I have been a hamburger connoisseur my entire life. My favorite burger in the late 1940s was cooked by Bill Lawson at his small 302 W. Market Street cafe, The Sandwich Shop, just west down the road from our apartment. After Bill closed his business, my taste buds promptly migrated west to the Apex Barbecue at 604 W. Market where I was became acquainted with the Gurney Burger, a large and tasty burger made from a secret family recipe of the Gurney Campbell family.

Compared to standard burgers of that day, this meaty gastronomic delight was gigantic. It was so big that the joke around town was that if you ate too many of them, you might end up on a hospital gurney. My family made frequent trips to the Apex to get a bagful of burgers, which I seem to recall were individually wrapped in white paper. Several years later, Gurney left the Apex and opened his own restaurant at 1418 E. Main, just beyond Broadway Street. Everybody in town knew Gurney Campbell.

In 1988, Johnson City Press-Chronicle writer, Mark Rutledge, interviewed Gurney and Mary Campbell about their highly popular business. The 84-year-old couple revealed that they initially opened a hamburger and hot dog joint in Hampton about six years after they were married in 1921. After more than 60 years later, they were still flipping burgers with the help of four generations of family members.

Betty Jackson, daughter of the Campbells, is credited for naming the burger after her father. “How many family businesses,” asked Mrs. Jackson, “have you seen with four generations working? We have a few non-family employees working for us, but it’s mostly family members. Anytime anybody says, ‘I need some money,’ I tell them, ‘I’ve got a job for you.’” 

After the Campbells moved their business to Johnson City, their life became saturated with hamburgers. People fell in love with the Gurney Burger and the product became a household name. That is what the public wanted and that is what they got. Mrs. Campbell labored over the grill six days a week flipping meat patties. She told people that her husband paid her “twenty-one fifty a week.” She clarified that statement as meaning twenty-one meals and 50 cents.

Gurney and Mary initially charged a dime each for a cup of coffee and a burger. Over time, the burgers became slightly more expensive, but the coffee remained the same. Mary jokingly explained that she would not let her husband raise the price because “that’s all it’s worth.”

Making Gurney Burgers was more than just a trade with the Campbells; it was a family tradition. Raised in the business, Mrs. Jackson passed the art to her daughter, Ann Lee, who in turn taught the trade to her daughter Jennifer.

The Gurney Burger competed well with the newer kids on the block – Shoney’s “Big Boy,” McDonald’s “Big Mac” and Burger King’s “Whopper.” Aside from its scrumptious taste, the burger’s success was probably due to the fact that the Campbells kept the business simple and did not try to expand it, a concept that obviously worked well.

A highlight of the Campbells’ career occurred when CBS television’s Charles Kuralt cruised by the restaurant in his motor home to verify the existence of the celebrated sandwich. He mentioned the establishment during one of his many “On the Road” segments for the CBS Evening News.

After the Campbells eventually closed their business, several people tried to return it to its former glory, but efforts proved futile. Today, the colossal scrumptious Gurney Burger is but a fleeing lip-smacking memory from yesteryear. 

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My recent Yesteryear column on The Three Stooges from Robert Gardner and William Brown brought quick responses from Lou Thornberry and Don Sluder.

Lou, a retired history teacher who initially taught at Unicoi County High School and later University High School, currently hosts a 3-4 minute Wednesday radio history broadcast titled, “WEMB Looks Back,” (www.wemb.com/inside/looksback.asp). The series began in 2002 and has aired nearly 400 episodes. Lou published a book bearing the same name that contains 250 of his stories. 

The Unicoi County native recalls a chance meeting with The Three Stooges at the age of six in downtown Johnson City on Oct. 25, 1947. The encounter was not at the Tennessee Theatre where the Stooges were performing, but instead at a downtown restaurant on the south side of E. Main Street where his mother had taken him.

According to Thornberry: “My family was in Johnson City that evening and I remember crying about something so my mother took me into the restaurant. The Three Stooges were sitting at the lunch counter and my screaming either touched a nerve or caused concern with them. It was either Moe or Shemp who purchased a Coke for me and brought it over to my mother.

