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[music] -They are preserving the past while celebrating the rich history of one of Jackson's most iconic communities.

Hello, I'm Tom Britt.

On this edition of Tennessee Is Talking, the topic is the Bemis .. From its roots as a small mill town to its lasting cultural impact, we'll explore how this dedicated group is preserving history and sharing the spirit of Bemis with the world.

Let the conversation begin.

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Stand by, camera 2.

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Standby, announcer, in 3, 2-- -West Tennessee PBS presents Tennessee Is Talking.

Let the conversation begin.

-Thanks for joining the discussion here on Tennessee is Talking.

Hello, I'm Tom Britt.

The Bemis Historical Society is a group dedicated to keeping the rich story of Bemis alive and ensuring its legacy is not lost to time.

Here to tell us more is the chairman of the board of directors, Joel Jackson.

Joel, thanks for joining us today.

Tell us about how the Bemis Historical Society got started, how it began.

-Well, it's rather unique.

It was over coffee.

-We were having coffee-- -As many things.

[laughs] -Anything can happen over coffee.

-Yes.

We were having coffee, or they were having coffee at Kroger South, and I was working in the meat department at Kroger South back in 1997.

They kept talking about Bemis, and I take my break so I would get in on it and go up and sit and talk.

It was about five or six guys from Bemis there, and they was always telling stories of this happened at Halloween, this happened on Saturday.

-This happened at the mill or whatever.

-It went on, and finally somebody said, "We need a place where we can just do this all the time."

Somebody said, "Let's start a historical society."

They said, "You're in charge."

They pointed to me.

I said, "Well, where are we going to meet?

We don't have a place to meet."

I thought of the Methodist Church, they would have a place.

We met at the Methodist Church for a number of years.

It developed as a society.

1998, we actually formed the society and elected officers.

That was about a three-month spread there and we got started.

-Tell us about the role that the Bemis Historical Society has in preserving Bemis and the history and the people that were there.

-We could not preserve it if a unique thing hadn't happened.

There was a warehouse in Bemis which was a former theater.

It was the warehouse of the storm door and window place.

It was just full of all kind of junk.

He decided they wanted to get rid of all that junk.

-Just sitting there, right?

-Yes, he couldn't get rid of it, so he just junke.. and sold it as aluminum and made a few bucks and said, "This place is for sale.

Who wants it?"

We said we'll take it.

-A historical building there too.

What are some of the most significant historical events or figures associated with the Bemis area that the society focuses on and preserves?

Of course, the mill comes without doubt.

-Everybody and the mill- -Had it not been for the mill, -there wouldn't have been a Bemis, right?

-Probably.

It was everybody that was a big shot in Bemis became famous.

We like to highlight the guys who were in charge of the mill and so that was our focus when we first started.

Remember when and what all he did to help make the people happy.

Actually, I don't think that's a requirement today to make the people happy, but it was at Bemis.

They wanted them to stay because it was a hard job getting them trained and you don't want to lose a trained employee.

-That's for sure.

How does the Bemis Historical Society engage with the .. in Jackson to promote the awareness of that area there?

-We're like everybody else.

We're highly reliant upon the internet.

We have about four different ways of finding you or you finding us on the internet.

The best way, so you can just remember it, is bemishistory.org.

If you start there, you get all kinds of links.

You can link to the Facebook, you can link to our history, the story of Bemis is written out and all about it, charter members, pictures, artifacts that are in the museum which is too numerous to mention.

We probably have over 3,000 artifacts and a couple of thousand photographs.

It's just mind-boggling.

When somebody comes in for a tour, I always say, "Do you want the 30-minute tour or the 8-hour tour?"

We preserve everything.

-it's housed inside of the building you were talking about earlier, the old theater building which became as a warehouse and now it's a museum.

-it took a lot of money.

$650,000 later.

Wow.

That's for sure.

I've been there and I was wild when I went through there and saw all the things that you had from a cotton sack- -Everything has a story.

-to the mill doctor's tools and his little black bag.

It was amazing.

People don't realize, I guess it.. one of the first steps of the Jackson area getting away from an agrarian society to people working in an actual plant.

The mill opened around the turn of the century, -1900 or so.

-1900.

Oh, well, that's when they turned the first shovel.

-When they started it anyway.

-It's 1900.

