Phillips Books

This is a great book to read during the winter.
Many, many do-able projects- fun things!

Or just dream...

In 1972 two Auburn University professors approached Delta Air Lines about writing a scholarly history of the company. Since Delta would soon be celebrating its fiftieth anniversary in 1979, Delta's executives were receptive to the idea. The book that W. David Lewis and Wesley Phillips Newton authored, Delta, The History of an Airline, is a scholarly history but, since it was to be distributed free to employees, one written in a narrative style. However it includes enough detail to make it worthwhile for the academic community. Delta is appropriately organized chronologically for easy reading and extensively researched and documented with footnotes and a large bibliography.

The authors hypothesize that their work is probably "the first history of an American commercial Airline to be written by professional historians having full access to the business records, correspondence, and personnel of the corporation involved." (ix) This is made particularly more meaningful because the origin of Delta Air Lines is unique in the annals of American aviation. Other airlines grew out of the federal promotion of commercial aviation through the Post Office. On the other hand, Delta's genesis was in the fight against the boll weevil. Its predecessor was Huff-Daland Dusters, Inc., a crop dusting company organized to counter the cotton scourge from the air. It was strictly a private venture without government assistance.

Following WW I, Thomas H. Huff and Eliot Daland organized the Huff-Daland Company in Ogdensburg, New York to build military aircraft. Seeking a new commercial use for its aircraft, George B. Post, vice-president and a pilot for Huff-Daland, landed in Tallulah, Louisiana where B. R. Coad, at the USDA's Delta Laboratory, was conducting experiments with aircraft to apply calcium arsenate on cotton fields infested by the boll weevil. The military type aircraft being used were inadequate and Post returned to Ogdensburg where he urged his company to develop a more satisfactory aircraft. Huff-Daland redesigned one of its military types and organized a subsidiary company, Huff-Daland Dusters, which began operations at Macon, Georgia in 1924. Soon afterward its general manager, Harold R. Harris, an Army Air Corp pilot on leave from the military, moved the operation to Monroe, Louisiana. In 1925 C. E. Woolman, an agent with the agricultural extension service, was hired as a salesman. Woolman was to play an enduring and patriarchal role in Delta up through his death in 1966.

About this time the army worm became a serious cotton pest in Peru and Harris and Woolman traveled to Lima in 1926 and 1927 in order to secure permits and contracts to operate there. Since the seasons were reversed, this was seen as an opportunity to work year round. Successful in this endeavor, Harris' and Woolman's attention turned to the formation of an airline back home. Mail contracts were being awarded to private companies following the Kelly Act of 1925 and, even though they did not have a Post Office contract, Woolman and others nonetheless bought out the assets of the duster company. Reorganized as a passenger airline, Delta Air Service began flying out of Monroe in 1929. Utilizing six person, single engine Travel Air 6000 aircraft, Delta flew a route that by 1930 stretched between Atlanta and Ft. Worth. The name "Delta" came from the Mississippi Delta region. Unfortunately, because of Post Master General (PMG) Walter F. Brown's desire to award contracts to heavily capitalized companies, Delta was not granted a mail contract. Despite an exemplary safety record, it was forced to cease carrying passengers and reverted to its original dusting business to survive. The next years, during the depths of the Great Depression, would be very difficult but Woolman held the company together waiting for better times.

Under Franklin D. Roosevelt accusations of favoritism in the award of mail contracts under Postmaster General Brown led to a full scale investigation by Senator Hugo Black of Alabama. Woolman, speaking before the Senate committee, testified that it was impossible to make money without a mail contract and that Delta had been forced to shut down because the contract had been given to a rival airline even though Delta had pioneered the route. FDR cancelled all mail contracts and ordered the Air Corps to carry the mail with disastrous results.

As an outgrowth of this situation an order was issued which let new contracts but which prohibited previous "guilty" airlines and managers from bidding. Fortunately Delta was exempt from these restrictions and in 1934 was granted Contract Air Mail route 24 along the trans-southern route from Charleston to Ft. Worth. From this point forward there would be no more interruptions in passenger service, though there would be other trials and tribulations to overcome.

By the advent of WW II, the company's management team was well established, a modern aircraft fleet acquired, which included the venerable DC-3, a new north-south route from Cincinnati to Savannah inaugurated, and a cadre of dedicated employees hired. Following the war, this foundation, combined with new opportunities, such as the 1945 award of the Chicago to Miami extension by the Civil Aeronautics Board, permitted the company to expand. However Delta was not the only carrier seeking new opportunities.