“I knew who The Three Stooges were, but I don't recall the conversation between my mother and them or even if I drank the Coke. The three of them finished their meal uninterrupted and left. I do not think there we any fans around the Stooges at the time nor have I found any interviews with them in the newspaper documenting their appearance in town. It wasn't until the television reruns of the 1950s and 60s that I knew of Curly Howard, an earlier member of the Stooges, whom Shemp replaced in 1946.

“Johnson City was a booming city after World War II with city streets packed with cars and people day and night. At this young age, I was already a veteran of Saturday morning westerns at the Capitol Theatre in Erwin and I thoroughly enjoyed the comedy shorts that accompanied the westerns.

 “Research reveals that The Three Stooges made more movies than any other comedy team in history. I agree that those goofy men were the ‘kings of comedy.’ We didn't know which comedy short would play at the theatre on any given Saturday. I can still hear the shouts of approval and applause from the packed theater crowd when the picture of The Three Stooges introduced their 15 minutes of laughter. The Little Rascals and Edgar Kennedy brought a similar reaction, but for my generation, The Three Stooges won the Academy Award for humor.”

Don Sluder (shown above with his heroes) next replied saying that he attended the Stooges’ stage show at the Tennessee Theatre on that Oct. 1947 afternoon when he was ten years old. Afterward, he had his picture taken with the eccentric entertainers. “It's amazing,” said Don, “how many different views of the same event come forth after 60 years or so. Although I don't remember much about the stage performance, I do recall the picture-taking portion of it. Photos, using natural light and very poor processing, were taken outside on the sidewalk. My picture is fading fast and now looks sepia. I was glad to know the date of their visit because I didn't remember it.”

Don recalls the Stooges telling him a yarn about Curly not being there, saying that he had been attacked by a lion while he was filming a movie. That was likely their way of acknowledging his ill-fated absence without revealing the major stroke he suffered several months prior.

Thanks, Lou and Don, for sharing your Stooge memories. 

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York Trivette, a lifelong resident of Johnson City, has something priceless in his possession – an 8”x10” mildly colorized glossy photo made in 1942 that reveals a large clock from Hart’s Jewelers, a business that opened in 1923.

According to York, Mr. H.E. Hart devised a clever advertising promotion for several years during the 1930s and 1940s. His store was located at 214 E. Main, sandwiched between Peoples Drug Store and Goldstein’s Clothing Store.

Mr. Hart ingeniously made use of one of his store clocks by covering the face of it, except for the hands, with a 50” diameter circular piece of thick white cardboard that contained a small hole in the center for the stem. He then superimposed on it a 30” diameter round photo of the face of a clock that appeared to have been used as a cigarette ad. Perched on the long hand of the clock photo, the man was offering the lady, straddling the short one, a cigarette.

  

Surrounding the photograph were two circles displaying bust photos of the 178 members of the JCHS (Johnson City High School) graduating class of 1942. The 108 girls’ pictures on the outside ring surrounded the 70 boys’ photos on the inside. Mr. Hart even placed his mug shot with the words “Compliments, H.E. Hart” at the bottom just below the “6” on the clock. Completing this project was likely a daunting and time-consuming task.

York further noted that the senior class was divided into two parts; the 12B graduates received their diplomas in December while the 12A ones obtained theirs in May. The clock campaign was separately aimed at both groups.

About five to six weeks before graduation, the storeowner wound the immense timepiece and carefully placed it in his front store window, filling all available space. York was not sure what made the clock run, but alleged it had a windup mechanism. He emphasized that it was not a grandfather clock.

The jewelry store’s goal was to attract students, families, friends, townspeople and other interested parties to stop by the business frequently to observe if the clock was still ticking. The ultimate intent was for customers to come in and buy something. When the device finally stopped running just days before graduation, two fortunate students were rewarded a wristwatch.

When the 1942 clock stopped running at 4:33, the long hand pointed to Betty Jean Simmons and the small one to Bernie Andrews. She received a Tavannes watch and he accepted a Longines one. If the short hand had moved clockwise 20 more people (about 4.5 hours), York Trivette would have been declared a winner. He explained that getting a top-of-the-line watch in those days was pretty exciting for a young high school student. Also, it was a big deal then to get to go to downtown Johnson City.

