James V. Grider is a native of Franklin County. He was born November 3, 1840, and moved with his father’s family into Williamson County in 1844 and into Marion in 1849.
In the 1850 census, James was 10 and living with his father and siblings. His father’s name was William M. Grider and listed himself as a house carpenter. Continue reading
Marion’s bloody history has been the subject of numerous books, articles and documentaries. “Bloody Williamson,” Paul M. Angle’s widely read story of our county, is still in publication after more than half a century. Perhaps one of the reasons for the intense curiosity about our past is the baffling contrast between the genuine warmth and friendliness of the people you meet today and the violent heartlessness of some who lived here just one or two generations ago. No story better illustrates this paradox than the tragedy of Lory and Ethel Price. Continue reading
In the fall of 1974, two unexplainable deaths and suspicious symptoms caused in another six patients at the Marion Memorial Hospital created a scare in Marion. Was there a serial killer working in the hospital? The details of the event are as follows. Continue reading
This post contains an article dated September 9, 1941 and notes a few details about Marion and the regions past. First is the potential sale of the Marion Waterworks. Secondly is the originally planned routing of Interstate 57 which was to avoid Marion altogether and swing through Centralia and Carbondale instead. Can you imagine how different Marion’s economy would be without the interstate being here? Third, the last part of this article deals with the paving of Boyton Street, which may seem inconsequential, but how would you get from Market to Court before it was there? Continue reading
Richmond Roe Fowler, a.k.a. Rich, was born about five miles northeast of Marion on November 28, 1860. He was the son of Joseph W. Fowler and Elizabeth Davis.
After taking advantage of the schooling offered by the district schools, Judge Fowler attended Ewing College for two years, and then for two years engaged in teaching. Continue reading