It was June before the mill started of the next year.

That was good to build a mill and at the same time, we were building the mill, they were building housing for the workers.

Different crews they get-- I wonder how many people were- -Worked down there, right.

-involved getting that thing going.

-People still live in some of those homes today and really made them look really nice.

-They're solid.

-Then you could just walk down the road and get a drink out of the artesian well, if you want.

-There was about four artesian wells in Bemis just for the convenience of the people walking around.

-Very nice there.

I guess too it's one of the first times in Jackson that a plant came and they built actual housing for the workers.

-That's rare.

-Was rare back then at the turn of the century and that sort of thing.

-I think cotton mills were about the only thing that did that at that time.

Later on, though, Alcoa aluminum did it years later.

-Much later but still standing down there.

What's your role with the Bemis Historical Society?

-I'm chairman.

-You get to do a little bit of everything.

-I open the door.

Sweep the floor.

-That's for sure.

That was the next question.

How do you care and manage all those artifacts?

It's got to be hard to just catalog and know what you have and what you don't.

-Like I said, we've been in business for 25 years.

As the people bring them in, we had a system that we borrowed from somebody that they wanted us to buy, but we didn't buy it, but we did notice how they did it.

[laughs] -Had the idea.

-We took their system and the first, say you bring something in, we'll put a white piece of paint on it.

Then let it dry.

On that we will write the year 2025 dot.

If that was the 3rd person of that year, we would put 003, 3rd person of 25 donation.

Then another dot and the first item they donate is 0001.

Everything has a unique number, and you know when it was donated, and it's on the product.

-You keep the record-- -Then we've got a paper record of that.

-That's interesting.

Can you walk us through a typical event, say like the Heritage Day that the Bemis Historical Society organizes and puts on?

-It actually starts the year before.

I write down the things that we need to remember.

That's not common.

Then in January, I set up and book the tent because you never know when they're going to have a wedding about that time and somebody wants a big tent, and there's a limited number of tents in Jackson.

I go January the 2nd.

They're closed on the 1st so I go on the 2nd and book the tent.

Then we start, maybe the next month we book the barbecue.

We always have barbecue because that's traditional.

-That sounds-- -That's February.

Then about March, we start contactin.. that are going to donate other things that are going to be eaten that day.

It's basically the same group every year, but we don't want them to know ahead of time.

By April, we're down to the nitty gritty.

Everything is pretty well lined out.

It's basically the same thing every year, but you got to contact everybody -every year.

-Line them up, make sure.

Sometimes you have music too, don't you?

-Things like that.

-We have.

-In the past-- -At first we had two days, then we'd have music on Friday night.

Then we had WS Holland.

WS is no longer around.

-He was-- -We lost out there.

Then we started trying to get other people and they had other obligations.

Finally, we quit Friday night because it was-- Some people would come on Friday night, some would come on Saturday.

We figured if we do it just on Saturday, -they would come just on Saturday- -Everybody would come.

-and save us half the work.

-Sure.

For the same thing too.

Does the society collaborate with local schools, libraries, -and other education institutions to--?

-Well, yes.

We were big with the Union University library back in the early 2000.

They did a research project on Bemis.

We got pretty close to that program union and opened a museum up, or at that time, there wasn't much of a museum.

-More of a display, right.

-We had the products for them to fiddle through with their fingers and look for everything.

The 6th grade, we tried to educate them about Bemis because at that school there in Bemis.

The state of Tennessee cut out people coming by and visiting the schools, and they didn't like that.

We got cut out.

-Can you share an example of a successful preservation project that was undertaken by the society in Bemis?

-Our best artifact is the building itself.

-It's the biggest and- -Which is unique.

-the biggest and the best.

It's the one that determined everything else.

We had to put heating and air and all that, dehumidifiers because you have a lot of things that are sensitive to mois.. We have a system that keeps the humidity at 55%.

The heat, we just let that ride because we're not there when we're not there.

The utility bill would be astronomical.

-[chuckles] Thousands.

-It's a large building.

-1,000 a month, [chuckles] and we're poor folks.

-All donations appreciated, if people want to help you out there in that way.

How do you keep the history of Bemis accessible to the public, whether through exhibits, publications, or digital media?

Do you speak to civic groups or anything like that to talk about Bemis?

-I do.

