Laiirinbtrrg, Its Pasi^Present and Future
An Intimate Picture of the
Man and Forces That
Have Made t h e Town
and the Promise of a Rich
• and Golden Future.
(By T. T. COVINGTON, 8R.)
Should we Unger at length over
ieeidenta of the long ago end dhre too
far Into the musty archives of a dim
and dreamy pasL please attribute our
, weakness. Mr. Editor, to the woll
' mown feet that old folks ate prone
to be reminiscent—to live over the
dears gene by end to view everything
from a retrospective rather than from
a prospective angle. There are yet
living only a few of the old dtisens,
the old landmark*, to tell the tale of
fanner days, some . fifty or. sixty
jeers age, when Laurlnburg was yet
H an embryonic Mete end had not
yM wen the distinction of being an
the map. This nameless Infant was
then irfsrred to ae “The Gin1* and
The Store"—the first name Mag
mfittht to a public gin sparutad at
a point near the present residence of
Mn W. H. Ihd on Church street,
m4 the latter name to e general More
la sated near the old public school
* building. A little later, K is apld,
that a poatodlss waa established, with
*e name of Laurieburjr, In honor 6f
ota M prominent nooten nuniy,
tha Metanrins Thus, by onatttUg
£ B&l’SS.iSi •iSf 22
worthy ad a name. About this Urns
the old WUmiagtoa, Charlotte and
■atherfaidten railroad, surveyed by
Ohpt. W. L Everett, reached Laurtn
barg la good time to transport a eom
■any of loyal and brave soldiers
■aewn aa the "Scotch Boys," com
posed of the flower and mu hood of
tbla eonmmaity. The old W. C. A R.
railroad, with repair shops at Laarin
hif, was later on called the Caro
Hna Central. The building of tMa
Jgad was wdfauly suspended by the
Cfvfl War, bet not until raOs bad boat
laid ta OU Hundred, which ahme was
sagguatad by the fact that this point
ns assured exactly one handled inile-i
from tha Cap* rear river at WB
udfWmm. tt was Gw parpoae of tha
Mfiffims. With Wilmington ar a
Marti ag point, to run a line due west
and e» the crew flies, aa far aa pos
sible. The one hundred miles, termi
nating at Old Hundred, was mapped
out without bend or curve in the en
tire distance. At that time, it it said,
that this waa the longest stretch of
abeeletaly straight road in the world.
The original railroad repair shops
at- Xnurinburg were incomplete and
primitive, but, before they were re
moved in 1893 to Raleigh end Ports
mouth, locomotives, complete in every
detail, were tamed -out by the hands
of skilled workmen. The same sites
now occupied by the Seaboard pace
©nger and freight station* wen at
that time covered by machine shops
and car a beds Hie. first master me
chanic of the railroad shops, who lo
cated here permanently, was Copt. W.
A. Gill, who later resigned for mer
cantile pursuits and who was suc
ceeded by Capt. James Maglenn, who
remained at the head of the stops
tore until same were moved in IMS.
Captain Gill started in life a* a loco
motive engineer, and it may be in
teresting at this point to state that,
at on* time employed as fireman on
his engine, was bom other than the
notorious Henry Berry Lowry, the
bandit chief of Scdffletawn. Lowry
was familiar with Lanrinborg and its
environs at that dote, but tksa to
bom a good reputation. The original
depot) was a mods at affair and occu
pied practically the same space now
covered by (to Stewart Filling sta
tion, Just asrise the railroad from the
Gregg Hardware CO. Col. John C.
McLaurin, one of the old settlers, was
station master. Business and trails
cantered around the old depot, for
within a stone’s throw two young men
from eastern Carolina, Bistell A Mur
ray, estsbHshsd a wholesale and re
tail fans supply business. They
bought cotton and naval stores and
•old everything needed on the farm.
The building occupied by this firm Is
still steading, known- us BlxseU Hall
and is perhaps the oldest building
[now standing in the busbies* section,
having b*ea built in the lata sixties
or early seventies. Just across the
railroad from the old dspot and an
the spot new occupied by Gragg
Brother* waa located the old Bundy
Hotel, a refuge far the weary traveler
and conducted by T. C. Bundy, a gen
ial and eatertaMng toot. Old eiti
sena will recall a vary aud and stock
ing esaidsnt that befell two yeuag
men, native sous, while at this hotel
during a severe electrical storm, both
being instantly killed by aleetridty.
One was a Mr. McKinnon and the
other a McLaarin. companion! who
hart reached young manhood.
