Boys will be Boys

    Back in the early to mid sixties Hinesville was indeed a small town. Fort Stewart was occupied by a small contingency. Liberty County had a young sheriff and a relatively small force of a few patrol cars and a handful of deputies.  The sheriff was Mr Bobby Sikes. David Carter, Dewitt Branch, Myles Groover and Adrian Long were deputies. There just might have been a couple mr but those were the ones I remember.
    Hinesville's Police department was even smaller, much smaller. I think it consisted of Chief Dave Mobley, his son Royce (radio operator) and Vivian Hodges as the nighttime officer. The Police department operated from a small (very small) frame building at the end of Memorial Drive in the then vacant lot where the Courthouse Annex is positioned today. The little white framed building was not much larger than eight by eight with a solid rear wall and a couple of windows on the sides as well as perhaps one or two on the front with a doorway in the center facing Memorial Drive.  I believe the force consisted of a Car for the Chief and one patrol car.
    During the daytime the office was manned mostly by Royce and his father but I believe Chief Mobley spent the bulk of his day at city hall which was then located across from Bradwell Park on Commerce St. beside the fire station.
    In those days fireworks were readily available and although we had all grown up with firecrackers about an inch and a half long and some larger ones wit more powder about the size of a first grade pencil and nearly two inches long, they were red (the larger ones) as I recall.  We also had Roman Candles and sparklers as well as whistling chasers. Those were the traditional fireworks at that time.
However some time in the late fifties the Cherry bomb had come on the marker.
    My brother and sister as well as I had been given fireworks around Independence Day  and Christmas/New Years. It was a seasonal treat. As was my family's tradition my sister and I were only allowed to have sparklers, small firecrackers and roman candles. Our older brother told tales of riding around and lighting and throwing Cherry bombs from the car. I was taught to be afraid of the cherry bomb so I don't recall ever having much to do with them.

Bradwell friends, especially the older ones, I have a question. Was there a cattle-gap on Washington Avenue beside the Live Oak which is still there? If there was I'm sure it would have been where the two strips of concrete just about half way between the "Old White Building" and the Red Brick building which the school buses parked on. They were directly across from the Phillips house almost.

Any of you who might have older relatives or friends please ask of their recollection.

Thanks

Happy Thanksgiving

LikeShow more reactions

CommentShare

7Sam Chapman Clark, Polly Wells and 5 others

Comments

Palmer Dasher Jimmy, I think you are correct. And if memory serves me correctly, the cattle gap was directly in line with the present sidewalk in front of the Phillips Bldg (old FBC). Seems to me I vaguely remember a stile there to allow students to get over the fence.....I could be wrong - too many years ago. Thanks for stirring old memories.

LikeShow more reactions

 · Reply · November 23 at 7:43pm

Remove

Jimmy Smith Palmer I am positive about the stile. I believe I remember the cattle gap. Thanks for your thoughts.

LikeShow more reactions

 · Reply · November 23 at 8:21pm

Manage

Ann Martin Bean I remember a cattle gap on East court st ,

LikeShow more reactions

 · Reply · November 23 at 8:50pm

Remove

Polly Wells I remember it also when we walked to school from South Street.

LikeShow more reactions

 · Reply · November 27 at 8:54am

Remove

Jimmy Smith South St. is now MLK.

LikeShow more reactions

 · Reply · November 27 at 6:35pm