Different ones at different times, and some I have done a couple twice touching base with other people and trying to get them to be aware that we're there.

[chuckles] -If someone wants you, they can call you, or what do they need to do?

Just go to your website?

-We have our phone number and email address and everything on the door.

Now, we don't have regular hours because we opened up for one month one time, and I guess we picked the wrong month.

Sat there for the whole month, and we had three people.

The regular month before that was having two dozen.

You never know if it's-- Nobody wanted to sit there for a month.

-Sure.

That's for sure.

-We were able to get a hold of anybody.

A lot of people would notify us ahead of time from out of state, "I'm going to be there on a certain date.

Can you open up for us?"

Sure.

We're there.

We usually give about an hour is all we do, because we don't overburden them.

We have another hour if they want to drive around Bemis.

We have 52 historic markers in Bemis.

I go the route, take a route that covers all 52.

-It is a very historical little community that's grown into a part of Jackson now.

Does the society work with local residents to document and share the personal stories or family histories related to Bemis?

-Not local residents.

Their grandkids.

They don't have any idea what Bemis is all about.

We do have a large file we've started in the year 2000.

People would do a one-page history of their memories of Bemis.

We have a whole file of those people that did that back in those days.

If you were to interview somebody they said, "I don't know why Bemis is here.

I don't know what that thing's all about."

Nobody that lives there now was actually part of the heyday.

-It's been a while.

-Except you.

[chuckles] -Yes.

I'm old enough too.

I have relatives there, and I remember go..

The mill was in full operation and going big.

I remember people coming out of the mill, and they would be just covered with that white cotton lint, -you know what I mean?

-All in their hair.

-Everybody was gray-headed at the end of the day there, weren't ..

It was quite the sight.

I remember even behind the YMCA they had a baseball fi..

I played baseball there with the Dixie Youth League or something like that.

It always fascinated me that that was such a charming little community in town at that time.

Probably wasn't even a part of Jackson.. -Oh, no.

-in the '50s and '60s, that sort of thing.

-My daddy was at a Christmas dinner one time where conversation got turned to Bemis, and he said something, and I've enshrined it since then.

He said, "Bemis was the best place in the world to grow up in poverty."

[chuckles] You didn't get rich, but you had fun.

-That's true.

You had a company story, you had a theater, you had a company doctor.

You didn't have to go, and Jackson was a long way away there.

-Oh, that's three miles away.

-You couldn't walk.

-You couldn't walk.

I guess you could.

It'd just take you a long time.

-A lot of people didn't have cars in the '20s.

-That's for sure.

It was a very self-sufficient community.

That's for sure.

How do you see the role of the Bemis Historical Society evolving as the Jackson Bemis area continues to grow and change, and more people talk of a bypass coming down near that area, that sort of thing too?

-The proposed bypass is going to miss it- -I knew that.

-and come around the cemetery.

Even miss our cemetery.

-Well, that's good.

-I don't see that there'll be a lot of interest in it.

Phones are a lot more interesting to kids than history.

-If it's not right here, they don't believe it has happened or is happening.

-You don't worry about history until you're 45 years old.

[chuckles] -I think as you age too, you may want to go back and look at some of your an.. That's a good way to do that, isn't it?

Because I've been there and I've seen time cards that people had signed.

-We have time cards, doctor bills.

We have actual doctor bills.

-They could learn a lot probably if they think their family is from the Bemis area.

-We had one guy who had 13 kids, and everybody had payroll deduction for their doctor bill.

$1 was all you paid per week.

-Wow.

-He had to pay two because he had so many kids.

[chuck.. -He kept the doctor busy.

-He kept them busy.

-The mill doctor busy.

That's for sure.

-Is there a specific piece of Bemis' history, as we know the mill is gone, that the society would like to see preserved or highlighted maybe more prominently or permanently?

-We have the company store area, which is still in existence and it's completely filled right now.

We have four different people, post office plus three retail businesses that are there.

We like it because it's being preserved.

[chuckles] -That's for sure.

-They're paying the bill.

We just see it.

[chuckles] -We heard your story about getting involved with the society actually through a coffee break, right?

-Yes.

[chuckles] -[chuckles] You just stayed.

How long have you been doing that now?

-Doing-- -Working with the society or got involved with it and working.

-Every day.

-Every day?

-It's every day.

