Heroes and Veterans
IN MEMORY OF THE MAN THAT KNEW THE STORY
JIMMY B. DUGGER
(13 Nov. 1930 - 3 Aug. 2009)
Jimmy began working at Arrow Mines at the age of 17. During the Korean Conflict, he joined the United States Air Force and after basic training he was assigned to Lockbourn Air Force Base in Columbus, OH. Not long after, he was sent to Seoul, Korea and assigned to Pusan (later renamed Busan), South Korea. His unit training was in Fire and Crash Rescue and was attached to the United States Strategic Air Command. Which was a great accomplishment for an 8th grade education.
After returning home from the war, Jimmy began to work for the Shea Chemical Company in the phosphate industry. He took his experience from the Air Force and became a volunteer fireman for the Mt. Pleasant Fire Department. After working for 37 years in the phosphate industry Jimmy retired in 1991 as a kiln operator with Occidental Chemical Company.
After his retirement, Jimmy spent his free time fishing and volunteering. He mowed yards for the elderly, helped deliver Meals on Wheels, and worked with the beautification committee in Mt. Pleasant. He was dedicated to his special interest project. A museum dedicated to preserving the history of the phosphate industry and its impact on the community both good and bad along with its impact on the world. Jimmy had the support of his wife Irene Rawdon Dugger and friends to open the first Museum, a small two room building on the corner of North Main St and Bluegrass Ave. Sadly, the building was set ablaze by an arsonist in 1993. Most all the precious memories of Clarke Training School and Hay Long High School as well as personal items were lost in the fire. The community rallied around the small museum to bring it back. Within a year, the Museum moved to a donated building at 105 Public Square just down from the original Museum location. In 1996, First Farmers and Merchant Bank donated the historic 1911 First National Bank Building at 108 Public Square to the Museum Board President Irene R. Dugger its current location.
Friends, family, and visitors remember Jimmy as a devoted son, brother, husband, father, and grandfather. He was a big fan of Mt. Pleasant High School Tiger Football and Baseball, local baseball and softball sports programs in Mt. Pleasant. Their greatest memory, he loved to talk about phosphate and history. He was known as “The Man That Knew The Story” about Mt. Pleasant’s mark on Phosphate history.
Members of Mt. Pleasant Volunteer Fire Department in the 1960’s, Jimmy is second from the left down front wearing glasses.
For 17 years of tireless devotion and service to the Museum. It was his dream to tell the story that lasted 100 years.
The Story of the Stein Brothers
Gone But Not Forgotten
Morris and Hyman Stein’s parents were Jake and Sadie Stein, owners of Stein’s Department Store and believed to be the only Jewish family in town. Morris and Hyman were the oldest of 5 children. Morris attended Columbia Military Academy while working at the family store. After graduation, he was a student at Georgia Tech until age 26. When he enlisted for military service. Morris would receive the rank of First Lieutenant. Hyman was 20 years old when he enlisted as a private. Both brothers received their military training at Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia in 1942. In August, 1944, in the finals days of the Battle of Normandy, 21 year old Hyman Stein was killed in action. Almost 8 months later, while serving with the 40th infantry division on Negro Island in the Pacific Ocean. Morris was killed in action. It would take years for the Stein family to receive the bodies of Morris and Hyman. Hyman’s remains were received in Nashville, Tennessee in September, 1948. Morris’s remains would arrive 5 months later in February, 1949. Both brothers were buried at Sherith Israel and West End Synagogue Cemetery in Nashville, Tennessee. The brothers were given purple hearts for their bravery and sacrifice for their country. The Museum salutes these brave young Mt. Pleasant men lost, gone but not forgotten.
