Murder on Main Street

It's Christmas Eve, 1912. A young, black man stands just inside the doorway of Jenkinson Brothers, a general merchandise store on Main Street in Kingstree. It's after 9 p.m., but the store and the street outside are still thronged with shoppers, revelers, and rabble-rousers. J.Z. McConnell, a special policeman on duty that night in an attempt to keep order, stands just outside the door on the sidewalk, scanning the crowds across the street at the depot. Over there, a large number of men and boys are celebrating the holiday by shooting fireworks. The noise is thunderous and incessant. Suddenly, the windows of Milhous & Jennings' grocery store, next door to Jenkinson Brothers, shatter inward as two .38-calibre slugs find their target from across the street.

Jenkinson Brothers and Milhous & Jennings on East Main Street.

Photo courtesy, Williamsburgh Historical Museum

McConnell quickly moves toward the grocery store to see if anyone is injured. Just inside Jenkinson Brothers, James Fleming, the young black man, shifts nervously from foot to foot. He arrived in Kingstree that morning on the train from Florida, and he's anxious about getting home to Workman Crossroads. As soon as he got off the train, he came to the store to see if he could get a ride tonight with Wallace McIntosh, on whose father's farm, Fleming and his siblings were born. 

Fleming's mother, Sarah, was also born on the McIntosh farm in 1858. She grew up there, married in 1877, and had nine children. Then, finding herself their sole support and hearing that many other black county residents were moving to Florida to seek a better life in the turpentine industry, she took her children to Florida probably in 1906 or 1907. However, many of these workers found that the promise of a better life turned out to be an empty one, and so they started making their way back to South Carolina around 1910. Sarah Fleming decided that she, too, needed to come home. Once back here, she scrimped and saved in order to bring her children back. Sixteen-year-old James, the second to the youngest, was the last one left in Florida, and she had worked extremely hard in order to send him money to catch the train home in time for Christmas. 

Today, the building is known as the old Marcus Building and stands empty on Main Street.

The noise, both inside and outside the store, is deafening. So Fleming is surprised when he feels a sharp pain in his left thigh. Looking down, he is even more surprised to see blood spurting from his leg. He tries to attract someone's attention, but movement is so painful, he collapses to the floor. He has been shot through the open door of the store. A number of bystanders, including Wallace McIntosh and police officer McConnell rush to help him and try to stop the bleeding. Someone summons Dr. E.T. Kelley, who quickly arrives and arranges to have Fleming moved to his offices around the corner. Dr. Kelley works feverishly throughout the night to stop the bleeding, but the femoral artery was severed by the bullet, and Fleming has lost too much blood. He dies at 8 a.m. Christmas morning.

The town turns from merriment to mourning. The mayor and town council offer a $100 reward, supplemented by $112 raised by private citizens (This would amount to a little over $5,500 in today's dollars.) for any information leading to the person who fired the fatal shot. Some citizens felt that it was just a rabble rouser firing at random on the street; other felt that Fleming was targeted. Council also quickly adopted an ordinance banning fireworks on the streets of Kingstree.

A vintage Main Street scene. You can see the Jenkinson store at the far right of the picture.

Photo courtesy Williamsburgh Historical Museum

On January 2, 1913, The County Record published a lengthy editorial. It read, in part: The horrible atrocity committed here Christmas Eve night when James Fleming, a young Negro, was shot down while standing in Jenkinson's store, stands without parallel in the annals of crime in our town and county. ... Here on the night before Christmas, a holiday the world over among Christian nations as commemorating the coming upon earth of Christ–the Prince of Peace, whose advent heralded "peace on earth and good will toward men"–an assassin steals along a crowded street, and under cover of the noise of exploding fireworks, sends his leaden missiles of death across the street, crashing through the windows of stores filled with innocent and unsuspecting men, women, and children–sending into a merry, carefree throng a veritable specter of death. Not once only, but twice, aye, even thrice the deadly weapon spoke, speeding bullets through windows into stores thronged with clerks and shoppers.

For more than a century the Town of Kingstree has boasted a spirit of conservatism, a respect for law and order, that insured (sic) the protection of life and property to all who came within her gates. But the crime that marred the Christmas season has rudely shattered this tradition and left an unsightly blot upon her fair escutcheon. Are the citizens of Kingstree content to allow it to remain there?

If the murderer of James Fleming go unwhipt of justice, whose life is safe in Kingstree? The authorities, municipal, county, and state, should act promptly and vigorously, and the citizens of Kingstree owe it to themselves and to the town to back up the authorities in every way possible. The community is on trial. What will be the verdict?

Town of Kingstree's 2017 Christmas tree after an early January 2018 snow.

It appears no one was ever apprehended for the shooting of James Fleming. However, Fleming's death was responsible for a vast change in the way the people of Kingstree celebrated the holiday. In 1913, The County Record noted that Christmas was "one of the sanest and quietest that has been noted in many years." The paper stated that there was a total "absence of noise and din," due to the ban of fireworks. That ban had effectively quelled those who liked to celebrate by shooting their guns, as well, as they has always used the fireworks to mask the sound of gunfire. Again in 1914 and 1915, Christmas was a quiet family celebration, although there were some who had begun to complain that it was just "too quiet."

