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TODAY'S FOCUS DULUTH, Ga., July 22, 2011 -- The year 2010 marked the 100th anniversary of the construction of Savannah & Atlanta Railway 4-6-2 (Pacific) type steam locomotive No. 750. The locomotive now rests at the Southeastern Railway Museum in Duluth. The locomotive was built for the Florida East Coast (FEC) Railway and rolled out of the Schenectady (N.Y.) Works of the American Locomotive Company in January of 1910. For a number of years, it powered passenger trains over that road's Key West Extension.
After the Florida boom went bust in 1926, and in the Depression, the FEC found itself with far more locomotives than were needed to operate the railroad. At the same time, the Savannah & Atlanta Railway (S&A), although not prosperous, was in dire need of additional locomotives as its existing engine roster was far too old and light to meet its needs. In 1935, the S&A purchased two locomotives from the FEC -- No. 141, the newest locomotive the FEC had for sale, and today's No. 750. However, because of the repairs and slight modernization, the 750 was deemed to be in better condition, despite its age. So, Florida East Coast engines 80 and 141 became S&A 750 and 751, respectively, in November of 1935. Work performed in the S&A shops upped the total ready-for-service cost of the 750 to $7,718.31. S&A President and General Manager Charles E. Gay, Jr. on January 8, 1936, said that the 750 had made three trips over the road and "…is doing everything we expected it to do." In 1948, the S&A's 750 received a larger tender from one of the New York, Ontario & Western Railway 4-8-2s. This tender had a capacity of 10,000 gallons of water and 16 tons of coal, versus a capacity of 6,000 gallons and 12 tons for the original tender. This is the tender that sits behind the 750 at the museum today. Also in 1948, the 750 narrowly escaped being scrapped, as the S&A began to dieselize its operations, when steam power was retired and scrapped. The S&A sold two other 700-class locomotives to J. T. Knight & Company of Atlanta for $33 per gross ton. The 750 was involved in only one mishap in its career on the S&A. In 1952, while powering a weed-spraying train, a tractor-trailer rig was hit while trying to beat the train over a crossing in Hiltonia, Ga. This resulted in the death of the truck driver and one train crewman. There was, of course, only minor damage to the locomotive. The locomotive was not used until 1962, when it was overhauled and presented to the Atlanta Chapter of the National Railway Historical Society on July 4, 1962. It moved from Savannah to Atlanta under its own power. On the Georgia Road portion of the trip, things got interesting, as someone gave the word to "turn 'er loose!" According to rail buffs who were pacing the train in automobiles, they began to fall behind while running 80 miles per hour. The Georgia Railroad engine crew said that they had never seen anything perform so beautifully. On arrival in Atlanta, the 750 went to work for her new owners, the Atlanta Chapter, NRHS, including over 30 years of service as a fan-trip locomotive and finally as a museum exhibit. This career would last longer than her careers for either of her two previous owners. EEB PERSPECTIVE NORCROSS, Ga., July 22, 2011 -- Being from Georgia, you routinely do not think of enjoying 57 degree weather during July. For the last few days, my wife and I have been on the Channel Islands off the coast of Normandy, France, first visiting Jersey, and ending the trip on the Isle of Guernsey. They are both wonderfully delightful, and two of the cleanest places we've ever been. The islands work at maintaining a pristine place; you just don't see trash much at all.
These days Guernsey has been "found," much like when Savannah became fortunate with the publication of a book. For Savannah, it was Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, while for Guernsey it was The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, a bestseller published in 2008. This book details the German occupation of the Channel Islands during World War II. These islands were the only English territory the Germans occupied. At the Guernsey Tourist Center, there's a current exhibition on the many languages in which the book has been published. Before reading that book on Guernsey, I knew nothing of this story of World War II, and have found it fascinating. When World War II started, the British wrote off the Channel Islands, thinking that they had no military importance. About half the population of the islands went to Britain for the duration of the war, while others stayed on the islands and tried to maintain a normal life, though complicated by the five-year German occupation. Their life was sometimes severe, particularly toward the end of the war. Hitler fortified the Channel Islands, thinking them important, and that Britain would seek to capture them. After all, Jersey is just 14 miles off the coast of France. But no. Winston Churchill would not direct precious war efforts to relieve the Islands, since they had no military importance. And so the people of the islands made the best of a bad situation, while Germans orchestrated their lives.