Competition was stiff, particularly from its rival, Eddie Rickenbacker's Eastern Airlines. Delta's purchase of reconditioned four engine C-54s, the military version of the DC-4, demonstrated Delta's conservative fiscal management style and enabled the company to get a jump on Eastern which had ordered brand new DC-4s. But Rickenbacker leapfrogged ahead when Eastern introduced the pressurized Lockheed 049 Constellation, eclipsing the now obsolete DC-4s. Later the debacle of the turboprop Lockheed Electras redeemed Delta's management. Delta had decided to forgo the jet props and to wait for the pure jets. A design flaw, with dire consequences, resulted in the early obsolescence of the Electras and Delta was first to introduce the DC-8 jet liners in 1959.

With routes controlled by the government, competition between carriers focused on service. In-flight service was a Delta hallmark - even when considering its liquor policy! The company steadfastly held back from serving liquor on its flights. Ultimately, despite strong passenger and internal employee dissent, the policy was changed with the inauguration of service between Houston and New York in the 1950s.

For competitive reasons securing routes to New York (1955) and the west coast (1961) were long sought after and hard fought for objectives by the Delta team. In the regulated environment, under which airlines were operating at the time, the only way to expand was by route awards granted after a long competitive process before the CAB or through mergers. In the course of the post war years, Delta merged with Chicago & Southern (1954) and Northeast Airlines (1972). [Author's note: I was hired in 1972 just after the merger, when Delta was expanding its service following the acquisition]

There is a lot of information packed into the pages of Delta, The History of an Airline but the relationship between management and employees is a major theme. In Delta, there is infused throughout the book the understanding of a sense of loyalty and commitment between managers and employees. The "Delta Family" tradition grew out of this relationship. Much of the credit belongs to the benevolent leadership style under C. E. Woolman. Delta, the company, imbued in its employees the values from its Southern heritage and was dedicated to servicing its customers accordingly. Delta's promote from within policy, open door policy, intensely cost-conscious management, practical informational advertising program, and its emphasis on quality were enduring traditions at the time of the company's fifty year mark.

Perhaps the most significant event foreshadowing the future was the 1977 award of the Atlanta to London route by the CAB. International expansion became a key element of Delta's growth plan. In 1979 there was no reason not to be optimistic for the future. But, if the past was any indication of what was to come, it was not the time to rest on laurels.

As a postscript, since 1979 the greatness of Delta has been tested again many times over. Fuel spikes, stagflation, recessions, the air traffic controller's strike, and the effects of deregulation have all occurred since then. Delta managed to surmount these obstacles and continue its climb to greatness. However, after 9/11, in its seventy-fifth anniversary year, Delta is being tested like never before...at least so it would seem. Each crisis in Delta's long history has threatened the company's very existence and, in that light, was as severe as the present situation. Delta survived in the past by adapting to market realities. Delta people are again making the difficult adjustments necessary for the company to survive in a very competitive world. Analysts predict only one or two of the legacy carriers will remain but, if the past is any indication of the future, Delta will be one of them.

As Mr. Woolman commented about the airline industry, "the only constant is change."

The author here argues in Demolishing The Spiritual Stronghold Of Racism In The American Church that God is calling the present generation of American Christians to reconcile their racial differences so he can complete his plan for this age. Racial divisions are the biggest factors restricting God's spirit from sending a world revival, the author maintains. Biblical, historical and statistical facts back up her assertions.

Desert's Dawn is a novel that kept me in suspense until the end. Mr. Phillips did a great job in grabbing the reader from the very first page.

The well-written story takes place in a small Arizona town that has been plagued with lawless acts of a criminal named, Tom Roberts. For the past fifteen years, he has committed crimes in the region, but has managed to stay one step ahead of the authorities.

The saga begins ten years after the murder of Jennifer Danials, a district attorney from Flagstaff, AZ, who was kidnapped by Roberts. Her kidnapping occurred just as she was close to getting proof of his criminal activities.

Sheila Daniels, the seventeen-year old daughter of Jennifer, has been living for the last ten years in the care of her 44 year old half-brother Andrew. He is a wheelchair bound Army veteran, who was paralyzed for life during his brief duty in the U.S. invasion of Grenada.

When Sheila was first delivered by the police into Andrew's care, the young seven year old was very distraught. Her mother was her whole life. Now that her mother was gone, there was a great void in her life that needed to be filled.

Fortunately, through the love of friends and family, Sheila turned her life around. Now, ten years later, she has excelled from a distraught young girl, to a stable young woman. Sheila is intelligent, creative, independent, and highly skilled in the martial arts(which was a boon to her in several situations.)

Eventually, Sheila and the people of the small town clash with Roberts.

