Salvation Army

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=====Talmadge Welcher=====
Captain **Talmadge Welcher**

^Captain Talmadge Welcher||
|{{welcher_talmadge.png?400}}||
^Rank|Captain|

====Appointments====
^Appointment^Rank^From^Until^
|Corps Officer - [[Sunbury PA|Sunbury, Pennsylvania]]|Captain|1927|1929|
|Special Effort Secretary - Birmingham, Alabama|Captain|1929|1930|
|Corps Officer - [[Hattiesburg MS|Hattiesburg, Mississippi]]|Captain|1930| |

====Heads Army Drive====
Applause thundered through the house. The curtain rustled, moved aside, and "Tad Wecher's Virginians" bowed to the adoring audience.

The Virginians, a travelling band had played a run of eight weeks at the Cinderella Ballroom, in New York, at 89th street. They were booked for a run of 36 weeks in Australia. Success was theirs.

But Talmadge Welcher, wind-instrument player, and saxophone artist, didn't like that kind of success. He wanted something deeper, his family wanted something more spiritual for him and so, in the chaotic year of 1922, he left the Keith circuit at the height of his success.

He is in Jackson now, but as Captain Talmadge Welcher of the Salvation Army, directing a special drive to raise the Army's annual funds here.

Born in Roanoke, Virginia, at the beginning of the century, he spent his youth in Pennsylvania, at Sunbury. As hardly more than a stripling he entered the U.S. Army during the war, receiving his honorable discharge in 1918.

Captain Welcher's present position with the Salvation Army, came as the result of five years of work devoted to financial campaigns in the east and middle west. He now makes his headquarters at Birmingham, holding the post of special executive.

His real calling has been found by the Captain, who says: "I am devoted to my work. Although there have been several very flattering offers from other sources, I am perfectly happy and nothing can take me away from the Salvation Army."

//Clarion-Ledger (Jackson, Mississippi), October 24, 1929//

====Hub Salvation Army Captain Fingerprinting Hoboes to Keep Undesirables Away From City====
It won't be long now until only the harmless type of hobo will be paying calls to the Hub City and it's all because of the tale fingerprints tell.

An identification bureau has been established at the Forrest street headquarters of the Salvation Army and fingerprinting is part of the investigation of each individual applying for charity.

This system was inaugurated two weeks ago by Captain Talmadge Welcher who came here from district headquarters at Birmingham to take charge of the local Salvation Army corps.

Captain Welcher formerly was connected with the Sunbury, Pennsylvania, unit and while there learned how successfully fingerprinting will keep men with police records away from towns.

Only one other city in the district comprising the states of Alabama and Mississippi has a Salvation Army home where applicants for aid are fingerprinted. That place is Bessemer, Ala., where Capt. Welcher's uncle is in charge of the corps.

Persons who have served terms for petty crimes and occasional felonies and have left a trail of "prints" across the country shun fingerprinting like a pestilence, Capt. Welcher said.

At Sunbury which became known among the "knights of the open road" as a fingerprint point, the number seeking food and lodging at the Salvation Army home dropped to only one or two a day.

Tramps with records would ride through the town without stopping and only those who had nothing to fear and whose worst habit was a chronic case of wanderlust would stop and ask for sustenance.

The "panhandle parade" is in full swing through this section now, Capt. Welcher stated. Several nights this week 18 or 19 men and youths have been given food and a bed at the Salvation Army. Each of them was fingerprinted. These records are kept at the Army headquarters.

A double checking system is being planned and Capt. Welcher hopes to put it into effect on March 1.

A card will be issued to each hobo applying at the Salvation Army and he must take it to police headquarters and identify himself to the officer on duty. The Army then will supply him with something to eat and a bed.

All policemen will be asked to furnish similar cards to tramps who approach them for directions to the Army headquarters. In this way Capt. Welcher believes only the worthwhile transients can obtain free accommodations here.

Many of the bums who stop in Hattiesburg are only drifters who are afflicted with an "itching heel" and who never committed a crime in their lives and probably never will do so.

These men are not criminals and should not be jailed. Some of them are college and university graduates who are just traveling. They come from all parts of the country and whither they go depends upon the thermometer.

//Hattiesburg American (Hattiesburg, Mississippi), February 8, 1930//

====Hub Salvation Army Is Clear Of All Debts====
**Welcher's Report for First Six Months Shows Excellent Results**

Faced with a deficiency of $800 when he took charge of the work here more than six months ago, Capt. Talmadge Welcher of the Hub Salvation Army in his semi-annually report Thursday announced that the organization was completely out of debt and that the work would be carried on the rest of the year without incurring any debts outside of the regular monthly bills.

"We cannot and will not go into debt to carry on the relief work of the city," he said, "as it is not the proper thing to do. If citizens of Hattiesburg want their charity cases cared for, then they should furnish the necessary money needed for the work and every subscriber is urged to pay his or her pledge promptly when called on. Relief work will be curtailed if these pledges are not paid when due."

Capt. Welcher said he wished to thank the public for the attention given the Salvation Army and for the kindly and courteous cooperation of the supporters. He said that he and Mrs. Welcher were here to serve the community and would do all they could toward that end.

Family relief work - Seventeen given medicine, 9 supplied with furniture, 43 supplied with garments, 17 supplied with shoes, 104 supplied with groceries, two supplied with rent. Total number of individual families relieved, 131; total number of persons in families reached nad relieved, 393.

Transient relief - Meals given to 295, 323 supplied with beds and lodging, 5 supplied with garments, 2 supplied with shoes, 3 given transportation. Total transients given relief during the six months, 480; total number of person in families reached and transients, 8[illegible].

Employment - Applicants 17, placements 12, relief cases interviewed 544, relief cases investigated, 546.

//Hattiesburg American (Hattiesburg, Mississippi), July 3, 1930//

===='Two Chicago Bums' Leave Cards With Salvation Captain====
Capt. Talmadge Welcher of the Salvation Army branch here today was awaiting with more or less interest promised appearance of "two bums from Chicago."

They left informal calling cards yesterday in the form of two scrawled statements on the wall.

One read: "Two bums came in for a feed. Be back tomorrow." It was signed A-No. 1 and A-No. 2.

The other ultimatum said: "Two house-to-house bums came in to find you, and be back tomorrow, and if we don't get feed, bye-bye." This was signed "Two bums from Chicago."

In the meantime, the Salvation Army head was checking the largest week's calls for service. Fifty-three requests for food during the week had been recorded up to Saturday morning. This was in addition to seven local family cases given attention, Captain Welcher said.

//Hattiesburg American (Hattiesburg, Mississippi), August 30, 1930//

====Hopewell Jubilee Quartette Feature At Salvation Army====
One of the interesting features at the Salvation Army last evening was the singing of the Hopewell Jubilee quartette also Mr. Talmadge Welcher played a saxophone solo, and a quartette made up of Mr. and Mrs. Talmadge Welcher, and Captain and Mrs. Hal Hughes sang.

T.A. McMahon, the Revivalist preached on "The last call", and took for his text Genesis VI-3, My Spirit shall not always strive with man.

On Tuesday evening Mr. D.W. Owens of Washington will bring the message, there will be services each night but Monday to which all are cordially invited.

//The Hopewell News (Hopewell, Virginia), April 24, 1933//