July 13, 1972
Mrs. Bob Watson of Aberdeen, sister of an American Prisoner of War in Southeast Asia and an active member of the Mississippi association of families of POWs and MIAs, sat down on the Attala jailhouse steps on Monday to plead for help in getting the North Vietnamese to release her brother. The Aberdeen woman left after what she said was an effort to inform Attalans of what she termed a “pressing issue.”
Three former residents of Attala County were in widely separated accidents during the past week. Mrs. Susan Sanders Seawright, 27, died in a motorcycle wreck near Venice, Florida, Sunday night. Billy Ewin McCafferty, 47, drowned in a boating accident on the Mississippi River at Greenville on July 4. John Dew, 63, former operator of a fish farm at Liberty Chapel, was killed in a farm accident near Vicksburg Saturday.
Flim-flam artists pretending to be welfare or utility workers snatched money from two Attala County families within the past week, and officers checked reports of unsuccessful attempts at an estimated half dozen other homes. The victims were Mr. and Mrs. Will Tierce who live near Zama and Miss Eula Utz in Kosciusko. The Tierces were hit Friday and Miss Utz on Monday. Meanwhile, lawmen called on residents of the area to avoid dealings with unidentifiable persons purporting to be agents of utilities or governmental bodies.
July 17, 1997
Oprah likes us. She really likes us. And she let that little fact be known when she mentioned Kosciusko and Attala County during a recent episode of her nationally syndicated, Chicago-based talk show. Winfrey’s topic for the day: Small town life and the advantages that thousands of people nationwide are finding in smaller communities by choosing them over big cities. Kosciusko was mentioned when Winfrey, an Attala County native, made note of author Norman Crampton and his book, “The 100 Best Small Towns in America.” Kosciusko was listed among the entries in the book’s latest edition printed in December 1995.
Gloria Bartz is scheduled as the guest artist for this year’s Central Mississippi Fair to be held August 13-16. Mrs. Bartz’s Studio South is located at her residence just off Highway 19 past Williamsville. She currently shows and sells nationwide and creates commissioned hand-painted, illuminated and illustrated calligraphy and verse design. Her designs and verse represent a wide range of artistic and cultural styles from traditional to romantic to contemporary.
Popular demand has prompted the second printing of Eleanor Jackson’s cookbook, “Labors of Love, Erskine’s Favorites.” The Rev. Jackson, pastor emeritus of Kosciusko’s First Presbyterian Church, began enjoying his bride’s cooking when they were married 58 years ago. Mrs. Jackson said he was accused of marrying her because he loved her cooking. “For several years I could not get him to take me to a restaurant because he preferred my cooking,” said Mrs. Jackson.
