The Garrett Brothers

It was once said, “All you have to do is go to Howard College and tell them your name is ‘Garrett’ and they will issue a football uniform to you.” Such was the reputation of the five Garrett boys from Albertville. For 10 consecutive years, there were one or more Garrett boys playing at Howard College. They were part of the “second” family of Dr. John Hosea Garrett, who moved to Skirum on Sand Mountain from Delta, in Clay County. Following the death of his first wife, John met and married Adna Geneva Daniel, and moved his “first” family of six children from Delta. Soon there were six more little Garretts. The first was a girl, Jewell, who made many sacrifices so that her younger brothers could have the opportunity to attend school. She became a teacher, retiring from Winfield City Schools in 1963 with 41 years of service. Then came the Garrett Boys—John William, Gordon Angus, Wheeler Everett, Russell Noel and Norman. Dr. Garrett died in 1911 and Mrs. Garrett moved the family to a 35-acre farm in Albertville, where the family lived by farming. She sent her children to school, took them to church and instilled admirable character traits in each of them. Each of her children graduated from high school and college and entered the education field. Mrs. Garrett was not happy when the football coach at Albertville (State Secondary Agricultural School) wanted her oldest son to play football, but play he did, starting a tradition of Garretts that saw each of the boys play football in high school and earn scholarships to Howard College in Birmingham.

John was the first of the brothers to attend Howard. He was an outstanding player, and following graduation, he coached at Hamilton High School. He returned to Albertville and served as a teacher and principal before crippling arthritis forced his retirement. He is credited with the suggestion to bring the school mascot name back to its original Aggies.

Gordon played football, basketball and baseball at Howard College. As a junior, he was offered a contract as a pitcher by the Washington Senators. However, a shoulder injury inflicted by his brother in spring training ended any prospects of a professional baseball career. Nevertheless, this steered him into his career as a teacher and coach. He coached football, basketball, baseball and track at Geraldine from 1934-46. One of his teams had only 12 players, but was still undefeated. While at Geraldine, Gordon met and married Ruth Lowrey. They had one daughter, Adna. Gordon stopped coaching in 1946 for health reasons, but continued teaching at Geraldine until 1954, when he moved back to Albertville to teach until his retirement in 1963.

Wheeler was the third brother to attend Howard College. He played football and was a member of Theta Kappa Nu fraternity. The 1931 Howard College yearbook states that “Wheeler Garrett, another of the famous Garrett Brothers, has been a mainstay on the team and his place will be hard to fill.” After graduation, he coached at Susan Moore and Albertville. He entered the Navy in 1942 and later managed a business in Albertville.

Russell continued the tradition at Howard as a standout on the football team. Following graduation, he coached at Blountsville, Scottsboro, Boaz and Guntersville. While at Blountsville, he met and married Kathleen Cobb. They had two daughters, Patsy and Sherry. He left education and entered private business in Albertville, where he served as a member of the Albertville City Council.

Norman, or “Pete” as he was called, became the fifth of the Garrett brothers to attend Howard. He was the youngest and the smallest of the brothers, but he was also a gifted athlete. After college, Pete served in the United States Navy before coaching at Choctaw County High School, where he met and married Doris Phillips. They had one son, Phil.

One of the stories told often by the brothers concerned a football game in the 1930s between Geraldine and Boaz. Gordon coached Geraldine, Russell coached Boaz, Wheeler was the head linesman, Pete was the umpire and John was the referee.