“About 80-90% of the boys on that 1941-42 clock went into the military soon after graduation,” said York. “Several months after I received my diploma, I enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps;some of my classmates went into service before I did.

“One classmate, Jim Tomblin, distinguished himself in the Air Force, earning several medals. He later spent quite some time in a prisoner of war camp. Because of the war effort, I do not think the clock promotion was done for the 1942-43 school year.” 

The witty advertising campaign’s well-known and much anticipated clock contest eventually wound down and stopped, becoming another entry in the city’s business history. After Hart’s Jewelers closed sometime between 1965 and 1970, Zale’s Jewelers took over that location. Let me hear from you if you remember this unique campaign. 

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In a previous column, I reviewed an April 7, 1960 edition of “Tri-Cities Shopping News & TV Guide” that featured an article about the early history of the city. Page 2 contained a column titled, “Norton’s Notions.” As I read it, I began to realize the writer was the well-known businessman of the city’s past – J. Norton Arney.

 

1939 (top) and 1950 Advertisements

The colorful car dealer noted that in the spring of 1924 he was employed as a salesman for Kyle Auto Sales (Paige, Jewett, Oakland dealer) located on Market Street at Montgomery. Shortly thereafter, Oakland Motor Company came out with a new automobile bearing the name Pontiac. Arney helped unload the first shipment of new cars and sold the first one.

The car was “fully equipped” with a spare tire and two bumpers and sold for $895. There was no tax, no title and not even a bill of sale to reckon with. You bought it and then drove it home. The dealership graciously put five gallons of $.48/gallon gas in the tank.

Mr. Arney related how different cars were back then: “In those days, owners never complained about their cars if they would run at all. If it would go halfway up Roan Hill in high (gear), she was a good ‘en. If she’d do 48 (miles/hour) wide open on level ground, she was a fast baby. If it would run a year without a complete overhaul, she was tops in quality. If all the screws in the old wooden body didn’t come out in six months, she was well constructed.

“If you hit a chug hole at 20 mph and could still hold on to the steering wheel, she rode like a cradle. If you could make a 25-degree curve at 10 mph and not turn over, she was well balanced and steered good. If you could go from Johnson City to Jonesboro and back without a flat tire, you had a real set of tires. If you could go to Roan Mountain without adding water more than three times, you had an automobile with a cooling system second to none.”

“When Oakland Motors came out with the Pontiac, they had just such a car and I was a proud young salesman for having the opportunity to offer that kind of an automobile to the buying public. We had plenty of competition then. In the lower price field, we had Ford and Chevrolet to contend with. In our price field, we had Essex, Durant and Overland. All dealers were aggressive and hard workers.”

Arney said he gathered copious literature so as to be well informed about his and his competition’s product. He read salesmen’s bulletins the factory published and studied the mechanism of the cars in order to answer any questions a prospective buyer might ask him. He knew all the weak points in the competitors’ automobiles and was able to convince people that his was worth a little extra money to get a better product. He made quality an important issue to mull over along with price.

J. Norton praised Bill Kyle as being a wonderful salesman, good businessman, very honest and a fine fellow, but he said that without question, he was the toughest boss any young salesman could ever have. After five years of employment with Kyle Auto Sales, Arney was offered and accepted a sales manager’s position with Preston Motor Company, his competition making twice what he was earning.

When Arney Motors came into being, the businessman adopted the slogan, “A Square Deal or No Deal.” I recall the time when a customer purchased a car from his dealership and became disgruntled over the transaction. The buyer capitalized on the business’s famous tag line by driving around town with a large sign attached to his car proclaiming, “Arney Got the Square deal and I Got the No Deal.” J. Norton Arney stands tall in Johnson City business history.  

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The “Tri-Cities Shopping News and TV-Guide,” a 16-page weekly publication, was published every Thursday and sold for a nickel. The staff included M.S. Lusk (co-owner), Harlan P. Milhorn (co-owner/general manager) and Douglas J. Ingells (editor/publisher).

The bold headline for April 7, 1960 boldly proclaimed, “City Granted Charter 75 Years Ago.” The diamond anniversary article titled “A Day to Remember, comprised two pages and referred to Mar. 25, 1885.