While here we also have learned that it also gets lots of rain, not necessarily hard showers, but more come-and-go drizzle. That hasn't stopped us from moving around, mostly by foot, since most attractions are nearby, or you take the frequent buses at little cost. As for food, with the Islands in the Atlantic Ocean, there's plenty of fresh seafood, with the Islands are also known for vegetables like potatoes and tomatoes, plus good milk and ice cream from the cows of the Islands. Each of the towns of the Islands is dominated by its harbor and waterfront. Boats are anchored all around, many lying on mudflats during low tides. (The tides are the third highest in the world here.) Like most of Europe, prices are higher than in the United States, but seem a bargain from having been in London last week. We've never dreamed we would some day visit islands in the British Channel off the coast of France, surrounded by the chilly Atlantic Ocean. It's been a good week here, one we especially appreciate when we learned that Gwinnett has been having a heat wave while we enjoyed the cool weather of the Channel Islands. ABOUT OUR SPONSORS
FEEDBACK Editor, the Forum: Concerning your column of July 5 ("Gwinnett airport war seems to be foretaste of the future"), while your assessment of the effectiveness of the pro-jet lobbyists billboards and website is not inaccurate, please note that residents in opposition to turning Gwinnett into an 'airport county' rather than a great place to live do not have the finances or resources to mount a similar counter campaign. I heard one pro-commercial jet group has put one million dollars into this effort.
Your column repeating the messages of the pro-jetliner billboards and website and quoting at length the head of a pro-expansion investment firm, gives them yet another outlet to get their message out. I ask if you are going to repeat the claims of the pro-jet lobby, you also point out when they are in error, such as noting regional airport fares are typically higher than at major airports. And to mention the negatives such as regional airports typically are unprofitable and Gwinnett taxpayers will have to kick in to support the airport, if it is unprofitable. And since the airport cannot revert back once it goes commercial, taxpayers would be obligated forever. I would like to mention the FAA spent one million taxpayer dollars for a report that concluded Briscoe among others is not suitable as a regional airport. Then the Gwinnett County Commission voted to spend a quarter-million taxpayer dollars for a study because they apparently thought the FAA had an ulterior motive for their report. This at a time of budget shortfalls.
UPCOMING Gwinnett
transportation officials received formal approval this week to begin installing
more traffic cameras and fiber-optic cables to monitor arterial and corridor
traffic flow and allow real-time, remote control adjustments from the
Gwinnett Traffic Control Center in two congested areas. Approximately 115 cameras are currently operating with a total of 175 expected to be operating within the next several years. Time nearing on projects for Gwinnett Great Days of Service Have you got a project that needs to be done?
Those with projects are reminded that time is running out for submission. Don't delay; send in today. Here are some of the projects, many very simple, that have already been identified and are considered critical community needs:
* * * * * Do you need to write a grant? The Emergency Assistance Working group is hosting a special session on Grant Information at their August 9 meeting at 10 a.m. at the Coalition office at 750 South Perry Street in Lawrenceville. Susan Bacon of Palmetto Grant Consulting will be sharing on what documents and processes are needed for effective grant writing. For more
details on any of these programs, call the Gwinnett Coalition for Health
and Human Services at 770-995-3339. NOTABLE New technology
is coming soon to Gwinnett County's public safety vehicles. Police officers,
code enforcement, animal control and fire marshals will be able to issue
electronic tickets to offenders and upload their citations to central
servers over a cellular modem.
GEORGIA ENCYCLOPEDIA
William Bootle, a U.S. District Court judge from 1954 to 1981, presided over several federal court challenges to racial segregation in Georgia, most notably the lawsuit that forced the integration of the University of Georgia (UGA) in 1961. He also issued a number of court orders that were instrumental in desegregating Georgia's schools, elections, and transportation facilities.