Big thanks to Wendell Voiselle, Director of the Williamsburgh Historical Museum, for sharing his research into the murder of James Fleming.

A Civil War Mystery Solved

Most people leaving Kingstree by the Lamar Johnson bridge are unaware of the small cemetery to their right on Main Street just before they reach the bridge. Started in 1856 by the Baptists, whose church once sat on the lot in front of the cemetery, this burial ground has one historic monument that has long puzzled those who are aware of its existence.

The Baptist Cemetery as it looks today.

The monument is dedicated to the memory of 19 Confederate soldiers who gave their lives during the closing days of the Civil War. The story had long been told that 19 soldiers from Georgia had died in Kingstree and were buried here, but as there were no individual markers for the soldiers, no one knew for certain the full story of how they came to be there. A number of years ago, state archaeologist, Dr. Jon Leader, at the request of a local resident, spent a morning in the cemetery using ground penetrating radar to see if he could determine the location of the graves. While the equipment showed anomalies, there were not enough of them to account for 19 separate burials.

The soldiers' monument at the Baptist Cemetery.

Recently, however, I ran across two stories written by the late Laura Cromer Hemingway and published in The News & Courier in 1933, which tell the story of the marker and the soldiers who died here 154 years ago. I'll let Mrs. Hemingway tell the story:

"It was during the Christmas season of 1864 that news of Sherman's approach reached the people of Williamsburg County, throwing them into a panic. But they learned, too, that (Confederate) General Hardee was in advance of Sherman's army. When Hardee reached Kingstree, he paused to recuperate and to outfit his men to hold back Sherman. When Sherman changed his plans and sought another route to Columbia, Hardee made ready to march on northward. His men were ill, and there were 21 too ill to continue the march. These were left behind to the mercy of the people of Kingstree."

While in Kingstree, Hardee's men camped in the field between the Gewinner house, on the corner of what is now Main and Longstreet streets, and the river. Reportedly that December of 1864 was a cold and wet one, and as the war had dragged on for four years, Hardee's troops were worn out and ill-equipped to handle the inclement weather, and so many of them succumbed to fever.

The west face of the marker.

Laura Hemingway continues: "The Baptist Church at the river was turned into an improvised hospital where the women of the community took charge and nursed the sick soldiers. Two of the number were removed to a private home. These were the only two to recover. What eventually became of them, none knew."

She noted that the 19 who died were buried in the cemetery and later disinterred and buried in a single casket near the gate of the cemetery with an obelisk over the grave, with the inscription that it was erected by the Kingstree Council No. 18, Friends of Temperance. She wrote that no one living in Kingstree in 1933 remembered any organization by that name. This was the great mystery of the Baptist Cemetery, she said. She added that several newspaper writers had published stories throughout the years, asking for information, but had never received any.

The north face of the marker.

This time, however, an answer was quick in coming. On December 24, 1933, The News & Courier published another story written by Laura Hemingway, in which she announced that after the publication of her earlier story about the cemetery and the marker, she had received a letter from Dr. N.G. Gewinner of Macon, GA. Although he was only a small boy in 1864, he remembered the encampment of Hardee's army in the field near his home, and he was able to fill in the gaps of the story about the 19 Confederate soldiers, leaving only the mystery of their identities, which he did not know.

He noted that the soldiers were originally buried outside the cemetery on the slope of the hill which at that time led to the river bank. On that point Laura Hemingway disagreed with him as she believed the soldiers were originally buried at the back of the cemetery. Dr. Gewinner, however, wrote that 10 years later in 1875, he was in charge of the exhumation and reburial of their remains. He wrote, "They had been buried in shallow graves, no coffins, only wrapped in blankets. Two or more buried in the same hole, and when we uncovered them after being buried 10 years or more, the blankets had rotted, and their bones were so intermingled that it was impossible to separate them. We could estimate the number only by counting the skulls. In taking them up, we located as many as we could, but I have always believed that we did not get one half, and that as many more are still lying on the hillside."

The south face of the monument.

Dr. Gewinner continued, "All the bones were reverently assembled, put together in a large pine box and buried, the monument placed directly over them." He added, "For the sake of appearance, we made dummy graves. I painted and put up the pine head-boards. As well as I can recall they had not been all unknown, as I was supplied by some of the good ladies with seven or eight names." However, those "dummy" markers rotted, and the list of the names was lost so that today none of the 19 soldiers names is known. It is believed that they were part of a unit from Georgia.

Dr. Gewinner noted that the Friends of Temperance was a dramatic society which put on plays at the courthouse. Members that he could recall were Mary Jacobs, Lena and Madeleine Levy, Jessie Manheim, M.F. Heller, and Marion Levin. Louis Jacobs managed the troupe, which performed not only in Kingstree but also in neighboring towns. He said door receipts sometimes ran as high as $800 to $1000. It was from the money raised through these theatrical attractions that they bought the obelisk-like marker to commemorate the soldiers who had died here.

