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Museum curator Linda Crawford shows off whale boneIt was recently donated by Doris Dixon

40 million year old boneamong new museum exhibitsBy VERNON SIKESHerald News Editor

The latest addition to the

Yazoo Historical Museum is a40-pound Brasilosaurus that isanywhere from 40 million to 60million years old.Anyone wanting to see it,

however, need not refer to it byits technical name. Just ask tosee the 40 million-year-oldwhale's shoulder blade.

The massive whale bone,recently donated by DorisDixon, is just one new additionto the museum, though.With the newly acquired

Duke Carter collection and the

soon-to-be dedicated exhibit

marking President Jimmy

Carter's visit to Yazoo City, theYazoo Historical Museum is onthe move.

"The museum is gearedprimarily to children," saidLinda Crawford, the museum'scurator. "The majority of thegroups that tour the museumare made up of kids but we alsoget a great many adults, particularly in the summer."A visitor's tour of the museum commonly begins with thetime line exhibit located on thesecond floor of the TriangleCultural Center.

"The time line exhibit,prepared by high school students several years ago,presents an overview of YazooCounty from the Eocene Age,which occurred 55-60 million

years ago, all the way up towhen the museum was openedin 1980," Crawford said.Yazoo County's history, 60

million years of it, includes theEocene epoch, the Oligocineepoch, the Pleistoione epoch, ageological time scale, thePaleoindians and a chronologyof cultural traits, all of whichoccurred before the Europeansarrived.

The time line exhibit con

tinues by tracing the IndianCessions, settlement and landpatents, antebellum Yazoo -- by1840, there were two and one-half times as many slaves aswhites in Yazoo County butless that 16 percent of thewhites owned slaves - the War

Continued on page lOA

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Editorials 4-5A

Lifestyles 1-4BObituaries 2ASports 6-7A

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MuseumBetween the States,Reconstruction and the 20thCentury.An important facet of the mu

seum is the archives, also located on the second floor.

With the day-to-day operations performed by researcherDarlene Johnson, the archivesis a valuable tool to many."People come here to research

books and to look up family information," Crawford said. "Wehad a couple in from New Mexico the other day who had ancestors here in 1947. They werelooking for property andgenealogical information."Crawford went on to praise

Johnson's work by saying,"Those folks will be getting information from us for the restof their lives. Darlene is incredibly thorough in her research."

The Bureau of FederalPrisons also sent personnel todo research in the archives during the recent archaeologicalsurvey of the prison site.Crawford claims that the

pride of the archives, however,is a massive 1874 map of YazooCounty that shows the county'slandowners, the locations ofschools and gymnasiums, andeven tells the width and depthof streams flowing within thecounty."Our second most cherished

item is our cemetery records,"she said. "So far, we have located 179 cemeteties in thecounty of which many aresingle grave sites."The archives has recorded

pertinent information regarding graves sites on index cards."We've found some cemeterieswe haven't been able to document yet but what we wouldlike to do is to be able tocatalogue every grave site inthe county and put them on a

computer."The information is particular

ly helpful to organizations likethe Daughters of the AmericanRevolution, the UnitedDaughters of the Confederacyand the Mormons, according toCrawford.

With county records, properlyrecords, a roster of YazooCounty's Civil War veterans,telephone books that go back tothe days when there were onlythree digits in telephone numbers, the archives can prettywell answer any question of ahistorical nature.

Located across the hall fromthe archives is a climate controlled museum with subduedlighting that fittingly casts anaura of the historical past.Again, visitors are treated to

professionally displayed andchronologic ally-arrangedartifacts.

"Room one deals with itemsdated from the Eocene Epoch tothe antebellum period," Crawford said, "Room two treatsartifacts that come from theage of the War Between theStates and 1904 (the year ofYazoo's Great Fire) and roomthree goes from 1904 to thepresent."In explaining the origin ofmany of the fossils that are

millions of years old, Crawfordsaid they have all been foundin Yazoo County."You've got to remember that

Yazoo County was once at thebottom of the sea millions ofyears ago," she said. "A goodmany of the fossils we havewere found in the eastern partof the county. Thompson Creekis one of many good places tolook for fossils. Just about anycreek is a good place to look."And scattered in strategic

locations, museum personnelhave many items that stand

Continued from page lA

ever ready for school childrento touch and to hold.

'1 think that's important to aschool child when they visit amuseum," Crawford said."They remember more of whatthey see when they can touchand hold some of the items."

She points to a heavy ironused by women in antebellumYazoo County as one of the"touch and hold" items.

