| Sources |
- [S23] Atchley Funeral Home, (http://www.atchleyfuneralhome.com/), 7 Feb 2011.
Anna Lee Williams obituary
- [S24] The Newport Plain Talk, (http://www.newportplaintalk.com), 10 Sep 2011.
Food services rally as rain fades before fall
(c)2011 NPT PHOTO BY DAVID POPIEL
Lois's Country Kitchen opened at its new location off Cosby Highway last week and the parking lot has been packed for lunch. Lois and Conway Wilson operate the business and lease the building from Sherman Hudson, who operates the greenhouse business.
Author: David Popiel
Heavy rain over Labor Day washed summer's heat wave away, leaving our hometown in the wake of cool, misty mornings surrounding yellowing trees and the ageless sound of hounds barking.
Many of you already know that Lois Wilson is back in the restaurant business after opening her Lois's Country Kitchen off Cosby Highway next to Sherman Hudson's greenhouses. She opened on Sunday, Sept. 4, with no fanfare, and I stopped by after Labor Day to see the new look of what used to serve as Petal's Florist. It was an overcast day after four-inches of rain on Monday so the bright red "open" sign highlighted by blue circle in the front window caught my eye. Tom O'Dell, former sheriff, was paying his bill, reluctantly turning lose of his dollars. We chatted for a few minutes and I recalled he was a frequent visitor to Lois and Conway Wilson's restaurant, when located off Highway 25/70 near I-40. They operated the restaurant from 1993 to 2008. Against the wall windows at a table I saw Sherman and Jerry Caughron, who I had not seen since he hurt his leg out west a few years ago. On a return visit Thursday another hungry bunch of folks packed the lunch hour but Lois was able to talk with me between customers. Conway had on his white apron and was helping in the kitchen. The buffet was excellent with plenty of vegetables and banana cake dessert. Lois loves people and she could not stand not serving food to folks so she took the opportunity to lease Sherman's building and bring back her popular style of home cooking. You will be hearing much more about this business.
Walgreen's in Newport has been undergoing an extensive inside remake this past week, in case you haven't visited or were wondering who moved your toothpaste. I happened in on Wednesday afternoon, as it seemed a cooler day after the rain stopped to make the short walk from the Plain Talk. Jamie Jackson, store manager for the past two years, explained why all those red-shirted Walgreen's folks were busy moving everything. All racks and overhead signage is now color coded for instant customer recognition of where to find products. No more sky-high racks with maximum height about eye level, said Jackson. As clerks moved and restocked shelving, some items had to be cleared out and have been marked 75 percent off. I will revisit after this weekend to see how it all turned out.
For the past two weekends we have been talking about John and Barbara Bublitz, because of their volunteer work with the High Oaks Coon Club and its annual St. Jude Children Research Hospital barbecue benefit. The big day was Saturday at the Edwina Community Center. I wanted to learn more about this interesting couple, their move to Newport, and how to become a champion barbecue chef on the national tour.
They are married, and have two grown sons. By 1985, the Bublitz family had moved to Knoxville because of John's sales work. He accidentally got introduced to preparing barbecue while helping a former employee of his into the restaurant business. In Knoxville, John operates his own company, since 1993, selling radiation detection equipment to steel mills. Analytical Solutions Company helps mills keep from buying and recycling steel that has been contaminated by radiation. I wondered how John and Barbara ended up in Cocke County. They looked for a quiet place to relax on weekends and rented cabins provided by Gary Spann. They bought a cabin and then, later, land in Misty Acres about six years ago. They have a log-style green steel roofed house that went up with help from contractor Eddie Ball, but most of the work has been done by John and friends. Now, back to the Knoxville restaurant. The original fellow couldn't make it so John and sons operated it for a while and then closed it. The good news for us is during this time he joined the Kansas City Barbecue Society, the largest such membership group in the world with at least 15,000 members. The society sanctions barbecue competitions. This is no small backyard vacation venture because prize money ranges from $20,000 to $100,000 per event. John did start cooking in the backyard, took some classes, and ultimately singed up "accidentally," for a pro competition in Little Rock, Arkansas. He and Barbara may have been a little intimidated, when they showed up with their small smoker and saw 225 teams ready to compete. Just in a few years they have become seasoned competitors with a Winnabago RV that most teams have, because they are husband and wife teams. Even with a few $750-per-day barbecue training classes by the masters, he said, "We were overwhelmed" at the competition. But they did well and earned a check. This firmly placed them as professionals and stopped them from backyard amateur events. The closest event to which they've traveled is the Sevierville May pro competition. Of the 50 teams at Sevierville entered, John and Barbara placed third in ribs, and fourth in pork butt. He admitted, "We screwed up our brisket." For those familiar with Bassmaster national competition, the set-up is similar. This year they have been proud to earn a position in Sam's Club national event with $400,000 in prize money to be won during the series. About 600 barbecue teams started competing. In Madison, Wisconsin, the Bublitz team won first in ribs, and third over-all, and qualified for the regional championship at Indianapolis this October.
- [S58] Marriage Certificate.
"Tennessee, County Marriages, 1790-1950," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-X3F3-FM?cc=1619127&wc=Q6SB-21P%3A1589264474%2C1589372863 : 22 December 2016), Cocke > image 655 of 736; citing Tennessee State Library and Archives, Nashville and county clerk offices from various counties.
- [S58] Marriage Certificate.
ame: Lois Ann Williams
Also Known As Name:
Name Suffix:
Event Type: Marriage
Event Date: 05 Aug 1966
Event Place: Cocke, Tennessee, United States
Gender: Female
Spouse's Name: Conway Wilson
Spouse's Also Known As Name:
Spouse's Name Prefix:
Spouse's Name Suffix: Jr.
Page: 466
|
Search | Advanced Search
(Age 98 years) 
: Address
: Location
: City/Town
: County/Shire
: State/Province
: Country
: Not Set
= Link to Google Maps