Taking a look back at Hartwell’s history as reported by The Hartwell Sun.
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The Hartwell Sun from 1968
March 3, 1911 — A hog that ate dynamite and was “blown into atoms” when a Georgia mule kicked it made headlines around the state.
The incident occurred in Worth County, The Hartwell Sun reported, after a farmer’s hog ate a stick of dynamite that was unintentionally left lying around the farm.
The Sun reported the dynamite was used to blow up stumps on his land and the farmer accidentally left a stick in a corn field where a hog decided to eat the “delicate morsel.”
When the hog went to the barn at night for its accustomed food with the other livestock, the hog got too close to a mule while it was eating and was kicked in the side, causing an explosion that killed the hog and frightened the other livestock.
“Of course the owner of the hog will see that in future no dynamite is left loose around the farm,” The Sun reported.
March 3, 1944 — A non-native plant was considered one of Hart County’s most important crops in 1944.
Lespedeza held the second-largest acreage of any crop in the county with 18,000 acres, next to cotton which occupied 22,000 acres in 1943, the county agent reported at the time.
The crop was used for grazing, hay, soil improvement and for seed production. Lespedeza increased livestock production, The Sun reported.
“It is one of our best soil improvement crops, and its ability to produce seed adds greatly to its value,” county agent E.H. Thomas reported.
March 7, 1968 — A map of Vietnam printed in The Hartwell Sun depicted where Hart County servicemen were stationed during the war.
Four names were shown on a map printed on the front page of The Sun, showing where Charlie Thornton, Jerry Chastain, Billy Wilhite and Henry Dickerson were each stationed in Vietnam.
The map was the first of a series of maps The Sun printed for the “homefolks” who were thinking of the soldiers overseas, and the newspaper planned to continue printing new names once they found where the service members were located.
“The Sun personnel feel that this will be of service in many ways here: for correspondence and for prayer lists for church groups as well as individuals,” associated editor Wassie Vickery wrote at the time.