Secrets are revealed throughout the story. The reader will also enjoy the light-hearted humor and bravery. They will be shocked at the cruel acts of lawlessness by Roberts and his cohorts. The ending did surprise me. I think Mr. Phillips has written a thrilling, action packed mystery that will appeal to all who read Desert's Dawn.

THE DEVER-AND RELATED FAMILIES 1600-1900rds.
The DeVere families 1400-1600rds in England are included.
With variant spellings.

THE DEVER-DEAVER FAMILIES in the book begin with Richard and Grace Deaver, 1600rds, in Maryland. It traces several of their descendants up into the 1900rds through church, courthouse and other records found during our many genealogy research trips to MD, NC, VA and WVa, Salt Lake City, Wash., DC. He applied for and was granted a license to keep an Ordinary (Inn). In 1661 men were ordered to Rendezvous at Richard Devers plantation.

More information about the book and a list of Dever-Deaver names in the book is given on our website. http://mywebpages.comcast.net/jmlinder609/
And see below for some of the Families that are Related to the various Dever/Deaver families in our book.

The DeVere Families, undoubtedly the most powerful family connected with the County of Essex in early England is included. Some of this family held the title of Earl of Oxford, and other titles, for many generations. Castle Hedingham, their castle in Halstead district in Essex, was the scene of elaborate entertaining. Queen Maud died there, and great entertainments were held there for Henry VII. It's easy to imagine the great feasts and parties that were held there. This section of the book begins by giving you the background history of the family and facts about the surname. The DeVere families in our book begin with Aubrey (Aubrey) DeVere, born 1040, who went to England with William the Conqueror, but it gives earlier information on the surname. Our book traces several generations of these families through their marriages, births, deaths, and other things. It gives many of their famous escapades. [...]

Devlin Waugh is like few other comic-book heroes. A bodybuilding, flower-arranging priest with an eye for beautiful boys and a handy way with extremely big guns, Devlin survived a steroid abuse scandal in the Olympics to become the future Vatican City-state's chief exorcist and paranormal warrior.

As Aquatraz underwater prison - home to some of the world's most vicious killers - is overrun by a vampire infestation, a loose gang of nurses, wardens and pest controllers must come together to fight this evil menace. But around the corner lies someone even more scary. Clenching a cigarette holder between perfect teeth, he purrs "You can rest easy, gentlemen. Fingers OFF the triggers. My name is Devlin Waugh. I'm here to steal the show..."

This series, originally run in The Judge Dredd Megazine, had a positive reaction like no other before or since. In the annual poll of readers' opinions, Waugh became the first and last character ever to knock Judge Dredd off the top spot as Favourite Character.

If you've ever wondered what would happen if Oscar Wilde and the cast of Brideshead Revisited were to be merged with Deathrace 2000, The Evil Dead and the Terminator, now's your chance to find out...

Dewey And Elvis: The Life And Times Of A Rock 'n' Roll Deejay is a biography drawn from personal interviews, documentary sources, and oral history collections to give a personal, no-holds-barred view of celebrated disc jockey Dewey Phillips. Indiana University professor emeritus of history Louis Cantor suggests that Phillips zeal for and promotion of rhythm and blues music set the stage for a 1950's transformation in rock-'n'-roll, not to mention Elvis' legendary success. A fascinating, smoothly flowing examination of one man's life and contributions to popular music in the mid-twentieth century.

One of the best books i have ever read about life, love, and baseball.

This dictionary, offers a comprehensive guide to more than 1,550 of his characters & to the works in which they appear. From the early "Sketches by Boz" to the unfinished "Edwin Drood", no character is forgotten, even the most minor. Every entry contains a brief description of the person and references to all the chapters & important incidents in which he or she appears. For the major characters there are also appropriate quotations from the original works. An additional 200 entries deal with imaginary places, societies, and allusions. Philip has also included a fascinating index providing the originals and prototypes of characters & places in the works of Charles Dickens...

What do Herod Antipus, Kublai Kahn, Idi Amin, Lenin, Henry VIII, Nero and Ramses II The Great all have in common? First they are all despots and second along with about 600 others they are in this book.

In just over 330 page you'll be treated to the amassed amount of 600 plus despots, tyrants and would be tyrants trying to take over. The authors have listed each name and a brief description of the person.

While the book is made for quick reference, I was engrossed in the book for over two hours. The facts and photos included are excellent and you might be surprised to find out who is in the book.

You'll read about Cyrus the Great, Peter the Great, Napoleon, Hitler and so many, many more. For a great gift for those in school or for the additional reference material for the term paper this is a great place to start.