And so, although we still do not know the names of the soldiers, we now have the full story of how they came to be buried in the old Baptist Cemetery and who placed the marker in the cemetery in their memory.

Sign on the gate of the Baptist Cemetery.

An Open Letter from Mayor Tisdale

This week seems a good time to take a little break from historic ramblings and reflect on some of the things happening today in Kingstree. Mayor Darren Tisdale has recently released an open letter to the town's residents, giving an overview of the projects currently underway in town and a bit of a look at some other things that are waiting down the road. Here is the letter in its entirety:

Mayor Darren Tisdale

To the Citizens of Kingstree:

As 2018 comes to a close, big things are happening in the Town of Kingstree!

We are anticipating several construction projects that will begin soon. Hardee's, which has stood at the corner of Main and Longstreet since 1972, recently bulldozed its old building and will soon begin constructing a beautiful, new restaurant to serve residents and visitors to Kingstree. This new restaurant will join the recently completed Subway at the corner of Longstreet and Sumter Highway and the newly-renovated Pizza Hut on Longstreet St. We very much appreciate that these three companies have chosen to update their restaurants in the Town of Kingstree.

The new Subway on the corner of Longstreet and Sumter Highway.

In addition, two old buildings next to Town Hall were recently torn down to make way for a new combination fire and police station. When the Town built the current Town Hall on Longstreet after Hurricane Hugo, the police and fire stations were moved into the old South Carolina Department of Transportation buildings behind the new Town Hall. There were supposed to be temporary arrangements, which have, in reality, accommodated them for 29 years. However, we now have access to money from the one-cent Public Safety Capital Project Sales Tax, which will enable us to build new, joint facilities for both departments. The contract for site preparation work has been let, and as soon as that is completed, we will begin the design and build phase of the project. In addition, the Police Department will soon acquire three new vehicles. This is very exciting for all of us but particularly for our police officers and firefighters.

Site awaiting construction of the new police/fire station.

The town is also currently reworking and enlarging the downtown parking lot, which has served downtown businesses since the late 1950s. We will add much-needed lighting and security cameras to make it safer for citizens to use at night, as well as during the day. In addition, we are landscaping the lot with planters to make it more attractive. This is also exciting, as we feel that these improvements will help in building our economic base in the core commercial area of downtown Kingstree.

Planters have been designated in the downtown parking lot as part of the renovation.

Area on Mill Street to be incorporated into the downtown parking lot.

In another forthcoming renovation project, the Town of Kingstree has partnered with Williamsburg County and the Williamsburgh Historical Society, which allows the Historical Society to secure a Parks, Recreation, and Tourism Grant of $250,000 to repair and renovate the building beside the Williamsburgh Historical Museum on Hampton Avenue. This building, known as the Museum Annex, was damaged by a microburst several years ago and has been used only for storage since then. The Historical Society is currently conducting a fund-raising drive to secure matching funds for this grant and for a $50,000 Rural Development Grant which would provide furniture and fixtures for the space when renovated. When completed the renovated building will house an interactive Civil Rights history exhibit, as well as exhibits on the development of both Santee Electric Cooperative and Farmers Telephone. Both of these cooperatives occupied the building during the early years of their operations.

The Museum Annex on Hampton Avenue.

The town is also engaged in a sewer line replacement project on East Main Street, east of the railroad tracks. Flooding from the canal damaged the old, clay sewer pipes, causing sewage to back up in some of the businesses on the north side of the street. Replacing the lines should alleviate some of these problems. The Town is also completing the Jennyville Water Project which has brought town water to approximately 55 customers in the Jennyville area, three miles west of Kingstree on the Sumter Highway. We are now doing the preliminary work on another potential water project in the county north of McClam Road. This would add an additional 50 to 60 customers to our water system.

Because so many areas of the Town of Kingstree have experienced flooding over the past few years, we have contracted with a Columbia engineering firm to conduct a townwide drainage study. We anticipate that the engineer will issue a report by the end of the year, which should pinpoint the causes of the flooding and what we need to do to alleviate it.

Railroad Avenue during the Flood of 2015.

We are also looking at expanding the recreation complex to include a travel ball field. This would allow us to extend our baseball program to older age groups, as well as give us an opportunity to host tournaments here in Kingstree. In addition, next year we will pursue funding to install a walking track around the perimeter of the recreation park.

The Kingstree Development Corporation has formed to assist the Town in working with property. Although separate from the Town, this 501(c)3 corporation, governed by a board of directors, has already been able to buy several downtown buildings. This will help in preserving historic building and renovating them for today's use without damaging the characteristics that make them unique. We are very positive that this organization will be instrumental in helping preserve the best of our beautiful little town.

This year the town also inaugurated its Main Street, Kingstree, program. This program, in association with Main Street, South Carolina, and Main Street America is devoted to the revitalization and development of the Town of Kingstree. The Main Street, Kingstree, office is located in the historic Kingstree Depot on Main Street. Its purpose is to work with businesses through the Town of Kingstree to provide a better business environment and to promote events and activities to draw citizens and visitors to our downtown. Main Street will also assist prospective business owners by providing information on what they need to start a business in the Town of Kingstree.

