Good People

5questions Dr. Pete Sparks

A chat about retirement, history, MMC, his neighborhood – and yes, superstition

Story and photo by David Moore

June 30, 2015 … It’s not a red-letter date in the annals of history, but it was big day in the life of then 70-year-old local historian Dr. Pete Sparks. It was the day he packed away his Lidocaine syringe and drill and retired after 42 years of practicing dentistry in Grant.

That big day was supposed to mark a paradigm shift in Pete’s life. His newfound freedom from work would allow time to spend on the Warrenton Cemetery Association, which he’d started a few years earlier; time to spend mining old copies of newspapers as a new member of Marshall County Archives. Maybe he’d help discover some “new” history on Gen. Andrew Jackson’s forts and Creek War roadway through Marshall County. And he’d have lots of time for golf.

Perhaps even more pressing than golf, the already published author could charge head-long into writing two other history books he’d started.

Spoiler alert: Pete’s retirement’s been great but hasn’t quite gone as imagined.

“I thought that when I retired I could get through writing the books quicker than my first one,” he laughs, “but I’ve been so busy with everything else.”

“Everything else” refers to all of the above and Pete’s myriad other pursuits. One gets a sense of those pursuits by simply entering his stand-alone study behind his and Rhonda’s home on Obrig Avenue in Guntersville. Packed with books, you immediately grasp that he’s a prolific reader; you quickly hone in on his passion for history. He’s read a thousand volumes on the Civil War alone.

Don’t fret. Pete plays a lot of golf (four times a week); spends considerable time researching history at the archives; and more recently he’s delved into Gen. Jackson’s military maneuvers in Marshall County. “In short,” Pete grins from behind his appropriately cluttered desk, “I don’t lack for things to do. I am busier in retirement than I was when I was working.”

Pete lived in Warrenton through the first grade. His dad, a traveling salesman and later a contractor, moved a lot and for seven years the family lived in Louisiana and other parts of the South. Returning home, they lived several places in Guntersville before settling down in Warrenton on his grandfather’s 80-acre farm, later known as Goat Hill.

“The hill was covered in growth back in the Great Depression, and my granddaddy bought a herd of goats to clear it,” Pete says. “They did, but mountain laurel, which is poison, grew there. They goats ate it and all died. Now there are goat skeletons up there.”

Young Pete pretty much lived in paradise, playing Little League ball, fishing and later playing baseball and basketball at Guntersville High – “normal, happy childhood,” he reports.

He was interested in his family’s roots and enjoyed history class under Tim Richey at MCHS and later at Snead State. But he told his guidance counselor and chemistry teacher, James Dennis, that, when older, he wanted to be his own boss. James said to become a lawyer, doctor or dentist.

“I didn’t want to be a lawyer or doctor,” Pete says. So he went into predentistry. “Honestly,” he adds, “I would have rather been studying history, but I had to take biology and science courses.”

He finished dental school in 1972 as Vietnam was raging. Young dentists were being drafted to serve military patients in the Philippines.

“I didn’t want to go to the Philippines, so I enlisted in the Air Force and spent two years doing dental work in Puerto Rico,” Pete says. “Plus a little golf and snorkeling.”

He returned in 1974 to start a practice in Marshall County. His former baseball coach, Percy Lee, was principal at DAR High School and helped procure a grant for Pete designed bring dentists to rural areas. And so Pete ended up in Grant. “I already knew a lot of the people,” he says. “Then I got there and liked the atmosphere.”

1988 was a red-letter year in Pete’s history. For starts, he and Rhonda got married. It wasn’t for the long haul like his marriage, but the county commission also appointed him to the Marshall County Healthcare Authority for the first of what would become six four-year terms. It was a period of great growth for the two existing county hospitals, including the construction of Marshall Medical Center North and the drive to build the Marshall Cancer Care Center.

In 1992, Pete’s ongoing love of history led him to join the Guntersville Historical Society. He’s the current president, an office he’s held several times over the years.

