ALTAMONT —
By Jingo! That’s what Charles Everett Ellis might have said about Sunday’s visit of several descendants to his old home town of Altamont.
Ellis, who used the term “By Jingo” on a regular basis, was a fixture in downtown Altamont during the first three decades of the 20th century. He started keeping a diary on his 40th birthday — Jan. 22, 1927 — and kept on writing for the last 44 years of his life.
The entries are a fascinating look into the life of an African-American in a predominately white community at the turn of the century.
The diaries eventually stretched to 2,560 pages of observations about Ellis’ life — and the larger world around him.
But it all started in Altamont and that’s why members of the Ellis family were in town Sunday. Daughters Adrienne Ellis Reeves and Wilma Ellis Kazemzadeh received a plaque after morning services at the United Methodist Church in Altamont. On top of that, members of the production team accompanied family members to church as part of an upcoming documentary on the family patriarch and his world.
Ellis’ descendants are spread out throughout the United States, but even those who had never been to Altamont recognize the importance of the community in family history.
“This is the homestead,” said granddaughter Lauren Ellis Johnson, who had never been to Altamont before Sunday. “This is like coming to Mecca.
“This is all I heard about growing up.”
Johnson said her grandfather deeply cared for his church. “He had a lot of integrity, very God-centered,” Johnson said. “He wanted to participate in all of life.”
Unfortunately, that wasn’t something a black man could do in the early 20th century. Producer David Henderson, a former CBS news correspondent, said the Altamont shoot is the final element of what is planned as a story of Ellis’ time. Henderson said Altamont stood out as an oasis for the Ellis family, however.
“This period of American history was marked by racial violence, but not here,” Henderson said. “Altamont was really an exception as a very proud farming community with one black family.”
Henderson said the Public Broadcasting Service has committed to airing the documentary, though there is not specific timetable for completion.
“It’s a wonderful story that needs to be told,” he said.
Reeves, who hadn’t been in Altamont since 1964, said her dad always had a soft spot in his heart for his home town.
“The greatest thing is what this place meant to Dad,” she said. “His diaries are full of reference to this church and what it meant in his life.
“It wasn’t just a place to him,” she added. “It was the House of God.”
Kazemzadeh, who moved from Altamont as a baby, told a group of church members that Altamont has always been in the family’s collective heart.
“In our family, Dad never stopped talking about Altamont,” he said.
Henderson said the PBS documentary could be aired as early as 2013.
Local News
Related Photos
-
Wilma Ellis Kazemzadeh, left, and Adrienne Ellis Reeves display a plaque prepared in honor of their father, Charles Everett Ellis, a barber in Altamont during the first few decades of the 20th century. Filmmaker Michael Wunsch is shooting footage of the sisters in the fellowship hall at Altamont First United Methodist Church for part of a documentary he is preparing on Ellis and the times in which he lived. Bill Grimes
Discussion
A Barber's Diary
Former Altamont resident Charles Everett Ellis recalled as African-American pioneer
- Local News
-
-
Boil order issued
Effingham Water Department has issued a boil order for the following streets.
-
Unit 50 faces state aid cuts
Like all Illinois school districts, Teutopolis Unit 50 is hanging in the proverbial wind by doing business in a state that is financially struggling, to put it mildly.
-
Lifesavers
After Central School students were recognized for top grades or perfect attendance, two teachers were acknowledged for their bravery and quick-thinking when they saved a little boy’s life.
-
Parkersburg man dies in motorcycle crash Sunday
The Parkersburg man who was killed in a Sunday afternoon motorcycle accident south of Newton suffered severe head injuries, but the coroner who pronounced him dead in a hospital emergency room said it wasn’t certain whether wearing a helmet would have saved his life.
-
City turns land over to park district
Land originally intended for the proposed sports complex will be handed over to the Effingham Park District after the Effingham City Council discussed exchanging property near Evergreen Hollow Park for right of way and construction easements.
-
Man fatally struck by train
A Greenup man was killed Tuesday morning when he was struck by a train.
-
Local veterans plan dedication for new memorial
Veterans and their admirers will have something to celebrate Saturday morning. That’s when local veterans groups are holding a dedication ceremony for the new veterans memorial on the southwest corner of the old Effingham County Courthouse square at the corner of Fourth Street and Jefferson Avenue in downtown Effingham.
-
Boil order issued
Effingham Water Department has issued a boil order for West Jefferson Avenue from Fourth Street to North Banker Street on both sides of the street until further notice.
-
Keller to retire
He fell into education by circumstance, but it turned out to be the best learning experience. The opportunity to move from assistant principal to business manager came out of nowhere, but it was a job he took almost immediately.
-
Flag ceremony
Sigel American Legion Cmdr. Roger Westjohn, right, and Chaplain Tom Schutte dispose of tattered flags during a ceremony in Sigel May 11.
- More Local News Headlines
-
Boil order issued
Defense Rests in John Edwards Trial
GM Says It Will Stop Paying for Ads on Facebook
911 Call: Confusion at Home Where Mom Shot Kids
Jury Convicts Steve Powell of Voyeurism Charges
Skechers to Pay $40 Million for Bogus Claims
Coffee May Be Key to Living Longer
Police to Groom of Slain Bride: Turn Yourself In
Laurie Fine: My Life Has Been Destroyed
FTC: Skechers Deceived Consumers With Shoe Ads
FBI Confirms Leak Probe on Al-Qaida Plot
Romney Calls Obama a 'Disappointment'
Honda Unveils New Robotics-powered Scooter
NJ Gov., Mayor Channel Seinfeld in Video Parody
Blood Drive for Woman With Flesh-Eating Disease
AG Race Tops Oregon Primary Interest
Obama Welcomes Beckham, Galaxy to White House
Raw Video: Mladic's Genocide Trial Under Way
Court Records Detail Zimmerman Injuries
Local Community Prepares for G8 Summit
New Guidelines for US Nuclear Plants
