Video: Paper Survives Webster County Fire

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WEBSTER COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – You may remember the day the Webster County Courthouse in Walthall burned.

Important court documents were retrieved from that January 17th fire, but you’ll never believe what else survived that fire.

Precious pieces of paper, maybe not to you, but to a Mathiston firefighter…its like having gold.

“East side of the courthouse I saw this piece of paper and it had just come down from the flames I guess. And it was on the ground in front of me and I realized the name on it as being Larry Box,” said Keith Crenshaw, Eupora Vol. Firefighter.

“I can’t describe the feeling. It was just a feeling that, to think that  Mr. Box was there with us,” added Crenshaw.

Crenshaw means in spirit that is.

In the flesh…helping to fight the Walthall Courthouse fire was his son Shane Box who had accompanied his dad on many firefighting runs.

Crenshaw gave Box three pieces of paper stuck together by the watery snow that appeared like one sheet.

They were political qualifying papers.

“First thing I thought was, I really couldn’t believe it. And just had to kind of pause a minute. Get my composure back together. I mean I knew he was there with us. And keeping us safe. It really meant a lot,” Shane Box, Mathiston Fire Department.

“He was fire chief at Tomnolen for a long long time. And he ran for justice court judge a couple of times. But the only thing that was on his mind when he did all of that was to help people,” said Jimmy McLemore, Webster County E911.

The old burned out ruins of the Walthall Courthouse was where former circuit court clerk June Lott Castle worked.

She remembers that hot political race between Larry Box and a female challenger.

Her signature was placed somewhere on those kinds of documents.

So old pieces of paper having come through a hot blaze, has brought again warm memories and feeling between a father and his surviving son.

“His opponent beat him but, he ran for the office twice. He’ll always be a winner,” said Box.

Some 100 firefighters from five neighboring counties helped to extinguish that courthouse blaze.

Categories: Local News

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