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- [S106] The Mountain Press, 10 Oct 2010.
Upland Chronicles: Jimmy Hardin remembered
by Robert S. Allen The Mountain Press
Jimmy Hardin dressed in his football uniform.
On Tuesday, Sevier County will observe the 55th anniversary of the death of Jimmy Hardin, a blocking back on the Sevier County High School football team.
That day five and one-half decades ago — and the days immediately preceding and following it — represent some of the saddest days not only in Sevier County’s sports history, but in Sevier County’s history.
On Saturday evening, Oct. 8, 1955 the Sevier County High School Smoky Bears renewed a long-standing football rivalry with the Cocke County Fighting Cocks. The popular tilt that year was set on the Smoky Bears’ turf in Sevierville. The game had been reset for Saturday evening rather than the usual Friday night due to torrential rains the day before.
This was the only time a game had been postponed due to weather.
The Smoky Bears’ stadium was, at that time, situated behind the county fair livestock barn which was behind the high school. A gravel driveway and chain link fence separated the barn from the west end zone. To the rear of the home bleachers on the north side was A.J. King Lumber Co., a part of which is now home to Sevier County’s new state-of-the-art public library.
The visitors’ bleachers on the south side separated the football field from the county’s fairgrounds, which also served as the high school’s baseball and football practice fields.
This night was clear and crisp — an ideal night for football. This game, like all the others, was well attended by parents of the students on the field, alumni, and local townspeople. There were also a good number of elementary age kids in attendance, anxiously awaiting their future opportunity to wear the purple and white as players, cheerleaders or band members.
In addition, there was always a group of regulars who lined a long stretch of the four-foot-high chain link fence on the Smoky Bears’ side and the west end zone. This group of men was made up of local merchants, politicians, police officers, a few players’ dads and other avid supporters. This was the same group who always stood at the double-door entrance of the old wooden high school gym during basketball games.
The role of regulars was perfectly re-created in the movie “Hoosiers,” over 30 years later.
The games, regardless of the opponent, were always exciting and fun to watch. This was because everyone in the stands and lining the chain link fence knew the young men on the field. Everyone had an attachment of some sort with the players or their families. Everyone was friends or relatives with someone. Many attended the same churches.
There was a closeness that only the people of a small town such as 1955 Sevierville could experience.
There came a moment during this game, however, when the excitement and the fun stopped and was transformed into anxiety, concern and, eventually, sadness. Sevier County’s blocking back, Jimmy Hardin, would come out of the game with an obvious life-threatening injury, having been kicked in the back of the head when his helmet was pushed forward upon hitting the ground.
Jimmy had sustained a suspected concussion during the game the previous week, but had not sought medical attention following that game. He insisted he was fine and was determined to play.
Jimmy Hardin loved football. No evidence was found to indicate this previous injury had anything to do with his death.
When Jimmy was assisted from the field with an official under each arm and brought to the bench near the regulars, his face showed the pain and seriousness of his injury. His mother, along with Jimmy’s father, Homer, had made her way to the fence behind the bench. When she saw her son, Mrs. Hardin let out a scream that must still resonate in the minds of all still living who were there that night.
Jimmy Hardin fought and hung on until the following Wednesday. He was a high school senior two and one-half months short of his 17th birthday when he died.
Two days later, it seemed everybody in Sevier County came to the funeral at First Baptist Church in Sevierville where Jimmy was a member. Hundreds of people — his teammates, the students, their parents, the townspeople, the regulars, everybody — attended the service. The church’s sanctuary was packed and overflowing outside onto the steps and onto Park Road. Speakers had been set up outside so everyone could hear.
There was not a dry eye in sight. Jimmy Hardin’s death had broken Sevier County’s heart.
That October night and the days that followed altered the order of things and the perspective of many of us who were there.
— Robert S. Allen is a retired federal investigator and Sevierville native who has authored two books about Sevier County: Schoolboy: “Jim Tugerson: Ace of the ’53 Smokies” and “The Perry’s Camp Murders” (with Steve O. Watson). The Upland Chronicles series celebrates the heritage and past of Sevier County. If you have suggestions for future topics, would like to submit a column or have comments, contact Carroll McMahan at 453-6411 or e-mail to cmcmahan@scoc.org; or Ron Rader at 604-9161 or e-mail to ron@ronraderproperties.com.
- [S75] Atchley Funeral Home Records, Volume II, 1955-1973, Larry D. Fox, (Smoky Mountain Historical Society), 12 Oct 1955.
Hardin, James Clifford 16 b. 12-26-38 KY d. 10-12-55 Knox Bapt Hosp fatal blow received in SCHS-Newport football game f. Homer M Hardin m. Lois Hickey Alder Branch Cem Survivors: parents 529 Belle Ave Sev bro Jack US Army Camp Polk LA g-mother Mrs Dora Hickey g-father Joe Hickey KY.
- [S34] In the Shadow of the Smokies, Smoky Mountain Historical Society, (1993), 91.
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