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(Whitesburg) Mountain Eagle - 1.29.26 · Eastern Kentucky Newspapers

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Speaker 1: Now we turn to the Mountain Eagle to read news
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from Whitesburg. Your reader today is Bill and Arsdale. We
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will begin with the addition dated January twenty eighth, twenty
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twenty six, which the publishers have donated to Radio Eye
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as a reminder. Radio Eye is a reading service intended
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for people who are blind or have other disabilities that
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make it difficult to read printed material. The first headline
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is a caption Winters. Puffer jackets belong to the birds.
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As bitter cold weather envelops the region this week, Northern
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cardinals are among the few creatures still active outdoors. Given
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their puffed up winter appearance, many people assume redbirds gain
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weight to stay warm. In reality, they look fatter because
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they fluff their down feathers, creating a puffer jacket effect
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that traps body heat. Cardinals, Kentucky's state bird, can't add
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much to wait without interfering with flight in extreme coal,
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They also stop defending territories and may roost together for warmth.
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With temperatures expected to dip as low as three degrees,
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perhaps we could all take a queue and ruffle our
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feathers a bit too. The next headline is new motion
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is filed in lawsuit involving Stein's ex court bailiff. The
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attorney for Sabrina Atkins has filed a new brief challenging
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the validity of a declaration submitted by Attorney Daniel Dotson
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in Atkins's lawsuit against former Deputy Jailer Ben Fields, the
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Electric County Sheriff's Office, and Eastern Kentucky Correctional Services Incorporated.
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The brief, filed in U S District Court in London,
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characterizes Dotson's appearance at the deposition of former Sheriff Shawn
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Mickey Steins as an apparent attempt to shield himself from
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being subject to discovery or trial testimony. The brief states, however,
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Dotson never entered an appearance in this action.
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Speaker 2: He has now.
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Speaker 1: Filed a declaration D two three I stating that he
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has no knowledge of the matters asserted in Plaintiff's witness
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list as attributable to him. Mister Dotson's statements should be
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tested at trial. An issue is a declaration filed by
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Dotson as part of emotion submitted by counsel for the
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office of current Sheriff Billy Jones. Atkins had listed Dotson
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as a witness for the plaintiff, expecting him to testify
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regarding his knowledge of Sean Mickey Steins's alleged participation in
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unlawful sexual activities involving female inmates, as well as Steines's
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alleged knowledge of others involvement in such activities while he
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served as Letcher County sheriff. While the brief largely defends
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the plaintiff's selection of witnesses and evidence exhibits, it includes
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one notable exception. The brief withdraws Robert Chad Brown from
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the witness list without comment. Brown is currently an inmate
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at the Leslie County Detention Center, where Stein's is being
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held on a charge of murdering lecturer.
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Speaker 2: District Judge Kevin R. Mullins.
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Speaker 1: Atkins previously told investigators with the Attorney General's Office that
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Brown told her he had a videotape depicting Mullens having
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sex for the woman in his office. Brown denied possessing
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such a tape when questioned by investigators and others. Despite
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that denial, the defense had listed Brown as a witness
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expected to testify about evidence he has or has seen
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related to court officials having sexual relations with females on
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home incarceration or otherwise incarcerated. The next story is After
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seventy eight years, Western Auto nears the end of an
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era in Whitsburg. After nearly eight decades on Main Street,
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Whitesburg's oldest retail business is preparing to close its doors.
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The Western Auto store in Whitesburg will close Friday, January thirtieth,
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ending a seventy eight year run that began in nineteen
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forty seven. While the national chain once sold everything from
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appliances to bicycles, the Witsburg location has spent its final
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years operating as a tire only store, quietly continuing a
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long local tradition. The store was opened by Owen W.
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Wright Senior and became a fixture of downtown Whitesburg during
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a time when Main Street was the center of local commerce.
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In nineteen eighty one, following Wright's death, the business was
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taken over by his son, Owen W. Wright Junior, and
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his wife, Barbara Wright. For the next forty four years,
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the couple ran the store through major changes in retail,
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the decline of downtown shopping, and the eventual narrowing of
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the business to tire sales and service, even as other
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storefronts came and went, the Western Auto sign remained a
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familiar sight to generations of Whitesburg residents. Now, Owen and
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Barbara Wright are retiring and relocating to Prestonsburg to be
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closer to their son, Owen Wright Third. A retirement reception
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will be held from noon to two p m. Thursday,
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January twenty ninth at the store, giving the community a
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chance to say good bye and thank the rights for
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decades of service. The event is open to the public.