"The children like to hold it jand they are usually really surprised to see how very heavyone little iron can be," she said."It illustrates that what weoften refer to as the good ol' 1days aren't necessarily as goodas we thought." <In the basement of the Tri

angle Cultural Center are twobrand new exhibits, the Dulce iCarter collection and the Presi

dent Jimmy Carter exhibit. ^"This is what the kids really

love," Crawford said as she'\turned the crank on a blower

that was used to keep theblacksmith's coals hot. Thereare so many interesting toolsand things that just fascinatechildren. And adults, too, forthat matter,"

Next to the Duke Carter collection is the museum's mostrecent addition, the PresidentJimmy Carter exhibit,

"The president spent thenight at the Owen Cooperhome and Mrs. Cooper recentlydonated everything in thebedroom in which the President slept to the museum "Crawford said. 'We've got thedisplay set up just as it was inthe Cooper s home, except forthe placement of a window "

I

come a b^^wavyears of existence, 12

life and times of theBy PHYLLIS THOMASManaging Editor ̂

''• Everything ■ hS:repeat, everything —that any reader?,diner, cook, or com-pieat angler couldwish to know aboutthe South's fish ofchoice."

That's the description found in the Uni- ;yersity Press of Mississippi catalogueabout a new book

written by YazooCity's Linda Crawford.

"The Catfish Book"

is Ms. Crawford'sand is result

of months of researchabout the "darling ofthe Southern depths ""Mississippi Presswas interest in doingsomething on foodthat is important toSouthern lifestyles,"Ms. Crawford said,"They called it 'The

that's what it is —~just about everythingabout catfish."The book includes

lots of folklore andtall tales surroundingthe catfish, includingMs. Crawford's favorite in which a steamboat captain has toshoot a catfish thatswallowed a hog offthe boat and then

towed the boat upstream.

There's also sectionsabout catching, cleaning and cooking catfish, along with commercial farming.The 53 recipes inthe book were provided by the CatfishInstitute of Belzoni

Linda CrawfordAwaif$ puhlk:atlon of first book

and Jackson. that IReaders can learn she saihow to cook black- ^"I useened catfish, Carrib- with mbean catfish, and — shesome other "really fish, ifancy dishes," Ms. fishedCrawford said. fish."

The book also in- The beludes some of the in paphistory behind the come opreparation of the will coscatfish. The first way "Thaithe fish was cooked, thing tlfor example, was in a tant tostew called a muddle, relativtshe said. CrawfoIt was only later ing.

that Southerners dis- Buyincovered perhaps the librar;tastiest way to fix the aware <fish — battered and of mo£deep-fried. CrawfiMs. Crawford, exec- wanted

utive director of affordaSouth Delta Library anyoneServices and the Tri- copy, siangle Cultural Cen- Ms. Cter, grew up in Texas, workioWriting about cat- book tl

fish brought up lots of Southememories, she said. ogy an"One of the main publislreasons I was inter- sity Piested in this project is sippi.

that I love to fish,"she said,

^"I used to go fishingwith my grandmother— she taught me tofish, and what wefished for was catfish."

The book, publishedin paperback, willcome out in May andwill cost $9.95."That was some

thing that was important to me, that it berelatively cheap," Ms.Crawford said, laughing.Buying books for the

library keeps heraware of the high costof most books, Ms.Crawford said. She

wanted her book to beaffordable enough foranyone who wanted acopy, she said.Ms. Crawford is now

working on a secondbook that will detailSoutheastern archeology and will also bepublished by University Press of Mississippi.

y^i^ibrary^Vector resignsBy VERNON SIKESHerald News Editor

On the heels of growing controversy surrounding RicksMemorial Library, directorLinda Crawford submitted herresignation to the LibraryBoard in a Wednesdayafternoon meeting.Crawford, who has served as

director 3 1/2-4 years, resignedeffective Aug. 7.Complaints regarding per

sonnel problems, treatment ofthe library's clientele and theLibrary Board's failure to address the situation had escalated over recent months causing city and county officials increased concern.

In a joint meeting July 6 ofthe Yazoo City Board of Mayorand Aldermen and the YazooCounty Board of Supervisors,problems at the library werediscussed, with a lack ofleadership cited as the centralcause.

"I think Linda has done agood job. There have been afew problems but she's done agood job," said George Mont-

Linda Crawford

gomery, Library Board president.

Montgomery added that oneof Crawford's problems mayhave been that her job involvedtoo many responsibilities andsaid the board is looking atnarrowing the scope of the library director's duties.The board decided Wednes

day, during a two-hour boardContinued on page 5

/

fbraryeeting, to advertise for a new

director and Montgomery saidhe doesn't anticipate a replacement until at least the latter

part of August."The last time we had to ad

vertise for a director, we onlygot two or three applications,"he said.

said.

