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Cemeteries as we know them today came about in the 1830’s.  Prior to that, the dead were typically buried in churchyards and backyards.  But with this change, the often elaborate planning of cemeteries resembled park settings, where people went to picnic, hunt, have races…and commune with the dead.  Cemeteries were filled with benches and in the absence of museums and galleries and botanical gardens, featured beautiful sculptures and horticultural art.  Yet during times of pandemic, cemeteries were places where disease and its victims gathered…kept separate from living spaces.  These dichotomies both drew people to cemeteries and pushed them away.  Join Tom Price and Jo Ann McClellan as they interview Graham Perry, Historic Preservation Specialist with the Tennessee Historical Commission.

Born and raised in Mt. Pleasant, Spence Armstrong went on to a stellar military career which began at the United States Naval Academy, before transferring to the Air Force to become a pilot.  While serving, he became an aerospace engineer and test pilot, flying many different aircraft.  By the time the Vietnam War started, Armstrong was a veteran pilot with 11 years flight experience.  As a major, he flew 102 combat missions in F-105 Thunderchiefs in Southeast Asia in 1967-1968.  Moving up the ranks, his commands took him around the world and across the United States and even to the stars, having served as deputy director of space systems and command, control, and communications at NASA.  He retired from the Airforce as a Lieutenant General in 1990.  General Armstrong spent eleven more years as a senior executive at NASA leading the agency's human resources efforts and programs with academia.  Join History’s Hook host, Tom Price as he interviews Maury County’s highest ranking military officer.

What does it feel like to be in control of enough firepower to obliterate a continent? Join host Tom Price as he interviews former ballistic missile sub commander Ronald Ladd.After growing up on a farm in rural Maury County, TN, Ron Ladd attended Rice University for math and engineering on a Navy ROTC scholarship. Following his graduation, he was commissioned as an officer in the navy, where after working for the “Father of the Nuclear Navy,” Admiral Hyman Rickover, he joined the submarine service. He deployed aboard the attack submarines USS PUFFER (SSN-652) and USS SEAHORSE (SSN-669). After six years on attack subs, he became the executive officer aboard the ballistic missile sub, USS FRANCIS SCOTT KEY (SSBN-657) before taking command of USS JOHN C. CALHOUN (SSBN-630). After retiring from the navy, Cmdr. Ladd joined Raytheon Corporation, working on multi-branch detection systems. After 21 years with Ratheon, he retired back to his family farm in Maury County, Tennessee. Join host Tom Price, as he speaks with Mr. Ladd about his navy days.

On this episode, we continue our look at the extraordinary life of a man who has found great success as a career military man. Major General William Hickman spent 36 years serving his country. Born and raised in Maury County, Gen. Hickman attended local schools before attending Vanderbilt University. As an ROTC student there, upon graduation, he was commissioned into the army as a 2nd lieutenant in 1983. Over the next three decades, he rose through the ranks holding various field and staff commands including company, battalion, and brigade commands with the 101st Airborne Division. Between 2003-2008, Gen. Hickman served three tours of duty in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Serving in over 30 countries, he joined the Central Command Staff as military assistant to General David Patraeus. He became commanding general of the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, Louisiana, Deputy Commander for the U.S. Army in the Middle East, and finally, Deputy Chief of Staff, Strategic Plans and Policy, NATO’s Allied Command Transformation. Retiring from the military in 2019 as a major general, Gen. Hickman is now senior advisor at Compass Executives Group, assisting businesses in crisis management, strategic planning and decision-making, coaching and leader development, and supply chain management. Tom Price and Dr. Barry Gidcomb lead the discussion.

On this episode, we look at the extraordinary life of a man who has found great success as a career military man. Major General William Hickman spent 36 years serving his country. Born and raised in Maury County, Gen. Hickman attended local schools before attending Vanderbilt University. As an ROTC student there, upon graduation, he was commissioned into the army as a 2nd lieutenant in 1983. Over the next three decades, he rose through the ranks holding various field and staff commands including company, battalion, and brigade commands with the 101st Airborne Division. Between 2003-2008, Gen. Hickman served three tours of duty in Iraq during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Serving in over 30 countries, he joined the Central Command Staff as military assistant to General David Patraeus. He became commanding general of the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, Louisiana, Deputy Commander for the U.S. Army in the Middle East, and finally, Deputy Chief of Staff, Strategic Plans and Policy, NATO’s Allied Command Transformation. Retiring from the military in 2019 as a major general, Gen. Hickman is now senior advisor at Compass Executives Group, assisting businesses in crisis management, strategic planning and decision-making, coaching and leader development, and supply chain management. Tom Price and Dr. Barry Gidcomb lead the discussion.

Centenarian Cecil Whiteside, WWII Naval VeteranMr. Cecil Whiteside has spent most of his life in Hampshire, Tennessee with the exception of the years 1942-1945, when he was a member of the Navy Armed Guards, protecting cargo ships as they transported men and materiel all over the world.  Join Tom and Dr. Gidcomb as they speak to Mr. Whiteside and his son Jeff, who has documented the life of a remarkable Tennessean.