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As the doors close on one of Whitesburg's longest running businesses,
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The end of the Western Auto Store marks not just
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a retirement, but the close of a chapter in the
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town's main street history. The next story is rule aims
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to keep jail workers from answering critics on social media.
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The Lecter Fiscal Court has adopted a new social media
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policy aimed at preventing County Jail employees from arguing with
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members of the public online. The policy was approved after
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jailer Brian Sloane told the court that employees have become
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upset about comments made about them on social media, with
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some engaging in heated exchanges in comment sections.
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Speaker 2: While Sloane said.
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Speaker 1: He believes employees should be able to defend themselves. He
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said identifying as a jail employee while arguing online has
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created problems for the county. It's a big headache, Sloan said.
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The Fiscal Court approved the social media policy unanimously at
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Sloane's request. The court also agreed to formally clarify the
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county's policy on in medical copays and commissary deposits. The
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policy has been in practice since Don McCall served as jailer,
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but had never been officially adopted. Sloan said inmates were
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charged a twenty five dollars copay for doctor visits, but
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some had been arranging for family members to send money
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to other inmates accounts to spend on their behalf, allowing
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them to avoid paying the medical fees owed to the jail.
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Under the clarified policy, inmates will be charged half of
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the copey upfront, with the remaining balance to be collected later.
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If anybody gets released and they have money, we'll take
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that for the copays, Sloane said. In the next headline,
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civil war killing echoes through County's history. Barnabas Barnes Christian
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was born in Virginia, in eighteen twenty five. He was
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the son of Allan Christian and abbad Yale Abby Hagins Christian,
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who were married on November fourteenth, eighteen twenty three. Alan
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Christian was born October fifteenth, eighteen oh two, in Virginia
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and died December nineteenth, eighteen eighty six, in Letcher County, Kentucky.
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He was the son of Thomas Wilson Christian and Margaret
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Rebecca Christian. Abby Hagens Christian was born in eighteen oh
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four and died October tenth, eighteen fifty seven, in Letchri County.
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She was the daughter of Reverend William Haggins and Mary
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Polly Haggins. Allen moved to eastern Kentucky with his brother,
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Thomas W. Christian Junior, prior to eighteen forty. Allen and
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Abbey lived in Perry County before eighteen forty and moved
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to adjoining Letchri County some time before Abbey's death.
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Speaker 2: In eighteen fifty seven.
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Speaker 1: The couple purchased land along the North Fork of the
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Kentucky River near present day Blackie. Allen and Abby had
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at least five children. Rebecca, who married John Bursher Barnes
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who married first Elpha and later Jane Kishingman, Sarah Sally
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who married William Caudle, Letha Ann, and William. Following Abbey's death,
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Alan married Margaret Collins, daughter of Burdeen and Mary Collins. Margaret,
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identified as a sapony Indian, was born in North Carolina
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in eighteen thirty one and died in Letter County in
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eighteen ninety six. Allan and Margaret had at least two children, Mary, Margaret,
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and Elizabeth. Christian Barnes married his first wife, Elpa, around
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eighteen forty two. They are believed to have had five children, Mary, Silas, Elizabeth, Sarah, Sally,
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and William. Barnes named Sarah and William after his sister
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and brother. After Elpha's death, Barnes married Jane Kishingman, born
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in eighteen forty. They had at least four children, Nancy Ann,
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who married Jesse mc Daniel Liddy, and twin infants who
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were still born. Barnes and his family lived next door
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to his father in Perry County. The eighteen fifty Perry
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County Agricultural Census shows that Barnes owned one horse, two oxen,
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and one sheep. This was a typical amount of live
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stock for a beginning farmer of the era. His father,
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by contrast, owned a large number of live stock and
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substantial crop land, indicating that Allan was a successful and
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prosperous farmer. Sometime around the spring of eighteen sixty, Barnes
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moved from Perry County to Letcher County, his father had
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already relocated there. Barnes settled on Mill Branch of the
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North Fork of the Kentucky River, near present day Roxanna.
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This property is now owned by Doyle and Merlin Day.