In 2001 he lead the charge to save the Gilbreath House, a rare survivor of the burning of Guntersville during the Civil War. The disused house was owned by Howard Powell, and Commission Chairman Billy Cannon proposed that the county buy and raze it for needed parking space. His historic sensibilities trampled, Pete confronted Billy and said if the county did that he’d contact every news outlet around and see how many votes Billy would garner by destroying one of Guntersville’s oldest surviving homes. Billy saw Pete’s logic, and the commission retreated.

To raise money for the private purchase of the house, someone suggest that Pete give history tours in and around Guntersville.

“I’d been on tours, and, with my love of history, I agreed to do it,” he says.

The Gilbreath House was bought and today is the headquarters for the Guntersville Historical Society. For his

SNAPSHOT: J.F. “Pete” Sparks, DMD

EARLY LIFE: Born Oct. 8, 1945, youngest of four children of Julian Ferrell “Red” Sparks and the former Ilene Stewart: Johnny is a chicken farmer in Martling; Joe, retired from the grain business, lives near Memphis; and a sister who died young. His father later had a second family: Becky Sparks lives in

South Alabama; Mike works for Kroger; Sissy Hinkle teaches special ed at Guntersville High. EDUCATION: Graduated Marshall County High School, 1964; attended Snead State two years; graduated University of

Alabama, 1968; graduated UAB Dental School, 1972. CAREER: U.S. Air Force, served in Puerto Rico, 1972-74; private dental practice in Grant, 1974-2015. PERSONAL LIFE: First married Lise Hipp, whom he dated in high school; after their divorce, married Rhonda Roberts of Warrior in 1988; his and Rhonda’s daughter, Jilli Sparks of Washington, D.C., is an attorney for the U.S. government. RECOGNITION/ACTIVITIES: Member of Marshall County Healthcare Authority/

Marshall Medical Centers Board of Directors, 1988-2012, including 11 years as chairman; former member of the Guntersville Museum Board; founded

Guntersville Historical Commission; member, a former and current president of Guntersville Historical Society since 1992; president, Warrenton Cemetery

Association; member of Marshall County Archives since 2015; member of Fort

Deposit Roundtable; received the Daughters of the American Revolution’s

American Heritage Award, 2005, for saving the historic Gilbreth House; conducts history tours locally and across the South; gives history talks to groups; wrote and in 2011 published “A River Town’s Fight for Life – The History of Guntersville,

Alabama in the Civil War”; member of Episcopal Church of the Epiphany; past member of the Grant Lions Club; avid golfer and hunter.

efforts, the Daughters of the American Revolution presented Pete with its American Heritage Award.

In 2009, Pete helped form the Guntersville Historical Commission, which supplanted the city’s planning board in terms of permitting construction and restoration design for a North Town historic district along Gunter and part of Blount Avenues from roughly Scott Street to Ringold Street.

When he was younger, Pete enthusiastically participated with Civil War reenactment groups.

“I have been in a number of ‘battles,” he says. “We’re just out having fun. You don’t think when a charge is ordered against the opposition that you’ll start running and yelling. But you do what everybody is doing.”

Since his retirement, Pete has continued conducting history tours, including sites as far off as the Civil War battlefields at Shiloh, Tenn., and Chickamauga, Ga.

“My Granddaddy was a World War I hero,” he says. “When I step on a battlefield, the hair stands up on the back of my neck. I’ve studied the battlefields and know where their blood fell. It’s awe inspiring to know what those soldiers endured – marching barefooted, sleeping in the rain …”

Pete also continues giving talks to civic and other groups on the area’s history.

About 10 years ago he helped organize the Warrenton Cemetery Association.

“That keeps me as busy as anything,” he says.

He and Rhonda live in a neighborhood on Obrig Avenue where many of the houses were built 90-100 years ago. Theirs was built around 1927 by the principal of the nearby old rock school, now home to The Whole Backstage. Not too surprisingly, Pete has been in talks with the city about creating another historic district there. 1. You enjoy the neighborhood where you live. Care to expound upon the joys of neighborhood living?

The allure of neighbors living close to me is kind of spiritual. I love my neighborhood. I like the closeness you develop with your neighbors – they become almost like family. You can ask someone to led you an egg, walk your dog, babysit a child – and they do it for you. If someone is sick, neighbors mow your yard.

