Ep. 7 Danny Walden, Historian for “The Missing Town” of Menglewood
The history of the “Minglewood Blues” is as long and complex as the difficult-to-locate Menglewood, the West Tennessee river town it was named after. Danny Walden, president of the Dyer County Historical Society, shares the origin, location and details of the town that was the site of the Mengel Box Company.
Walden also sheds light on the history of the song written by Noah Lewis then first recorded in 1928 in Memphis by Cannon’s Jug Stompers. A version titled “New, New Minglewood Blues,” was recorded by the Grateful Dead in 1967 for their first album and both the song and the Tennessee town became part of the heritage of rock ‘n’ roll.
Later, Andrew talks with Amanda Mayo about the woolly mammoth that is on display in the Regional Gallery at Discovery Park of America. Amanda tells us the history of the fossils, how early humans hunted and used woolly mammoths to survive the harsh winters, and the similarities found between woolly mammoths and Asian and Indian elephants today.
