Marietta in History
The Atherton Drugstore Explosion
October 31, 1963
For many Mariettans, Halloween has never been the same since the terrible explosion. Dr. Lucius Atherton and his son, Howard, owned Atherton Drugs, a popular shopping and meeting place. On October 31, 1963, there had been a YMCA-sponsored Halloween carnival on the Square in the evening and about a hundred children had just left the immediate area. There were still many people inside and outside the store at 6:23 p.m. when an earth-shattering blast turned the world upside down. The explosion was attributed to a natural gas leak. Mayor Sam Welch called it the greatest tragedy in the city’s history.
Bob Poole, the pharmacist on duty, said, "One minute the store was there and the next minute it wasn't." Six people died and dozens were injured. Among the heroes who risked their lives in rescue efforts was Romeo Hudgins, head of Marietta Civil Defense. Ignoring his personal safety, he welded steel beams to shore up the building so the injured could be found and removed. Convicts from the Cobb County prison worked all night clearing debris, which included bedraggled Halloween candy and masks. Ruth McConnell, a cashier, was completely buried under debris and was rescued by Marietta High School football players who had been talking outside the drugstore. In an interview given eighteen years later, she said, "That"s the first thing I think of when I wake up on Halloween morning."
November 1, 1963. The Anderson Herald (Indiana)
November 1, 1963. Atlanta Journal & Constitution
October 29, 1981. Atlanta Journal & Constitution
October 31, 2003. Atlanta Journal & Constitution