It’s a closeness not found in a lot of rural areas where people do not live so closely to each other, or in big cities. It harkens back to my days growing up around here.

I like the proximity of a small area. We are within one block – walking distance – from the Guntersville Museum, the library, The Whole Backstage and Rock House Eatery – one of my favorite restaurants. I love their Pasta Julian. I don’t know if they named it for me or not, but I eat it a lot.

This closeness is displayed by the events we share in our neighborhood. I was one of the organizers of the first Fourth of July parade we started about 10 years ago. Six or eight neighbors put it on primarily for our kids and dogs, but also to teach our kids about patriotism.

This past Fourth of July, we had about 60 people in the parade. Everyone dressed in their patriotic gear and marched around the library and to The Whole Backstage. We ended up at Ryan and Katie Boggess’ house for ice cream and watermelon.

My favorite neighborhood event is our progressive Christmas block party. We go to different houses for drinks, hors d’oeuvres, dinner and dessert. You get to see everybody’s decorations and eat their family holiday recipes. It’s just a real good warm feeling. You don’t get that kind of camaraderie in rural settings where people live far apart. Or in a big city.

I’ve told my wife the only way I’m leaving here is when they take me out on a stretcher. 2. Starting in 1988, you served 24 years on the Marshall County Hospital Authority and its successor, the Marshall Medical Centers Board of Directors. For a number of years you served as chairman. From the perspective of a former insider, how do you view the status of Marshall Medical Centers today?

I hope people realize they have some of the best healthcare in this county as anywhere. We have up-to-date, even stateof-the-art equipment and facilities. And we offer good proximity for people with Marshall North and South.

One of the things I was involved in was the development of Marshall Cancer Care Center. It’s very convenient for people who have cancer and are really sick. They don’t have to travel so many miles for quality treatment.

We thought it was important to have it here in the county, so we approved partnering with UAB to staff oncologists here in Marshall County. We built a facility and purchased the equipment, and they come and administer it and furnish the doctors. By partnering with UAB we were able to provide a cancer center you normally would find only in a metropolitan area.

Because of the complexities of operating healthcare systems, we affiliated ourselves with Huntsville Hospital. This was not something that happened immediately. We were already doing a lot with Huntsville Hospital that many people didn’t know we were doing. For many years we shared a laundry with Huntsville Hospital. You can imagine the number of bedsheets and such we change daily. By sharing that cost with them, we achieved an economy of scale. We could get it much cheaper by doing it en masse.

A lot of people don’t know how we run off of reimbursements. Medicare only pays about 40 percent of our fees. There is very little private insurance. Hospitals can’t make it off that. Our profit margin every year was getting smaller and smaller. When reimbursements got so low, we affiliated with Huntsville Hospital. We maintained the ownership of our facilities but turned over administration and operations to Huntsville Hospital.

Again, it’s an economy of scale. But it was with the caveat that we maintain our emergency room and OB-GYN services. Those are usually losers for hospitals, so we don’t make a profit with them. But we agreed not to cut any services for the county.

This has proven to be a win-win with Huntsville Hospital. We maintain our autonomy, yet they have helped us increase the bottom line, which allows Marshall Medical Centers to keep its facilities and equipment up to date. So, what do I think the status is? I think it is excellent, and we are lucky to have what we have.

3. Irony intended, what’s new with the history of Marshall County?

Harry Truman, my favorite president, said, “The only thing new in this world is the history you don’t know.” With that thought in mind, a group of local historians formed the Fort Deposit Roundtable three years ago with the goal to identify the locations of three fort deposits and the Andrew Jackson Trace.

Andrew Jackson used the forts to store his supplies while endeavoring to defeat the Creeks in the War of 1812. He used the trace – or road – to move his troops through Marshall County. Just where his supply depots were located was history we didn’t know, and we wanted to know it.

The group included Danny Maltbie, Larry Smith, Tyrus Dorman, Chip Manning, the late John Ross and the late Jimmy Hindman, Wayne Hunt, Frank Carver, Dale Strange, Macy Vass, me and others.

We discovered from researching letters and artifacts and old deeds in the courthouse, the three locations for General Jackson’s fort deposits.