Although Johnson City received its first charter on Dec. 1, 1869, it was later rescinded only to have another one granted in early 1885. The diamond anniversary referred to the second charter. The city elected a mayor, four aldermen and a magistrate, which was accomplished on the fourth Wednesday in March of that year. Henry Johnson became the first mayor.

The remainder of the newspaper contained numerous advertisements, a TV guide, a crossword puzzle and a column titled “Norton’s Notions,” written by area businessman, J. Norton Arney, offering a unique and hilarious glimpse of the automobile trade in the 1920s. I will feature it in next week’s column.

Five television station schedules were listed: WJHL-11 (Johnson City), WCYB-5 (Bristol), WBTV-3 (Charlotte), WLOS-13 (Asheville) and WATE-6 (Knoxville). The programming for WJHL brought back many memories for me. The “Little Rascals” came on at 5:00 followed by “Rocky and His Friends (Tue. & Thur.), “Rin Tin Tin” (Mon. & Fri.) and “My Friend Flicka (Wed.).

The lonely housewives had their fair share of soap operas to weep over: “Love of Life,” “Search for Tomorrow,” “The Guiding Light,” “As the World Turns,” “Young Doctor Malone,” “Brighter Day,” “Secret Storm” and “The Edge of Night.”

My favorite program from that era was Arthur Smith and His Crackerjacks that came on over WBTV each Thursday at 7:00. It featured a half-hour of homespun country/western, bluegrass and gospel music at its best. The Crossroads Quartet always concluded each show.

The local movie theatres offered their fare – Sevier: “Suddenly Last Summer” (Elizabeth Taylor, Montgomery Clift and Katherine Hepburn), Majestic: “Home from the Hills” (Robert Mitchum and Eleanor Parker), Tennessee: “The Young Land” (Patrick Wayne and Yvonne Craig) and The Skyline Drive-In: “For the First Time” (Mario Lanzo and Zsa Zsa Gabor).

The Sutz-U Food Market at the corner of Maple and Buffalo Street purchased a half-page ad with several items listed: Hormel Can Hams, $2.69 for a 3-lb. size; fresh lean loin end pork chops, $.43/lb.; Armour’s Oleo, seven lbs.; half-gallon ice milk for $.49 (with coupon); and two loaves of Baker’s Bread for a quarter. 

Other advertisement included the Restaurant Village of the John Sevier Hotel, Fields Department Store (104-06 E. Main),” Mullins (Jonesborough Highway), Leach Motor Company (111 Ash, Willys Jeep), Harrison’s Jewelers (203 E. Main), Nance Lanes (401 E. Main), Market Street Furniture Co. (130 W. Market), Huntsman Television Cable Co. (407 W. Walnut offering five stations for $25 and your old antenna) Scarlett Lincoln/Mercury Sales (Kingsport-Bristol Blvd.), Doyle Tire Service (502 W. Market), Carder Hardware (132 W. Market) and Anderson Realty Co. (100 W. Holston at Roan).

The most humorous ad in the Shopping News was by Johnson City Beauty Shop (101.5 Buffalo) proclaiming, “Ladies, Our Hair Color Specialists Invite You to Come in and Get a New Hair Color to Match Your Easter Outfit.”  

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Tuesday, April 14, 2009 was a heartrending day for this writer. The old apartment building, originally known as the Gardner Apartments, at 319-321 W. Watauga where I lived during the first eight years of my life (1942-1950) burned and collapsed into a mountain of molten rubble.

 

The Gardner Apartments as It Looked Before, During and After the Devastating Fire 

The structure was one of six rental complexes built in that general area, the others being Larchmont, DeLeacon, Montclair, Holston and Lafayette. The 20-unit L-shaped edifice was constructed in 1921 and surrounded by three streets – Watauga to the west, Market along the south and (later) King on the north.

A 1919 reference to that property identifies a Garden Flats Apartment. Further research suggests that the likely owner was James Robert Gardner, a prominent attorney whose practice was located in the Armbrust Smith Building and later relocated to the second floor of the Arcade Building Annex. T.H. Mouries was president and Gardner was vice president of Watauga Realty, which carried the identical address as the apartments.

Andrew Mickle eventually became manager of the Gardner and Holston apartments. Gardner also owned the nearby Watauga Swimming Pool (renamed Sur Joi and then Carver). Isaac Garland owned the apartment during my family’s stay there in the 1940s in unit 10 facing Watauga at King.

