Stories of a Good Old Boy from Acworth, Ga

By Walter Flanagan

This book contains my true stories of growing up in Acworth, GA in the fifties and other experiences from my almost seventy years of life. For those of you that also grew up in the fifties, you'll know that 1950s BC means 'before cell phones, before computers and before air conditioners.' As a kid growing up in a small town, we never worried about crime. Our doors were never locked and our windows were left open in the summertime due to the heat. We knew all of our neighbors, children and parents, and they knew us.
Kick back and enjoy these short stories from a good old boy from Acworth!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Sep 23, 2014
• ISBN: 9781312545021

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life!

Growing Up In Acworth, GA In The Fifties

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I was born on October 1, 1944 in the hospital in Marietta, GA. My first memories are of living in the home my dad and mom, Wade and Ruby Flanagan, purchased that was located on Fowler Street. There was a dirt road in front of our home, and we were four homes away from the railroad tracks. I guess you could say I grew up on the ‘wrong side of the tracks’, but I would beg to differ. Our neighbors were the Harts, Robinsons, Kennedys, Williams, Deans, Odoms, Vaughns, Johnsons, and Gaytons. My sister Wilma and I used to walk over to Lance’s Store which was up Fowler Street and across the railroad crossing (which has since been closed). Our mailbox was located on Highway 41 across from Lance’s Store. Mr. Lance later sold the store to Mr. Harrelson. Wilma and I boarded the school bus that stopped there from the time we were in elementary school all the way through high school.

My first day of school at Acworth School in 1950 was an adventure. Bobby Odom and I walked to school together that day. As we crossed the road that went to the Little Dam, my dad was on his way to work and they stopped the car and told us not to tarry but to walk on to school. We arrived, found our way to the first grade class, met our teacher Mrs. Parker, and took our seats. That was the first day of eight years I attended Acworth School. After the eighth grade, Acworth High School and students from the Kennesaw area moved to a new school, North Cobb High, located approximately halfway between Acworth and Kennesaw. We voted for our name, the Warriors, and our school colors, orange and white. My graduating class of 1962 was the first class to attend all four years at North Cobb.

Our Fowler Street neighborhood was filled with kids, so we played softball, hide and seek, kick the can, and many other games. During the summer, I remember we would look for Coke bottles along the roads and turn them in for a deposit. We would also search for scrap iron and, once gathered, we would take it in a wagon up to the junk yard which was located on Highway 41 just north of Acme Lumber Company. We didn’t make a fortune, but the amount of candy you could buy for that small amount of money was amazing. With an eclipse of the moon in the summer, many of the neighborhood kids would stay outside to watch the celestial event. Most of us would leave and go to bed before actually seeing the eclipse.

I remember the Acworth downtown area in the early fifties, the Legion Theater owned by Red Hudson, Chandler’s Barber Shop, Ragsdale’s Coal and Ice Company, the Silver Trolley, Lanier’s Jewelry Store, and Donahoo’s Appliance Store. Eaton’s Department Store and Green’s 5 & 10 cent Store had wooden floors that squeaked when you walked around. Doctor Cauble’s office was located on Main Street just south of Donahoo’s Store. Doctor Mcall’s office was around the corner from Rabbit’s Q Room. The Western Auto was on Main Street next to the railroad crossing on Cherokee Street (now closed and moved further south). I also recall a bowling alley on the other side of the street in a large building, though I never went inside. South of the large building was the Acworth Depot. Across the railroad tracks at the intersection of Cherokee Street and Southside Drive was Jack Fowler’s Feed Store. One block behind Main Street was the Fire Department, City Hall, and, a little later, Parker’s Hardware Store. North of Sam Pepper’s Furniture store and the Post Office on Main Street was a little building that housed Tow’s Shoe Shop owned by Bill Tow’s father. Resoling and repairing shoes seems to be a lost art these days.

Chandler’s Barber Shop was a place I visited about every five weeks for a haircut. The first chair was Aubrey Chandler who owned the shop. The next chair was Oscar Hunt, and the third chair was Cebe Chandler. You could sit and wait for the next opening or you could wait for the barber you wanted to cut your hair. I also recall, in the very early fifties, the barber shop had a bath tub and shower in