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John H. Gates
Truck Miner
Helena, Alabama

Helena, Alabama

AL 30

JOHNNIE GATES-TRUCK MINER
(By Woodrow Hand)

Helena, lying 17 1/2 miles south of Birmingham on
the main line of the Louisville and Nashville Railway,
is the central point of what once was a great coal
mining locality.

Main Street, [[or the business section,]] has on one
side two stores and a shoeshop. On the other side
is a store and the Post Office. The Post Office
is alone in its assurance of continued operation.

The streets of Helena are rough and dusty; or
muddy, depending upon [[the whim of]] the weather.
They [[pass]] run by rambling houses that sag at the roofs and
on the corners; shot-gun houses that are even worse
than their already questionabl[[y]]e name. Helena, with
one exception, fits any of numerous ghost town
descriptions. The exception is that people live
there.

They are a varied group - living examples of what
Helena has been and hopes to be again.

On a hill overlooking Helena lives Dr. Lubright,
Dentist.

"Leave Helena?" His fat Teutonic face first
registers surprise; then indulgence, such as that re-
served for a questioning child. "Why should I leave?
Its my home; I've made a fortune here. Those people

218

[Left margin]

Better cut and
substitute more
detailed description–

Good

[Right margin]

why do you say
the name is
questionable?