Just why Main street Is narrow and
mas practically north and sooth In
stead of seme other direction, hoc
never been explained, unless it waa
the will of the original owners, these
being Copt. W. M. McLaarin, Cel. J.
T. Roper, Michael Crenly and others.
A stranger passing along Main street
would not discover that tbs aide walk
on the east side is built up sons five
or six feel in order to level It with
the west ride. Thu* it appears that
the original map of Laurinburg was
planned without regard to ptedaion
of measurements, location o? streets
or beauty of design. However, build
ers of towns and cities cannot always
choose the direction in which develop
ments shall spread. Other Influences
may- determine this.
The first building erected on Main
street wa* located on the lot now oe
cupied by Eddie Daw. This was of
woodra const ruction 'and never paint
ed. It was at one time occupied by
Capt. 8. M. Thomas, who dealt large
ly in farm implement* and was a
strong advocate of Starke’s Dixie
Plow, which had e phenominal sale
throughout this territory This build
ing waa also nooopiid at owe time by
Everett Bros. A Gill, who later emot
ed a store on the site new covered by
the store of Mr. Jna.' F. McNair.
Old observers will recall the large
pine tree, of short leaf variety, that
stood at the rear entrance of Everett
A Gill’s place of ha rinses When seme
of the aider dtisane, including ouch
men as L. W. McLaarin, James Lytefc,
J. T. John and ethers of Kka type,
came to town la those days it was
their want to tether their horse* wa
der the shade of this tree, which stood
the storms of many years until the
ruthless hand of progress no longer
appreciated Ha service.
From the lata sixties to the early
seventies all that mace extending
from Main street and on a Una with
the Baptist church was nothing more
than an old discarded field covered
with scrubby pine, without buildings
of any kind and with ns evidences of
draiwawb A—I tournaments,
under the sasalees of yewog man, wore
palled off hare to the delight of a
throng of visitors (man Car and near.
Those ware indeed gala eessiimsi A.
race course, beginning at a paint
near Main street and utaailiug oat
Laurinburg High School $
:
$
•<W
by and beyond the Baptist church,
was told off with a gmadatmsJ about
tha canter. Tha cento* wma between
knights at full speed on hotuabach
ta dstermlna who could get tha gruat
•*t n mu bar of “rings” sad “heads."
A Hr Wig Bissau Hail at Ug*t
was tha climax of tha occasion, at
which time tha suneassful knight
crowned M» best girl a* “Oaeen of
Uos sad Beauty. Some of the eou
tastanU wma anefa young aion as Mr.
Stow4rt’ Aagma
McCall. Milton McIntyre, Stacy Sun
<1y and other*.
CoauneidaUv - Laurinburg s»wfa
rapM strides. beginning about 1BT6
ami far a decade thereafter. A large
sobs)* of trade poured in from ad
joining counties, including tha a"—*—
county far South Carolina. This was
prtsr to ths completion ef tha old
Capo rear * Yadkin Valley railroad,
fanning near Mount Airy sin fty
etterille to BennettrrilW. - -ini11i
yltt* sell CUo merchants. having no
—
railroad wwimMwi with tha an triha
worth, iMitri moat, if aat alL of
thair cotton from Laarinhwg. They
alao nooirod horn hoary shjmneata of
fartlliian, grace lias end ether goada
^Jf^tmrt^oo hy wagon to thrir
atone in Knithnan caoaty. la addi
tion to approximately twelve ar flf.
Main rinSTatthtapilSd, thorTwaan
thirteen oven aaioene fee tkt ah of
whiekey. It weald ho aneharltaMa to
aay that thaoa hnrtoonw obtained thair
rapport entirely from local patron
age; probably the larger patronage
tMs parted Urn aafaty and paaee kf
dttsana and of [
dally
night, lad te tha hettaf thmt tWy wSZ
■M
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P
P
P. & S. Ice and Coal Co.
.
PURE ICE
AT TOUR SERVICE
t • \ . % .
;••. r. We always have ioe and eoal on hand and are ready and >
• ■ t ~ . , -
, willing to respond to any call that requires immediate
■. attention.
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LUMBER and
r
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f * . . V
BUILDING MATERIALS
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See PHILLIPS First
!* > *
. [ . hwn how modi you can save on the building
planned. Also notethe naBy wroellrot liaea irc have in
our complete stock.
gig_i ,
■ . • • •
J. E PHILLIPS & COMPANY
(Mm ml WwP»m, ImmkmtmA
OOIU.I.IM ' ' . Ow.HdbFsaAJMM.Ms.
1*»«*** Lauiunbuho, N. C.
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