Abbeville veteran became
POW on Valentine’s Day ’43

February 17, 2005

By MEGAN VARNER
Index-Journal staff writer

Valentine’s Day holds a special place in many peoples’ hearts as a day to celebrate love and friendship.
But for Abbeville resident and World War II veteran John McMahan, Valentine’s Day is a special anniversary for a very different reason.
“It was on Valentine’s Day in 1943 that I became a guest of the German Army,” McMahan said, and he would remain a “guest” – otherwise known as a prisoner of war – with the German Army for more than two years.
McMahan, now 90, was born in Elbert County, Ga., in 1914. When he was just a year old, his parents, who had lived in South Carolina for years prior to his birth, returned to Nation Community, in the eastern part of the state.
As he was growing up, McMahan found work on his father’s farm, “doing whatever needed to be done,” he said. “I plowed, picked cotton, picked peas, chased cows – all of that.”
When he was 18, McMahan went to work at a Civilian Conservation Corps camp in Switzer, south of Spartanburg, making $25 a week in soil conservation and warehousing. After 18 months, McMahan, by then a mess sergeant, was transferred to a camp in Pennsylvania.
In 1936, after two years in the CCC, McMahan came home to South Carolina. But rather than return to farmhand work for his father, McMahan decided to join the U.S. Army.
“I had no idea that there was going to be a war when I joined,” McMahan said. “I was just getting off of the farm.”
After a quick stop at Ft. Bragg, N.C., McMahan was ordered to report to Ft. Clayton in the Panama Canal Zone. While stationed at Clayton, McMahan traveled to nearby Corozal where he trained to be a cook and baker for the Army.
When he returned to Ft. Bragg from duty in the Panama Canal in 1938, McMahan re-enlisted with the Army as part of the 1st Field Artillery Observation Battalion. By then, hostilities were escalating between European powers, and McMahan said the soldiers realized what was about to happen.
“We figured we were going to get involved in the war,” he said.
“Our duty was to locate enemy targets for the artillery.”
The soldiers trained with heavy observation equipment in Louisiana and Georgia for months before returning to Ft. Bragg, where he was stationed when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941.
“When that happened, the thing that crossed our minds first was that it was a horrible thing to happen to those boys over there,” he said. “The second thing was that we knew we were in the war now, and that all this training was going to turn serious – and it did.”
In 1942, McMahan and his comrades boarded trains to Pennsylvania. There, they were “re-outfitted from the skin out,” McMahan said, laughing. “They threw away everything we had and gave us new.”
After a train ride to New York, McMahan boarded an English passenger ship going to Perham Down, England.
Soldiers trained on English observation equipment, using microphones to capture sound from enemy artillery and determine its location. McMahan said he was not involved in active combat while in England, but in war, danger is never far away.
“The English towns were bombed and we observed some of that,” he said. “We were quartered in big tin buildings, and they had bullet holes in the walls and the windows had been shot out.”
In early 1943, McMahan headed to the northern African coast aboard his battalion’s equipment ship. While on board, McMahan worried about his and his fellow soldiers’ safety.
“We were on a freighter loaded with ammo, and I questioned one of the ship’s officers about why we didn’t have life jackets,” he said. “He said we didn’t need life jackets. The floor of the hull where we were sleeping was covered with ammo. He said that if we got into trouble with a torpedo, we wouldn’t need life jackets – we would need parachutes.”
In Africa, the troops reported to a bivouac area on the edge of the Sahara Desert, before going into position with Combat Command B in the battle zones between Faid Pass and Kasserine Pass in Tunisia.
On Feb. 14, 1943, before dawn, McMahan said the men became aware that something was terribly wrong.
“It was about four o’clock in the morning, and everybody was asleep except for some of us around the command post. We had sent a scouting team out in the vicinity of the pass, and they reported that there were about 30-40 tanks moving out of the pass. We became aware that we were under attack by a big force,” he said, adding that, at first, some of the men didn’t believe that German forces could be that strong in the area. “When daylight came, the scouting team’s report was verified. There was a (German tank) division coming out of the pass.”
