Oral history with Gwin E. Douglas

              Oral history with Gwin E. Douglas
F341.5 . M57 vol. 716
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Biography
Gwin E. Douglas was born on November 9, 1923, in State Line, Mississippi. His parents were William E. Douglas and Ella Gertrude Kittrell Douglas. He is married to Alma McLeod Douglas.
Douglas graduated from Leakesville High School in 1942. After graduation, he worked briefly with his father in the naval store and the timber businesses until 1943, when he was drafted into the Army. He attained the rank of Master Sergeant. His job was to train new draftees. When the war was over, he returned home from Japan and was released from the Army in April 1946.
For several years after the war, Douglas worked at various jobs in Leakesville. In 1956 he took a job with the International Paper Company as a construction superintendent in forest land management. In that position, Douglas became acquainted with the best land management policies available. He retired from International Paper in 1979 and has since put those policies to use in managing his own forest lands.
In 1979, Douglas was elected to the Greene County Board of Supervisors. He served until 1983.
Mrs. Alma McLeod Douglas was born and raised in Leakesville. She was one of thirteen children. Her father was a carpenter, electrician, and plumber. He helped build a number of homes around the Leakesville area. He also served as Leakesville tax collector and town marshal.
Table of Contents
I. Family
II. Turpentine business
III. Construction of still
IV. Distilling turpentine and rosin
V. Collecting turpentine
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