Peace, prosperity and plenty marked Thanksgiving Day, 1909. Hundreds of huntsmen took advantage of the beautiful weather and took to the woods. Many of the stores declared a half-holiday, churches conducted services, and in the afternoon at the Rome Driving Park was a moderate crowd for motorcycle races, a free-for-all trot and a handicap race.

An interesting event at Shorter College was a basketball game between Miss Ruby Reynolds’ gymnasium and the college team.

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A party of Romans who took a motor trip to Chattanooga, decided that train travel was better, after numerous unfortunate experiences. Mr. and Mrs. Robert Dougherty, Mr. and Mrs. Guy Cothran, Misses Anna and Rebecca Veal, James Cothran and Barry Wright left Rome in two automobiles. They reached the Tennessee city all right, after traveling for ten hours.

On the return trip, however, every mishap known to the tourist from sooty spark plugs to punctured tires, combined with the bridal-path-like roads, to plague the travelers. In the darkness, one tire eloped with its inner tube and ran off into the night.

Finally the men were able to get one of the automobiles running, and Mr. Cothran took the ladies to LaFayette, where they boarded a train for home. The men drove on in.

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Bank deposits in Rome had increased 30 percent for the 12-month period ending November 1, 1909, totaling $1,350,459. Capital had increased 29 percent, totaling $1,312,475. … M.L. Tarvin had purchased 200 acres from the Wright family out the Calhoun Road for about $10,000. … A.T. Hamilton had sold to D.B. Hamilton 198 feet on the Alabama Road next to H.J. Arnold’s for a consideration of about $4,000. … J.W. Russell had bought the old Holloman place on the Calhoun Road from W.S. Simmons, and the latter had taken his home on North Broad. … Henry A. Smith, former mayor of Rome, who came here 10 years before the War Between the States, had gone to his reward. Mr. Smith joined the Rome Light Guards in 1861. For many years he had a book store here. … Will D. Upshaw, who was lecturing at the Methodist Church for the Pansy Chapel night school, offered $5 to any man who could go to sleep during his speech. …

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Convicts were to build a model road from Lytle Springs to DeSoto Park on the Cave Spring pike. … Work on the Coosa Country Club was progressing rapidly with the nine foot brick walls already completed. … The fire commission was considering a purchase of a motor driven chemical fire engine. … When the census enumerators began their work, it appeared likely that for the first time so of them would be women. … Abraham Pintchuck, North Broad tailor, was the first person to receive naturalization papers here since the U.S. District Court had begun convening in Rome. He was a native of Grodac, Russia. … Another farmers’ telephone line had been extended out the O’Bryan Road as far as Attorney H.F. Sharpe’s farm. Other subscribers included O.L. Titrud, N.R. Peddycourt, H.O. Littlejohn and Paul Rhinehardt. This made 11 county lines with 65 subscribers.