Cumi Williamson lived in a shack in Dames Ferry across from its store, which also served as its post office. His income consisted of a check for his services in the army in France during the Great War–and the sale of mink and other pelts.
June Brown Ham remembers him: “Early in the morning Cumi would leave the little shanty to take a stroll down the railroad tracks to the wooded areas where he had traps set to catch wild animals. Very few days did he not come home ladened with bags full. He would then prepare their fur or hides to be shipped off.
“After he got this job finished he would grab a fishing pole and some worms and off he would go to the great Ocmulgee River for a few hours of just being by himself and watching the water rolling over the shoals while he was waiting for that little cork to start bobbing. This could mean ‘supper for tonight.’ He also checked his ‘fish baskets.’
“During the rest of the day he could be found sitting on an old bench on his front porch reading one book after the other. Cumi, you might say, was well educated. He stayed abreast of the happenings of the world and was willing to answer any question…regarding current events.”
Why his parents chose the given name of “Cumi” remains a mystery. In his case, though, the given name was as distinctive as his character.