Union County, MS

Parts of Union County received more than their share of rain last week. Some of our New Albany Gazette readers helped as citizen journalists/photographers and contributed to our photo gallery.

NEW ALBANY • Is Jessica Swenor Stacks dead or alive?. After a half-year, authorities still don’t know where Stacks could be, and her baffling disappearance has turned into the longest-running missing persons case in Union County Sheriff Jimmy Edwards’ memory, he said this week. Edwards’ memory goes back a long...

NEW ALBANY • Able to throw a baseball more than 90 miles an hour and play the blues as well as just about anyone in the world, Terry “Harmonica” Bean of Pontotoc undoubtedly has a unique story to tell. Bean will share the story the fascinating story of his careers...

NEW ALBANY- Longtime Union County baseball coaches Chris Basil of East Union and Andy Wilbanks have stepped down from the head baseball coaching positions at their respective schools. Russell Taylor, Union County School Superintendent issued this statement regarding Basil and Wilbanks: "Coach Basil and Coach Wilbanks have had not only...

NEW ALBANY • The New Albany Fire Department has worked several wrecks and fires in recent days, Fire Chief Mark Whiteside said this week. The following are capsule summaries of the events:. On Tuesday, June 1, NAFD and Southeast Union FD trained in the training facility heat building with live...

The Union County Soil and Water Conservation District, a member of the Mississippi Association of Conservation Districts (MACD), has announced its annual call for applications for five scholarships to be awarded in January 2022. Each of the scholarship's five recipients will receive scholarships of $5,000. These scholarship awards are open...

Erma Jean Crumpton Benefield, 84, passed away on Friday, June 4, 2021 at her residence in the Keownville community. She was born June 1, 1937 in Union County to Grover Cleveland Crumpton and Mary Ruth Carlisle Crumpton. She retired from Futorian after many years. She served as church secretary at Keownville Baptist Church where she was an active member for over 50 years until her health declined. She loved helping with Vacation Bible School. Everyone who knew her, loved her and she loved everyone.

Four players from Union County will play in the MAC Cornerstone Rehabilitation 1A/2A/3A All-Star Fastpitch softball game on Friday, June 4 and Saturday, June 5. Players from Union County that are members of the North team include the following. Annie Orman - West Union. Sarah Kate Thompson - Myrtle. Kaily...

The Toyota Wellspring Education Fund vision is for Northeast Mississippi to build a world-class, home-grown workforce to ensure all young people are exposed, prepared, and connected to living wage employment opportunities through strong career guidance and education-to-career experiences. The foundation for this work is started with early childhood, and the...

The Union County Library is getting ready for its Summer Library Program, which will run through June and July. “We have a lot of programs coming up,” said Union County Library Director Sissy Bullock. Part of the Summer Library Program will be a weekly challenge in which people will be...

Numerous sentences were handed down in Union County Circuit Court in May. David Allen Dodson, 58, of New Albany, pleaded guilty to felony DUI fourth offense. Dodson operated a vehicle on April 5, 2020 while he was under the influence. At the time, he had already been convicted three other times of DUI in 2003, 2014 and 2019.

