I contacted Mr. Sammy Bailey (of Bailey's Bulldogs in Alabama) about his knowledge of old timers and here is his response. He had no problem with my posting his email (I checked first):
Well Rayburn Stover is still alive, I guess he's in his seventies (Douglas
AL). Jack Tate is still alive he is in his seventies also. Jack lives in
Sardis AL. W.C. Bailey is gone but his son is still alive and has some dogs
in Louisiana. His son is in his sixties. I don't know if the elder Kittles
is still alive but he had some sons. They live in the Ider Al area. That's
about all I can remember, oh wait......George Lee Williamson........gone now
but he was one of the first breeders that had registered dogs with the NKC.
I got my first AB from him. I guess he got his dogs from Cell. They lived
just a few miles apart on Sand Mountain AL. I talked to Cell once and he
said he got his dogs out of GA, even told me the name of the person he got
them from, wish I had written it down.....Mr. Tuck raised some dogs back in
the day. I saw his name on some of my old peds. I think he lived in the
Sardis area also. I bet Jack Tate knew him. I met all the above mentioned
at some time in the past except Mr. Tuck. I talked to an old breeder about
20 years ago in the FL panhandle. I have his name somewhere, but not handy
now. I guess that was all a RAMBLE on my part, none of these bred dogs in
the thirties or forties, not even Mr. Johnson.