Alene Garland Colson -- The Tragic Colson Family

 

 

Alene Garland was born on July 30, 1918, in Trigg County, Kentucky, the first of nine children of John Doyle Garland and Drucilla Hargrove.  Alene married Frank Colson who was 28 years her senior. Frank had previously been married to Alice Garner who had died in 1936 at the age of 35.

Alene and Frank settled in Golden Pond, Kentucky, in the land between the rivers area of Trigg County. They were the parents of twelve children during their marriage.  Their lives came to an end in 1962 as a result of a tragic “murder-suicide” event.

On the morning of April 17, 1962, Frank Colson, who was 70 years old at the time, went to his neighbor’s house and asked to borrow his shotgun.  Colson told the neighbor that he had heard some wild turkeys near his home and wanted to shoot them.  Colson then returned to his own home and parked his car some 200 yards from the house.  He then walked to the house with the shotgun and went around to the back door of the home. He apparently knocked on the back door and Mrs. Colson came to the door and opened it.  Colson then shot his wife after she opened the door.  His 13 year-old son, Stevie Colson who was evidently standing near his mother ran through the house and out the front door. Colson followed his son into a nearby field and shot at him but did not hit him.  Mrs. Colson, by that time, had made her way through the house and out the front door.  She fell in the yard and died about 15 feet from the front porch.  Colson, after firing at his son, put the barrel gun against his forehead and pulled the trigger.  He was found dead about 20 feet from the back door. Mrs. Colson had been shot in the left side just below her heart and the blast had also severely damaged her left arm.  Three other small children who were at home when the shooting occurred wee in another part to the house and did not see the slayings.

The double slaying was not the only tragedy that the Colson family had faced within the previous 20 months. On September 11, 1960, the Colson’s son, Bobby James Colson, 16, was killed in an automobile accident.  He was a passenger in a car driven by his 22 year old brother that careened off a road about two miles north of Golden Pond, Kentucky and crashed head on into a tree.  The young Colson was pronounced dead on arrival Trigg County Hospital in Cadiz, Kentucky.  His brother survived the crash and was admitted to the hospital with multiple facial lacerations.

Another son, 22 year old Riley Bill Colson died on December 21, 1961 as a result of a drowning in four inches of water just a few yards from his home as a result of a freak accident.  Riley was one of three youths in a 1949 car when a tire went flat while crossing a narrow creek.  The boys remained in the car for some time before Riley started walking down the creek bed toward his home. He fell face forward into the shallow water of the creek and drowned.  Apparently carbon monoxide had been filtering into the car and the youth, dazed by the poison was unable to lift himself from the water.  The body was discovered the next morning by his 9 year old brother who was enroute to school.  The other two boys were still inside the car and were taken to the Trigg County Hospital in serious condition from carbon monoxide poisoning and fortunately survived.

Years later, the Colson’s oldest child, Benjamin Franklin “Frankie” Colson died on August 9, 1985 after he was wounded in a shooting incident near Aurora, Kentucky.  Frankie was the father of two sons.

Tombstone of Alene Colson

LINEAGE:  (Alene Garland Colson was the daughter of John Doyle and Drucilla Hargrove Garland, the granddaughter of James Ouford and Virginia Marquess Hargrove, great-granddaughter of Francis Marion and Mary J. Thomas Marquess and the great-great-granddaughter of Peyton and Sarah L. Ethridge Thomas.  Peyton was the third child of Cullen and Elizabeth Futrell Thomas.  Cullen was the first child of James and Mary Standley Thomas.)

John Trice Bridges -- Surveyor, and a host of other talents

 

John Trice Bridges was born on February 15, 1874 in the Maple Grove Community of Trigg County, Kentucky.  He was the sixth child of Cullen T.  and Virginia Thomas Bridges.

On July 31, 1898, he married Maggie Dora Cunningham. The Trigg County Historical Clippings, Volume 3 contains the following description of their wedding:

July 1898                       
Will Marry Sunday                       

A marriage license was issued yesterday afternoon to Mr. John T. Bridges and Miss Maggie D. Cunningham, and the wedding will take place next Sunday afternoon at four o clock at the home of the bride’s father, Mr. E. A. Cunningham, in Canton district. Rev. George E. Atwood will perform the ceremony. George Mitchell and Miss Jennie Cunningham, Neely Bridges and Miss Ora Bridges will be the attendants. The bride is a beautiful young lady of nineteen summers. The groom is a clever young farmer and the third son of Mr. C. T. Bridges.