Willie 'Bo' Hardin, 71, died Friday, May 21, 2021, at North Mississippi Medical Center in Tupelo. He was born July 29, 1949, in Union County to John Willie Hardin and Govie Hale Culver. He was a member of Neely Baptist Church and a truck driver. Funeral services will be at 2:00 p.m. Monday, May 24, at United Funeral Service. Burial will be in Enterprise Cemetery. He is survived by his wife: Rickie Hardin; 2 daughters: Mylinda Forester (Charlie) of Myrtle and Tena Stewart (Keith) of Hernando, MS.; 2 sons: Tony Hardin of Biloxi, MS., and Jon Tyler Hardin (Kristen) of Myrtle; 4 brothers: Tommy Hardin (Donna) of Myrtle, Johnny Hardin of Myrtle, Cecil Hardin (Janice) of Saltillo, MS., and Billy Culver (Robin) of Myrtle; 8 grandchildren: Brittany Hardin, Jacob Cagle, Anna Grace Carpenter, Gavin Hardin, Jackson Stewart, Ava Stewart, Mallory Hardin, and Jon Tucker Hardin; and 3 great-grandchildren: Carter Price, Maddix Cagle, and Maizee Hardin. He was preceded in death by his parents; 1 sister: Freida Hardin; and 1 grandson: Cody Furniss. Pallbearers will be Steven Schlueter, Stephen Pannell, Jonathan Colston, Vince Brewer, David Jones, and Mikle Turner. Honorary pallbearers will be Joe Morgan, Phillip Jones, Sammy Winters, and Rudy Dixon. Visitation will be from 4:00-8:00 p.m. Sunday, May 23, at United Funeral Service. United Funeral Service is honored to be entrusted with the arrangements. For online condolences please visit www.unitedfuneralservice.com.

Last Monday Lou McQuary went to Crawford to visit with her sister and brother in law, Veedie and Gary Gaines. Lou and Veedie enjoyed catching up with the latest news and ate at the Ole County Bakery at Brooksville. Anything you order there is delicious. Hannah, Jace, and Jeter Howell...

A woman who served as a nurse for the Union County School District for many years is being remembered by friends and colleagues as a compassionate person who loved children. Becky Rowan, who passed away in April at the age of 72, served as a nurse for the school district for about 30 years. For many years, she was the only nurse for all four county schools in the district. Now, because of Rowan’s vision, there is a nurse at all four county schools.

Paige Boyd is the STAR student at Ingomar Attendance Center for scoring a 31 on her ACT. Boyd is involved in the Union County Schools theatre program and likes taking part in youth events at Fredonia Baptist Church. She thinks it is important for a person to work hard and...

NEW ALBANY, Miss. (WTVA) - A traffic stop early Wednesday morning in Union County revealed $65,000 worth [street value] of cough medicine. Union County Sheriff Jimmy Edwards said a K9 officer stopped the vehicle at approximately 3:30 on Interstate 22 near Myrtle. Using the K9, officers found 10 cases, or...

Mary Lou Graham Wicker, 95, passed away on Monday, May 17, 2021 at Baptist Memorial Hospital - Union County. She was born November 5, 1925 in Union County to Marvin Edgar Graham and Anna Williams Graham. She was the widow of Charles Franklin Wicker. She, at one time, had worked for Irwin B. Schwabe and later became the owner and operator of her own beauty shop. She was a member of Ingomar Methodist Church. Visitation will be at United Funeral Service on Wednesday, May 19, 2021 from 10:00a.m. until service time at 12:00p.m. Burial will be at Ingomar Cemetery. She is survived by two daughters, Ann Wicker Williamson (Frank) of Cleveland, MS and Linda Wicker Wiginton Smith of New Albany; one son, Charles Franklin "Chuck" Wicker, Jr. (Kay McMillen Wicker of New Albany; eight grandchildren: Brett Wicker (Noel), Chris Wiginton, Jamie Collins (Charles), Carla Lohr (David), Kellie Koenig, Lorrie Langdon (Josh), Scottie Johnson and Stacie Williamson McCollum; eleven great grandchildren and one great-great grandchild. United Funeral Service is honored to be entrusted with these arrangements. For online condolences and guest registry, please visit www.unitedfuneralservice.com.

Two Memphis men have been charged with trafficking a Schedule 5 narcotic after a traffic stop by the Union County Sheriff’s Office on Wednesday morning. The traffic stop occurred around 3:30 a.m. on Interstate 22 near the Myrtle exit, said Union County Sheriff Jimmy Edwards. The K-9 unit alerted on...

Mallory Nance is the valedictorian at Ingomar Attendance Center. In her spare time she manages the basketball team, the volleyball team and the baseball team and she’s on the archery team. She also took part in the recent Union County Schools Theatre production of “Shrek the Musical” in which she...