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Louise West Parrish
Milton Wiseman
Ida Rene DeLoach
William G. DeLoach
Verdie Vinson Gann
The John Milam Family
Earl & Mary Finley
Joe Bailey Foster
Theophil Leonardt
Sudan Mascot Change

John K. Milam purchased a section of land near Circle Back in 1920. In 1922 he returned to build a three-room adobe brick house for his family. Mr. Milam and a helper made the abode bricks. The house consisted of a living room that was 16 X 32 feet in size, a kitchen, and one bedroom. The walls were fourteen inches thick, with wooden doors and windows.

When the family returned to Sudan, Mr. Milam loaded the farm animals, feed, and household goods on an immigrant car. Ben Sebring rode in the immigrant car to take care of the animals. John, Bessie, and Evelyn Milam, Frances Sebring and her ten-year-old daughter Sadie, traveled to Sudan in a Ford touring car. Evelyn remarked that her mother always said, “We arrived in Sudan lock, stock, and baby on February 23, 1923.

Evelyn’s early memories of Sudan included Slate’s Mercantile Store where Lillie May Carruth was the postal clerk. Another fond memory was of Evelyn’s younger brother, J. K. being very interested of the Christmas items that could be found in the Ramby Drug Store. Every Saturday the family would come to Sudan to sell their cream to a business located in a building behind the drug store.

When Evelyn was three years old, her big toe was accidentally cut off. Her mother washed the injured area thoroughly with kerosene, and then wrapped the toe and foot tightly together in a clean cup towel. They took her to Dr. Foote in Sudan. He said that Bessie had done a good job of cleaning and wrapping the toe and foot together. He also said that in nine days it would either heal back together or not. They would be able to tell by the smell of the foot. It did heal properly, but Evelyn continues to purchase shoes a half size larger.

Evelyn started to school at Circle Back when she was six years old. She rode her horse bare back three miles to and from school. Her favorite teachers were Marjorie and Gordon Bain. Circle Back school began early each year and dismissed after six weeks so that the children could help their parents gather the crops. Evelyn and J.K. helped head (cut) the feed during the day. Bessie made them study their school lessons every night. As a result, they were ahead of their classmates when school resumed.

In 1935, Evelyn stated attending school at Sudan. She walked one half mile to catch the bus that would deliver her and her brother to Circle Back. Her dad then paid the school bus driver $2.50 a month to pick up his children and some others at the Circle Back School and transport them to and from Sudan. Evelyn graduated from Sudan High School in 1938. Her mother and uncle, Ples Harper, were both teachers, which influenced Evelyn to also become a teacher.