Dr. Marty Olliff's ongoing series turns its attention to a Dothan man who once shared the Atlantic crossing speed record.
People in the Wiregrass have known about Bishop Cleaners since it opened in Dothan in 1947. But few know that in November 1945, its founder, Eustace E. Bishop, was one of the fastest men on the open sea.
A lieutenant in the U.S. Naval Reserve, Bishop served on the aircraft carrier/troopship USS Lake Champlain…
Dr. Marty Olliff examines the history of the National Peanut Festival through archival photos.
The National Peanut Festival has been celebrated in Dothan since 1938 (except for the World War II years). This first Peanut Festival came from the long tradition of harvest celebrations and the Wiregrass’ successful 20-year experiment with planting peanuts to avoid the economic calamity of the cotton boll weevil.
The NPF has changed over the…
Dr. Marty Olliff's monthly column focuses on the evolution of the railroad industry in the Wiregrass.
A resident of Headland, Alabama, from his birth in 1915 until his death in 1988, Thomas W. (Tom) Solomon had a love affair with railroads. He worked as a draftsman for the Atlantic Coast Line then with the Florida East Coast Railroad, but his real passion was photographing and painting railroad machinery and other scenes…
Dr. Marty Olliff celebrates Women's History Month with a look at the history of women's groups in the Wiregrass.
The women’s club movement in the U.S. began in the 1890s and was closely associated with the New Woman of the Progressive Era though the movement lasted well into the post-World War II era. It continues today.
Local women – from the elite in the white community and fewer but more broadly based among African-Americans…