John and Maggie had eleven children, Lillie Jane Bridges, born in 1899; Lucy Lee Bridges, born in 1900; Lola Frances “Fanny” Bridges, born in 1902; Dora Virginia Bridges, born in 1903; John Carl Bridges, born in 1904; Mary Pauline Bridges, born 1908; Queen Alexander Bridges, born in 1909; Hilda Agnes Bridges, born 1910; Beulah Louise Bridges, born in 1913; Clifford Elmo “Pete” Bridges, born in 1917 and Dorothy Allene Bridges, born in 1920.

During his life he worked at many different jobs among them contracting, surveying and farming.  As a carpenter, he built many houses, barns and other buildings in various section of the county.  He was most noted as a surveyor and was responsible for surveying practically all of Trigg County.  Almost all deeds filed for that period included his name. He served in the elected position of “County Surveyor” for Trigg County for many years. While carrying out his jobs as a carpenter and surveyor, he also maintained a farm at his home. In addition, he served one term as a Trigg County magistrate for his home district. Upon his retirement from the surveying business, his son-in-law, Preston Thomas took over his business and became the eminent surveyor of his day.

Among John’s other activities was being a member of the Bridges Family Band, which was made up of family members that lived in the Maple Grove Community,  In addition, he worked with the Bridges Brothers Nursery which supplied the community and the surrounding counties with all varieties of fruit trees, vines, shrubs and roses.  He built one of the first radios that required ear phones for listening.  He built a rural telephone system.  He and his wife Maggie operated the telephone switchboard that connected citizens from Linton, Kentucky to Cadiz, Kentucky. He also served as a foreman of the W. P. A., a project President Roosevelt introduced during the depression to give jobs to many.

In the early 1900’s, John built his own house in the Maple Grove Community, but unfortunately it was destroyed by fire in 1916.  He then replaced it with a concrete block house.  The blocks were made by hand in a block machine.  The sturdy house still stands today and is occupied by his granddaughter’s family.

John died on July 29, 1944 at the Futrell Clinic in Cadiz, after an illness of about three weeks due to complications from heart trouble.  He was 70 years, 5 months and 14 days old.  He was buried in the Drury Bridges Cemetery, the family cemetery in Maple Grove, just down the road from his home.  His wife, Maggie, died on February 11, 1975 and was buried beside him.

The Bridges Family Band of which John Trice was a member

 

Tombstone of John and Maggie Bridges

LINEAGE: (John Trice Bridges was the son of Cullen T. and Virginia Thomas Bridges.  Cullen was the twelfth child of William Bridges and Mary Thomas Bridges. William was the fourth child of Drury and Charity Cohoon Bridges.  Mary Thomas was the fifth child of James and Mary Standley Thomas.)

James O. "John" Clayton -- Musician and Artist

 

James O, “John” Clayton was born on September 10, 1929 in Caldwell County, Kentucky, the son of the late Robert Leonard Clayton and Frances Pearl Bridges Clayton.  He graduated from Butler High School in Princeton, Kentucky in 1947 and then went on to attend Western State College (now Western Kentucky University) in Bowling Green, Kentucky.

He entered the US Army and served as a 1st Lieutenant in the Korean War in 1952 and 1953 where he was awarded the Bronze Star medal.  Following his military service, John attended the University of Kentucky where he graduated in 1954 with degrees in art and music.

On January 28, 1956, John married Sally Jo Patton the daughter of William and Jean Patton from Louisa, Kentucky.  On May 14, 1968, their only child, a son, John Bridges Clayton was born. John and Sally were divorced and he subsequently married Carolyn Steere.

For several years John taught art and music in the Franklin County, Kentucky schools.  He then left the teaching profession and went on to sell insurance and real estate before settling into the textbook publishing business where he worked for 34 years.

Even though John had left the profession of teaching music, his love of music never waned.  He remained actively involved in music up to his death.  He played trombone with the Lexington Symphony Orchestra as well as many musical ensembles. He was director of the Frankfort Community Chorus, Shelby County Bicentennial Chorus, Franklin County High School Acapella Choir, Frankfort Drum and Bugle Corps, Frankfort First Presbyterian Church, Shelbyville First Presbyterian Church and Full Circle Singers. 