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Merlin Day was a long time member of the Electric
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County Historical Society before her passing in twenty nineteen. Her
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efforts helped keep the story of Barnes Christian alive. At
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the outbreak of the Civil War in April eighteen sixty one,
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Barnes and his neighbours in the mountains of eastern Kentucky
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attempted to remain neutral. By the fall of that year, however,
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many mountain families were forced to choose sides as the
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conflict moved closer to home. Barnes and his brother William
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traveled a few miles to Whitesburg to enlist in the
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Confederate Army. Whitesburg was the nearest Confederate recruiting station for
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this part of eastern Kentucky, largely due to its proximity
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to the Virginia border. In October eighteen sixty one, Barnes
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and william enlisted in Company F of the fifth Kentucky Infantry.
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The company was organized by Captain Benjamin Caudle, a local minister,
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under orders from General Humphrey Marshall. The regiment was commanded
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by Colonel John S. Williams, a Mexican war veteran from
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Montgomery County, Kentucky. The Fifth Kentucky trained on the large
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bottom owned by John A. Caudle just west of Whitesburg,
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before moving to Prestonsburg to continue drilling. While there, a
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staff officer remarked to Colonel Williams that the poorly clothed
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soldiers looked like ragamuffins. Amused, Williams adopted the nickname, and
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the regiment became known as the Ragamuffins. By late October,
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the regiment was assigned to the Department of Eastern Kentucky
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under General Humphrey Marshall. The department included troops from Eastern
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Kentucky and southwestern Virginia, and its primary mission was guarding
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Pound Gap. Barnes and Williams saw their first major combat
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on January tenth, eighteen sixty two, at the Battle of
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Middle Creek in Floyd County. Marshall's men faced US Union
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forces commanded by Colonel James Garfield, later President of the
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United States. The Confederates held the high ground overlooking Middle Creek,
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while Union troops repeatedly charged uphill in an attempt to
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dislodge them. As dusk fell, the attacks had been repelled
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and Garfield ordered a withdrawal. Confederate celebration was short lived, however,
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when another Union regiment arrived as reinforcements.
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Speaker 2: During the night.
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Speaker 1: General Marshall ordered his outnumbered force to retreat toward Pound Gap.
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Barnes and william had now seen the elephant, the phrase
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used by soldiers to describe their first experience in battle.
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While stationed near Whitsburg in early March eighteen sixty two,
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Barnes learned that his wife, Jane, was about to give birth.
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He requested leave to assist with the delivery and care
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for his children, but his request was denied. On March
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eight eight, eighteen sixty two, Barnes made.
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Speaker 2: The decision to dessert.
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Speaker 1: Leaving the regiment's camp at Weisberg, Barnes traveled down the
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Kentucky River to the mouth of Mill Branch, and then
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walked nearly two miles to his home. Jane, heavily pregnant,
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and the children, welcomed him with joy. Unfortunately, word of
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his return soon reached the local Union Home Guard men,
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who had once been his neighbors and friends. Eastern Kentucky,
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like many places, was experiencing a true brother against brother war.
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Just days after Barnes returned home, a group of Union
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Home Guards arrived at his cabin. Standing in front of
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the house, they called for him to come out. Barnes
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and Jane understood what this visit likely meant. Barnes stepped
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onto the porch, attempting to keep his pregnant wife inside,
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but Jane, a strong and courageous woman, forced her way
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out and stood.
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Speaker 2: In front of him.
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Speaker 1: She hoped her condition might soften their hearts. Ignoring her
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pleas the men raised their weapons, Barnes pushed Jane aside,
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and a volley of rifle fire struck him, likely killing
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him instantly. As his body fell onto the porch, floor.
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The leader of the group warned that any one who
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touched Barnes's body would suffer the same fate. The threat
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applied only to men. The women of the neighborhood took
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responsibility for Barnes's burial, tearing boards from the barn to
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construct a coffin. While they dug the grave, Jane went
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into labor. Tragically, her twin babies were still born, likely
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due to the trauma she had endured. When the grave
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was finished, the women laid Barnes in the coffin and
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placed one infant under each of his arms. It was
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a heart breaking scene. Little is known about the fate
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of Barnes's surviving family, as Jane and the children eventually
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scattered across the country. Barnes and the twins were buried
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on a small flat across the creek from his cabin
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in what is now known as the Davis Whittaker Day Cemetery.
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Doyle Day now owns the surrounding property. In later years,
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a marble military headstone was placed at the grave, with
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the twins information added as well. Barnes's brother, William, completed
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his service in the fifth Kentucky Infantry and later joined
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the thirteenth Kentucky Cavalry commanded by Colonel Benjamin Caudle. After
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the war, William moved to Colorado, attempting to leave painful
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memories behind.
