Pictures From The Past
J. S. Cleiland, seated at right, was elected sheriff in 1934 and took office in January 1935. The incumbent, Claude Waite, did not seek re-election and Sid McVay and Euless Moore ran for the office. Ironically, all three men were related to the Waites, either by blood or by marriage. Standing at left is Horrie Faile, Cleiland's chief deputy who would go on to become one of Alabama's first highway patrol officers. The other two men are not identified. They all are apparently deputies and/or jailers. This photo was made in 1935 (by way of a date on a wall calendar that can be read with a magnifying glass), perhaps right after Cleiland took office. It is apparently in the old courthouse that stood prior to the current one and was built in 1899. Note the guns and heavy flashlight on the table, the old rolltop desk and typewriter and the handcuffs that one man is holding. Assistant Jackson Police Chief Mark Harrell found the photo in his late grandmother Mary Ellen Wilson's possessions. She was the daughter of Faile. If you know the identity of either of the two unknown men, please contact The Democrat.
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