In addition to his musical abilities, John was an accomplished painter.  Among his many awards was winning the Purchase Prize at the Kentucky State Fair in 2007 and 2012, the Best in Show for the Louisville Women’s Club exhibit, first place in a Kentucky-Indiana Pastel Society show, first place in a Mammoth Cave Regional Art Show, and second place in the VA’s National Combat Veteran’s competition. As a supporter of community art, John was president of the Kentucky –Indiana Pastel Society, co-founder of the Shelby Artists on Main in Shelbyville, Kentucky, and was one of the founders of Paul Sawyier Galleries in Frankfort, Kentucky.

John was involved in several civic organizations including serving as  President of the Frankfort Jaycees, state vice president, national director and member of Rotary Club in multiple cities, President of the Kentucky Educational Publishers, and a member of Shelby County UK Alumni Club, and two terms on the University of Kentucky National Alumni Board.

James “John” Clayton died on July 16, 2017 in Shelbyville, Kentucky.  He was buried in the Cedar Hill Cemetery in Princeton, Kentucky.

Tombstone for James O. Clayton

LINEAGE: (James O, Clayton was the son of Robert Leonard and Frances Pearl Bridges Clayton, the grandson of Cornelius Neal and Emma Jean Sons Bridges, the great-grandson of William Joseph and Sarah Wills Bridges.  William Joseph was the first child of Simco N. and Emeline Martin Bridges.  Simco was the third child of William and Mary Thomas Bridges. William was the fourth child of Drury and Charity Cohoon Bridges.  Mary Thomas was the fifth child of James and Mary Standley Thomas.)

Larry Marthaler -- Florida Tourism Leader

 

Larry Jacob Marthaler was born on February. 1, 1935, in Chicago, Illinois, the son of the former Marguerite Leona Quintez and Alfred Jacob Marthaler. He graduated from the University of Illinois in 1957.  The following year he joined Pan American Airways.  During the following sixteen years, he was stationed in New York, Denver, Miami, Chicago, South Vietnam and Atlanta as an employee of the airlines.

On August 23, 1975, he married Mary Jean Bridges of Cadiz, Kentucky, and the couple moved to Longboat Key, Florida. Larry then worked for Florida Airlines from 1975 to 1982.  In 1982, Larry joined the Greater Sarasota Chamber of Commerce as head of the tourism association.  Under his leadership, the county’s tourism agency separated from the chamber to become the Greater Sarasota Tourism Association and he became the executive director of the organization until 1998. The organization eventually became the Sarasota Convention and Visitors Bureau.

On Oct. 17, 1983, a drawbridge between Longboat Key and Sarasota became stuck in an open position. Suddenly, drivers who used the bridge for a 10- to 12-minute drive had to travel for more than an hour on a detour road to reach their destination. Larry, who made the drive twice daily, said to himself, "There has got to be a better way."  Within 48 hours, Marthaler had worked out a plan to ferry passengers between Longboat Key and the mainland, with buses carrying passengers to their destination.

Suddenly, frustrated commuters were starting their days with a cup of coffee on board the Le Barge and ending it with a beer while heading home. Within a few days, live music was added to the boat.  "It was a nice little party on the boat," Marthaler told the Longboat Observer in 2008. "There was a common inconvenience."  The ferry logged as many as 5,000 passengers per day

The bridge reopened exactly two weeks after it became stuck with its north and south spans welded together. Nearly one year later, Marthaler received the Golden Gavel Award for "Outstanding Community Service" in recognition of his novel solution.

Marthaler founded the St. Armands Circle Circus Ring of Fame in 1986 as a way to highlight Sarasota’s unique ties to the circus industry. The Ring of Fame currently honors 125 individuals and groups for their contributions to the circus and inducts new members each year. A plaque honoring Marthaler’s contribution was added to the display in 2014.

He spent his 16 years as SCVB director working tirelessly to promote Sarasota County as a world-class tourist destination. Marthaler led a successful campaign that persuaded voters to pass a tourist development tax in 1988, after the measure failed twice. In 2015, the tourist development funds generated more than $19 million for beach renovation, arts and cultural activities and tourism promotion.

Larry died on March 29, 206 in Nashville, Tennessee where he had moved to be closer to his wife’s family.

LINEAGE:  (Larry Marthaler was the husband of Mary Jean Bridges.  Mary is the daughter of John Thomas and Mary Henrietta Sumner Bridges, granddaughter of Drew Manley and Lena Mae Guier Bridges and great-granddaughter of Starkie T. and Elizabeth Lawrence Bridges.  Starkie was the second child of William and Mary Thomas Bridges.  William was the fourth child of Drury and Charity Cohoon Bridges.  Mary was the fifth child of James and Mary Standley Thomas.)