CHATTANOOGA, Tenn — Most people in the Chattanooga-area sporting community, especially fishermen, knew, or knew of, Benny Hull – better known as “the ol’ Stump-Bumper.” He was the host of the long-running TV show, The Southern Sportsman, and there were very few fishermen who hadn’t looked across the water and seen a pretty Key West zoom by, driven by man in a long-billed fishing cap, looking much like a grizzled sea captain. That would be Benny Hull and there is a good chance he had a livewell full of fish, or was about to go get one.
They also know the Stump-Bumper passed away Aug. 16th.
It pained me that I was out of town (actually out of the country) at the time Benny passed and not here to pay my respects. As a fellow outdoor journalist and communicator, I feel compelled to share, albeit belatedly, my memories of this great sportsman.
After nearly ten years with the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency, my wife and I came back to our hometown, Chattanooga in the mid-1980’s. I worked for WTVC-TV, but a stroke of luck landed me a freelance job as the outdoor columnist for the Chattanooga Times newspaper…