-How many years would you say now?

-Since '97.

-'97.

-For 25.

-Sure.

-28 years.

-28 years, yes.

-My wife says it's just like a job.

Just like a job.

It is a job.

-Well, it is, but you enjoy, I'm sure too.

Would you like to see other people become involved with the society?

-We would.

My latest dream is have more corporate sponsorships to help us with money.

As we've gone along, we've had a lot of different people who have died, so our 400 members early on has dwindled to 200.

Also, for every person, there's money and corporate sponsorship would sure certainly help.

-Yes, money sure does make things work a lot easier when you need things, have a building to repair, and heat and cool and, and have people to-- -Well, if you can't get a grant, you're up a creek.

-Yes, that's for sure.

Do you get some grants?

Have you received some grants to help preserve.. -We did.

Just recently, the State of Tennessee had what they called museum grants.

We got $19,000 and we put about half of it on the rotten doors that were there.

The doors were 100 years old, and they were becoming a problem.

The front doors had already been done, but the two side doors.

We have the product on hand right now, vinyl doors, which should last another 1,000 years.

-You won't have to worry about that, will you?

-For sure.

-That was one of the items.

The other item was a ramp for handicapped was a little bit-- We had a piece of plywood that they had used to get on it.

It was state-of-the-art, but to get to it, you had plywood go across.

We needed to fix that, and we just spent $8,000 of that grant money getting a sloped concrete to get up to the extra five inch high to get started.

People in wheelchairs can't jump five inches.

-That's for sure.

Make it easier to access.

That's for sure.

Of course, I know that the city worked to do a park there.

Is the park up and going now?

I have not visited the park, if it is.

-Mill Park, yes, it's complete.

In fact, it's been renovated because it's been there six or eight years, but it's basically just a walking track.

-On the side of the old mill, right?

-On the side of the old mill.

It's a quarter mile.

-A quarter mile around?

-Yes, asphalt walking.

-What do you find most rewarding about preserving and sharing the history of Bemis and lives of people who lived and worked and died there?

-Actually, it's the memories themselves.

In my head, when somebody says something, I think of this, and then it goes to that, and then the other, and I'll get a whole line of pleasant thoughts.

-Then try to find some people that can help put some of those ideas working and become a part of the museum there, right?

-Always, we need help.

-I think all nonprofits, you're not [?]

people.

You're always looking for another person.

When you get to our age, it's like, "We need some young people to start doing some of this stuff."

-I'm 60 years young.

[laughter] -It is.

It certainly is, that's for sure.

If people want to come, they should go on your website and get your number and call and set an appointment time.

-If they just happen by, I have a big number on the front door.

I can be there in six minutes.

-If they want to come and see and enjoy and you can-- -Rather than sitting there waiting out at home.

-You can give them the $0.10 tour or the $0.50 cent tour, right?

-We don't charge.

-Well, I'm just joking about that walkin.. -We have a jug, donations.

-Do you go station to station, or do you just have a route that you take to set it up?

-Yes.

I go down one side of the building and go up and down.

Then I'll walk fast at some places if they want to shop, but other places, I'll linger and give the details.

-Is there one area that people focus on once they get inside the museum?

-They do.

-There's a lot of things you can read when you're in there.

-Most of the people that linger at the J.B. Young High School composite, picture [crosstalk], and that's where grandpa is.

-Yes, or grandma, or my aunt, my uncle, my cousin.

-She's on there.

I think she graduated in '47.

Where's '47?

-That is good.

Well, once again, let's tell the folks how they can find out more about the Bemis Historical Society.

-Bemishistory.org.

That's simple.

-That's easy, and then you can link to other places and find out other things.

-Actually, at that site, you can view our meetings we have.

They're videoed, and because they're videoed, you can click on which month, and which date.

-So that I can listen and see what's going on, -or what may be going on, right?

-Yes.

You could make a late doctor's appointment.

You just watch it on your phone.

-Yes, that's for sure.

Thank you.

Well, Joel, thanks for coming by today and letting us know, for the Bemis Historical Society, about everything that's going on out there to preserve the history and the legacy of the community of Bemis.

-Thank you.

-All right.

Well, sadly, we've run out of time again for this edition of Tennessee is Talking.

We want to thank Joel Jackson for stopping by and telling us about the Bemis Historical Society.

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