Archived Stories

WATER VALLEY – Solero Industries dedicated a new lab to a former longtime employee during a ribbon cutting ceremony Tuesday afternoon. The lab, located in a second-floor room at the Water Valley plant on Hwy. 32, will be utilized to build prototype parts for prospective new customers. Solero Technologies CEO Dr. Donald James welcomed family…

GUSTON, Ky. – A 211-pound watermelon grown by Hal Vaughn placed seventh in the Great Pumpkin Pursuit & Watermelon Weigh-Off at Roberts Family Farm in Guston, Ky. Alan Rogers and his wife, Martha, made the 400-plus mile trip to the annual contest to meet some of the top watermelon growers in the nation with hopes…

WATER VALLEY – The Water Valley Area Chamber of Commerce presented the Business Spotlight Award to Sikma Odds N Ends on Monday, Sept. 11. Launched in 2016, the spotlight award honors merchants, businesses and individuals who excel in their support of the community and are involved in local activities. Owners Bill Sikma and his wife,…

Shedlia Freeman said his phone “walked across the table” after his picture in last week’s paper had a slight alteration. That phone was buzzing from messages sent from friends across the country and back in Water Valley. Freeman is one of the most avid and vocal fans of the Dallas Cowboys in Water Valley. He…

My dad was a great storyteller, and most of his stories were about his childhood during the Great Depression. Largely because my grandfather was one of the few men who kept a job during the Depression, my dad’s childhood was colorful, and he could afford things that most kids could not. At that time, my…

It’s a Wagner Week and the main matriarch Maria Wagner always has the scoop for both human and chicken. Water Valley March 13, 1887 My Dearest John, I feel so badly I will not go to church. I am so hoarse I can hardly talk with a great effort and my throat & chest are…

Water Valley Mayor F. B. DeShon announced in the Sept 23, 1943 Herald that by order of Governor Paul B. Johnson, Sr., the Vagrancy Law was to be strictly obeyed in Water Valley. In his order, Governor Johnson said, “As governor of the State of Mississippi, I have instructed all law enforcement agencies to enforce…

What happens at the first Chamber of Commerce board meeting after the Watermelon Carnival? Planning begins for next year’s carnival, of course. Before moving on to where the Chamber is headed for the coming year, let’s take a look at how it began and how it works. The Water Valley Area Chamber of Commerce was…

WATER VALLEY – The Water Valley Blue Devils earned a 28-14 victory against the Eupora Eagles to notch their first win of the 2023 season and of the Coach Clint Faust era. The Devils faced the seventh-ranked Eagles in Class 2A football field on Bobby Clark Field Friday night and employed a physical brand of…

Phillip Williams from Shelby, Ala. has been visiting his mother, Jessie Williams, for a few weeks. Phillip is going back Friday and has an appointment with his doctor. Everything is going okay with him and hopefully this will be his last visit with the surgeon. He has also been staying with his sister, Sandra McCulla,…