Celebrating the Life and Legacy of Dayton’s Beloved Teacher, Juanita Pendergrass If you pause on Main Street long enough to catch the laughter drifting out of Pendergrass Park, you can almost see a petite teacher in a crisp cotton dress calling children by name and cheering on a spirited kickball game. Fifty-eight years after Dayton…
In Memory
Bishop Joseph Durick of Dayton Tennessee
From Dayton’s Hills to a Bishop’s Mantle: In Memory of Joseph A. Durick Nestled beside the ridges of the Tennessee River, Dayton in the early 1900s was a railroad-stop town where Catholics were scarce and large families were common. It was here, on October 13, 1914, that Joseph Aloysius Durick arrived—the seventh of twelve children…
Allen & Gardenhire Murders Dayton Tennessee 1921
(Pictured above is Dr. Walton P. Allen Sr. and wife Josephine Stokes Allen with son Walton P. Allen Jr.) After being acquitted of murder Dr. Walton P. Allen commits murder/suicide leaving wife heartbroken Nestled beneath the tall trees in the original section of Buttram Cemetery are two small stones bearing the names of Walton Peter…
Grave Marker Donated for Paul “Hambone’ Todd
(Pictured L-R Brad Harris, Lee Miller-Spring City Memory Gardens, Renee Todd Hickman-Great Niece of Hambone, Donna Vaughn-Vaughn Funeral Home, Greg Long and Dean Wilson. Not Pictured- Tad Rees.) Strawberry Festival Icon honored with grave marker For the last forty-five years, an unmarked grave in the Dayton City Cemetery has held the remains of one of…
Rhea County Sheriff’s Deputy Johnny Swafford Shot in the line of duty November 13, 1975
The featured photo above is a memorial plaque that hangs in the Rhea County Sheriff’s Department today. Hughey Lee Strader convicted and Sentenced to 99 Years in the Death of Deputy Swafford On the evening of November 13, 1975, a Rhea County Sheriff’s deputy was shot and killed in the line of duty. Johnny Swafford,…
T.J. Campbell- Records of Rhea Author
Thomas Jefferson Campbell, who was known as T.J. Campbell, formerly a journalist, editor, and historian, passed away on September 19, 1940, at his home in Dayton, Tennessee. T.J. was born in Hamilton County on the banks of the Tennessee River and maintained an interest in the river all his life. Many of his articles for…
Helicopter accident claims life of former Rhea Medical Center Physican
Dr. Darriel Slagle Dies February 23, 1986 A former Rhea County Medical Center physician was killed in a helicopter accident in Greenville, Tennessee around 7pm Saturday February 23, 1986. Dr. Slagle had been employed at the Rhea County Medical Center as an emergency room physician from August 1982 through May of 1985.At the time of…
Rhea Class of 1981 Ends Five Year Reunion With Tragedy
Classmate Wes Crawford Killed in Auto Accident after Leaving Five Year Class Reunion on August 9, 1986 It was the first time that the Rhea County High School Class of 1981 had been together since their graduation ceremony. The class gathered for their 5th year reunion at the Loft in Chattanooga on August 9, 1986.…
Lou Billingsley-In Memory
The Billingsley’s Open Dayton’s First Laundry Service in 1929 Taking a moment to remember one of our citizens who has gone on before us. Lou Henderson Billingsley was born June 8, 1893, on Dayton Mountain near the Friendship Church. Lou met her husband John M. Billingsley, when she was a student at the one room…
Dr. Archie Morgan Dayton Dentist Clowns Around
When Dr. Archie Morgan wasn’t pulling teeth, he was known to pull your leg while clowning around. Dr. Morgan, shown in the feature photo above, began his career in dentistry around 1948. Beginning in 1979, he launched his clown act. During the 1984 Strawberry Festival Parade, the children voted Morgan as one of the top…