McMahan said the attack was so swift the American men barely had time to react.
“They overran everything we had. You could look down the valley and count up our tanks from the columns of smoke rising. They had destroyed our tanks and whipped us thoroughly.”
McMahan said the troops who had avoided capture at the pass tried to flee back, but the unit had become disorganized.
“I was riding in a Jeep at the rear of the column (of soldiers), and we had pulled up beside of a pit in the village. When I looked up, it looked like a bomb was coming right at me, and we all dived into the pit,” he said. “I was the last one in, but when I got in, everyone was fighting to get out. We had jumped into one of the pits where the (villagers) dumped the remains of their latrines. I thought it was funny for me because I was on top.”
The soldiers climbed out of the pit and into the hands of the German troops, who were waiting in tanks just above the men.
“The tank commander pointed a pistol at me and informed me that, for me, the war was over,” McMahan said. “And that was the beginning of my free tour of Germany, Italy and Sicily, courtesy of the German army.”
The men arrived in Germany in the spring of 1943, and reported to Stalag VII A, in the southern part of the country. McMahan was soon elected by his fellow POWs to be a camp confidence man, a liaison between German authorities and the prisoners.
“The treatment wasn’t awful – they didn’t bother us. We did have lousy food,” he said. “My biggest problem was trying to get enough food, and trying to get our people to doctors.”
McMahan said the soldiers faced filthy living conditions, with as many as 400 men sharing two or three water spigots for eating, drinking and bathing.
Authorities at Stalag VII A grew tired of McMahan’s constant complaining about living conditions, and he was shipped to Stalag II B near the Polish border.
“When I got there, I was amazed. The GIs had an organization working with the Germans that was unbelievable,” he said. “They had it set up so that a few boys were working as chaplains and were allowed to visit the work detachments for spiritual work. They had convinced the Germans that this was needed to get the most out of the GIs.”
McMahan said American men were even working in the kitchen and at the Red Cross warehouses.
“There was no comparison between VII A and II B, but that doesn’t mean we didn’t run into tough times. They had some of our boys killed and shot down like dogs,” McMahan said. “But the set up of that POW camp beats anything that has ever been before or after. The boys accepted the fact that they were POWs. We knew who had the guns, and if we wanted to live to make it home, we had to do what they told us.”
After a month at II B, McMahan reported for duty on a German farm away from the prison. But when guards discovered that II B’s confidence man was a Jew, McMahan was asked to return to the prison to take over the position.
In January of 1945, as Allied forces began to pull ahead in the war, McMahan said the German troops at II B evacuated the camp. The POWs began a long journey across Germany.
“On the day President Roosevelt died, our boys were walking in columns on a road, and our air force flew over and strafed us,” he said, adding that the Americans must have thought the soldiers were German troops. “We were in a combat area, and we were a column of people marching, and who else could it be? They made one run and then pulled off – they must have recognized who we were.”
McMahan said the men scattered after the strafe, and two guards remained with his small group. The POWs convinced the guards to travel with the men to an area where American GIs were preparing to gain control.
“We hid in a barn until the GIs overran us,” he said. “We came out, and we were finally sent back home again.”
McMahan opted to remain in the Army until he retired in June of 1962. Although his experience was harrowing, he said he was able to live through his years as a POW by finding humor in life.
“I was able to laugh. That is the way we made it through it – to see the funny side of life. Some of those boys had treatment so bad that it was impossible for them to laugh, but I never had a day of that,” he said. “We had to laugh and know that the good Lord was watching over us.”