Leon-Ferenbach Inc. was for years situated on the east side with City Fire Department No. 4 farther east on Market and the Police Department directly behind it on King. The constant roar from the silk mill machines was frequently augmented with shrill sirens from emergency vehicles. Like most things, we got used to it. The apartment offered more than just a place to eat and sleep as evidenced by some vivid memories from my youth depicting life there and in the surrounding neighborhood:

Proudly walking to Howard Stewart’s Red Store by myself with a list of needed groceries for Mom; occasionally shopping at Luther Pardue’s Grocery Store; taking a bath in the impressive-looking old bathtub that stood on four feet; waking up each winter morning to the clanging of steam radiators; chatting with the firemen at the fire station and occasionally seeing a young Clarence Eades (future fire chief) there; …

Going with Ernest Green, the maintenance man who lived in Apt. 4, into the dark, cool basement and being advised to watch out for rats; patronizing Prator-Wilson Pharmacy, being greeted by Guy Wilson, eating ice cream in the summer and hot tamales in the winter at the soda fountain and reading comic books from the store’s display rack; getting an adult haircut at Bill Garland’s Barber Shop; anxiously decorating a modest pine tree during the Christmas season; feeding a stray cat on our back porch; …

Going “swimming” by carrying a pot of warm water to the narrow sidewalk behind the apartments, sitting in it and using a metal cup to refreshingly pour water over my head; watching a barrage of helium-filled balloons drift overhead that had been released from the Press-Chronicle, offering a prize to the fortunate person who found one and returned it; enduring a life-threatening bout of rheumatic fever that required me to be quarantined, kept inactive and off my feet for a year; …

Walking to West Side School by taking a “shortcut” through the Larchmont Apartments; becoming acquainted with the Buda family (John, Ethel, Anna and George) who owned John’s Sandwich Shop on Buffalo; walking with Mom to 536 W. Market each month to pay our $20 rent bill; eating a delicious hamburger at Bill Lawson’s Sandwich Shop soon after having my tonsils removed at Jones’ Hospital; and watching a snow shower in winter slowly paint the neighborhood white. What memories!

The aging 86-year-old Gardner Apartments daringly and dramatically absconded into the annals of yesteryear earlier this week, but my reminiscences of the years of my residency there are brilliantly stuffed in my bank of memories.  

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In 1985, former Press writer Tom Hodge wrote about a restaurant that he occasionally patronized. Located in Unicoi, it was Clarence’s Drive-In, owned and operated by Clarence Tapp who opened the popular eatery in 1969. It is still going strong 40 years later.

The signature meal, according to current owners, Jerry and Teresa Collins, is the biscuits and gravy plate, which is served anytime. The thing that intrigued Tom about Clarence’s, aside from its tasty victuals, was its reputation for producing some of the most outlandish tall tales imaginable. I located several of the writer’s columns that dealt with the trendy restaurant. I am repeating my favorite yarns along with the names of the perpetrators.

Lawrence Hahn said that he and Briscoe Edwards once were driving in Erwin when they spotted a dog chasing a cat from a yard into an alley. After the dog apprehended the cat, a fierce fight ensued. The feline not only whipped the canine, but moments later, the latter ran out of the alley with the cat behind in hot pursuit.

Bill Honeycutt, while working on a Clinchfield Railroad crew repairing a bridge, once observed a man with a shotgun and a dog coming through a field. They passed in front of a house where a second man was standing in the doorway. About that time, a large rabbit came hopping across the front yard. The dog spotted the animal and took chase. The man with the shotgun hollered to the man at the door, “If my dog kills your rabbit, I’ll pay you for it.”

When the dog caught the rabbit, the rodent-like creature unexpectedly kicked the dog three feet into the air. Every time the mutt got up, the hare belted him again. Seeing what was transpiring, the man at the door shouted to the man in the field, “If my rabbit kills your dog, I’ll pay you for it.”

Carl Jones related that when they wanted to go hunting, they’d make an appointment with Smith and Ike Nelson because they had the best dogs in the country. He went with them several times and noticed something unusual. The dogs would bark for a while, suddenly become quiet, and soon afterward resume yelping again. One night he inquired why the animals so frequently lose the scent and stop barking. It was explained to him that the dogs were trained to cease barking anytime they passed through posted land.