Montgomery reported thatthe board has been lax withscheduled meetings in the pastbecause many of the peoplewho volunteered to serve simply wouldn't show up for themeetings.

City and county officials expressed concern about the frequency of Library Board meetings. Montgomery said, "Assoon as we can bring the boardback up to normal strength,that is a full five-memberboard, we plan to have regularmonthly meetings."

He said a very real problemthat hindered the board's effectiveness is the reluctance of individuals to commit themselves to meeting once amonth.

"It's very difficult to findpeople who are willing to meetonce a month without pay," he

In Wednesday's meeting,three of the four board members were present.In addition to Montgomery,

board members include ChuckCulpepper, Roy Thomas andMarsha Eckert.

Montgomery said the firsttime he heard of any of the library's personnel problemswas two weeks ago and expressed surprise to discoverthat the problems existed before he was informed of thesituation.

Continued from page 1^munity services. The writersaid the library once providedweekly pickup and delivery ofbooks and films at nursing

1 homes, but the service was no\longer provided.

Also questioned was whyrepairs to the roof had notbegun even after the necessaryfunds had been raised.

Yazoo County administratorRubye Berry said Wednesdaythat the Board of Supervisorsawarded the contract on May 5but there was a delay in obtaining materials. She alsqsaid that work would be iJprogress within 10 days. JThe board awarded the roJf

ing contract to VicksburllRiver City Roofing Co. for /ts$28,000 bid, which include/®90 calendar-days compleii®"date.

In Wednesday's Herald, a letter to the editor questioned thedeteriorating conditions of boththe library's building and com-

Crawford was out of ioW"Thursday and unavailab/ecomment about her re^i^®"tion. j

aple were out Tuesday as heat index soaredperatures reached 100 in downtown Yazoo City

Benton Volunteer Fire Department !

epartments'er insurance

tection district subjects volunteer firefightersto the same levels of accountability andliability as municipal fire departments.

■ "The best rating a volunteer fire department^ could hope for is a Class 9 since they don'tV have career firefighters on duty, but that's a

problem (with volunteer fire departments)across the state," said Yazoo County deputyfire coordinator Sonny Burdine.Once the grading district is established, the

® state's rating bureau then rates the fire de-partment based upon several criteria.The status of the department's equipment

and personnel make up 39 percent of therating bureau's evaluation.

r Another 39 percent of the evaluationdepends on the departments' water supplies;

^ 13 percent for fire safety codes; and nine per-s cent for the department's communications.

"As many as 90 percent of all volunteer firedepartments in the state meet ninth-class

j. ratings or better in all areas except for thewater," Gildea said.Fire departments are rated from one to 10

e with one being the highest rating. Jacksont Fire Department's Class III rating is the best^ in the state.s Yazoo County fire coordinator Joe Burdine

explained that the availability of water is ai key factor in the rating process. "The1 availability of water in the county is the pri-

Continued on page 5

Photo$ by Vernon Sikef

But Whitney Lehr Ray and brother William cashed in'^Nt^arrier Mitchell, right, among satisfied customers

Ricks Librarydirector resigns -By VERNON SIKESHerald News Editor

On the heels of growing controversy surrounding RicksMemorial Library, directorLinda Crawford submitted herresignation to the LibraryBoard in a Wednesdayafternoon meeting.Crawford, who has served as

director 3 1/2-4 years, resignedeffective Aug. 7.Complaints regarding per

sonnel problems, treatment ofthe library's clientele and theLibrary Board's failure to address the situation had escalated over recent months causing city and county officials increased concern.

In a joint meeting July 6 ofthe Yazoo City Board of Mayorand Aldermen and the YazooCounty Board of Supervisors,problems at the library werediscussed, with a lack ofleadership cited as the centralcause.

"I think Linda has done agood job. There have been afew problems but she's done agood job," said George Mont-

Dozen

pot plantsseized

A dozen maryuana plantswere seized Tuesday inside thetown limits of Bentonia, according to Yazoo CountySheriff John McGinty.

The plants ranged in heightfrom 16 to 17 feet and werenear maturity.

The Sheriffs Department,the Mississippi Bureau of Narcotics and the MississippiHighway Patrol participated inconfiscating the plants, whichhad a street value of approximately $12,000, according toMcGinty.

The plants were found in anarea approximately 500 yardsoff Highway 49.

McGinty said he didn'tknow the name of the land

owner. He said it is difficult toprosecute individuals unless

Continued on page 7

Linda Crawford

gomery. Library Board president.

