Former Dinkins Mobile Homes owner and operator Dudley H. Dinkins, 89, of Paris died Saturday, Sept. 18, 2010, at his home in Paris. He was born Aug. 31, 1921, in Paris, the son of Henry H. Dinkins and Ola Daisy Brown Dinkins of Paris. Dudley was one of six children, all of which are now deceased. He was married on Nov. 4, 1958, to the former Shirley O’Bryant of Corpus Christi, Texas, who survives. Dudley was a well-known businessman in Paris and Henry County. He and his brother, Robert, were founders of Dinkins Home Center, the first business of its kind in the area. Other businesses were a taxi service Dudley and Robert started in 1945, right after Dudley got back from World War II, where he was a link trainer in the Army Air Corps. Dudley trained pilots on instruments while stationed on Iwo Jima. In 1946, Dudley and Robert opened the first exclusive used car dealership on East Wood St. Unlike the typical used car dealer, both Dudley and Robert were licensed pilots and owned airplanes, which gave them an advantage over their counterparts in the automobile industry. Dudley and Robert also owned a stock car track, Kentucky Lake Speedway, which they operated from 1951-1953. It was a very popular place at that time and was located at what is presently known as the fairgrounds. Dudley also owned and ran a successful barbecue restaurant for several years on Mineral Wells Avenue known as Mr. D’s. Dudley loved visiting with his family and many friends and talking about the things he and his brother shared over their many years together. Dudley was a member of Lakeside Christian Fellowship. In addition to his wife, he leaves one daughter: Shawnee (Gary) Reddick of Paris; one son: Chuck Dinkins of Memphis; five grandchildren: Wendi Reddick, Bryan (Leigha) Reddick and Krystal (Justin) Watkins, all of Paris, Charles (Brooke) Dinkins of Colorado, who is currently serving in Iraq, and Brandi (Matt) Heydon of Georgia; and seven great-grandchildren. He also was preceded in death by a son: Johnny Dinkins; two sisters: Edna Ross and Naomi Robertson; and three brothers: Hubert “Tinnie” Dinkins, James “Junior” Dinkins and Robert Dinkins. His funeral will be at 1 p.m. Tuesday at Ridgeway Funeral Home. Pam Hughes will officiate. Burial will follow in Hillcrest Cemetery. Chosen as pallbearers are Jimmy Smith, Marvin Shell, Glenn Dicus, Eddie Wilson, Rob Dinkins and Jeff Blake. Visitation will be 4-8 p.m. today and after 10 a.m. Tuesday. Published  September 20, 2010

Dudley Dinkins was notable Paris Tennessee businessman Dudley Dinkins, who died Saturday at his residence in Paris, was a longtime local businessman. He and his brother, Robert Dinkins, who preceded him in death, hitched an 8-by-21-foot trailer to the bumper of a 1939 Chevrolet and hauled it from Chicago to Paris in 1946. It was then that Dinkins Mobile Homes opened in Paris. The business moved to its present location on East Wood Street in 1965. The Dinkinses opened a used-car dealership in the 1940s and then owned and operated Dinkins Auto Sales in 1960. Another popular enterprise for Dinkins was a stock car race track that started in 1951 and was called the Kentucky Lake Speedway, which was operated at the current location of the Henry County Fairgrounds. Dinkins brought in midget car racing, which proved to be popular addition to his speedway. Dudley and Robert Dinkins owned and operated a taxi business, begun in 1945 after Dudley returned from the Army Air Corps in World War II. During the war, Dinkins trained pilots on instruments while stationed at Iwo Jima. In church, Dinkins was a member of Lakeside Christian Fellowship, north of Paris. Published  September 20, 2010

EDITORIAL  #  2

 

Dreams, courage, sweat marked Dinkins career Brothers had wide variety of enterprises   The history of Henry County is largely the history of entrepreneurs, the late Richard L. Dunlap Jr. maintained. People with vision, the courage to follow their dreams and the willingness to invest large amounts of sweat played a large part in making this community what it is today. Names like Grove, Warren, Plumley, Mohon, Knott, Rhea, Wilcox and many others come to mind. Dudley Dinkins stood squarely in that tradition, with his own individual twist: He and his brother, Robert, probably had more varied business enterprises in their careers than anyone else. It started in 1939 with a house trailer they hauled in from Chicago to launch this county's first mobile home business, and Dinkins Home Center continues to this day. Through the years came a host of others — auto racing, used cars, taxi service, a barbecue restaurant. Dinkins had a rare combination of a fertile mind and the hard work it takes to see dreams take shape. Published  September 21, 2010