In the summer of 1977, forty-two people perished in the worst jail fire in Tennessee’s history. The tragedy garnered national news attention and led to many new laws pertaining to jail safety. Author Cindy Tinsley talks about the tragedy, heroism, and how her research culminated in a book, “Tragedy in Small Town Tennessee.”

He wasn’t born near the sea.  He didn’t attend the United States Naval Academy, yet Rear Admiral Stephen Barnett has had a stellar naval career.  From piloting P-3’s during Operation Iraqi Freedom, he held several staff positions before taking command of several Navy Regions.  Now in charge of thousands of sailors and trillions of dollars in naval assets, he commands Navy Region Hawaii.  Join Tom Price and Jo Ann McClellan as they learn lessons in leadership from Columbia, Tennessee’s own Admiral Stephen Barnett.

History’s Hook hosts Tom Price and Jo Ann McClellan discuss the lives of several African-Americans who started life in Maury County, Tennessee and went on to national acclaim in various pursuits. Included are the stories of renowned chef to the rich and famous, Rufus Estes; Moses McKissack, a brick maker whose descendants include some of the most highly sought-after architects in the world; and Rev. Edmond Kelley, an enslaved man who was able to obtain his own freedom, then that of his wife and children by becoming one of the most influential preachers in the North, all prior to the Civil War.

Commander Matthew Fontaine Maury, although raised in Tennessee in the early 19th century, had a calling for the sea. His scientific approach to the navy led to him earning the nicknames “Pathfinder of the Seas” and the “Father of Oceanography.” Learn all about this important American from an expert, Mr. Russell Hooper, the collector of the Pathfinder Papers.

Elias Polk was born into slavery North Carolina, but grew up in Tennessee.  The majority of his life was spent serving James K. Polk who would eventually become the 11th President.  His life, however, spanned some eighty years, through emancipation, where Elias became politically active in Tennessee.  Join Tom, Barry, and Jo Ann and listen to Elias’ story as told by author and historian Zacharie Kinslow.

Baseball is the quintessential American sport.  Its long history dates back to the mid-19th century.  But the sport has had a fractious history when it came to race relations.  Despite quite a large number of African Americans playing in various leagues along-side white players in the early years of the sport, by the turn of the 20th century, complete segregation took hold.  A number of quote, Negro leagues were formed to allow for African Americans to play the sport, but various factors caused most of them to fail.  Players faced serious discrimination and some stadiums refused to let black teams play at their facilities.It all changed in 1920, when Rube Foster launched the Negro National League. Reformulated several times with new leagues and owners, Negro League baseball enjoyed periods of success in the early 1920s and again after the Great Depression. However, Jackie Robinson’s integration of baseball in 1947 prompted a slow but irreversible influx of talent to the major leagues, and the remaining Negro League teams mostly folded by the 1960s.  Middle Tennessee fielded a number of great African American baseball players and Nashville hosted several Negro League teams.  Including the Villians, the Black Vols, the Elite Giants, and the Stars.On December 16, 2020, Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred declared that the seven historic Negro leagues would be recognized as official major leagues, with their players' records and statistics counted in baseball’s record books.Hosts Tom Price and Jo Ann McClellan speak to author Dr. Harriet Kimbro-Hamilton, author of several books and articles on women’s sports and Negro League baseball including “Daddy’s Scrapbook: Henry Kimbro of the Negro Baseball League, A Daughter’s Perspective,” which she published in 2015.  In 2017, Dr. Kimbro-Hamilton was inducted into the Fisk University Sports Hall of Fame.

February 25, 1946 was a pivotal day in the history of the country, but no one knew it at the time. Gladys Stephenson and her son James had a disagreement with a local store over their treatment, and an altercation ensued that sparked a serious racial conflict in a community that had a history of strained race relations. The governor called out the National Guard, blood was shed, and people died. More than 100 African Americans were jailed. The subsequent court case featured some of the finest trial lawyers in the country. The incident, remembered as the Columbia Race Riot, was the first such event following World War 2, and marked the first step in the American Civil Rights Movement. Hosts Tom Price and Jo Ann McClellan are joined by historian Dr. Gail O’Brien, author of the book The Color of the Law which talks about his pivotal event in American History.

February 25, 1946 was a pivotal day in the history of the country, but no one knew it at the time.  Gladys Stephenson and her son James had a disagreement with a local store over their treatment, and an altercation ensued that sparked a serious racial conflict in a community that had a history of strained race relations.  The governor called out the National Guard, blood was shed, and people died.  More than 100 African Americans were jailed.  The subsequent court case featured some of the finest trial lawyers in the country.  The incident, remembered as the Columbia Race Riot, was the first such event following World War 2, and marked the first step in the American Civil Rights Movement.  Hosts Tom Price and Jo Ann McClellan are joined by historian Dr. Gail O’Brien, author of the book The Color of the Law which talks about his pivotal event in American History.