Bill McInturff’s dog, Tige (same name as the Buster Brown Shoes canine) weighted maybe five pounds soaking wet. He noted that the animal once saved his life. It seems he was out in his pasture working when one of his cows went berserk and chased him into the middle of his pond. Even worse, the bovine started in after him. Tige, seeing what was happening, immediately came to his owner’s rescue by nipping at the cow’s heels until it turned and chased the dog back onto dry land.

And finally my favorite … Bucky Church owned a dog that every evening would faithfully go into the pasture and bring all 22 cows home. The dog showed up back at the farm at precisely the same time with the herd. One day, Bucky sold one of the animals to a neighbor. When his dog went to the pasture to acquire the cows that evening, he found only 21 of them, realizing one was missing.

The dog eventually located the animal in a nearby neighbor’s pasture and ushered it back to the herd, bringing the number back to 22. Bucky returned the cow to its rightful owner, but the dog retrieved it again the next day. This went on until Church figured out how to solve the dilemma. He obtained the cancelled check from his neighbor and showed it to his dog. The canine promptly adjusted his cow count from 22 to 21 and the problem was resolved. 

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The Sept. 20, 1915 edition of the Comet newspaper included a section titled, “Soldiers Home News Notes,” containing a page with numerous comments about residents of the Johnson City military facility:

 

Soldiers' Home Musicians

“Major W.P. Jackson, Uncle Sam’s inspector general of the army, arrived suddenly on payday, and commenced operations by inspecting barracks at one p.m. sharp. He introduced a new wrinkly by having us all lined up out of doors for a thorough inspection of uniforms. The major is a pleasant gentleman, not overloaded with unnecessary red tape and we now hope he will call again when not so busy.”

Another one offers this tidbit: “If a veteran could read his own biography, it would probably surprise him more than anyone else. But such is human nature and it is always well not to speak ill of the dead. Uncle Sam furnishes grave stones for all of us, he is fair and square with all, tells no lies, gives rank and service but nothing else.”

The most revealing item on the page was a poem, titled “The Brownlow Soldiers Home,” providing a poignant reflection of one soldier’s assessment of the Johnson City military facility. Professor W. F. Willard of Company G, 45th Pennsylvania Infantry, wrote the poet:

“I’ve traveled this country over fifty years or more. I’ve been from the Atlantic to the Pacific shore. And many hardships I’ve had as long as I did roam. But at last my lot is cast in the Brownlow Soldiers Home. There’s plenty here to eat and drink and soldier’s clothes to wear. And officers whose duty is to see that I get my share. Of everything a soldier needs and I hope I’ll never roam. If you want to work or if you have a trade. You’ll be enumerated so don’t be afraid. The work is by no means hard – it will never make you roam. But simply occupy your mind in the Brownlow Soldiers Home.

“Should sickness overtake you and bind you in your chains. There are women there to care for you and oft times ease your pain. They will rub you with their lotions and oft times cease your moans. And will always change your notions of the Brownlow Soldiers Home. There are chaplains there to visit you and they will pray at your bedside. They will speak to you consoling words (until) you are satisfied. And if you don’t desire them and you wish to be alone. You can ease your mind and go it blind in the Brownlow Soldiers Home.

“When then breath it does leave you and you have no more to say. Your comrades there most tenderly will bear your corpse away. There’s very little weeping and you seldom hear a moan. At any of the funerals in the Brownlow Soldiers Home. Now the battle of life is over and he is lowered in his grave. His comrades fire a last salute for the soldier true and brave. With the stars and stripes half-mast and great respect is shown. To every vet that meets his death in the Brownlow Soldiers Home.

“Long wave the sentry banner, the emblem of the free. Beneath its fold those warriors bold did gain sweet liberty. For our country ‘tis most grateful which on these grounds have shown. The blessings and the comforts of the Brownlow Soldiers Home.”

This interesting rhyme is a fitting tribute to the dedicated efforts of Walter Brownlow, a Tennessee U.S. representative from 1896 to 1910, for getting the Home approved for Johnson City. The beloved congressman died on July 8, 1910. 

