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MORE THAN 15,000 PEOPLE ATTEND PARADE SATURDAY. PAGEANT PLAYED BOTH NIGHTS TO CAPACITY CROWD JOYCE HOWARD IS CHOSEN “MISS CENTENNIAL” Wise county, in a colorful three-hour jamboree Thursday night chose its queen and decided the major contests of its three day centennial celebration. First event on the program Thursday night was a fiddlers’ contest for contestants over 50 years of age. Ed Shadle of Springtown took first in this event with A. E. James of Chico, second and H. M. Burns of Cot tondale, third. Judge was Mayor E. E. McCanne of Alvord. Best dressed pioneer man was Marvin Stone, followed by Gene Brummell and Charlie Rann, all of Decatur. Best dressed pioneer woman was Mrs. T. G. Rogers with Mrs. F. P. Martin second and Mrs. Harold Schults third. Best dressed pioneer couple was Mr. and Mrs. Al Chesney, first, Mr. and Mrs. Andy Caraway, second and Mr. and Mrs. Oliver Cook third. Archie Davis of Slidell, who hasn’t shaved in four years, took first prize for sporting the wool iest beard among centennial cele brants. Prize for the best groomed beard went to Dr. Ed Maddox and Andy Caraway took second and Andy Henderson third. Mrs. John R. Renshaw took first in museum exhibits with her cradle; Mrs. Bertha Hilton won second with a quilt and Miss Bell Ford won third with a dress exhibit. Joyce Howard, 16, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. L. W. Howard of the Greenwood community, was crowned queen, after a contest in which Sue Sellman, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. C. F. Sellman of Bridgeport, was first runner up and Sandra Hudnall, 17, daughter of Mr.:and Mrs. Thurman Hud nall of Rhome, was second. Other contestants were Rose mary Nikirk, Alvord; Mary Ann Hunn, Boyd; Patty Jan David son, Chico; Dewitt Rush, Deca tur; Lana Simmons, Newark; Jamie Lou Moody, Paradise; and Sue Range, Slidell. A total of $225 in government savings borths went to the win ners and two runners up in the queen contest. Ed Shadle of Springtown, 60, won his sixth old fiddler contest, in the class’for fiddlers 50 and over. Vernon Solomon of Aurora topped the fiddlers 25 to 50 years old, and Mike Solomon, his 8- year-old son, was judge the best young fiddler. Beard’ contest winners were Dr. Ed Maddox of Decatur, best groomed; Andy Caraway of De catur, best mustache and goatee, and Archie Davis of Slidell, wool liest. In the young people’s pioneer costume contests, winners were Diane McCory, girls under 14; Lind Rudd, girls 14 to 21; Ronnie Yoakum, boys under 14; and Jackie Jones, boys 14 to 21. The jamboree, which ended with a square ‘dance, was’ spon sored by the Decatur Lions Club. Substituting for the Tune Wranglers Band’ ‘Thursday night were Marvin’ Shockler, Lee Shockler and ‘Herbert Denny, of Fort Worth, who play under the band name of Chock and His Old Fashion Rhythm Boys. Monette Durbin and Speck McDaniel were accompanists from Decatur. ELABORATE PAGEANT WAS A THRILLER Wise county citizens, some 406 strong, pooled talents here Fri day night to present a 10-episode pageant depicting life during the 100 years of Wise county's exist ence. Entitled “A Century of Prog ress in Wise County,” the page ant unfolded here at Dickson Field on the second night of the three-night centennial celebra tion. Hundreds of Wise county residents, under the direction of Charles T. Gettys, pageant di rector, and Charles W. Jones, stage director, acted out the his tory of the county beginning with “The Pioneers,” an episode of life during the 1853-56 period, to “Post War Progress,” showing Wise county as it exists today. In pantomime, the brightly cos tumed cast composed of residents of county towns and communities began the county’s history with a portrayal of early settlers be fore the county was formed in 1856. The 2%4 hour spectacle ended after Wise county’s progress was traced to the present time with a finale in which 125 children from all the first grades in the coun ty’s schools took part. Queen Introduced Miss Wise County Centennial, 16-year-old Joyce Howard of Greenwood community, was in troduced at the start of the page ant. She was chosen to reign during the three-day celebration at a jamboree Thursday night. ‘One of the highlights of the pageant was a raid in which 20 Indians on horseback attacked the home of one of the early families, the Babb family, killed Mrs. Babb and kidnaped a woman and two children.js.: In a later scene, portraying the start of coal mining at Bridge port, one of the cast, John Kuez dos, actually was an early-day miner, working in mines 22 years. Lost Battalion Portrayed The pageant told of participa tion by Wise county men in both World War I and II, portrayed by the Decatur National Guard unit. Narration for one of the scenes, following the hardships of Wise county men in the Lost Battalion captured by Japs in Burma and Indo-China, was a let ter written to his family by Charles A. Cates of Decatur af ter he was released. Watching from the stands as the county relived its past was Mrs. Emma J. Austin, 90, now of Seminole, the last remaining child of the man who built the first home in Wise county, Sam Woody, and Mrs. Molly Hudson, 85, of Slidell. Mrs. Emma J. Austin daughter of Sam Woody, who built the first house in Wise County in 1854, who returned to Decatur from her home in Seminole, Texas, especially for the Centennial.
Newspaper Details
Decatur Wise County Messenger
Decatur, Texas, US
Thu, Oct 11, 1956
Page 1
Full Page
Clipped by
Benjamin B.
USA 21 Aug 2026
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