Charles "Speedy" Atkins

In 1928, Speedy was fishing on the bank of the Tennessee River where he fell asleep and drowned. Since no family members ever claimed the body, A.Z. Hammock used an experimental embalming fluid on Speedy so he could study its effects. The preservation was permanent. He spent the next 66 years in the Watkins Undertaking Parlor (later Hamock-Bowles Funeral Home) where people came from all over the United States to see him. In 1980, he appeared on the ABC network show "Thats Incredible." In June 1989, he was featured on CNN and in May 1991 on "A Current Affair: Extra." Buried in Maplelawn Cemetery, Paducah, KY.