Just when I thought I heard it all about the Quack Quacks, I stumble across a person that fills me in on the facts, plus a few interesting stories to boot. The person prefers to remain anonymous, so I keep it that way.
Where They Lived
Some facebook posters have called them the Quack Quacks of Lake City and some have thought they lived in a part of town called the “Iron Curtain” across the railroad tracks behind the old hospital. They never, to my knowledge, ever lived in Lake City, but in Clinton.
They lived in South Clinton, near the river in the area where the Carden Farm is. They drove around mostly in Clinton and Lake City in an old dilapidated Studebaker.
Update: The Quack Quacks DID live in Lake City in the area know as the “Iron Curtain”. They may have lived in other locations since they moved around a lot.
How they Got Their Nickname
Their surname was Hickson. One day they stole a bunch of ducks and put them all in a big ole burlap bag and while walking down the railroad tracks in Lake City the ducks ate a hole in the bag and they all got out, quacking and scurrying every which way down the railroad tracks. The Hickson’s (they all traveled as a group) started frantically chasing after these ducks down the railroad tracks. That’s how they got the name Quack Quacks!
A He or a She?
Many people wondered if one the main characters in the group was a he or a she. Shirley, a daughter, dressed like a man, which is why every one got so confused. She had a sister named Dootsy Mae, who had a hatchet jaw that looked like Dick Tracey.
Lil, who was the matriarch of the family, was a big heavyset woman who always kept a huge wad of cash between her boobs.
One of the sons was named Ed. He fell in love with a Ms. Reynolds. Ed wanted to marry Ms. Reynold, but she said “no way am I going to marry a g.d. HIckson”. So what did Ed do? He changed his last name to Reynolds and they got married.
The Other Quack
It seems another person in Clinton has the nickname Quack and he got it from the Quack Quacks. Any you know Everette “Quack” Nelson? You’ll see him every day during school season directing traffic at the school crossings in front of the Clinton Elementary & Middle School.
Everette, used to work at Martin Funeral Home (now Jones) in Clinton. Kim Farmer, who also worked at the funeral home, and Everette were sitting outside the funeral home one day when the Quack Quacks were walking down the street to go to the post office across the street. Everette thought he’d play a joke on them. He ran inside the funeral home and came back out a side door and hid behind some bushes. As the Quack Quacks were passing by, Everette started yelling “quack, quack…quack, quack!” Well, the Quack Quacks, didn’t take to kindly to that, so they looked in the area of the funeral home and saw Kim Farmer sitting out there all by himself and thought he was the quacker. They started throwing rocks at Kim! Whew!
Ever since then, Everette has gotten the nickname “Quack” Nelson.
Everette later on worked for the Clinton Cab Company. Sometimes he would have to take the Quack Quacks home. When they got there, Lil, the big fat momma, would pull out the big wad of cash stashed between her boobs and hand Everette some money. Everette would take the money and on the way back into town hold it out the cab door because it stunk! The Quack Quack’s smelled something awful and if they ever took a bath, no one was aware of it.
So there you have it. Just about everything you ever wanted to know about the Quack Quacks of Clinton.
Got any other interesting characters in Anderson County you want to know about?