Folks, ya know that feelin' when it seems like ya just been touched by a FORCE FROM THE OUTER REALM...well, that's the feelin' I got yesterday when I picked this 1900 letter typed on the back of a Central of Georgia map. Less that 24 hours ago, I realized I held in my hands THE FIRST DOCUMENT I'VE EVER SEEN directly related to DEVIL MAKE A THIRD! (the address on this letter is incorrect. The construction superintendent, Captain Lawrence, had moved his office to Dothan from Columbia back in December. By May 1, Dothan had its SECOND RAILROAD!)

1900: The Birth of Downtown Dothan ( originally slated to cross West Main near South Alice,  the story goes that Buck Baker got inside information on the Central of Georgia change of route through Dothan with the rails crossing East Main near present-day College/South Appletree, bought up the right-of-way and made a fortune sellin' it back to the Central of Georgia) 

from page 86 and 87 of DEVIL MAKE A THIRD

"I just left Ed Puckett," he said. "You know him. Used to be with the railroad here. Surveyor."

Joe Bannon nodded and crossed his legs.

"I thought I recognized a fellow gettin' off the train," Buck went on. "An' Ed told me about it. This fellow's from up North and he's the one came down to buy the land for the new spurs last year."

His father frowned and started to speak, but Buck kept talking.

"He ain't workin' for the same road no more." He leaned his head back and his lips hardly moved. His  eyes were hard and dark.

Joe Bannon's expression changed slowly and he eased himself down on the bench. He reached for his pocketknife and tobacco, but kept his eyes on Buck.

"Buyin' land?" he said, calmly.

Buck nodded and took one step nearer his father. He leaned over and spoke rapidly in a voice that he tried to hold low and tight to keep from shaking.

"This is what it is. He's hired Ed to do the surveyin' and he's goin' to start pickin' his route next week. He hasn't told Ed for sure which way he's headin', but the line's runnin' from Albany to join up with the road to Mobile. Naturally they'll hit Aven. Me and Ed figured everything and there ain't but one way for him to come."

He stopped and wiped his forehead, breathing deeply, and pushed his hair back.

"He'll cross Basin Street within two blocks of the store I wanted to buy. He'll build a depot, and a freight yard, and that section of town'll grow up crazy as a plum thicket."

Buck stopped and straightened up then with a half-smiling triumph in his eyes. Joe Bannon pulled his beard carefully out to the longest strand and looked at it curiously for a moment. He looked up and nodded.

"Buy it. I got the money."

"No, sir," Buck said quickly. "Let's go whole hog. I'll throw in my old store and the new one as collateral so I can buy it without help." He watched silently as his father nodded. "Then," he said, "you get out this afternoon and tomorrow morning and buy, quiet-like, all the ridge land you can northeast of town. They'll hunt ridges. Don't buy anything but poor land with a good stand of timber on it. We'll sell the timber first thing, then, by God, we'll have 'em hooked. They'll condemn at a price that'll give us a profit on the land deal, then we'll have the timber sale on top of it. Buy it right into Aven long as the price is right, they we'll sit tight and let 'em come to us."

Joe Bannon stared at his son for a moment and his eyes were puzzled, not with the business, but puzzled as if he were trying to place a stranger in his memory. He laughed low.

"I'll do it," he said, an slapped his knee. "It looks like a big gamblin', but I'll do it. But how come this afternoon?"

"I sent Ed off with a gallon of whiskey," Buck said. "Told him to take half of it out to Colt Peterman's place in the country, and he could have the rest. He'll be drunk for two days and won't have a chance to tell it in town. That'll give us a two-day jump on the rest." (clippings from the May 4, 1900 BIRMINGHAM NEWS, from the December 14, 1899 COLUMBIA BREEZE, from the May 20, 1900 MONTGOMERY ADVERTISER, from the May 31, 1900 GENEVA JOURNAL, from the July 19, 1917 DOTHAN EAGLE)