WINTER 2021 | LAKE OCONEE LIVING 17
His unique music was a major part of the
soundtrack for the movie, The Color Purple,
based on the book written by Georgia Writers
Hall of Fame inductee, Alice Walker.
Saunders Teddell (aka Sonny Terry) was born in
Greensboro in 1911. At age 5, he began learning
harmonica, which his father played at social
functions. He developed a harmonica style that
imitated sounds ranging from moving trains to
barnyard animals, typically blending his singing
and harmonica playing.
Sonny worked with such music greats as Pete
Seeger, Woody Guthrie, Burl Ives, and Harry
Belafonte. In 1986, he was inducted into the
Blues Hall of Fame.
Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar II
Lucius Q.C. Lamar II was born in 1825 at
his family’s home on the south end of Putnam
County near what is now Lake Sinclair. His
father was a renowned Milledgeville attorney.
Lucius graduated from Emory College in Oxford
(now Emory University).
Following graduation, he married Virginia
Longstreet, the daughter of Eliza Park of
Greensboro and Georgia Writers Hall of Fame
author, Augustus B. Longstreet, who had served
as president of Emory, University of South Carolina,
Centenary College, and Ole Miss.
Lamar moved to Covington, practiced law
and, in 1853, was elected to the Georgia State
House of Representatives. Now, here is the
point where Lamar’s career took a giant leap.
He moved to Oxford, Miss., was elected to the
U.S. House of Representatives, then the U.S.
Senate. He served as U.S. Secretary of Interior
under President Grover Cleveland, and then
was appointed as a justice on the U.S. Supreme
Court.
What is it about our Lake Country area that
has spawned so many celebrities? Could it
be the Oconee River that runs through it all?
Whatever its source, it should leave us proud
that we live in an area with such a rich history
and notable heritage.
Chip R. Bell is a best-selling author and serves
on the board of the Georgia Writers Museum in
Eatonton which celebrates the life and work of
world-renowned Georgia authors including Alice
Walker, Joel Chandler Harris and Flannery
O’Connor and serves as the home of the Georgia
Writers Hall of Fame.
/www.opas.org