Vikings move on

February 17, 2005

By CHRIS TRAINOR
Special to The Index-Journal

The Emerald High School boys basketball team advanced to the second round of the Class AA playoffs by downing C.A. Johnson, 73-67, in front of a raucous near capacity crowd at Emerald High School on Wednesday night.
“It was a big game atmosphere,” Vikings coach Robin Scott said.
“It’s playoff time. Our guys have handled this before.”
The Vikings will face Broome in Saturday’s second round. Broome defeated West-Oak, 125-74, on Wednesday’s opening round.
Fred Johnson paced the Vikings, scoring a team-high 21 points.
Johnson scored 12 of his 21 points in the second half, coming up with big hoops at just the right times.
“Fred understands what he has to do. This is the fourth playoffs he has been in,” said Scott.
“Fred was huge when we needed him. When his shots aren’t falling, he recognizes it. Luckily tonight they were falling.”
The contest got off to a fast start. C.A. Johnson’s Eldrick Cherry hit five of his seven first quarter points in the opening moments, giving the Hornets an early 5-0 lead. Johnson hit two mid-range jumpers to get the Vikings on track in the first two minutes. The two teams resembled a track meet for the rest of the period, racing to a 16-16 tie at the end of the frame.
The Vikings opened up a lead in the second period. Dan Wideman of Emerald canned a long 3-pointer to put the Vikings up 21-16. On the next possession Wideman would get three points the hard way by hitting a lay-up as he was fouled and draining the subsequent free throw. Johnson’s coast-to-coast finger roll on the Vikings’ next possession capped a 10-0 scoring run for Emerald and put the Vikings on top 26-16.
The Hornets hit several free throws in the closing moments of the half, closing Emerald’s halftime lead to 32-24.
The Hornets cut the Vikings lead in half in the third period. The period was a fast paced and frenetic affair, in part due to full-court defensive pressure from C.A. Johnson.
Montae Thomas of C.A. Johnson hit three of his five 3-pointers in the period. The long range assault from Thomas, coupled with an explosive breakaway tomahawk dunk from Hornets forward Edward Aiken sent the large contingent of C.A. Johnson fans into a frenzy, and cut the Emerald lead to 50-46 heading into the final period.
In the opening moments of the fourth period Emerald senior D.L. Griffin reached a milestone in his career. The slashing forward hit a 15-foot jumper to reach 1,000 points for his high school career. Griffin finished the contest with 16 points.
“I’m proud of him,” said Scott of Griffin. “We really wanted to hit that mark at home.”
After a small break in the action to announce Griffin’s achievement, the two teams got back to their torrid pace. Midway through the period Johnson hit a slashing lay-up while being fouled, and his subsequent free throw put the Vikings on top 60-55.
Late in the period, the Hornets pulled to within two at 69-67, courtesy of a long-range bomb from Thomas. That was as close as C.A. Johnson would get, as Emerald hit key free throws down the stretch to ice the 73-67 win.
“We had a shoot-around on Sunday, and each guy probably shot 100 free throws. It paid off here,” said Scott.

Flashes set scoring record in victory

February 17, 2005

By RON COX
Index-Journal sports writer

CALHOUN FALLS — Not many opponents try to run with the Calhoun Falls boys basketball team.
Blacksburg found out why Wednesday night.
Behind double-digit scoring from their starting five, the Blue Flashes ran all over the Wildcats to the tune of a 116-84 blowout in the first round of the Class A playoffs at Calhoun Falls.
“We did a great job in transition. We work on that everyday at practice, and it worked out for us tonight,” Flashes coach John-Mark Scruggs said. “One advantage we do have is our speed. I don’t know how we kept going. I guess we’re in better shape than I thought we were.”
The Flashes advance to the second round where the team will play host at 7 Saturday night to the winner of Hunter-Kinard-Tyler/Buford game. The results of that game were not available at press time.
Monterrio Tatum led the Region I-A champion Flashes (16-3) with 25 points, while fellow-junior Theo Tillman had 20 points and 15 rebounds.
Senior Jarrell Dennis added 18 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists.
D.J. Roundtree, who scored 14 of his 16 in the second half, brought about the loudest ovation from the Calhoun Falls faithful. The junior forward took a pass from Detorrio Henderson, who scored 12 points, and dropped in a short turn-around jumper to give the Flashes 100 points.
The Calhoun Falls scoreboard, not having three digits for scoring, showed 0 to 72 with 4 minutes, 25 seconds remaining in the game. Scruggs sat his starters after the Roundtree bucket, and the Flashes’ bench continued to press on, scoring the team’s final 16 points to set a school-record 116 points.
“We wanted to run them up and down the court and make them tired,” Tillman said. “In their region, they mostly go half-court. In our region, we use the whole floor.”
The Wildcats were able to stay remotely close in the contest by knocking down shots from the outside. Blacksburg scored 33 of its 84 points on 3-pointers, including four 3s from point guard Bryson Smith.
“I didn’t intend for us to score 116 points, but the way they were shooting from the outside, we had to score as many as we could,” Scruggs said. “I felt a 20-point lead against this team wasn’t safe. The Wildcats opened the game by quickly grabbing a four-point advantage. After 92 seconds of play, Bruce Allen’s 17-footer put Blacksburg ahead 8-4.
But the Flashes stifling full-court press proved to be too much for the Wildcats. Calhoun Falls responded to the deficit with a 10-0 run.
Tillman scored on a fastbreak layup to start the run. The team followed with four straight steals, which led to four straight buckets to make it 14-8 with 5:25 left in the quarter.
The Flashes used a 13-3 run midway through the second quarter to push their lead to 51-27 with 3:18 left in the first half.
Calhoun Falls took a 57-39 advantage into the halftime break.