As a part of the Main Street effort, the Town has instituted a Facade Grant program which will provide grant funds to building owners who want to upgrade the fronts of their buildings. Building under consideration for a facade grant must be in compliance with all fire and building codes, and any changes must be approved by the town's Architectural Review Board.

Main Street, along with a number of corporate underwriters, sponsored a very successful concert series this past summer called Kingstree Live, and Main Street, along with our local merchants, also hosted several successful Sip and Shop events in our downtown over the past year.

Crowd enjoying Kingstree Live last summer.

Shoppers on Academy Street during the August Sip & Shop.

Committees are currently meeting to plan Main Street events for 2019. If you would like to serve on one of these committees are volunteer to help with Main Street projects, visit the Main Street office at the Kingstree Depot.

I particularly want to thank the members of the Kingstree Town Council for their support and interest in all these projects that are helping to revitalize the Town of Kingstree, and I would also like to thank Town Manager Richard Treme and the staff of the Town of Kingstree for their hard work and dedication, and the community volunteers who are always willing to pitch in when needed. These projects could not go forward without all of them

Sincerely,

Darren Tisdale

Mayor of Kingstree

If the Soil Could Only Speak

Just a few short weeks ago, Hardee's was doing a bustling business at the corner of Main and Longstreet streets in Kingstree. Most residents knew that the old restaurant would soon be replaced by a brand new Hardee's, but it was still disconcerting to one day see a pile of rubble where the building had once stood. And for some of us it was a reminder that this piece of ground has long played an important role in the history of this community.

The Hardee's lot on November 16, 2018.

In William Willis Boddie's history of Williamsburg County, he indicates that very early in the town's history, Patrick Cormick owed either a store or a storage facility on this property. It became a central fixture of the community, when in 1805, it was decreed that court must be held at the King's Tree. The committee to secure a courthouse found that the lots originally reserved for it had been claimed by William Brady, who had already built a house on the property. The committee was unable to secure that property until after Brady's death in 1820, which left them with the task of finding a suitable building in which to hold court. They leased Cormick's store house, which Boddie notes was located at what was at the time of his writing in the early 1920s, "the corner of Main and Long Streets," which was used as a courthouse until the present courthouse was built in 1823.

Court sessions in those days were quite different than today. The High Sheriff, with drawn sword, would escort the presiding judge from his hotel to the bench. Court opened with a sermon, usually in this district given by the Rev. William Knox of Black Mingo Church. We know this as Knox was paid $12.85 for each sermon–$12 for his services and $2.85 for mileage. After the sermon a Grand Jury was drawn and charged by the judge. Boddie notes that the session would then adjourn and everyone would move across the street to Bracy's Bar to fortify themselves for the next day's trials.

At some point Patrick Cormick's store house was demolished and a house built on the property. We know that by the 1860s, it was in the hands of the Gewinner family. Dr. Napoleon Gewinner was only seven or eight years old when General William J. Hardee's army camped in the field between the Gewinner home and Black River during the cold, wet December of 1864.

In a 1933 letter to Laura Cromer Hemingway, he wrote, "I can remember going with Mother, a large basket on her arm and one on mine, containing food for the sick. I believe this was 1864. I remember when the report reached Kingstree that Sherman's army was approaching. On the banks of the river stood a little house about 20-by-30 feet which was filled with cannon powder put up in little red and white flannel bags. Everyone helped in opening the bags and pouring the powder in the river. The flannel bags were kept and many quilts were made of them. Some of the old folks had underwear made out of them. I can recall a quilt Mother made of them which we used for years." At the last minute, Sherman's army changed course, sparing Kingstree.

The Gewinner house boasted one of the oldest gardens in Kingstree, planted by Dr. Gewinner's mother. His sister, Mary, continued to live in the house after she married Louis Jacobs and raised her large family there. In a 1935 article, Laura Hemingway described the garden as at its loveliest in spring when masses of bulbs of many kinds were in bloom. Some of those bulbs were the same bulbs Mrs. Gewinner had planted before the Civil War. 

The 1913 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map shows the Jacobs house on the corner of

Main Street and Buzzard's Roost. 

Mrs. Hemingway describes the house as being built end to the street so that it could face the garden. She notes, "For years a pergola extended from the porch into the garden some distance, and over this roses rioted through the summer. In the center is a lily pool, which now is the highlight of the garden." She added that a fairly large conservatory occupied one side of the garden.

The 1920 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map. 

Note Buzzard's Roost was now S. Long Street

The Jacobs home was a gathering place for many community events. The Judge, as Louis Jacobs was known from his tenure at Probate Judge for Williamsburg County, welcomed many into his home, hosting dances, hot suppers, and meetings. The first meeting to discuss establishing a lending library for the town was held at the Jacobs home. It was also the site of the double wedding, officiated by SC Governor Miles McSweeney on October 31, 1900. To read more about that event, click here.

