Birth: Manchester, GA, but that is not a “home town.” My dad was a preacher of the “old school” that believed in short pastoral tenures. That led us to Princeton, Homestead, Arcadia, and Hernando, FL, Gulfport and Rosebloom, MS before he retired and we moved to Atlanta. I attended 9 different schools before I was graduated from high school.

Spouse’s name: Ruth Shannon Cowan, a West Virginian

Business/profession: College professor—United States history: 1600-1877.

Home(s) prior to moving to Northeast GA: DeKalb County GA

When and why did you come to NE GA? As our daughters (2) were growing up we would take trips into the mountains in the summer. At that time we never anticipated that we would live here. The rapid growth of the area where we lived radically changed the once-pleasant suburban neighborhood, so when we retired we relocated to the hills in 1997

. Hobbies and interests: Things that I don’t know about that present a challenge. Over the years they included rose growing, urban mini-orchard of various fruits, woodworking, and currently photography and video editing.

Other information, e.g. education, hiking experience, etc.: My dad wanted me to follow him as a preacher so I got a B.A. in religion (college), a M. Div. in New Testament (seminary), and a M.A. in Biblical Studies (Emory grad school) before I realized that I had “missed my calling.” I switched to history and got my Ph.D in U. S. history from Georgia State University.

Hiking is a new challenging hobby. Jack Jacobi got me started. I really enjoy the hikes (for the most part) when I can go.