(This article first appeared in the August print edition of the Hendersonian.)
“Few happenings in the history of Henderson caused more consternation than the dope-ring story,” Francele Armstrong wrote in 1963 – 11 years after the story broke.
The original controversy was a three-day event that broke July 17, 1952, with banner headlines in all-capital letters. The first one read, “DOPE BEING SOLD TO HENDERSON CHILDREN! DROP STATION FOR HUGE RING HERE!” Similar headlines in The Gleaner followed the next two days…