William Augustus Bootle was born on August 19, 1902, in Round O, S.C. His family lived in and around Walterboro, S.C., until 1917, when they moved to Berrien County, Ga. In 1918, Bootle enrolled at Mercer University in Macon, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1924 and a Bachelor of Law degree a year later. After graduating from law school he entered private law practice in Macon, which remained his home. In 1928, Bootle married Virginia Childs, with whom he had three children. In March 1928, U.S. President Calvin Coolidge appointed Bootle assistant U.S. attorney for the recently created Middle District of Georgia. He then appointed Bootle U.S. attorney, a position Bootle assumed in January 1929. When Franklin D. Roosevelt became president of the United States in 1933, Bootle left the federal prosecutor's post and returned to private practice. Shortly after he and fellow Macon attorney J. Douglas Carlisle formed the law firm Carlisle and Bootle, he was named dean of the Mercer University School of Law, where he had taught classes since 1926. Hired as an interim dean, Bootle held the position, along with teaching responsibilities, until 1937. Following the death of U.S. District Court Judge Abraham Conger in late 1953, U.S. President Dwight Eisenhower appointed Bootle to fill the vacant judgeship in the 71-county Middle District, comprising the areas surrounding Albany, Athens, Columbus, Macon, Thomasville, and Valdosta. During Bootle's career he presided in a number of U.S. Justice Department court actions brought to force Georgia officials to comply with the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Segregationist demonstrations against Bootle's rulings fueled a state government crisis during the UGA desegregation case. On January 6, 1961, Bootle ruled that UGA had unlawfully rejected black applicants Hamilton Holmes and Charlayne Hunter. Bootle and a federal appeals court had nullified Governor Ernest Vandiver's move to close the university and block the black students' admission. Bootle wrote that Holmes and Hunter's constitutional rights were "not to be sacrificed or yielded to violence and disorder. Nor can the lawful orders of this court be frustrated by violence and disorder." Bootle assumed senior judge status in March 1972. Bootle retired fully from the federal bench in 1981, and in 1998 the federal courthouse in Macon was renamed the William Augustus Bootle Federal Building and United States Courthouse. Bootle died on January 25, 2005, at the age of 102. CREDITS GwinnettForum is provided to you at no charge every Tuesday and Friday. If you would like to serve as an underwriter, click here to learn more. Send
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TODAY'S QUOTE "Don't pray when it rains if you don't pray when the sun shines."
SEARCH GWINNETT FORUM Loading
(NEW) Moonlight and Music Concert: 8 p.m., July 22, at Gwinnett Historic Courthouse. The Eric Culberson Blues Band will be presented for the seventh consecutive year as part of the Hayes Family Dealership Concert Series. The concert is free, though reserved tables can be purchased, if available. For more information, contact the Lawrenceville Visitors Center at 678-226-2639. National Hot Dog Day: 10 a.m., July 23, 10 a.m., Bay Creek Park, Grayson. Bounce House, vendors, games, face painting/tattoos and food vendors (no admission fee.) Intercamp Games: 10 a.m., July 28, Bogan Park, Buford. Competition between all the Gwinnett County Parks and Recreation summer campers. Splash and Bash: 1 p.m., July 30, Rhodes Jordan Park Pool. Enjoy wacky games, prizes and cool treats. Regular admission fees apply. (NEW) Duluth Open House for traffic improvement: 6 p.m., Aug. 4, at Duluth City Hall. Subject of the Open House will be the McClure Bridge Road improvements and the Irvindale Road Roundabout.
© 2001-2011, Gwinnett Forum.com is Gwinnett County's online community forum for commentary that explores pragmatic and sensible social, political and economic approaches to improve life in Gwinnett County, Ga. USA. PHONE: 770.840.1003 |
The
engine had heavy damage from an accident some time in the 1920s, which
resulted in its being "modernized," when repaired. This modernization
may have preserved the engine.
Today
the islands are a dependency of England, owing allegiance to the Crown,
though not part of the United Kingdom. They are the oldest legislatures
of the English speaking world, dating back to at least 1524. They have
their own tax laws not subject to Britain, including no VAT tax. The islands
are both a financial center, and a tourism attraction. After all, they
get more sunshine than any British area. 
The
public spiritedness of our sponsors allows us to bring GwinnettForum.com
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Struggling
homeowners like myself cannot donate that kind of money to stop this onslaught.
I have little spare time, yet I find myself sitting through long meetings
and writing letters in the hope the County Commission will finally side
with logic and the will of the residents. 
A
six-mile stretch of Pleasant Hill Road between Lawrenceville Highway/U.S.
Highway 29 and Buford Highway/U.S. Highway 23 will get the new traffic-management
equipment. So will almost three miles of Buford Drive/Georgia Highway
20 between I-985 and Peachtree Industrial Boulevard near the Mall of Georgia.
Want
to volunteer in your local community and make a difference? Don't miss
a unique opportunity for a "hands-on" experience this year with
Gwinnett Great Days of Service - September 30-October 1, 2011. For more
information on how to get involved, you can visit 