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By Kris Harrell

This week in history, The Greenville Advocate ran headlines about new clubs, sports and businesses in the Butler County area. Additionally, stories of house fires are along the front page of the issue accompanied advertisements Alabama products — Coca-Cola and Red Diamond coffee — and movies showing at the Ritz Theatre.

Firemen brave freeze to save residence

On the morning of Feb. 5, Greenville’s Volunteer Fire Department extinguished a fire in the Cowart home on Bolling Street. The temperature outside was below freezing, and the article described water thrown to extinguish the flame formed into icicles on the edges of the house. 

The fire started in the kitchen and was stopped before it could spread to the main part of the residence. 

Baseball is assured for Greenville

Greenville Baseball Club President John Byrd announced that Greenville would have a baseball team in the 1947 Alabama State League.

The announcement came after the club raised money to reach their minimum goal, with funds contributed and pledged by fans. The donations were to purchase the necessary equipment and to take over the Greenville franchise. 

Greenville joined Enterprise, Andalusia, Geneva, Brewton, Troy, Dothan and Ozark to make up the eight teams of the league. 

Citizen clubs being organized

A group of 52 students in the Georgiana High School formed a Citizenship Club – the second such organization in Alabama. 

The goal of the Citizenship Club was to focus attention on the importance of community, state and national government, and to encourage the principles of good citizenship during high school. 

The officers of the Citizenship Club were Willaim B. Bryan as president, Joe Hendricks as vice-president, Ann Paulk as secretary and Jean Wyatt as treasurer. 

New businesses to open

A new bakery and a quick-freeze plant were about to open in the Feb 6, 1947 issue of Tthe Greenville Advocate. 

The bakery, Sally Ann Baking Company, was soon opened in the next few days by W.R. and W.K. Stephenson. The bakery would sell bread, cakes, pies and rolls to local retail grocery stores to be sold. 

The Greenville Packing Company’s quick-freeze plant was soon to be open for business, hoping to be ready for operation by March.