CHAMPION—October 3, 2006

 

        Some of the excitement around Champion this week was the annual visit of the West Plains Wagon Club, with Clifton Luna of Dora as wagon master.  This year the train passed through Champion around noon on Thursday.  It proceeded north up Cold Springs Road.  There were four covered wagons and quite a large number of people on horseback.  For residents along the road it was quite a treat to see the past parading by though the origin and destination of the train were unknown.  It brings to mind the difficulties of the lives of their forbearers and makes them grateful to live in an area where such happenings are still possible.  Perhaps there will be better reporting on this subject next year.

        Hopefully someone will do some good reporting on the Pioneer Descendants Gathering.  Several people were seen taking pictures, so there is a chance that Herald readers will be treated to some sights of the event soon.  Several stories have been told about the steep dirt road that leads down to the Yates Cemetery.  They include reports of a sign that said, “Check Brakes…End of the World!”  Now days our vehicles have the horsepower to climb out of the low spots, but the old days were a different story.

        Ms. Marion Conradi remarked the other day on the bulldozing of the old store at Evans.  Many knew it as the Coonts Store.  It has fallen into disrepair in recent years and was near collapse.  The store was originally built by Jesse Henson, older brother of Edgar Henson of Champion.  W.D. Coonts bought it and ran it for many years.

        An infrequent, but a most welcome visitor and double cousin from South Texas, recently passed on the information that every hour this year 300 people in the United States have a milestone birthday.  That does not diminish the celebrating of a number of Champion residents, however, and Fay (of Champion) and Kaye (of Marshfield), with family and friends, enjoyed a good time in Mtn. Grove at the Pizza Hut over the week end.  Their birthday is the 4th of the month.  Dillon and Dakota Watts with their mother Linda Krider Watts came from Murphysbourough, Tennessee, to spend a few days helping their Grandmother enjoy her birthday.  There were trips to Silver Dollar City and to the Pioneer Descendents Gathering, as well as a lot of opportunity to help out on the farm.  Grandchildren are some of the excellent aspects of reaching the ‘milestone’ birthdays.

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