As roads were paved, automobiles became more prevalent, and traffic increased at the Jacobs' corner, two of the Jacobs' daughters opened a tea room at the house to provide a place for weary travelers to relax over a cup of tea and refreshments. 

In June, 1972, Boddie-Noell Enterprises of Rocky Mount, NC, announced that it was expanding its Hardee's restaurant network into South Carolina by building restaurants in three towns, Dillon, Kingstree, and Lake City. Hardee's has operated on the corner of Main and Longstreet ever since. We all look forward to the brand new Hardee's which will soon be under construction.

Much to be Thankful For

One hundred years ago, the people of Kingstree had much to be thankful for on Thanksgiving as just a few weeks earlier the Armistice had been signed, ending the great World War.

The Williamsburg County Courthouse

Here is a special news article sent to The State newspaper, detailing Kingstree's celebration at the signing of the Armistice:

News of the signing of the armistice by the German government was received here by the night operator at the Atlantic Coast Line depot about 4 o'clock Monday morning, and the news spread like wildfire over the town. A little later the entire populace was awakened by the firing of pistols and the ringing of fire bells. Fireworks, horns, and various other methods of making a noise were freely indulged in throughout the day, and all business houses were closed, making a holiday of the occasion. The old cannon in the courthouse yard was again pressed into service and boomed at intervals in celebration of the signing of the armistice.

The old cannon is still on the courthouse square, although no longer mobile.

A thousand people gathered around the Confederate monument at 1 o'clock and listened to the reading of President Wilson's "Flag Day" speech by the Rev. Mr. Harmon, at the conclusion of which a fusillade from guns, pistols, and the old cannon rent the air. Then Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow, led by a choir of ladies and children, was sung in a wholehearted spirit of thankfulness.

The monument around which 1,000 people gathered in November 1918.

To mar the celebration, a young girl, Dollie McFadden, youngest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. John F. McFadden, was accidentally shot in the mouth with an automatic revolver by "Boots" Nelson. The wound is not thought too serious.

Thunderous Crash Jarred Buildings

Residents of railroad towns know two things. First, the presence of the track running through their towns, particularly in the early days of the 20th century when most of the nation's commerce was carried on by rail, means just a little extra measure of prosperity for their communities. But, they also know that the trains passing through their town each day bring with them the potential for disaster. Kingstree is no exception. Once upon a time the depot was the hub of the community, shipping cotton, tobacco, green beans, grapes, and other agricultural products to the cities up north. And November seems to have been a magnet for train disasters at or near the Main Street Crossing.

The curious observe the cab of a truck cut in half by a train in November 1950.

The most recent of these disasters occurred on November 12, 1950. Early that Sunday morning, a Kingstree Police officer observed a truck, part of a convoy of trucks bringing the Ross Carnival from Georgetown to its winter headquarters in Kingstree, approaching the Main Street crossing. He recounted to a reporter from the News & Courier that none of the other trucks in the convoy was in sight when Martin (or Marvin) L. Williams approached the tracks. Williams was driving slowly and was about midway the track when he was struck by a fast, southbound passenger train.

The train struck the truck just behind the cab, ejecting Williams on the west side of the tracks. He was thrown some distance, striking a utility pole, which killed him instantly, according to Coroner T.M. Kellahan.

The truck was carrying a disassembled merry-go-round, and splintered carousel horses and other mangled parts lay scattered for yards along the east side of the track.

At 1 a.m. on Friday, November 29, 1918, Atlantic Coast Line train #86, the through train from Jacksonville, FL, to Washington, DC, derailed just south of the Kingstree depot at what was known as Nelson's Crossing, where Ashton Avenue dead ends at the tracks today. Daylight showed debris from the engine and eight cars scattered about the railroad right-of-way. Two ACL employees, Engineer Henry J. Jaeger and Fireman Sam Butler, were killed in the accident. Jaeger's body was not discovered until almost noon the next day, buried under the end of the first passenger coach, concealed by about four feet of dirt and mud. Butler's body, found in the train's cab, was badly scalded from escaping steam. It was noted that the Express Messenger was injured only slightly because he had left the express car to go back into the train to get a drink of water. Only one passenger, an African-American woman, was injured seriously enough to be taken to the hospital in Sumter for treatment. She was cut by flying glass. Thirty-seven servicemen were on the train, all escaping injury, except for one who was slightly cut by glass when he was thrown through a window. Later in the day, railroad men engaged in clearing the debris said they considered the low casualty count miraculous, considering the seriousness of the wreck.

Jaeger, who was considered an excellent engineer and was well-known in Florence where he lived, left Lane at 12:50 that morning. It was estimated that he was running 60-70 miles an hour when the train derailed at exactly 1 a.m. The throttle was found not closed, indicating that Jaeger had not had time to attempt to slow the train down before he was thrown from the engine. ACL officials blamed a split rail for the accident.

All passengers not requiring medical treatment were transferred to another train shortly after daylight and sent to Florence. Mail and express items that could be salvaged were also removed and sent on. All perishable foodstuffs the train was carrying were sold in Kingstree that morning.