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In the spring of 1930, the Johnson City Chronicle and Staff-News conducted a “Birthday Contest” for local residents who were born in 1885. The rationale was to glean from locals what the city was like in the 45 years since they were born.

The newspaper focused on people who had lived the longest in Johnson City and on those with the best stories about early city life. Six people were subsequently interviewed for the newspaper; four received a $10 or $25 cash prize.

1. Mr. Ollie White, 607 Franklin Street ($25):  “I was born on Mar. 30, just five days after the (second) birth of Johnson City, which has been operating continually under a series of charters. I lived in a house on what is now King Street that was just inside the city limits of the village. I have never been out of town except for a visit of a few weeks. My mother also lived in Johnson City for more than 70 years, coming here when she was a young girl. I attended school in the old Jobe residence on what is now Tipton Street. I currently am employed at Harris Manufacturing Company. About 1900, I was caught in a windstorm one Sunday morning while on Main Street. The wind blew the front out of the post office that was just across the street from the church. It also tore the roof off Pardue’s store. Some of my relatives and friends came to town from Buffalo, New York to attend my funeral (laughing) after hearing that I had been killed in the storm.”

2. Mrs. Fannie Johnson Merritt, 207 Lamont Street ($25): “I was born in what was known as the Whiteside House on Holston Avenue. It has since been torn away. I am a cousin of Henry Johnson, founder of our city, and have lived here all my life. My total time outside the city amounts to only about six months. I am a widow with two children now in school. My father, Marshall H. Johnson, was a Civil War veteran and first cousin of Henry Johnson. He was a carpenter and surveyor, having surveyed most of the first streets in Johnson City. I remember when there were only planks for sidewalks here and the two principal stores were the Bee Hive and the New York Racket Store.”

3. Arthur W. Callaway ($10): “Although born in Jefferson, NC, I have lived in Johnson City for 35 years and this is home to me. I was a 10-year-old boy when we moved here. I remember that the old water tank of the Southern Railway stood near Fountain Square. Ward and Friberg ran the Bee Hive department store. “William H. Taft, President of the United States, spoke in the old skating rink that stood on W. Main Street, near the present location the White City Laundry. George Campbell was chief of police in 1905 and I.M. Wilson was No. 1 policeman. David Netherly, Sr., now the oldest man on the force, was working at the Johnson City Foundry. Johnson City was only a village then, quite different from the city of today. The post office was on Main Street in a building near where the walkway now goes from Main to Market. There were no paved streets in Johnson City when I first came to town. Brick was laid on Main and Market streets in the fall of 1908.

“The Foundry stood near the present location of the Clinchfield station on Cherry Street. The Southern Railway and ET&WNC railroad depots were combined in the building now used as the bus terminal (on Buffalo). Mr. Lee ran a hotel on Buffalo Street and Wilson Pardue opened a grocery store on Main Street. I believe he started free delivery of groceries in town. I remember attending a revival meeting in the little white frame Baptist Church on Main Street near the current location of Frank Miller’s store. There were no buildings from there to where the H.P. King building now stands. Gump’s clothing store was where the Tennessee National Bank now stands. The fire hall was on Market Street near Roan. Fire equipment consisted of a wagon and a few feet of hose, drawn by one black horse and one gray horse. Bill Owens was fire chief and the others were John Perkins, Berry Wilson and some volunteer fire boys. W.E. Burbage owned the city water system.”

4. Mrs. J.F. Puckett ($10). “In 1908, I was here to visit an uncle who lived on North Baxter Street. The mud was so deep our old Ford could hardly pull through it. Now, I live in the same block on a nice paved street. When I was 10 years old, I came to the village of Johnson City. I saw an automobile for the first time and it was probably the first that ever came to Johnson City. What interested me most was the fire wagon, pulled by two big black horses that raced along the streets with bells ringing. I will never forget the thrill of watching them. Now, the saddest thing in my life is the lonesome peal of the bells, the ghostly clang of the bells on the roaring, racing engine, shrieking, then tolling, then silent. Just a year ago, they guided my son to eternity.” (Note: Mrs. Puckett’s son was a fireman who tragically lost his life responding to a false alarm fire.)