Montgomery added that oneof Crawford's problems mayhave been that her job involvedtoo many responsibilities andsaid the board is looking atnarrowing the scope of the library director's duties.The board decided Wednes

day, during a two-hour boardContinued on page 5

Inside...Calendar 2Churches 10Classified, 7-9Editorials ....4Lifestyle 3Obituaries..!....,.....2Public record 2Sports ...6-7

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LibraryTHE YAZOO HERALD, SATURDAY, JULY 11,1992, 5

meeting, to advertise for a newdirector and Montgomery saidhe doesn't anticipate a replacement until at least the latterpart of August."The last time we had to ad

vertise for a director, we onlygot two or three applications,"he said.

City and county officials expressed concern about the frequency of Library Board meet-

j ings. Montgomeiy said, "Assoon as we can bring the boardback up to normal strength,that is a full five-memberboard, we plan to have regularmonthly meetings."

He said a very real problemthat hindered the board's effectiveness is the reluctance of individuals to commit themselves to meeting once amonth.

"It's very difficult to findpeople who are willing to-meetonce a month without pay," he

;ion signed by not less than 103ercent of the qualified electors,f a school district fixing thenaximum amount of suchjchool bonds and the purpose3r purposes for which they are

be issued, the school board-'iopt a resolution calling

^to be held within"^tTict for the pur-

"tirxg to

said.

Montgomery reported thatthe board has been lax withscheduled meetings in the pastbecause many of the people•who volunteered to serve simply wouldn't show up for themeetings.

In Wednesday's meeting,three of the four board members were present.In addition to Montgomery,

board members include ChuckCulpepper, Roy Thomas andMarsha Eckert.

Montgomery said the firsttime he heard of any of the library's personnel problemswas two weeks ago and expressed surprise to discoverthat the problems existed before he was informed of thesituation.

In Wednesday's Herald, a letter to the editor questioned thedeteriorating conditions of boththe library's building and com-

need for the board."As Branum addressed the

board members, he said, "I amasking for your signatures.You are voters and I feel youshould be concerned enough towant to know what the peoplewant.

"We are only asking for thisreferendum to be put to thevote by the people you are sup-

Continued from page 1munity services. The writersaid the library once providedweekly pickup and delivery ofbooks and films at nursinghomes, but the service was nolonger provided.Also questioned was why

repairs to the roof had notbegun even after the necessaryfunds had been raised.Yazoo County administrator

Rubye Berry said Wednesdaythat the Board of Supervisorsawarded the contract on May 5but there was a delay in obtaining materials. She alsosaid that work would be inprogress within 10 days.The board awarded the roof

ing contract to Vicksburg'sRiver City Roofing Co. for its$28,000 bid, which included a90 calendar-days completiondate.

Crawford was out of townThursday and unavailable forcomment about her resignation.

Continued from page 1tance."

"If you gentlemen are concerned about public educationin Yazoo County, (losing students because of the restructuring) should be a m^jor concern to you.

"I am requesting that youalter plans of consolidation andleave the schools as they were

Forrest Hall new pastorat First Assembly of GodThe congregation of the First

Assembly of (jod has announced that the Rev. Forrest Hallwill assume the duties of thechurch's pastor. He and hiswife, Johnnie, are currentlyresiding at 2326 West Club-view Circle.

Rev, Hall has pastored churches in Poydras and Chal-mette, La. where both churches experienced continualgrowth and expansion underhis leadership.In May 1982, he was elected

to the office of secretary/treasurer for the Louisiana District Council of the Assemblies of God and served inthat capacity for six years.During that time, he also

served as a member of theGeneral Council of the Boardof Regents for SouthwesternAssemblies of God College inWaxahatchie, Texas, DistrictNew Church Evangelism director; and District Stewardshipdirector.

From 1982 through 1988,Mrs. Hall served as the assistant Women's Ministries

The Rev. Forrest Hall, wife Johnnie new to Yazoo

director.

Following Rev. Hall'srecuperation from heart bypass surgery in 1988, Rev. andMrs. Hall were active in musicministry and preaching until

his call to the Yazoo Citypastorate.

They are the parents of twomarried children, Cliff andRhonda, who both make theirhome in Louisiana.

Henderson top leaderLaurissa Nolan Henderson, Among Students in American

the daughter of Dot Nolan and Universities and Colleges "student at Millsaps College,Vi O a o« i.\m.

THE YAZOO HERALD, SATURDAY, JUNE 29, 1991, 3 —

I

m

I Author signs new bookI Linda Crawford, director of Ricks Memorial Library andhhe Triangle Cultural Center, was on hand to autograph3 ̂ ̂ ̂ I r- /-lif " «s4- . •I copies of her new book, "The Catfish Book," at a signingI party held June 13 at Essco's. The work is Miss Crawford'sI first book.