
a bicycle and Indians.
Cunningham is a community
on Fann Road 196 near the
North Sulphur River, twenty
miles southwest of Paris in
southeastern Lamar County.
The Texas Historical Society
records that it was named for
Sam A. Cunningham, a Ten-
nessean, who first relocated
to Honey Grove in 1882. In
1900, Mr. Sam, by then a land-
owner, moved to the nearby
Petty Headright area and then
encouraged settlement in what
became the present communi-
ty. There is no official record
of when the post office was
established, but speculation
is 1912. Three years later
the population grew to 350.
Cunningham then had two
churches, three general stores,
a printer, a saw mill and a doc-
tor. So much activity abound-
ed the Inland Journal news-
paper appeared to record the
citizens’ progress. The boom
didn’t increase in the decades
following the Depression and
World Wars. Hie population
decreased to 200 by the 1940s
and continued to decline slow-
ly-
Of course, other than Frankie
Norwood and Leslie Taylor,
fonner Deport Pirate Little
Leaguers, Duane Allen of the
Oak Ridge Boys Quartet is the
most famous person from the
town.
That’s just about all the in-
ternet will give you about the
community, so I went to one of
the horse’s mouths for the real
scoop. A sit down with Matri-
arch Geneva Norwood reveals
that Sam indeed was the first
to settle the area and it grew
due to his bestowing an acre of
his land everyone that would
build a home on it.
Early on there were several
small schools in the area and
pay from Mr. Sam’s business-
es might be fifty-cents a day or
a bucket of syrup. Hie town
grew to at least 74 homes with
five general stores, a barber
shop and churches for most
any faith one had. Ed Bled-
soe’s general store was “up
town” with wares including
shower gifts and clothes. It
almost became a metro area
with Independence being a
community “across the creek”
and an eight-mile loop around
the town that then merited the
descriptive name of Old Town
Cunningham.
Before television was invent-
ed, a traveling movie “theater”
entrepreneur provided enter-
tainment by bringing movies
to show on the side of one of
the old dilapidated, closed
store buildings... complete
with flat, hard benches with no
backs.
Dr. K.M. Stell started a med-
ical practice in 1912, but just
as important was the “string”
band he started to provide en-
tertainment for the communi-
ty. According to some of the
old-timers it was a common
sight to see the street lined
with wagons, buggies, and
horse backers who came from
far and near to listen to the
music. But, as the future came
on the old bandstand was tom
down to make way for a rock
road.
Tragedies of significance in
town were a large tornado in
the forties which sent a lot of
ladies to the stonn cellar ac-
cording to Geneva. Also, more
significant, was Mr. Harold
Bell’s shocking train accident
death. Mr. Bell was a music
teacher and taught many tal-
ents in the sixties. His influ-
ence then was region-wide
and he was honored by a can-
dlelight service and his life’s
impact is still being felt today.
The schools and the churches
were where the social life was
for Cunningham. A tabernacle
was the focus for two to three
week revivals (editorial com-
ment: whew!) where each of
the many churches spoke for
their faith. Plays, cakewalks
and suppers grew relation-
ships between the families.
Familiar family names over
the years such as Allen, Smith,
Bankhead, Oats, Cruise, Pines,
William, Reese, and Norwood
built or fanned the area over
the years. Hie nearby Sulphur
River has been a gathering
place in times past when prac-
tically everyone would camp
out, fish, cook, play, dominoes
and generally have a “blow
out” under the stars.
The early school buses had no
windows. Instead they sported
fancy pull up and down cur-
tains for the rainy and cold
days. There were so many
students around the loop that
it they would go half way,
deliver the load, and go back
Notice of Election
To the Registered Voters of the Rivercrest Indepen-
dent School District.
Notice is hereby given that the polling places listed
below will be open from 7:00 A.M. to 7:00P.M. on May
10, 2014, for voting in general election to elect trustees
for the Rivercrest Independent School District.
LOCATIONS) OF POLLING PLACES ON ELEC-
TION DAY
BOGATA BOX - BOGATA SPECIAL EVENTS &
COMMUNITY CENTER
201 NW 2nd Street
Bogata, TX 75417
TALCO BOX - CITY HALL/FIRE STATION
400 West Board
Talco, TX 75487
LOCATION FOR EARLY VOTING POLLING
PLACE
Early voting by personal appearance will be conduct-
ed each weekday at Rivercrest Central Administration
Building, 4100 US Hwy. 271 S„ Bogata, TX 75417 be-
tween the hours of 8:00 A.M. and 4:00 PM. beginning
on April 28, 2014 and ending on May 6, 2014
Applications for ballot by mail shall be mailed to:
Judy McCuller
Early Voting Judge
Rivercrest ISD
4100 US HWY 271 South
Bogata, Texas 75417
Applications for ballots by mail must be received no
later than close of Business on May 2, 2014.
(04/17 - 04/24)
for another. Bernice Wyatt, a
teacher whose name many still
remembers teaching in Deport
started her career in Cunning-
ham in 1936. Of course Miss
Bernice likely was sad to
see the consolidation of the
schools in 1971 to become
Prairiland, but she kept on
keeping on. Buddy Taylor who
led the local school became
the PHS Superintendent.
