Growing up in Philadelphia, Tennessee has provided many lasting memories for me. Who among us could spend any time at all around here and not talk of McCrary's store or Thompson's store, the Hosiery Mill, the bank robbery (that was before my time but you sure do hear a lot of folks talk about it!), floods, the churches of the town, the Grammar School, "Government Hill", or the railroad? And what about some of our famous citizens: Mr. Large at the Depot, "Dob" at the Mill, Dick Harvell at the store, Ned Nelson at the store, the teachers at the Grammar School: Mrs. Helen, Mrs. Kansas, Mrs. Milsaps, Mrs. Ada, and the list goes on and on!

Now, let me turn to some more personal "Memories". No one who grew up in my day could forget all of those baseball games played on the "lots" next to the railroad. How we played all of those games and managed not to break out windows I'll never know! And don't forget the football games! And while I'm on the subject of sports, let's think about basketball at Philadelphia Grammer School ! Why, no greater games have been played than when Loudon would come to town---and go home a loser to the "Warriors" of the Purple and Gold! Luttrell, Steekee, Highland Park, and then there were the rough boys from Browder! And who could ever forget the games with Prospect! The Principal and Coach, Mr. Woolsey, I believe, made going to the game worthwhile just to see him coach. I especially remember my friends Philip Bettis and "Butch" Crabtree from Prospect. One other thought on this subject that deserves mention is the county tournament held in the old "barn" in Loudon. What a time it was to spend Saturday during tournament week there.

While I'm on the subject of Loudon, I must mention the old Court Theater in "downtown" Loudon where many of us would spend all day--and I do mean all day--watching all of the serials from comics to science fiction and would do it all--admission, popcorn, and coke for a quarter! All was well until coming out into the bright sunshine after spending five or six hours in complete darkness and have a "splitting" headache for the rest of the day! Oh, well, it was worth it. Isn't it interesting to note that today many of the things that we saw in those "science fiction" movies are no longer fiction but accepted ways of life for us today!

Among the less desirable memories are those of destruction in our town. I believe it was approximately March 12 or 13, 1963, that heavy rains descended upon us to the extent that they caused flood waters to reach the basement of the home of Stanley Davis. That meant that once again our friends living around the Hosiery Mill and west were forced from their homes. I was home from school at that time and Daddy and I went to the Mill to look out from the windows of the "boarding room." I remember calling to people living in homes nearby to awaken them as water was already on the porches of homes. Boats were used to evacuate those people to safety. All day long we watched to see when the waters would recede that life might get back to normal. One tense moment arose when Daddy and I noticed a barrel of caustic soda used in the dyeing of yarn was surrounded by water. This stuff becomes very dangerous when mixed with water; so, it had to be moved and we hoped that there weren't any leaks in the barrel. All turned out o.k.

Since I have such a great love for railroads, I cannot forget the train wreck that occurred in front of "Aunt E" and "Uncle Super"'s house. If only I had a camera.

We cannot talk railroads with out mentioning the Depot, and you cannot talk about the Depot without mentioning Mr. Large. You could set your watch by him as he would take the mailbag to be picked up by #41 or #42 every afternoon.

I remember all of those evenings we would sit on the banks next to the tracks and talk to the railroad workmen who were housed in the work cars on the sidetrack in front of our house. Why, even the "hobos" were welcome. I remember one night Daddy was burning something in the backyard and the next thing I knew, there stood a hobo, asking for something to eat. I don't remember what but Daddy got him something and away he went.

Less fortunate times were the fires that destroyed much property in our town. Some that I remember were the homes over on the highway on the south side of town across from the Jim Blount home next to Cathcart's station. And there was the fire behind the Hosiery Mill on a Saturday night. I also remember the fire at the Methodist Church. All of these before we had a fire department!

Then, a group of men in our town said, "Enough is enough!" And a fire department was begun. Oh, those were some trying days too. Where to buy a truck? How would we pay for it? There was no fire station so the truck had to sit outside. That was not so bad in summer, but in winter the tank had to be emptied to avoid a freeze and that caused delay of precious seconds when responding to a call. But no one would give up and today look at what we have and look how much property has been saved by the "Volunteer" Fire Department. Thank you, men, for your commitment! People of Philadelphia have slept much sounder over the years knowing you were ready.

While fire and weather have brought pain, alot of joy has come to us too. Who could wait for the snow to fall in order to get out of school and get our sleds and head to "Government Hill" for the day! We really had some good times up there. I remember one snow particularly that began on a Friday night about 11 o'clock. I got up the next morning to work at the "Price Right", that was the grocery store run by "Uncle Bud" Waller and Mr. W.E. Edwards. At 6:00 a.m., the snow was very deep and by night fall it was 18 inches. Boy, wait til Sunday for sledding But I also remember something else. Did we stay home from Sunday School and Church because of snow? No Way! "If you can go play in the snow all afternoon," said Mother and Daddy, "you can go to Sunday School and Church this morning." You know, I'm grateful for good, sound teaching like that that has come from my parents and others who have shaped my life over the years. We would be alot better off today if more of that kind of reasoning and faith were being taught in our world!!

Christmas Day has always been special in our family. Christmas Eve just would not have been Christmas Eve without spending it at Nanny and Grandaddy Waller's. We, children, would always race to get the seat on the end of the couch in the living room next to the tree so we could see---to touch was a no-no---what packages had "my" name on it. The next best thing was Nanny Waller's boiled custard and coconut. And then, to go home and wait for Santa Claus to arrive.

John and I slept upstairs so early Christmas morning Daddy would awaken us and make us wait at the bottom everything was ready and he, Daddy, had made a picture. That always seemed like it took and eternity---What I would have given for Daddy to have had an "Instamatic" camera in those days! But finally the wait was over and we descended on the presents. I think a Christmas went by without something for the trains. Why, I thought Christmas was spelled, LIONEL!! After Mother had fixed one of her famous our "rounds" to see what our cousins had received---Red, Ann, Jane, Betty, Jody, and "Etta. Betty, I know one Christmas I'll never forget and you had better not. That is when I put together your Barbie Doll furniture while everybody played Bridge or whatever. Just ask your Mother and she can tell you. Well, enough said, but to this day Christmas is what it is because of how I spent it as a child.

Wow! There are so many memories. Bible School at both the Baptist and Methodist Churches, my classmates at School, fishing trips with Butch Barnett and Mr. Wesley, trout fishing with Mr. John Windle and "Junior" Duckworth, the car and truck my Daddy built for me, the new barber in town and how in church the next day you could spot every man or boy who had been to him on Saturday, the great people who worked at the Hosiery Mill, teachers at the Grammar School who taught us the value of an education and not merely to get a paycheck, the Martins; George, Mrs. Robbie, Robert and Barb-- some of my dearest friends, the snowball stand that Red Waller and I ran, the Philadelphia Baptist Church, who taught me so much and gave me the opportunity to preach the Gospel, to Emmet Carter who has never been too busy to show a young man _ The Reverend Tom Scarbrough, my pastor who baptized me, and so many more persons and events that fill my life with joy.

But finally, my fondest memories are those with my family: Daddy, Mother, and John. Whether it was at Christmas time or shucking corn, taking a vacation or washing dishes, going to Cole's Drive-in Theater or mowing the yard, commending me for something I'd done right or correcting me for some error, laughing or crying, my family has provided me with memories but also new happenings that make me glad to be part of Philadelphia , the city where I learned what it means to know the eternal Love of God!

Richard Everett