South Georgia Highballers

 Three-piece string band from Georgia which made only six recordings for Okeh in the 1920s. Instrumental combination of musical saw, guitar, and fiddle. The brothers ( Found out later that they are cousin ) Albert and Vander Everidge handled the saw and guitar, respectively, with Vander responsible for the hot picking on "Blue Grass Twist" and "Bibb County Grind." Fiddler Melgie Ward rounded out the trio and is remembered for some of the loudest foot-tapping action in the business.

The group was active from the 1920s through the early 1930s, performing at fiddler competitions and city halls throughout Georgia. He often performed with other musicians and companies. Albert was originally supposed to record the song, but came down with a bad cold. After Albert became a supporter of his family in the 1930's, he worked as an arborist and he took a job removing termites. The band disbanded and a few years later Vander was hit by a car and died in 1938. Albert died in 1955 and Melgi in 1965.

 

Jefferson Franklin Long

Born: March 3, 1836 in Knoxville, Georgia 

Died: February 4, 1901 in Macon, Georgia

United States Representative, 1870–1879

Republican from South Carolina

• Jefferson Franklin Long was the second African American elected to the U.S. House of Representatives and the first African American to represent Georgia. 
• Long only served 3 months, but on February 1, 1871, he became the first African American Representative to speak before the House. Speaking against the Amnesty Bill, which restored political rights to former Confederates, Long pleaded with his colleagues to acknowledge the atrocities being committed by white supremacists in Georgia. 
• Born a slave and self-educated, Long owned a prosperous tailor shop in Macon, Ga and was an active member of the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME) headed by Henry McNeal Turner, an influential African American leader in late-19th-century Georgia. 
• After leaving Congress on March 3, 1871, Long returned to his tailor shop and other businesses in Macon,  which suffered because of his reputation among whites as a radical politician. In spite of these challenges, he continued to support causes to empower Black people in the state.
• Long died in Macon on February 4, 1901 at the age of 64. 
• Long remained the only African American to represent Georgia in the House of Representatives until the election of Andrew Young in 1972.

 U.S. Congressman. Born a slave, he was self-educated and became a merchant tailor in Macon, Georgia. On January 16, 1871, he was elected as a Republican to the Forty-first Congress to fill the vacancy caused by the House declaring Samuel F. Gove, serving until March 3, 1871. He was the second African American to be sworn into the U.S. House of Representatives and the first African American to represent Georgia. Despite his brief time in Congress, he was able to promote several reconstruction efforts. Not a candidate for re-nomination, he resumed his merchant business until his and death.

Charles Douglass Sr

 Born the son of a former slave in 1870, Charles Douglass grew up in a one room house built by his father. Working as soon as he was large enough to earn money, he peddled light wood and vegetables in the morning, attended school in the afternoon, and chopped cotton for fifteen cents a day.

In a time of racism and segregation, Douglass saw opportunity in serving the black population of Macon. In 1898 Charles Douglass entered into the bicycle repair and renting business and did well until the automobile craze came. In 1901, Douglass worked as the director of the Georgia Loan and Savings company. There he met his future wife Fannie, who was an assistant cashier. Douglass was a successful businessman who founded the Douglass Theatre in downtown Macon. Established in 1921, the Douglass Theatre hosted early jazz and blues greats such as Otis Redding, Bessie Smith, James Brown, Ma Rainey ,Little Richard, Cab Calloway, Duke Ellington and one of my favorite Ida Cox. While running popular feature length films and serials. Douglass Theatre

Ma Rainey

 Blues Singer. The "Mother of the Blues" first appeared on stage in 1900. In 1902 she married song and dance man William Pa Rainey. She was then known as Ma even though the marriage did not last. Her band included jazz stars Louis Armstrong, Thomas Dorsey and Coleman Hawkins. Between 1923 and 1928 she recorded more than 100 songs for Paramount. She helped mentor the career of Bessie Smith. She played in Macon Georgia at The Douglas theater and surrounding area. With songs like See See Rider and Ma Rainey Black Bottom Blues . The Great Depression ended her career as her fan base lost their ability to buy her records. She retired back to Columbus and died of a heart attack. She was posthumously inducted into the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame in 1983 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990. you can listen to her music on many streaming service. her movie is on Netflix called Ma Rainey Black Bottom. She is laid to rest in Porterdale Cemetery in Columbus Georgia.

The Great Train Chase of the Civil War

During the Civil War The Great Train Chase happened around Kennesaw Georgia.On April 12th 1862 civilian James Andrew led a bunch of voluntary Union troops below Confederate lines. 

Later that day in disguises the infiltrated the train yard and Commander the Train named The General and took it North destroying a lot of telegram lines and Railroad on the way North.

James J. Andrews

Image from Internet Archive Book Image

Destroying the telegram lines while they were heading north there was no way that the Confederates could radio ahead and send a signal telling people what has happened.

It wasn't long after they commandeer the general that Peter James Bracket got a hold of the locomotive the Texas and pursued after them.

After 87 mile chase the general lost power just north of Ringgold Georgia and Andrew and his Raiders scattered, he was captured soon afterwards and identified as the leader

He was court-martialed in Chattanooga and sentenced to hang in one week as a spy. Andrews escaped from Swim's jail on June 1st but quickly  recaptured the next day. On June 7th he was taken to Atlanta ahead of the advancing Union Army by train over the same tracks that he used during the raid. Andrews was ineptly hanged at about 5:00 that afternoon near the present day intersection of 3rd and Juniper St N.E. Andrews, body was temporarily buried at the site of the execution. His remans were removed to the Chattanooga National Cemetery on October 16, 1887, and a gravestone and monument to the raid was erected near the  Ohio Memorial ( Section H, Grave # 12982)