Opinion

Cabinet members must be in tune with the president

February 17, 2005

Heavens knows, where politics is concerned, surprises are few and far between ….. most of the time. That’s particularly pertinent for South Carolina, it seems, since politics is an ever-present factor in daily life ….. with one election coming on the heels of another election. Still, something occurs once in a while that defies the status quo. There are surprises.
Take the situation with new U. S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. When he was nominated for the cabinet job by President Bush he faced some tough questioning from Democratic senators before he was approved. In fact, the committee members voted strictly along party lines ….. Democrats against and Republicans for. It was the same for the entire Senate.

GONZALES IS NO STRANGER to Bush. The nation’s first Hispanic attorney general worked as chief lawyer for Bush when he was governor of Texas. When Bush was elected president he named Gonzales, who had also been on the Texas Supreme Court, as chief White House counsel.
So why, then, even in light of the grilling he took in the Senate hearings, should Gonzales try to distance himself from the president? That's what he’s doing, however. At a swearing-in ceremony, Gonzales remarked that critics have raised pertinent questions about whether he can distance himself from Bush. So, he declared his independence from the president.

THAT MAKES NO SENSE, political or otherwise. Nor should it. Why would any president appoint an attorney general who wants to be independent or have a different political philosophy? Cabinet members are, after all, there to support the president, not oppose him. They must feel free to speak freely, to be sure, but they also must be attuned to the president’s thinking.
The president and attorney general must be close. That’s why President John F. Kennedy appointed brother Bobby to be his attorney general. No one expected him to distance himself from the president. It would have been foolish to think otherwise. It is now.

Editorial expression in this feature represents our own views.
Opinions are limited to this page.

Obituaries

John Barksdale

WOODBRIDGE, Va. — John Barksdale, 34, of 14338 Madrigal Drive, husband of Angela Moore Barksdale, died Tuesday, Feb. 15, 2005 in Virginia.
Born in Laurens County, S.C., he was a son of Henry Jack Barksdale and Mary Laster Belcher. He served in the National Guard.
Survivors include his wife of New York; his father of Fayetteville, N.C.; his mother of Greenwood, S.C.; a son, Terrell Warner of Greenwood; two brothers, Henry Barksdale of Laurens and Travis Belcher of Greenwood; and a sister, Sheryl D. Laster of Greenwood.
The family is at the home of his mother, Mary L. Belcher, 615-B Trakas Ave., Greenwood.
Services will be announced by Robinson & Son Mortuary Inc., Greenwood.
Online condolences may be sent to the family at robson@emeraldis.com

Adrien Bonvouloir

Adrien St. Denis Bonvouloir of 104 Swing About, died Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2005.
Arrangements will be announced by the Cremation Society of S.C.