He built the first one on the south side of the Tennessee River at Black’s Gap on the way down to Camp Cha-La-Kee. Then he needed one on the other side of the river, a blockhouse near Deposit Point adjacent to Goat Island. Then he decided to build a third one close to a spring for a water source. It’s on the John Ross property on the side of the road from the TVA property near Black’s Gap.

Evidently, these generals back then did not have a lot of imagination. If they had supplies there, they often named it Fort Deposit.

This was the War of 1812, but it was really a war within a war. In addition to fighting the English, in 1812 factions of the Creeks allied with the French and were also fighting the US.

It was 1813 when Jackson and his troops came marching through here to Horseshoe Bend. Jackson got the Cherokees to join him – they and the Creeks were natural enemies who’d been fighting each other a thousand years.

To keep supplies moving, we estimate that over 30 wagons passed along daily on the trace that Jackson built. He had 2,000 regular army troops plus volunteers, including Davy Crockett, Sam Houston … a lot of famous people traveled through Marshall County.

It’s an immense thing, not just for Marshall County. We’re encouraging other historical groups along the route to map out the entire way.

Etowah County Historic Society has picked up on what we are doing. We hope to erect historical markers along the trail, have it marked with signage. We are publishing a book of all our findings so people can buy it and know where the trace is. 4.. Besides this roundtable, you’re deeply involved in the Marshall County Archives and Guntersville Historical Society. Why is history interesting to you, and why do you think it should matter to others, be it local, national or world history?

Oh, gosh – I love it. And I love being with the guys who love history as much as I do. We found something that will become part of our history. I love the monuments and battlefields and hope that people can enjoy them and appreciate them on down the line. That’s why we want to preserve them.

I’m a huge fan of Winston Churchill, who said, “A nation that forgets its past has no future.”

I believe that. And our country seems to be doing just that – getting away from our roots, our constitution and religion. We are letting landmarks be destroyed and denigrated. I think these things ought to be there for enjoyment in the future.

That’s part of the reason I write history. In the first book I published, I did an immense amount of research on a small part of the Civil War – Guntersville and Marshall County. I felt I needed to get that published so people could read it and it would not be lost.

That old cliché, “You don’t know where you are going until you know where you’ve been”? A lot of government today seems to forget that. Most of the government officials I know of, I don’t think they’ve read a history book.

I think history is intertwined. Even local history. In the Battle of Red Hill here in Marshall County, Col. William Palmer led the federal troops in the fight against confederate Gen. Hylan Lyon. Prior to that, in 1863 Palmer was the head of escort for Gen. Rosecrans at Chickamauga. He was there, and later right here in Guntersville – one of the parties involved with the destruction of Guntersville.

Col. Montgomery Gilbreath was at the battle of Shiloh, and he lived here – the Gilbreath House – when the town was burned. You can’t know and appreciate the smaller part without knowing the bigger part and vice versa.

The preservation of history allows people to learn about their ancestors and pass it on to future generations. When we preserve landmarks, it’s because history provides insight that will help us understand where we are today – and where we are going. 5. What’s something most people don’t know about Dr. Pete Sparks?

I’m thoroughly and highly superstitious.

When I was practicing dentistry, I would not schedule patients on Friday the 13th.

If there is a coin lying on the ground and it’s not heads up, I won’t pick it up – heads up is good luck.

I will only play a golf ball that is numbered 1 or 2. I’ve always seemed to get better scores with a 1 and 2. So when I buy a sleeve of four balls, I take out the 3s and 4s and trade them. When I put a 3 down on the tee, I am thinking about the bad that can happen. If you golf, you have to have confidence.

Then there’s the totem pole in my backyard. My wife found that at an estate sale and bought it for me, and I jumped on it and restored it. I put it up here because a totem pole is supposed to drive out bad spirits. She probably doesn’t know that. She probably doesn’t know about my golf balls, but she knows I never worked on Friday 13th.

Another thing … I am a closet country music fan. If you ask any of my friends, they’d say I like more 60’s music, more modern music. But I listen to more country on my radio – somebody-donesomebody-wrong songs. I ride down the road listening to Jimmy Reeves, Eddie Arnold, Marty Robbins or Dolly Parton. I do love me some Willie Nelson.