Now, the only remaining
empty, leaning, general (Mus-
grove) store is a sad memory
of the flourishing past. Fann-
ing, a staple of the local econ-
omy, continues to be honored
by only Billy Ray Oats and
Leslie Taylor. Hie cotton gin
is also long gone. A nice, new
United States Post Office re-
mains as well as (due to a pe-
tition and lots of prayer) and
Baptist and Life Tabernacle
Churches.
A yearly Cunningham Home-
coming started in the 1960s
when the first one attract-
ed over 600 people. One is
planned for next year, so ya’ll
come.
Oh yeah, as a freckled-face
burr-headed, gap-tooth kid, I
used to ride bikes with buddies
and dream of futures on those
old oil roads between Deport
and Cunningham. As for the
basketballs and the Indians—I
didn’t much care for those
Cunningham Warriors Junior
High and High School boys
teams, but loved the white uni-
forms with red trim.
I’m sure I left out some fam-
ilies and some important
events, and for that I apolo-
gize. Just hope you enjoyed
this little flash down memory
lane.
Pet Talk....
Controversial Debarking
Debarking surgery is quite
the controversy in pet news
today. Is it inhumane? Do the
possible risks outweigh the
perceived benefits? These are
viable questions to ask when
considering debarking surgery
to control your dog’s chronic
barking. However, with April
being the Prevention of Cruel-
ty to Animals Month, it is also
important to recognize the nu-
merous available non-surgical
alternatives that are said to be
safer and even more effective
by veterinarians and trainers
alike.
As decipherable from the
name, debarking surgery is
the act of surgically disabling
your dog from producing a
loud, barking sound. “Al-
though the procedure is called
‘debarking’, it does not result
in the inability for the dog to
produce any sound at all,” said
Dr. Kelley Thieman, a clinical
associate professor at the Tex-
as A&M College of Veterinary
Medicine & Biomedical Sci-
ences. “Instead, the dog has a
muffled quality to its bark, and
in time could even regain the
ability to bark.”
While the benefit of de-
barking surgery is the muf-
fled-sounding bark, there are
still numerous complications
that could arise and definite-
ly should not be overlooked.
“Debarking surgery carries
various risks,” said Thieman.
“During the debarking proce-
dure itself, risks could include
bleeding, swelling (preventing
air flow), infection, and anes-
thetic complications.” Scar-
ring of the larynx can also
occur after the surgery, and
in some cases may be severe
enough to restrict airflow. This
would require yet another sur-
gical procedure to remove the
scar tissue so the dog could
breathe, bringing with it more
unnecessary risk.
Though tiresome when
heard for hours on end, bark-
ing is an important way for our
Public
Notice
ADVERTISEMENT AND
INVITATION FOR BIDS
City of Blossom
Contract #1001742
The City of Blossom is
soliciting proposals for the
construction of single-fam-
ily homes within the City of
Blossom. One (1) to five (5)
homes, may be constructed
under a HOME Program
grant received from the
Texas Department of Hous-
ing and Community Affairs
(TDHCA). These homes
will average between 800
and 1120 square feet.
Contract documents,
including house plans are
on file for review at the
following places: City of
Blossom, 1240 Front St.,
Blossom, TX 75416 and
Resource Management and
Consulting Co. 3729 La-
mar, Paris, TX 75460.
Copies of the contract
documents may be ob-
tained from Resource Man-
agement & Consulting Co.
(Consultant) upon the pay-
ment of $25.00 (payable to
Resource Management &
Consulting Co.) or a disk
containing the bid docu-
ments can be obtained at no
charge.
Proposals may be deliv-
ered to the City of Blossom,
1240 Front St., Blossom,
TX 75416. All proposals
must be sealed and submit-
ted by the bidder to the City
of Blossom on or before
10:00 a.m. on the 8th day
of May 2014, where bids
will be publicly opened and
read aloud. The Contrac-
tor must ensure employees/
applicants for employ-
ment are not discriminated
against because of race,
color, religion, sex or na-
tional origin. Section 3 of
the HUD Act of 1968 (12
U.S.C. 170lu) as amended,
and implementing regula-
tions at 24 CFR Part 135 is
applicable to this project.
The City of Blossom
reserves the right to reject
any and/or to waive any in-
formality in the bidding.
Bids may be held by the
City of Blossom for a peri-
od not to exceed thirty (30)
days from the date of the
opening of bids for the pur-
pose of reviewing the bids
and investigating the quali-
fications of bidders, prior to
awarding the Contract.
The City of Blossom
subscribes to Equal Hous-
ing Opportunities.
(04/17 - 04/24)
Ours is a
tradition
infinite
Cure
FUNERAL HOME
730 Clarksville St.
Paris, TX
903-784-3366
Small Town Beautv.