These photos are undated. They may be from the 1918 derailment, but

given the damage to the depot shed, they are more likely from November 1913.

At 4 a.m., Tuesday, November 17, 1913, many residents in the vicinity of the depot were "aroused from their early morning slumbers by a thunderous crash that seemed to jar the very foundations of the nearby buildings." The cause was the wreck of a through-freight train, running about 35 miles per hour. One of the cars near the engine derailed when its truck bar broke, catching and pulling up a heavy timber near the crossing at the southern end of the depot platform. Twelve other cars behind it, some heavily loaded, crashed into the derailed car. Railcars were piled three deep at the southern end of the platform. Rails were ripped from the cross ties, trucks were torn from cars, and wreckage was strewn in all directions. About 50 feet of the shed over the depot platform was torn away as the wrecked cars piled one on top of the other fell against the stanchions of the shed.

Five cars were completely demolished. Lumber, phosphate rock, shingles, building materials, and kaolin were scattered for 100 yards. Sumter's Watchman & Southron reported that a hobo was asleep in one of the cars deposited at the top of the heap of wreckage. As it happened, the car he was in was the least damaged of any of the cars involved in the accident. "When he awoke and crawled out, he could survey the whole town from his vantage point. Sedately picking a few splinters from his wool hat, he climbed down and called down dire fate upon a railroad system that would allow a gentlemen's rest to be this disturbed."

A wrecking crew from Florence arrived at daylight to clear away the debris and repair the track. Around 10 a.m. a second wrecking crew arrived from Charleston. Practically all business was suspended in Kingstree that Tuesday as people from miles around came to view the wreck. Children from the graded and high school were brought the two blocks by their teachers to watch the clean-up.

Trains throughout the day detoured through Lane and Sumter, but two local trains came to transport passengers and luggage both north and south. By 6 p.m. the track was repaired and enough wreckage cleared that the regular passenger trains were able to pass through on time. No injuries were reported, but damage was estimated at $30,000 to $40,000. Crews would need several more days, however, to completely clear the wreckage from the right-of-way.

All photos courtesy Williamsburgh Historical Museum

This wreck occurred almost in the exact spot as the last major train wreck which happened in 1905, but in March, instead of November. There was much excitement in town that Saturday, March 4, when an extra freight train ran an open switch, just below the Main Street crossing. The monster "copperhead" engine and nine of the 21 cars derailed, piling debris 15 to 20 feet high. The cargo, mainly fertilizer and lumber, was scattered along both sides of the track.

The engineer was thrown from the cab, but suffered only facial cuts, bruises, and a broken nose. The fireman, Pres Stevenson, however, had his foot and ankle crushed between the locomotive's driving wheel and the tender. He was forced to hang there for three hours until the wrecking train arrived with the equipment necessary to free him. Local doctors present at the scene did everything in their power to relieve as much pain as possible until he could be freed. Once his foot was extricated, it became evident that amputation was the only means of treating it.

The accident happened about 7 p.m. The local passenger train had come through safely at 6:30, so most residents believed that someone had deliberately opened the switch in the few minutes between trains. Crowds gathered all day Sunday to watch the wreckage cleared.

Happy Birthday, Amos White!

One hundred twenty-nine years ago yesterday, Lewis and Elizabeth Burgess White of Kingstree, South Carolina, welcomed their first child into the world. They named him Amos Earl Mordecai White, and little did they know on the day of his birth, November 6, 1889, that before he was nine years old, he would face a great tragedy that would ultimately lead him to a life that was I'm sure totally beyond their wildest dreams.

We don't know what happened to Lewis, but we do know that Elizabeth White, a teacher in the African American schools in and around Kingstree, died shortly before Amos' ninth birthday. The Rev. Daniel Jenkins, who is well-known for the orphanage he started in Charleston, also preached on a circuit that included a church in Kingstree, apparently the church the White family attended. Young Mordecai, as he was called then, was admitted to the Jenkins Orphanage, where he would learn both printing and music, things that would support him for the rest of his long life.

The Jenkins Orphanage was known for the bands Parson Jenkins produced. They played on a worldwide stage, one of them playing the Hippodrome in London. Amos White was not in that band as he was not allowed to play an instrument until he was almost 14 because he suffered greatly from hay fever. He was, however, a member of the bands that played in Theodore Roosevelt's second inaugural parade  in 1905; at William Howard Taft's inaugural parade in 1909, and actually led the band in 1913 in Woodrow Wilson's inaugural parade.

In his early 20s, White eloped with Parson Jenkins' daughter, settling in Jacksonville, FL, where he worked as a printer and continued to play trumpet and cornet. After 10 months there, he was asked to become director of the Jacksonville Concert Band, the second largest band in Jacksonville. The band gave concerts in the park every Sunday, a tradition White would continue many years later in Oakland, CA.

White later played in the circus band for the Cole Brothers Circus, one of the leading circuses of that era, and with a number of minstrel shows. When the United States entered World War I, White enlisted, becoming General Smedley Butler's bandmaster. The band serenaded General John J. Pershing four times during the war. Toward the end of the war, the band was sent to Le Harve, France, where it played for various occasions, including the sailing of troopships for the United States.