Mary R. Chumley

Mary Roberts Chumley, 88, widow of Fred C. Chumley, died Tuesday, Feb. 15, 2005 at Laurens County Hospital.
Born in Madison County, N.C., she was a daughter of the late James F. and Laura Beck Roberts. She retired from Greenwood Mills. She was a member of Rehoboth United Methodist Church and the United Methodist Women and attended Waterloo United Methodist Church.
Survivors include two daughters, Laura Fisher of Waterloo and Linda Richer of Hampstead, N.C.; a son, Laban Patrick Chumley of Palm Coast, Fla.; six grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.
Services are 11 a.m. Friday at Harley Funeral Home, conducted by the Rev. Todd Pickens. Burial is in Rehoboth United Methodist Church Cemetery.
Visitation is 6-8 tonight at the funeral home.
Harley Funeral Home is in charge.
Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.harleyfuneralhome.com

Nell Davenport

GREENWOOD – Onita “Nell” Weathers Davenport, 81, of 301 Oakwood Drive, widow of James William Davenport, died Tuesday, February 15, 2005 at NHC Healthcare Center.
Born in Simpsonville, she was a daughter of the late Clyde L. and Emmie Woods Weathers. She was retired from the Harris Post Office and was a member of Harris Baptist Church.
She was preceded in death by a daughter, Rhetta Etheridge and a great grandson, Trevor Davenport.
Surviving is a daughter Pam Latham of Greenwood; a son, Ted Davenport of Spartanburg; four sisters, Nira Griffen of Carrollton, GA, Barbara Shelton of Laurens, Sybil Godwin and Carrie Stephons, both Greenville: two brothers, Ansel Weathers of Lakeland, FL and Henry Weathers of Fountain Inn; 12 grandchildren and two great grandchildren.
Services will be at 2 p.m. Friday at the Harley Funeral Home Chapel with the Rev. Frank Thomas officiating. Burial will be in Greenwood Memorial Gardens.
Pallbearers will be grandsons: Garnett Latham, Scott. Latham, Eric Etheridge, Stacy Etheridge, Scott Wilton, Kevin Davenport and Josh Brown.
The family will receive friends at the funeral home on Thursday from 7 to 9 p.m.
The family is at the home.
Online condolences may be sent to the family by visiting www.harleyfuneralhome.com
PAID OBITUARY

John Finley

BROOKLYN, N.Y. — John Finley, 76, of Carlton Street, died Thursday, Feb. 10, 2005 at his home.
Born in Abbeville, S.C., he was a son of the late George and Cora Harris Finley. He worked with the U.S. Postal Service and was an Army veteran.
Survivors include his wife, Mildred Finley of Brooklyn; six sons, Alford Finley, John Finley Jr., Daniel Earl Finley, Robert Lee Finley, Cleve Finley and Terry Finley, all of Staten Island; a daughter, Desireé Finley of Staten Island; six brothers, Elijah Finley of Bridgeport, Conn., Elihue Finley, James Finley and Gary Finley, all of Due West, S.C., Earlie Finley of Abbeville and Joseph Finley of Iva, S.C.; two sisters, Minnie McAdams and Daisy Goodwin, both of Due West; seven grandchildren; and a great-grandchild.
Services are 3:30 p.m. Sunday at St. Peter A.M.E. Church, Abbeville, conducted by the Rev. Clinton Hall III. The body will be placed in the church at 2:30. Burial is in Calverton National Cemetery in New York.
The family is at the home of a sister Daisy Goodwin, 11 Carver St., Due West.
Richie Funeral Home, Abbeville, is in charge.

Floree Holden

EASLEY — Essie Floree Dodson Holden, 76, of 204 S. 8th St., wife of Edward W. Holden, died Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2005 at the Hospice House in Anderson.
Born in Pickens County, she was a daughter of the late Claude and Essie Pilgrim Dodson. She was a member of West End Baptist Church and retired from Gerber Industries.
Survivors include her husband of the home; a son, Olin Holden of Greenwood; two daughters, Mrs. Wade (Joyce) Simmons and Mrs. Bobby (Judy) Cassell, both of Easley; four brothers, Hovie Dodson, Coy Dodson, Robert G. Dodson and Keith Dodson; 15 grandchildren; 17 great-grandchildren; and a great-great-grandson.
Services are 2 p.m. Friday at Liberty Mortuary. Burial is in Hillcrest Memorial Park.
Visitation is 6-7:30 tonight at the mortuary.
The family is at the home of a daughter Judy Cassell, 201 S. 6th St.
Memorials may be made to Hospice of the Upstate, 1835 Rogers Road, Anderson, SC 29621.
Liberty Mortuary is in charge.
Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.libertymortuary.com