FAMILY SALON
(903) 632-0108
149 N. Main, Bogata
Hours: Tues.-Fri.: 10:00 -5:0d
Saturdays Appt. Only
SPECIALIZING IN MEN,
WOMEN AND KIDS CUTS,
COLOR, PERMS,
BROW & LIP WAXING
TANNING AVAILABLE
$25 for 1 Mo., $20 for 10 Tans
TANNING LOTIONS AVAILABLE
Owner/Operator
Nichole Hervey Johnson
.............................................................'%
First Baptist Church
of Deport
Sunday:
Sunday School 9:45 a.m.
Morning worship 10:50 a.m
Evening worship
6:00 p.m.
dogs to communicate with us.
Excessive barking can often
be Fido alerting us that there
is a stranger nearby or even
that he is in pain. Surgically
disabling him from barking,
though it might provide you
with some relief, may not be
appropriate when barking can
also be controlled with a simi-
larly effective alternative.
Hie best way to prevent un-
wanted barking, as advised by
both veterinarians and profes-
sional dog trainers, is proper
training. Some other alterna-
tives could include adequate
exercise and enviromnental
enrichment. “No-bark collars,
which discharge citronella
spray or even a static shock
in response to barking, are
also available,” said Hiieman.
“However, I think that obedi-
ence training combined with
exercise and fun dog activi-
ties are great options for con-
trolling excessive barking.”
Most veterinarians agree
that debarking surgery should
be used only as a last result
when all other options have
failed, and even then some
veterinary clinics refuse to
perfonn the surgery. When
considering your options, it is
important to extensively con-
sider the alternatives to help
decide if the risks of putting
your dog through unnecessary
surgery are really worth the
benefit.
Pet Talk is a service of the
College of Veterinary Medi-
cine & Biomedical Sciences,
Texas A&M University. Sto-
ries can be viewed on the Web
at vetmed.tamu.edu/pettalk.
Suggestions for future topics
may be directed to editor@
cvm.tamu.edu.
The City of Blossom will
hold a public hearing at
5:30 p.m. on April 24, 2014
at Blossom City Hall, 1240
W Front Street, Blossom
Texas 75416, to review the
findings of the City’s Texas
Community Development
Block Grant Program Con-
tract No. 711049 Drainage
Improvements Project.
Interested persons are en-
couraged to attend. Hand-
icapped individuals wish-
ing to attend this hearing
may contact the City Hall
to arrange for assistance.
Individuals who require
auxiliary aids or services
for this meeting should
contact the City Hall at
least two days before the
meeting so that appropriate
arrangements can be made.
(04/17/14)
David
"Butch" Peek
David “Butch” Peek,
age 63, of Annona, passed
away April 14, 2014, at
his residence. Butch was
employed by Earth Grains
in Paris for over 28 years.
He loved the outdoors,
playing domino’s with
friends and was a great
mechanic. He married
Kay Weddle on July 20,
1974, in Deport and was
a member of the Spirit of
Life Church in Boxelder.
Butch was bom Septem-
ber 10, 1950, in Clarks-
ville to Jack Delmar and
Floy Juanita Smith Peek.
His parents preceded him
in death.
Funeral services are set
for 2:00 p.m., Thursday,
April 17, 2014, in Linde-
man Chapel of Clarksville
Funeral Home with Rev.
Ray McGregor officiat-
ing. Burial will follow in
Savannah Cemetery under
the direction of Clarks-
ville Funeral Home. The
family received friends
Wednesday night from 6
p.m. to 8 p.m. at Clarks-
ville Funeral Home.
Survivors include his
wife, Kay Peek of the
home; two sons, Kane
Peek and wife Jaime of
Houston and Devin Peek
of Annona; one daughter,
Wendy Peek of Rockwall;
one sister, Becky String-
er and husband, John of
Nolanville; and six grand-
children, Colten, Ryder,
Lily, Caeson, Colby and
Caleb.
Online condolences
may be made to the Peek
family at www.clarks-
villefimeralhome.com.
£ tL^vilL
rFJN
Avenue
mmm
Clarksville, Texas 75426
Telephone 427-2244
RRC Agricultural
Improvement
Association offer-
ing scholarships
The Red River County
Agricultural Improvement
Association has created a
scholarship program for the
youth attending Red Riv-
er County Schools. There
will be two (2) $500.00
scholarships awarded. Ap-
plicants must be graduating
in May of 2014. Students
may pick up guidelines
and applications from their
school counselor or the
Texas AgriLife Extension
Office at 402 N. Cedar St.,
Clarksville, Texas. (903)
427-3867
r
u
GRAND OLD
GOSPEL MUSIC g
Singing
Saturday, April 19th
at 6:00 P.M.
205 Main St. Deport Texas
EASTER MUSIC!
Ministering In Song Will Be:
Mike Gustin of Cuthand
Brice & Keldon May
Dustin May & the regulars
Concession stand opens
at 4:30 p.m.
Everybody Invited
No Admission
Cjr
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Nichols, Nanalee & Nichols, Thomas. Detroit Weekly (Detroit, Tex.), Vol. 33, No. 32, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 17, 2014, newspaper, April 17, 2014; Deport, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth852753/m1/2/: accessed July 8, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Red River County Public Library.