Returning to the States at the end of the war, White moved to New Orleans in 1919. There he got a job as a printer and began making a name for himself with the jazz bands. Jazz great Papa Celestin gave him his first real break, although White later said in an oral history, prepared by Tulane University in 1958, that all he could do was read the music, occasionally playing it with a little variation. But it didn't take him long to get into the New Orleans swing of things. While with the Celestin band, he played with a young Louis Armstrong. White remembered that they played many New Orleans jazz funerals in those days. Louis Armstrong later joined the famed Fate Marable Band, and after he headed north to Chicago, he was replaced as lead trumpet by none other than Amos White, who was later, White admitted, fired by Marable.

White was playing with the Marable band when it recorded Frankie and Johnny and Pianoflage. In his oral history, White notes that those two recordings were "a mess," because everyone was trying to outblow each other. However, a more recent critique of those recordings notes, "If there was a roof present, Amos must have blown it off. The ferocity and beauty he brings to bear is colossal in its impact."

At some point White organized the Imperial Orchestra for the city of New Orleans at the request of Armand Piron. The band played for circus acts in the park and for dances at the pavilion. In 1924 he formed the New Orleans Jazz Creole Band.

He left New Orleans in 1927. moving to Arizona, where he stayed until 1934 when he moved to Oakland, California, his home until his death in July 1980, just a few months shy of his 91st birthday. While in California, he taught music, directed his own band in weekly concerts in the park, and often played with other old New Orleans greats.

A jazz column in the Milwaukee Sentinel in 1965 noted that "veteran trumpeter Amos White, who played with many of the historic New Orleans bands, has made his first recordings." That music is still available online and on CD. You can listen to Amos play with his band and sing Sister Kate here.

The May 19, 1969, San Francisco Chronicle stated, "Sharing the stand with Pops Foster the other night was Amos White, a cornet and trumpet player, who is a mere 75. Amos White has not been playing much recently due to new dentures, but when he does come in, it is loud and clear. The musicians in the band tell of one night when he and Pops disagreed about a musical point. "Now, George," 75-year-old Amos said, to the 72-year-old Foster, "You listen to me. I'm older than you."

When George "Pops" Foster died in November 1969, his funeral was held the day before Amos White's 80th birthday. Again from the San Francisco Chronicle: "He was a very fine man and certainly ahead of his time," said Amos White, who will be 80 tomorrow and still plays trumpet at Oakland's De Fremery Park. "No, there aren't any of the old bands around anymore," White said. "I have to go down to the union hall nowadays and scout around for some men who know how to play the old way.

"White, as alert and as erect as he had been in World War I when he had been General Smedley Butler's  bandmaster, smiled kindly when a white reporter asked him why nobody, hardly, was playing his kind of music anymore. "Why," he said very gently and without a trace of bitterness, "because you boys stole it from us."

White spent his later years trying to ensure that the old music would not be totally forgotten. In April, 1972, he took part in a weekend course on Ragtime at the University of California's Berkeley campus. He, along with piano greats Eubie Blake and Earl "Fatha" Hinds, engaged in discussion and offered reminiscences.

Ad from The San Francisco Chronicle, October 31, 1976.

On October 12, 1977, The San Mateo Times ran this article: An evening of New Orleans-style jazz, featuring 88-year-old Amos M. White and his jazz band will be presented at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art on October 12 at 8 p.m. in the museum auditorium. Admission is free. Amos M. White represents living history, having played trumpet with the great jazz musicians of the past 80 years. He will have a lecture and demonstration of the roots of jazz. Under the direction of Amos M. White and his grandson, Eddie 'Snakepit' Edwards, the band will play a variety of old and new jazz. Together Mr. White and his grandson will present 123 years of the music that has inspired generations of American musicians.

In 2006, Eddie Edwards, an alto saxophonist himself, recorded an album of his own. One of the cuts on the album is titled Grandpa Amos. You can hear it here.

In Tulane's oral history project–undergoing an update and not currently available online–White indicated that he well understood that had he not been orphaned at an early age, he would have never become a musician.

While most Kingstree residents had never heard of Amos White until Cassandra Wiliams-Rush wrote a tribute to him, published in The News in January 2017, he was listed as one of South Carolina's Jazz Greats in a full-page discussion of jazz in The State on June 28, 1964. The paper stated. "Amos White, a Jenkins' Orphanage alumnus, was born at Kingstree in 1899 (sic), in 1921 replaced Louis Armstrong in the Fate Marable River Band and in 1924 formed the New Orleans Creole Jazz Band."

It seems well past time that the Town of Kingstree recognize in some permanent way the contributions of its native son to the jazz world. The form that recognition takes could be a worthy joint project for the town's Main Street Program and the Williamsburgh Historical Society.

Trick or Treat–or Maybe Not

Today is All Hallows Eve, or as we know it Halloween, or Hallowe'en as it was spelled in the early part of the 20th century. It appears from newspaper accounts that in those early years of the last century, most of the Halloween celebrations were geared toward adults rather than children.

