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Stanley P. Chase Jones/Mugshot

Stanley P. Chase Jones/Mugshot

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Traffic jam, flared temper end in arrest

Staff Reports
Wednesday, August 9, 2023
An Eatonton man running late for work was arrested when he took his frustrations out on a Greene County deputy in the Publix parking lot. According to reports from Greene County Sheriff’s Office, Lt. Keith Powell was on State Hwy. 44 the morning of Tuesday, Aug. 4, when traffic was backed up.
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

CONTRIBUTED PHOTO

Putnam A to Z: N is for Nuwaubian (Part II)

Ian Tocher
Wednesday, August 9, 2023
A to Z Editor’s note: The symmetry of 52 weeks in a year and 26 letters in our alphabet inspired us here at The Eatonton Messenger to embark on an alphabetical journey of Putnam County every other week this year, looking at something – or someone – unique, significant, unusual, or just plain...
Eatonton Messenger/Graphic

Eatonton Messenger/Graphic

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Commissioners consider budget, STR concerns

Rufus Adair
Wednesday, August 9, 2023
With both a short-term rental (STR) ordinance and a tax-hiking budget scheduled to be settled in September, citizens gave Putnam County commissioners an earful at last week’s mid-month commission meeting.
The Walker Building was used as the male convalescent building and closed in 1974. COURTESY OF JESSICA WHITEHEAD

The Walker Building was used as the male convalescent building and closed in 1974. COURTESY OF JESSICA WHITEHEAD

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DBHDD to ‘dispose of’ four CSH buildings

Bailey McCully
Wednesday, August 2, 2023
Gov. Brian Kemp signed an executive order last Tuesday authorizing the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (DBHDD) to “dispose” of the Jones, Green, Walker, and Wash buildings on the Central State Hospital (CSH) campus.
Eugene Hubert/File Photo

Eugene Hubert/File Photo

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Eatonton Fire Chief Eugene Hubert retires

Lynn Hobbs
Wednesday, August 2, 2023
Eatonton Fire Chief Eugene Hubert retires this week after serving 45 years in emergency services for the city of Eatonton. His final day is Aug. 2. “Chief Hubert has been a good chief for the City of Eatonton,” Mayor John Reid said.
Alan Foster

Alan Foster

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Foster plans commission resignation

Rufus Adair
Wednesday, August 2, 2023
Late last week, Alan Foster unexpectedly tendered his resignation from the District 3 seat on the Putnam County Board of Commissioners. However, as of The Eatonton Messenger’s print deadline Tuesday morning, the situation could still be described as “a bit muddy.
Eatonton Messenger/Graphic

Eatonton Messenger/Graphic

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Residential now dominates Putnam County tax base

Rufus Adair
Wednesday, August 2, 2023
If there was ever any doubt, appraised property values in the Putnam County Tax Assessors office’s 2023 tax digest make clear that Putnam has become a residential county. Not dominantly agricultural, as it was in the 19th century; not industrial; not even commercial and services. Residential.
At its height in the late 1990s, the Nuwaubian Nation complex covered about 19 acres alongside Putnam County’s Shady Dale Road (top). CONTRIBUTED

At its height in the late 1990s, the Nuwaubian Nation complex covered about 19 acres alongside Putnam County’s Shady Dale Road (top). CONTRIBUTED

PUTNAM A to Z: N is for Nuwaubian (Part I)

Ian Tocher
Wednesday, August 2, 2023
Editor’s note: The symmetry of 52 weeks in a year and 26 letters in our alphabet inspired us here at The Eatonton Messenger to embark on an alphabetical journey of Putnam County every other week this year, looking at something – or someone – unique, significant, unusual, or just plain interesting.
Eatonton Messenger/Graphic

Eatonton Messenger/Graphic

Head-on collision claims five lives Tuesday morning

Lynn Hobbs
Wednesday, August 2, 2023
Five people were killed instantly in a head-on collision Tuesday morning, including an infant and a toddler. Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sills identified the victims as Mayla Dostie, 44; Hailey Brook Hayes, 22; Zaleigh Adaya Brooks, 23; Bentley Barlow, 3; and Tucker Hudspeth, 8 months old.
BREAKING NEWS | THE EATONTON MESSENGER

BREAKING NEWS | THE EATONTON MESSENGER

Crash on US 441 claims five lives this morning

Lynn Hobbs
Tuesday, August 1, 2023
A head-on collision took the lives of five Putnam County residents this morning, including an infant and toddler. The two-vehicle crash happened at 12:45 a.m. near the Big Boys Toys business about one-and-a-half miles from the Putnam-Baldwin county line, Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sills said.
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