Chattanoogan: Billy Parker Pens Coca-Cola History Book From Unique Perspective

William “Billy” Parker of Lookout Mountain has enjoyed a multi-faceted career that has included working in journalism and public relations and, in recent years, being a professional watercolor artist and publisher of the Lookout Mountain and Signal Mountain Mirror newspapers.

He has recently added another vocation — book author again — with the publication of his new book, “An Empire Divided: Atlanta and Chattanooga Family Dynasties from the Early Days of Coca-Cola.”

The book chronicles important historical moments about the development of the famous soft drink and includes numerous anecdotes and stories about the prominent families that were separated not only by the distance between Atlanta and Chattanooga, but also by the different aspects of the unique operation.

And just as that popular soft drink has a well-publicized secret formula, Mr.

Parker also had a unique perspective to give his book its own special flavor — he knew well a number of these Chattanooga families involved in Coca-Cola bottling.

“Growing up in Riverview, there were so many people involved,” he said. “We used to joke about it and call it Coca-Colaville.”

As he recounted how all these childhood memories prompted his decision to write the book, he said he became acquainted with Riverview when his father, Electric Power Board general manager George Parker, moved into a home at 1327 Lawrence Road. The younger Mr. Parker was close to the same age as Elizabeth Lupton (Davenport), the younger sister of Jack Lupton and the granddaughter of original Chattanooga Coca-Cola bottler J.T. Lupton.

The elder Mr. Lupton and his wife, Elizabeth Patten Lupton, died in 1933 and 1941, respectively, but a few years before that, son Cartter Lupton built a home on the family estate. While visiting with the younger Luptons, Mr. Parker used to enjoy swimming in the pool that was originally part of the old Lyndhurst home.

But it was brick and mortar more than water that soon began catching his eye. Not long after the elder Mrs. Lupton’s death, Lyndhurst had become vacant, and Mr. Parker and several other youngsters in the neighborhood naturally became curious about it.

“When we were little boys, we all got together and said we would like to go in, so we knocked on it one time, and it opened,” he recalled with a laugh of the more than 30,000-square-foot structure.

“We had a great time walking around in it. It had a pool room on the first floor and we shot pool there and then we would go up the steps and there was a grandfather clock on the landing. Bob Huffaker used to wind it up and set it, and it would go ‘gong, gong,’

He said he and the others — including John Poindexter, a Lupton cousin — would periodically go through this home that still had most of the furnishings intact, and he knows the Lupton family knew what the youngsters were doing.

Mr. Parker also became acquainted with many of the families connected with the early bottling of the drink in more of an up-front manner.

He recalled that Elizabeth Lupton Davenport was a lovely young person, and that Jack Lupton was the best friend of his older brother, Pete Parker.

Their father, Cartter Lupton, who some remember as being low key and modest, was very likable, Mr. Parker recalled. “He was a handsome go getter and a nice genteel man that everybody liked, and everybody wanted to be his friend,” he said.

Frank Harrison was a member of another bottling family that lived in Riverview, and Mr. Parker became acquainted with him, remembering that he had kind of an independent spirit and liked to go farming on his own as a youngster.

Other friends were brothers Fred Lupton and Tommy Lupton, who were cousins to the J.T. Lupton family. Fred Lupton had a smart mind, and Tommy was older and used to boss them around and keep them in line, Mr. Parker jokingly recalled.

Their father, Allen Lupton, used to work for J.T. Lupton’s various business interests, and the older Mr. Lupton told him he would take care of Allen when he died. Unfortunately, that did not get settled among the various matters the older Mr. Lupton had to deal with before his sudden death.

However, Mr. Parker said J.T. Lupton’s wife helped Allen Lupton by giving him the Stone Fort Land Co. Tommy Lupton later headed it and actually approached Cartter Lupton about tearing down Lyndhurst and subdividing part of the estate and building newer homes about 1960.

As a result of all these friendships, Mr. Parker was able to write this Coca-Cola history book as sort of an insider to, instead of just an observer of, this Chattanooga business royalty. He features several personal anecdotes, including a chapter about the development of the old Lyndhurst property.

But Mr. Parker also did plenty of due diligence through extensive research, beginning in 1999 when he spent much time at Emory University and the Atlanta History Center researching the history of Coca-Cola.

Some of his information and personal memories ended up initially coming out in various articles in the Mountain Mirror over the years, including, of course, about sneaking into Lyndhurst, often at night and with flashlights. Mr. Parker said Jack Lupton read the article and remarked with a laugh that he finally realized fully their devilish and youthful activities of long ago.

Among those who have read the book is longtime area bottler Summerfield K. Johnston, who generously complimented it, Mr. Parker said with appreciation. Others like it, too.

“The book is selling very well in Chattanooga,” said Mr. Parker. “I’m having a good time with it and a lot of my friends are reading it and recommending it.”

The nearly 200-page book, which was published by Waldenhouse Publishers, includes short chapters on some of the stories and anecdotes about not only some of the Chattanooga families, but also some of those from Atlanta who were involved in the corporate operation and the selling of the syrup to the bottlers. Those include the Asa Candler family, Robert Woodruff and Robert Goizueta, among others.

While Coca-Cola usually conjures up happy memories of people enjoying the “pause that refreshes” or a smiling Santa Claus or happy polar bear holding a Coke, there were some conflicts that brought frowns in the old days. This was due in part to the fact the bottlers were independent in much of the operation, but the company controlled advertising and other aspects.

Mr. Parker devotes a chapter to the cantankerous relationship between early bottler J.T. Lupton and early Coke corporate head Asa Candler.

“They hated each other,” Mr. Parker said. “Mr. Lupton couldn’t stand Mr. Candler, and Candler doubly couldn’t stand Mr. Lupton and they had a war going on.”

Mr. Parker writes praisingly about Mr. Woodruff and his often anonymous philanthropy, including aiding the Atlanta arts scene after a number of major supporters of the arts died in a tragic plane crash on a trip to Paris in 1962.

The author complements his attempts at portraying the full Coke story vividly with a number of water color paintings of places important in the drink’s story and history.

Mr. Parker said that his mother, Louise Parker, a sociable Southern woman who know all the Riverview families, was an artist, and his father also had an appreciation for art. In fact, his father wanted his son to be an architect, but Billy said he wanted to be a journalist.

After graduating from McCallie, he later went on to the University of Tennessee journalism school, graduating with honors in 1960 before starting his career with the Chattanooga Times after writing some promotional columns for Life magazine in college.

“I’m pleased with my lot in life,” he said with reflection.

And that includes putting a pen and paint brush in his hand to document the story of this drink that countless people have held in their hands over the years.

jcshearer2@comcast.net