5. Clyde Walker, 800 W. Maple: I have lived here all my life. I recall the old village of 40 years ago (1890) when the Piedmont Hotel was the leading hostelry. My father had a blacksmith shop on what is now the corner of Buffalo and Tipton streets. He is now head of an ice and coal company.”

6. Mrs. V.L. Rowe, 1100 Montgomery: “I am highly impressed with the steady growth of the city during the past 40 years.” One unidentified man spoke of helping build the original Science Hill Male and Female Institute.

The news article concluded by saying, “Wonder what those born here this year will remember in 1975, just 45 years from now.” That future date would have been 34 years ago. 

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Bob Gardner, a math professor at ETSU, wrote to say that he is a zealous Three Stooges fan. He developed a website for his favorite merry madcaps: www.etsu.edu/math/gardner/stooges/stooges.htm. The professor shared with me a newspaper ad from the Johnson City-Press Chronicle showing that the tumultuous trio made a personal appearance on Saturday, Oct. 25, 1947 on the stage of the Tennessee Theatre (146 W. Main).

Bob further referenced a photo in Sonya Haskins’ book, Johnson City, TN, Images of America (Arcadia Publishing, 2005) showing Weldon Nelson of Boones Creek posing with the teasing threesome.

In 1947, the Stooges were comprised of Moe Howard (Moses Horwitz), Shemp Howard (Samuel Horwitz, an original Stooge who left the act but returned when his brother Curly (Jerome Horwitz) who replaced him suffered a major stroke) and Larry Fine (Louis Feinberg).

The hilarious humorists gave five performances in Johnson City: 12:50, 3:00, 5:00, 7:10 and 9:15. The flyer shows “The Three Stooges in Their Own Hollywood Fun Review”; a Johnny Mack Brown western flick titled, “The Rogue of the Range”; Chapter 5 of the 12-episode serial, “Crimson Ghost”; The Rodeo Ramblers, Top O’ the West’s Music Stars of Juke Box Fame”; and a cartoon. The cost was $.30 for children and $.60 for adults.   

Dr. Gardner put me in contact with William Brown, a person who attended the Stooge performance that day and offered his remembrances: “The presentation lasted about an hour. To me, the boys were funnier in person than on film, probably because I felt I was part of the scene. No Stooge impressed me any more than the others; I viewed them as a unit.

“My favorite has always been Curly, but he wasn’t in this performance. It didn't cross my mind that they would still be revered decades later. I went backstage after the performance where they were taking pictures, but I didn't have the money to buy a photo.”

Brown recalled the Stooges’ unforgettable zany verbal scenarios – Moe’s ripping off part of Larry Fine’s hair, forehand slap, double cheek slap, triple slap, backhand slap, nose tweak and poke in the eyes. Who could forget the lovable lunatics?

The titles of the Stooge “shorts” were equally amusing: “Brideless Groom,” “Goof on the Roof,” “Restless Knights,” “Half-Shot Shooters,” “Disorder in the Court,” “Sing a Song of Six Pants” and “Squareheads of the Round Table.”

The Stooges incorporated many unique expressions and sounds into their acts – Moe: “I’ll murder you”; “Remind me to kill you later”; and “You bone head.” Curly: “Nyuk, nyuk, nyuk, nyuk”; “Woo, woo, woo, woo, woo,…”; “Hi, Che, Che, Che, Che, Che”; “Soitenly” (certainly); and “I’m trying to think, but nothing happens.” Shemp: “Hee, Bee, Bee, Bee, Bee, Bee” and “Ah, Ha, Ha, Ha, Ha, Ha.” Larry: “Hey, what’s the big idea” and “I’m Sorry, Moe. It was an accident.”

The boys often spoke in pig Latin to communicate with each other and keep others from understanding what they were saying, such as Curley saying, “Moe, Larry, it’s the opca, it’s the opca,” meaning, “it’s the cop, it’s the cop.”

And finally … Robert “Moe-Bob” Gardner and Robert “Puddin' Head” Davidson cunningly designed an introductory probability and statistics” course that integrates The Three Stooge films as data: www.etsu.edu/math/gardner/stooges/stooges-statistics.htm.

What great memories, guys. “Nyuk, nyuk, nyuk, nyuk.” 

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