Tuesday April 3,
2012
50 cents
Daily Corinthian Vol. 116, No. 80
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• Corinth, Mississippi • 16 pages • 1 section
Halfway house causes concern BY JEBB JOHNSTON jjohnston@dailycorinthian.com
A group of residents is concerned about plans for a facility described as a halfway house in northwest Alcorn County. The Board of Supervisors on Monday listened to resident concerns about plans for the property formerly used by
JNCC, a church, in the County Road 772 area. It is described as Jesus Name Community Holiness Church property on the board agenda. The area in question is in the northwest corner of Alcorn County near the Tennessee state line and Tippah County. A neighboring resident, Ron-
ald Norcross, told the board that he was approached on March 14 by church representatives who told him about plans to sell the property to a group that would put in a halfway house for prisoners. He said he learned that the group is associated with a youth organization in the Ripley area that is seek-
ing grant funding for the plan. The residents are concerned about potential crime and increased traffic. “If a halfway house is present and the dormitory were to house only half of its advertised 200 sleeping capacity, there is the potential to have up to an additional 100 vehicles per day on an
unsafe county road,” he said. He also believes a halfway house with people coming and going would “open ourselves up to an opportunity for all sorts of things to take place from Highway 57 to Highway 72.” Another resident, Roger WilPlease see HOUSE | 3
Whittington leads Shiloh driving tours BY JEFF YORK For the Daily Corinthian
Staff photos by Bobby J. Smith
Rebel gunners fight under the stars and bars during the 150th Blue-Gray Shiloh re-enactment Sunday.
37,000 spectators watch ‘huge scale success’ Shiloh re-enactment BY BOBBY J. SMITH bjsmith@dailycorinthian.com
The 150th Blue-Gray Shiloh re-enactment was a “huge-scale” success, according to event organizers. In attendance and participation, the Blue-Gray Shiloh event was one of the largest of its kind, said Lee Millar, president of the Battle of Shiloh Association and co-event coordinator. The 150th BlueGray Shiloh re-enactment was held from March 29 through April 1 on land next to Shiloh National Military Park. More than 37,000 spectators attended the two-day “battles” on Saturday and Sunday, when living history re-enactors portraying Civil War-era infantry, cavalry and artillery staged elaborate recreations of key scenes from the historical Battle of Shiloh. Almost 23,000 spectators attended Saturday’s event, and over 13,000 were present on Sunday. Traffic was backed up over two miles on the road leading to the event’s parking area on Saturday during the beginning of the public exhibition.
SHILOH, Tenn. — An opportunity to have a driving guided tour of the Battle of Shiloh will be held on April 5, 6 and 7 as part of the commemoration of the Civil War Sesquicentennial celebration. Jimmy Whittington, an expert on the Battle of Shiloh, will lead the car caravan tours around the battlefield and will take visitors to the key points of the bloody battle. Whittington, former mayor of Selmer, has been leading tours at Shiloh for 20 years. He was the keynote speaker at the 2000 Memorial Day service at Shiloh National Military Park, where the tours will take place. These free tours will take 2 ½ hours to complete and will leave from the Visitor’s Center each day at 8:30 a.m., 11:30 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. There will be 10 stops during the tour, where Whittington will explain details about each part of the battle. The tours will be limited to 10 cars each, so advance registration is recommended by park officials. Call the Visitor’s Center at 731-689-5696 to make a reservation. Whittington will explain the key reason for the Battle of Shiloh was the railroad crossing in Corinth. The Confederacy wanted to keep control of the railroad and the Union hoped to seize control of the important crossing. Shiloh was a bloody battle that resulted in over 23,000 soldiers (13,000-plus Union, 10,000-plus Confederate) either dead, missing or wounded during the two-day battle. This doubled the combined total of the four previous Civil War battles in 1862. Whittington said he began his interest in the Battle of Shiloh as a seven-yearold child when visiting a neighbor of his grandmother in Stantonville who had lived during the Civil War. Stantonville is just three miles from the battlefield. “I believe I have read every book written on the Battle of Shiloh,” said Whittington. “I feel this battle is the most misunderstood of any in the Civil War.” He feels one misconception about the battle on the Sunken Road is the majority of the fighting was in the center of the area known as the Hornet’s Nest. Whittington believes there is evidence to believe the Please see TOURS | 2
Over 37,000 spectators attended the staged battle re-enactments Saturday and Sunday. “We had four or five ticket lines on Saturday — and they were still swamping us,” said Millar. Approximately 8,200 reenactors participated in the Blue-Gray Shiloh event, and artillery re-enactors brought 140 cannons. Over 1,000
Boy Scouts held a “Camporee” during the event and used it as an opportunity to work toward a variety of different badges. Members of one Scout troop pitched in with the cleanup after the re-enactment ended to work toward their community
service badges. “It was a good crowd and good participation,” Millar said. “But the main thing was that we had that many people and no serious injuries. Everybody was really safe and
“Shiloh was a tragic battle in a very tragic war. This was a bloody battle where a lot of soldiers lost their lives.” Jimmy Whittington
Please see SHILOH | 2
Battle of Shiloh expert
Twenty-two teams sign up for annual Crossroads Chili Cook-off BY MARK BOEHLER editor@dailycorinthian.com
Ladies and gentlemen, start your cookers. The are already 22 teams signed up for the 5th Annual Crossroads Chili Cook-Off, which also has announced a diverse entertainment lineup for Saturday’s event. Organizers are still hopeful a new Local Favorite category will help generate more local interest in the event, and so far five local teams have stepped
forward with more expected. The popular event will be held from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday at the Corinth Depot
in downtown Corinth in conjunction with the Green Market’s fourth season. “We are hoping for more local interest, but teams still have time to sign up,” said Steve Knight, cook-off chairperson. Out-of-town teams continue to sign up, representing states from Alabama and Louisiana to Indiana and Illinois. The Crossroads Chili Cook-Off added the new Local Favorite Category this year which will be scored by sanctioned judges. The
Index Stocks........7 Classified......14 Comics...... 11 Wisdom...... 10
Weather........5 Obituaries........ 3 Opinion........4 Sports........8
winner gets $300 and a trophy. The fee is $25 and local favorite entries must have two quarts of chili for the judges and another gallon for People’s Choice. The best part for participants in the local favorite -- the chili can be made ahead of time, noted Knight. People’s Choice is one of the most fun parts of the chili cookoff. For a $2 fee to a local charity, people get to sample chili and pick their favorite. The winner gets a trophy.
There’ll be plenty of chili to sample. People’s Choice already has 17 teams entered in the competition. The Crossroads Chili CookOff will also host a sanctioned International Chili Society competition, which promises to draw many chili-cooking teams from around the region. The ICS is a nonprofit organization that sanctions chili cook-offs around the world for the benPlease see COOK-OFF | 2
On this day in history 150 years ago “Soldiers of the Army of the Mississippi: I have put you in motion to offer battle to the invaders of your country. The eyes and the hopes of eight millions of people rest upon you.” — General Albert Sidney Johnston, Corinth.