Testing... Testing.. Can you hear me?? You can? Good... I was afraid my rabbit ears had croaked and my reception had gone south.

Well, friends, I gotta tell you.. things are hopping around here.. so much so that I can't even keep up with all the news. I just got off the phone with the news producer of WBIR local channel 10. They are doing a feature story tonight (Thursday, April 2th) on our beloved Abston Building being accepted to the National Register of Historic Places. Hmmm... and I didn't even know we had been accepted.... Hallelujah!

Also I want to show you some pictures taken at our recent Spaghetti supper. I really hope you were able to come. The spaghetti was wonderful.. I made two of my special apple pies (yup.. grew the apples, peeled 'em, froze 'em, then cooked 'em just for you all).

The above pic shows some of the crowd. The people just kept coming all evening... We had many carry-out orders, but most of the folks seemed to want to stay, listen to the music and socialize... and that's just fine by us.. We took in about $2000 dollars (!!) for the evening... once again, Julia and our ladies came through in a big way.

Above you can see The mighty Underwood Brothers Band firing off a number. I have played in this band for 20 years or more... in fact, I played with Mike Parrott in the Kellytown Blues Band all the way back in 1976. Man, how time flies....

The cutie at left is Robbie Underwood. He has the same name as me. In the middle is Jennifer Darling. She's our little pocket sized mandolin player. At right is Mikie "Hunk of Burning Love" Parrott, my friend and erstwhile cowriter. Mike and I have written many songs together, including "Cry Out From the Ground", the musical chronicle of the Richards Sisters Murders. He likes Jennifer, and rumor is she like him too.

Oh... that little sweetie in the background playing the bongos? That's Janice. she's my wife....

What's that? You didn't know Joyce was a picker??? Seriously, I just love this woman, her husband Paul, her kids, her grandkids, her sister Mimi, and if you can show proof that you are connected to her I just might love you, too. Joyce and Mimi enrich my life so much... They are the epitome of what good friends should be. They are dear to both Janice and me.

Above is a pic of me with one of the guitars I made. I have been making and repairing guitars ever since I was a young feller, and so I'll leave it up to you to figure, gauge, calculate, estimate, and otherwise extrapolate how long that has been.... I WILL tell you that I made this particular guitar in 1988.

Here is a picture of our beloved leader Mr. Sonny Harvey, shown above with Mrs. Harvey. I just can't say enough good things about Mr. Harvey. He has been a mentor to me for the many years I have been researching our history. Mr. Harvey's health has not been the best of late, but he is still so faithful to attend our meetings as well as lend his support to any good work. God bless you, Mr. Harvey. We just cannot do without you...

By the way, thanks go out to Cleat Bolling for taking these great pix. Cleat so often does things like this, and we just as often forget to thank him. So Cleat, here's to you, friend...

            There are a Huuuuge number of things going on simultaneously in our little group. Of course, there is the massive and ongoing effort to renovate the Abston/Daugherty Building. A lot of progress has been made thus far. We are going to have to strap in and buckle up for the next several months to try and see that effort through to a successful completion. I am committed: how about you?

             I also want to add just how exciting it is to be involved with the many projects we have on the front burner. Coming up is Memorial Day, and for this special day we have in store for you another Cemetery Tour of the Oliver springs Cemetery. This year’s Tour will be enhanced and expanded. We plan to add some more of our historic characters from our past to this year’s tour.

One thing we have slid back to the front of the stove is the oral history project. Wilma Fox Justice has done a lot in this area, scanning pictures and setting up interviews. Julia Hopper Daniel has been a great asset as well in this area… shucks, what area has Julia NOT been a great help and asset? Julia, I am exceedingly glad to know you as a friend.

As to the interviews, I have within the past two weeks held extensive video interviews with our own Dr. Fred Hooper. Dr. Hooper is just the most interesting study. Raised here in Oliver Springs in the ‘30’s, Dr. Hooper was forced to assume untimely responsibilities at a tender age due to the death of his father in the mid ‘30’s.

(Oliver Springs Drug Store)

Young Fred Hooper would go down to the drug store early in the morning, be responsible for the setting up of the drug store for business, carrying out ashes from the coal stove, starting a fire to warm the building, getting the till stocked with change money for the new business day, then it was off to school for a day of study. After school, Dr. Hooper relates that he would get a little time in which to engage in “boy” stuff before he returned to the drug store to finish out the day. I have SO enjoyed getting to talk with Dr. Hooper! Our topics of conversation have ranged thus far from his daily routine all the way to subjects like the Infamous Richards Sisters Murders. Many of you may not know this, but Fred Hooper was a junior in high school when, in February of 1940, he found himself on the approximate corner of Morgan and Main Streets when schoolteacher Mary Richards came screaming deliriously down the Richards’ driveway with the chillilng report that they were all up in the house dead.