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Speaker 2: Local legends suggest that.
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Speaker 1: Barnes Christian may have been biracial, though no written confirmation
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has been found. There were, however, at least two black
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families with the surname Christian living nearby. Regardless of race,
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Barnes's story is one of many tragic accounts from the
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Civil War era in the Appalachian Mountains, Numerous feuds and
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divisions had their roots in wartime violence and loss. The
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next story is Letcher legend Ritter to receive another honor,
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Goebel Tex Ritter, the Lake Letcher County School official, best
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known for his professional basketball career and his success as
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a high school coach at Fleming, Neon Hazard and Whitsburg,
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has been selected for enshrinement in the twenty twenty six
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class of the Madison County Sports Hall of Fame in Richmond. Ritter,
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a long time Whitesburg resident, was a native of Richmond
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and excelled in football, basketball, and baseball at Madison Model
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High School from nineteen thirty nine to nineteen forty two,
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he earned a football scholarship to Eastern Kentucky State College,
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but instead of enrolling, joined the U. S. Marine Corps
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during World War II. He was awarded two Purple Hearts
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with oak leaf clusters for valor during combat operations at Iwo,
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Jima and Guam. After the war, Ridder returned to Eastern
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Kentucky State, where he became a Little All American in
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three sports before being drafted by the New York Knickerbockers.
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He played one hundred fifty one NBA games from nineteen
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forty eight to nineteen fifty one, averaging about six points
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per game. Following his professional playing career, Ritter returned to
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Kentucky and began a high school basketball coaching career at
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Flemingdeon High School. After one season, he accepted the head
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coaching position at Hazard High School, where he led the
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Bulldogs to four Sweet sixteen state tournament appearances over a
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ten year span, including the nineteen fifty five KHSAA state championship.
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Ridder's best teams at Hazard were led by star guard
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Johnny Cox, who had played for Fleming Neon. During Ridter's
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lone season there, Cox scored thirty two points in Hazzard's
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seventy four to sixty six championship victory over Adair County.
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Rider later returned to Letcher County to serve as head
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coach of the Whitesburg High School Yellowjackets for four seasons.
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He subsequently left coaching to become the school's assistant principal
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and later served as director of transportation for the Letcher
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County School District. In addition, Ridder worked for eighteen years
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as a basketball referee. Ridder died in October two thousand four,
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at the age of eighty. He was married for fifty
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seven years to Letcher County native Pauline Penny Caudle, whom
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he met while both were students at Eastern. She died
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in November two thousand twenty three. Also selected for induction
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into the two thousand twenty sixth class is Damian Harris,
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the first five star recruit in Kentucky high school football history.
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A two time High School All American at Madison Southern
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High School, Harris rushed for six thousand, seven hundred forty
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eight yards and one hundred twenty two touchdowns. He later
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started three seasons at Alabama, helping lead the Crimson Tide
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to two national championships. Harris played five seasons in the
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NFL with the New England Patriots two thousand nineteen to
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twenty two and Buffalo Bills two thousand twenty three. He
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enjoyed a breakout season in two thousand twenty one, rushing
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for nine hundred twenty nine yards and fifteen touchdowns.
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Speaker 2: His career was.
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Speaker 1: Cut short by a neck injury in two thousand twenty three,
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forcing his retirement at age twenty seven. The induction ceremony
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will be held Friday, May sixteenth at five pm in
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the E. KU Perkins Building in Richmond. In the next headline,
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lawsuit renews scrutiny of provider long involved on local recovery efforts.
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Addiction Recovery Care ARC, a Louisa based company that expanded
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into one of Kentucky's largest addiction treatment providers, is facing
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a federal lawsuit in New York amid allegations of financial
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wrongdoing and an ongoing federal investigation. The lawsuit, filed January
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twelfth in U. S. District Court in Manhattan by Angelica
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Capital Trust, names ARC and its owners Tim Robinson and
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his wife Lelia Robinson, both of Lawrence County. It claims
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Angelica advanced ARC eight million dollars that has not been
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repaid as agreed. Angelica's lawsuit dge as ARC is attempting
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to raise nearly twenty eight million dollars to resolve a
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civil settlement with the US Department of Justice tied to
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alleged Medicaid and Medicare billing fraud. ARC's court response asks
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the judge not to freeze the disputed funds, saying such
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a move would disrupt treatment services for patients across Kentucky,
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but it does not address the settlement allegation. The lawsuit
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also says the federal investigation began after a whistleblower complaint
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was filed in twenty twenty three. The FBI has confirmed
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as recently as this month that its investigation remains ongoing.
