Every little town across the United States has its own unique, and often surprising, history. The little town I called home as a kid never seemed like much of a happening place, but quiet little Toccoa, Georgia was the birthplace of
Paul Anderson (an Olympic powerlifter during the 1950’s), the home to
James Brown the King of Soul (He was actually a janitor at the local high school before he was the King of Soul), the residence of
Doc Tommy Scott owner of the last old-timey medicine show and the last living member of the original Grand Ole’ Opry.
I think the greatest contribution that Toccoa made to American history came from a place under the unassuming name, Camp Toccoa. It was at Camp Toccoa, in World War II, that the very first Army paratroopers learned how to jump out of airplanes and go fight for freedom.
The funny thing is that this huge piece of history was ignored until a guy named Tom Hanks decided to make an HBO movie series called Band of Brothers.
Surprising history goes beyond just a town. Most families have some sort of surprising history. I’ll even say that most lives have some sort of surprising history when you learned that you have more strength than you ever thought you could have.
What’s the surprising history in your town? What’s the surprising history in your family? What’s the surprising history in your life?
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