(click on images to enlarge)

This memory has never left Dr. Hooper. Dashing up to the mansion, Dr. Hooper relates swinging open the door to the kitchen where there he saw Ann Richards stretched out on the kitchen floor in a huge and expansive pool of her own blood.

Dr. Hooper told me that one look was more than enough for him, and that gruesome image has stayed with him to this day. Unbeknownst to young Fred Hooper, Ann's sister Margaret was also dead at the foot of the staircase, and Leonard "Powder" Brown was also dead at the top of the stairs, his young life so cruelly extinguished by a bullet to the forehead.

(Margaret Richards- Left c. 1917.. Right c. 1939. found on landing of staircase- shot twice, with one bullet to the head and one to the throat)

There is so much more that I could tell you about our interviews, but for now I will leave you with this tantalizing report. Oh.. by the way, if you have or know of anyone who could add to our knowledge base of not only this story but anything about life growing up in Oliver Springs, PLEASE get us together in an interview. We have missed out on so many interviews that we really needed to get.

Until next time….

Robbie

Thought I'd show you an image of the soon-to-be-muesum and Archives. As you can plainly see, the overhang has been torn off (of necessity, since it was rotten and in danger of falling off). We have been going great guns, and great progress has been made. More about that, though, in a moment. First things first.....

I hope I have not let you down in regard to the Historical Society Calendar. It has come to my attention that some of you did not know whether we had published a calendar for 2009. Let me rectify any oversight or error by saying definitively that we DO have a splendid calendar for 2009. In fact, many who have seen it opine that it just might be the best one yet. We have been publishing the calendars every year since 2002. Of course, profits go to the Oliver Springs Historical Society, and have shown to be a big success in raising funds to float the Historical Society boat, which requires a deep draft to stay afloat and not run aground.

What's that, you say? You want to gaze upon it? O.K., but don't say I didn't warn you....

(click to enlarge)

I should say here that we don't repeat our featured photographs... EVER. This ensures that our calendars are always fresh, chock full of rich and compelling info about life in this blissful little village. I DID use the above-seen photograph of the Richards Mansion in the 2002 calendar, but it had never been on the cover. The inside panels are all new and fresh..... well, as fresh as a 100 year old photograph can be.

Speaking of the fundraising effort to aid the Daugherty Garage renovation, we have come to a point where we desperately need to raise more funds to complete the project. We have gotten the roof lifted up to where it once was, all the rotten timbers, rafters, joists, etc., replaced and/or repaired. We have purchased the high-tech rubber membrane that the roof will have covering it: the problem is we are out of money to hire the crew that wil install it.

Here are some pictures of the inside and the work in progress.

The picture above shows some of the second story framing. When complete, this will be utilized for things like display space, archival storage, and office space. Pretty cool, huh?

Now this pic shows what will be one of the coolest features in the whole museum....  the catwalk that will connect features like the projection booth and the second floors front and back. The original catwalk was structurally deficient by 21st century building code, not to mention that it was rotted in several places and in danger of collapse. (I guess I did mention it, didn't I? Oh well..) This catwalk will overlook the great hall in the center of the building that reaches from floor all the way up to the pinnacle of the building! I thought you'd approve...

From the picture above one can see how the grand hall in the middle will extend all the way to the top of the building. This will probably feature tongue and groove hardwood ceiling, lit in a most spectacular and dramatic illuminatory treatment. The framing walls seen in the picture is designed to be loadbearing and capable of supporting all loads above it. The original trusses have been left in place, being both repaired and supported by loadbearing structures, bringing them up to and beyond code.

Here is another picture showing more of the massive framing in place. In many places huge poplar timbers were installed to bear the downward loads: in other places, there are now studwalls that are framed with large framing timbers, many as large as 2"X12" in cross-section.

There is a tremendous amount of work that has gone into the renovation. The roof is now jacked up to its original height, trusses repaired, load bearing walls installed, support beams and timbers in place, years of rot and damage removed. The old canopy in front that was rotted and in danger of collapse has been removed and preparations are underway to replace it as well. We are now ready to start the cosmetic and aesthetic renovations to the proud old structure, which is not nearly as tired, forlorn  and weary as at this time last year.. We just need a roof. All the nice nice on the inside cannot begin in earnest until the roof sheds water.

One exciting thing we are endeavoring to do is to obtain work crews from the Morgan County Regional Prison to assist us in this massive project. Many of the inmates on these crews have craft experience, and can greatly help us in furthering the mission of making it the showplace it will be when completed.. All we have to do is supervise them in the work and show basic Christian kindness and virtue in feeding them, providing them with water and drinks. Shucks, our folks do that out of habit anyway. A virtuous lot are they....

I am going to try and take some more pictures of the work in the next couple of days and post it for you, dear reader. Keep checking back for updates.... What's that? We love you, too.... Gosh, I do believe I'm blushing!

                                                            Robbie