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In Letcher County. ARC has been involved for years in
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local efforts to connect people to treatment. In twenty eighteen,
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ARC began working closely with Letcher District Judge Kevin R.
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Mullins's court. The next story is Daniel Boone Hotel project
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advances with the hiring of architects from Lexington, Joseph and
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Joseph Architects of Lexington and Louisville will design the next
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phase of renovations to the Daniel Boone Hotel, contingent on
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the completion of contract negotiations. Opened one hundred six years ago,
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the Daniel Boone Hotel was a first class hotel at
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a time when Main Street was still mud and travelers
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arrived in the city by rail. In a news release,
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the city described the hotel as a symbol of Whitesburg's
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history and potential. This is a milestone moment for Whitesburg,
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said Tiffany Craft, Mayor of Whitesburg. The Daniel Boone Hotel
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has been part of our story for generations. Today we
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will take a major step toward giving it new life,
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one that honors our past while investing in our future.
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The nine two hundred twenty four square foot building opened
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on Independence Day weekend in nineteen twenty and was last
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used as a hotel in nineteen seventy four. Mountain Comprehensive
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Health Corporation converted it into a clinic and office space
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in nineteen seventy five. In the nineteen nineties, it served
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as the Electric County Courthouse while the courthouse building down
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the street was being renovated. The Dollhare family donated the
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building to the City of Whitsburg in two thousand nine
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after it had sat vacant and unused.
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Speaker 2: For about a decade.
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Speaker 1: The city has spent more than a decade planning and
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seeking grant funding for the project, which is expected to
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include retail and meeting space, as well as a boutique hotel.
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Before renovation funding was secured, a leaking skylight caused the
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roof to collapse, taking portions of all three floors below
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with it. The city used a one point five million
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dollar grant from the Appalachian Regional Commission to remove the
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damaged interior and construct a new roof and floors, but
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no further work could be done until additional funding became available.
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The new phase of work is being funded through a
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three million dollars state ear mark approved by the Kentucky
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General Assembly and the next story is leaks flood damage
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drive utility work in Neon. Utility work is moving ahead
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in Fleming Neon, with more money on the way for
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sewer improvements and water line replacements. Mayor Ricky Burke said
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he is pretty positive we have the green light for
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grinders and lift stations for the sewer system and bidding
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should be advertised soon. The deadline for the next round
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of funding for sidewalk repares was Monday. Burke said Phase
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one of the city's water line project, which cost about
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nine hundred thousand dollars, is complete. That project runs from
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the city water plant at Shayse Fork to Fleming. Phase
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one B will soon be underway at a cost of
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two million, seven hundred seventy seven thousand dollars and will
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include McRoberts. Phase two and Phase four are fully funded
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at six million, four hundred seven thousand dollars and five
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point four two eight million dollars respectively. Phase two will
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run along Kentucky three seventeen from Goose Creek to Neon Junction.
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Phase four will be Enhamond. The city has applied for
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three point nine three two million dollars to complete Phase three,
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which would run from Sicco to Martha Jane Potters School.
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Phase five, which would go from Hemp Hill to the
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foot of Rockhouse Mountain, is estimated to cost five point
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seven three eight million dollars, but the city has not
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yet been awarded funding for that project. The final phase
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would include six new water tanks to feed the system,
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estimated to cost five point seven seven five million dollars.
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We got the green light, and when the bid goes out,
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I'll be tickled to death and the people will too,
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Burke said. He said the city has experienced persistent water
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leaks during excavation for other projects, but locating and repairing
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those leaks has also helped reduce water loss. We've had
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several water leaks lately. Seems like everywhere we dig in
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the city, we run into a water leak, Burke said,
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trying to put the sidewalks in. We're continually fixing leaks.
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The tank repair that we did has helped us tremendously
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on our plant usage. According to city officials, there were
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fifty two holes.
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Speaker 2: In that tank.
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Speaker 1: This concludes the reading of the Mountain Eagle. Your reader
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has been built in Arsenal. Now please stay tuned for
27:52
continued programming on behalf of everyone here at Radio I.
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Speaker 2: Thank you for listening, and have a good day.