In 1901, The County Record noted that several young ladies in town celebrated Halloween by having their futures told by a Gypsy fortuneteller. It was not uncommon for bands of Gypsies to camp near town when they were in the area, so it is possible that such a group was in the vicinity in October 1901. The next year, the ladies of Williamsburg Presbyterian Church sponsored a "Hallowe'en entertainment" at the courthouse. They, too, had a fortuneteller, although probably not a Gypsy, and a witches' cauldron from which punch was served. Keen competition was reported in a cakewalk which was won by Lucius Montgomery and Lula Strong. The ladies raised $60 for the church.

The Daughters of the Confederacy sponsored a Halloween party in the billiards room at the Kellahan Hotel in 1908 to raise funds for the Confederate Monument. This party drew a very slim crowd, and the ladies raised only around $30. The newspaper reported that Eunice Kennedy was a "charming little Hallowe'en witch." Guests who visited her "tent" were given a picture of their future lord or lady and a written sketch of their happiness or unhappiness in marriage. According to the paper, Belle Ervin and Helen Scott were in charge of a gallery of famous painting, representing an amusing pun or a ridiculous object which guests were supposed to guess. Homemade candy, tea, coffee, hot chocolate, and ice cream were for sale, and Martha Scott and Mamie Brockington were in charge of a supper of turkey, chicken, rice, and pickles.

The Central Warehouse on Hampton Avenue was the venue for a Halloween party in 1913, sponsored by the Epworth League of Kingstree. Costumes of witches, goblins and ghosts were extremely well done, and the warehouse, decorated with pumpkins, autumn leaves, and black cats, cast an eerie spell.

The Brooks Street home of Mr. and Mrs. A.C. Swails was the gathering place for a large group of young people on Halloween 1920. The County Record noted that they "paraded the streets and made merry, after which they again assembled at the Swails' home and enjoyed contests for the remainder of the evening,"

In 1922, Kingstree appears to have celebrated Halloween for almost a week, with more involvement from youngsters than previously shown. The partying began on Monday, October 30, when the Boy Scouts had a party at their hall in the Gourdin Building on Main Street. Each Scout was allowed to invite one girl, and the evening was spent bobbing for apples, running past apples hanging on strings, trying to take a bite from them as they ran, and enjoying punch and fruit. The next day, on Halloween, Leila Brown's Sunday School Class was invited to her home for a costume party, with each guest wearing a mask. The house was decorated with autumn leaves, owls, black cats, and witches. Punch was served from a big, black, three-legged cauldron with a long-handled dipper and tin cups. The guests also enjoyed popcorn, fruit, and nuts. That same evening, the Baptist Young People's Union was invited a party at the home of Madeline Miller. The 35 in attendance were served a witch's cake in which a dime and a penny had been hidden. The day after Halloween found the Junior Christian Endeavor group attending a party in which the rooms were darkened and decorated with Halloween-themed favors. They bobbed for apples and played other games.

A big bonfire was the major attraction at a party for the sixth grade in 1926. The party was held at the home of Mrs. Louise Gilland, and the guests all arrived in fancy costumes. 

During the late 1920s and early 1930s, many youngsters who had birthdays in October celebrated with Halloween-themed birthday parties. In 1931, Mary Catherine Epps' music students gave a Halloween recital in which they played and sang Halloween songs and enjoyed Halloween-themed refreshments.

By the late 1940s, the Parent Teacher Association (PTA) of the school began sponsoring a costume parade for pre-school and elementary school children, led by the marching band. And in the 1950s, the Halloween parade and carnival was taken over by the senior class of Kingstree High as a service project. The parade route ran from the new elementary school on Academy Street to the High School auditorium on Third Ave. There were 150 participants in the 1953 Halloween parade.

Photos taken in different years and at various locations in Kingstree.

One of the most interesting events to take place in Kingstree on October 31 had nothing to do with Halloween. On that date in 1900, South Carolina Governor Miles McSweeney came to town to perform a double marriage ceremony. Sisters Esther and Lillie Benjamin had planned a double wedding. Esther was marrying Dr. W.S. Lynch, while Lillie was to marry Hoxie G. Askins, Esq. The brides were Jewish, while their intendeds were not. They decided that they wanted neither a rabbi nor a Christian minister to perform the ceremony, but the governor was acceptable to all parties.

As it happened, that week was also State Fair week in Columbia, and Governor McSweeney had responsibilities at the fair that day. He asked if the wedding parties could come to him. However, that was apparently not acceptable, and somehow he was able to rearrange his schedule in order to travel to Kingstree to perform the ceremony, which was held at the home of Mary and Louis Jacobs on Main Street (where Hardee's is today). Louis Jacobs escorted both brides down the aisle. 

C.W. Wolfe, owner and editor of The County Record, made much over the fact that the governor accidentally broke a glass during the wedding. Wolfe noted that this was a "singular coincidence" as it is traditional to break a glass during a Jewish wedding ceremony.