Newspapers / Daily Tar Heel (Chapel … / July 19, 1984, edition 1 / Page 23
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Thursday, July 19, 1984 Page 7B CAROLINA I M;. i: H v 1 i I 1 ; ! ; ' I if ' I f f 1 I Jt j . s ' j j J , j J 1 II J -I J ! ,, ; I -j I,t3 -I L. - Trt J d A ,''' The Old Well, UNO's unofficial symbol: a drink for good luck UNC's familiar sites are part of Tar Heel tradition illlli Wife I pft A WAMiAS WWW. I tl ,:Sis lv-. 4 4 iiiiiHi ! lit 11 IwufiO- The Morehead-Patisrson bell tower By Camille Valerio Tar Heel Staff Writer Each year many new students converging upon the UNC cam pus hear comments like these: "Meet me for lunch in the Pit," "IH pick you up in front of the Bell Tower," "Be at the north gate of Kenan Stadium at 12:45," or "Did Sam's gun go off last night?" Some who arrive at UNC are unfamiliar with what has become Carolina's memorials, meeting places and traditions which have been built over the years. Coming to the campus from a high school, smaller college, or just a visit can be better appre ciated when the landmarks around campus are more famil iar. Certainly no one would want a new freshman to mistake "the Pit" for the construction site of the new dorm behind Fetzer Gym. And who knows when a visitor might mistake the Coker Arboretum for a jungle habitat attraction? Finally, every woman student should know why her date has walked her past "Silent Sam" after the movie. Therefore we offer this quick guide to some of the more pop ular spots at UNC. These are the places with special meaning that we remember long after gradua tion, and that have made Carol ina a unique place of tradition. On a forn illy landscaped plot south of the Student Union behind Wilson Library stands the 167' Morehead-Patterson Bell Tower. It contains a dozen bells which weigh between 300-3,000 lbs. each. They ring each half and full hour, chiming songs on other occassions. The tower was a joint gift of alumni John Motley Morehead (1891) and Rufus Lenoir Patterson (1893). One rumor has it that Morehead was jealous of the fact that the main library was to "be named after Louis Round Wilson, so the bell tower was placed in such a way that when looking back on Wil son from the flagpole in front of South Building, a dunce cap sits on top of the Wilson dome. There are several different rumors about the origin of the dunce cap effect none, some or all of which may have any basis for truth. Originally a working well that supplied Old East and Old West dorms with water, the Old Well is the unofficial University sym bol. It was given its original decorative form by a suggestion from then president Edwin A. Alderman. It is located on Cameron Avenue across from South Building and is a scenic place for reading or checking out the activity on Cameron Avenue. Legend holds that a drink fron the Old Well on the first day o class brings good luck for the res of the year. Erected in 1913 by the North Carolina Division of the Daugh ters of the Confederacy, "Silent Sam" memorializes 321 alumni who died in the Civil War and the 1062 who were part of the Confederate Army. The campus tradition holds that when you walk a date past Sam and his gun doesn't go off, you may not be walking with the virginal co-ed of your dreams. (Surprisingly, Sam's gun has failed to go off since 1913.) The Coker Aboretum is a five acre tract of naturalistic garden, adjoined by a Wisteria and Jas mine pergola along Cameron Avenue. A great place for a picnic, study area au natural, or the enjoyment of quietly com muning with nature, it is a living memorial to botonist William C. Coker. It is a favorite place of students and faculty and flour ishes with beautiful colors in the spung Donated to UNC by William Rand Kenan, Jr., Kenan Stadium is the site of the Carolina football tradition. Each fall it comes alive with color, alumni, dressed-up dates and good ACC football. The sights and sounds of Kenan on a fall Saturday are not to be missed. The Tar Heels take the field and it is a different world. There are 52,000 seats in the stadium, and except for the visiting team, each one holds a fan dedicated to the football tradition at UNC. The Pit is the place to meet. Whether for lunch, to hear a speech from a candidate, watch and listen to a demonstration, hear music or evangelism, the Pit is the center of student activity on campus. Located in front of the Carolina Union and flanked by Lenoir and UNC Student Stores, it is a great place to have lunch on the steps while listening or watching whatever is sche duled there. Sometimes the best bets are the unscheduled events, and of course there are always the roaming dogs to feed. During the Civil War, North Carolina soldiers became known as Tar Heels. In the earlv davs. Carolina was known for making tar and turpentine which was produced in the pine barrens of me coastal plains. The inhabit ants of the pine barrens were known as Tar Burners or Tar Boilers. At the onset, the name seemed to be insulting as other soldiers made fun of the North Carolina barefoot troops who otten had tar on their heels from working in the pine forests. One day, when the Virrinians and South Carolinians had been driven from a fierce battle, only the lar Heels had stayed fast. When the groups met again, the deserters, trying to minimize their own actions, wanted to know if there was any more tar in the Old North State. The Tar Heels told them old Jeff Davis bought it up so he can stick it on your heels to make you stay better in the next fight. Upon hearing this, it is reported that General Robert E. Lee said, "God bless the Tar Heel boys!" From then on the term Tar Heel was no longer an insulting term, but one that North Carolinians have used with pride.
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
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July 19, 1984, edition 1
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