Bemis Historical Society will hold a regular monthly meeting on Tuesday, October 15, at 7:00 p.m. at the Bemis Mill Village Museum located at 2 North Missouri Street in Jackson, TN. The program will be presented by Kenneth Newman and Carolyn Malone.
Before We Were Yours is a fictionalized account of a young girl named Rill and her four siblings who lived on a shanty boat on the Mississippi River in 1939. After their mother was rushed to the hospital, the siblings were snatched by strangers who said they were there to care for the children until their parents were able to return. In reality, the strangers were emissaries from the Tennessee Children’s Home Society, which was operated by the infamous Georgia Tann of Memphis. The story tells of Rill’s efforts to keep her sisters and brother together in a world of danger and uncertainty.
In addition to the synopsis of the book and facts about Georgia Tann, Carolyn Malone, an adoptee of Georgia Tann, will tell her story of being placed in a loving home in Memphis, which will assure listeners that there were also happy endings to the Georgia Tann saga.
Kenneth Newman, who grew up in South Jackson, is a retired educator from the Jackson-Madison County School System. He currently is a Professor of Educational Leadership at Union University. Carolyn Malone, who grew up in Memphis, is a retired educator from the Jackson-Madison County School System.
The public is invited to attend the meeting. The museum is handicap accessible. Browse the museum to enjoy the artifacts and visit the gift shop. Annual membership dues are $25.