Claven B. Nicholson

Claven B. “CB” Nicholson, husband of Thelma Nicholson, died Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2005 at Self Regional Medical Center.
The family is at the home, 914 Taggart St.
Services will be announced by Parks Funeral Home.

Ellen Strickland

Ellen Jerlene Hall Strickland, 68, widow of John William Strickland, died Wednesday, Feb. 16, 2005 at Carolina Health & Rehab in Columbia.
Born in Hartwell, Ga., she was a daughter of the late Roy Hall Sr. and Beulah Craig Hall. She retired from Magnolia Manor and was of the Baptist faith.
Survivors include a daughter, Sandra Wilkerson of Columbia; a son, James E. Strickland of Greenwood; two sisters, Mildred McGarity of Royston, Ga., and Jean Salters of Americus, Ga.; a brother, Roy Hall Jr. of Cordell, Ga.; and five grandchildren.
Services are 2 p.m. Saturday at Harley Funeral Home, conducted by the Rev. Richard McWhite. Visitation is 1-2 Saturday at the funeral home.
The family is at the home of her son, James Strickland, 1218 Utopia Acres.
Memorials may be made to Alzheimer’s Association, P.O. Box 658, Greenwood, SC 29648.
Harley Funeral Home is in charge.
Online condolences may be sent to the family at www.harleyfuneralhome.com

Betty Strother

SEVERNA PARK, MD – Elizabeth Anne “Betty” Kennedy Strother, 79, resident of 203 Oak Avenue, widow of John C. Strother, died February 5, 2005 in Severna Park.
Born in Salley, SC, April 9, 1925, she was a daughter of the late Dr. George L. and Libby Tennent Kennedy. Her family later moved to Ninety Six where Dr. Kennedy was the town’s physician. Mrs. Strother attended Ninety Six High School and was a 1946 graduate of Winthrop College in Rock Hill, SC.
After her marriage in 1947, she and her husband, John Coleman Strother of Johnston, moved throughout the South for the next decade-and-half, as Mr. Strother pursued his career in textile management. In 1961, the family, including sons. John, Jr. and Russell, relocated to Broadway, VA where they remained until 1990. Mrs. Strother taught for 28 years at Broadway High School and served as head of the school’s business curriculum. In addition to helping students learn business skills, she found employment for scores of her pupils, their first job for many of them. She was active in Broadway Presbyterian Church and was an avid bridge player. After moving back to South Carolina, in her later years, she served as secretary-treasurer of Ninety Six First Presbyterian Church and continued to enjoy family and old and new friends, joining bridge, book, and garden clubs.
Surviving are her two sons, John Coleman Strother, Jr. of Hilton Head Island, SC and Navy Captain Russell T. Strother and his wife, Beth of Severna Park, Maryland and their children, Laura, Dylan and Mark; a sister, Becky and husband, William A. “Bill” McDaniel of Ninety Six; a brother, Dr. Edward Kennedy and wife, Maureen of Anderson, SC; also a sister-in-law, Mrs. George L. ‘’Lizelle” Kennedy, Jr. of Ninety Six, SC.
Memorial services will be conducted at 11AM Saturday, February 19, 2005 at the Ninety Six First Presbyterian Church with Rev. Rodney Foster officiating.
Burial will be in the church cemetery.
The family will receive friends in the church social hall immediately following the service.
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Ninety Six First Presbyterian Church, 120 Cambridge Street N., Ninety Six, SC 29666.
For additional information please visit www.blythfuneralhome.com
BLYTH FUNERAL HOME, GREENWOOD IS ASSISTING THE STROTHER FAMILY.
PAID OBITUARY