Newspapers / The Franklin Press and … / June 16, 1955, edition 1 / Page 45
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I ? 1 / QUT of the hopes and labors and tears of the men and women of the past, Franklin has grown. To those hardy souls of yesteryear, we today owe a great debt. It is to acknowledge that debt that we shall celebrate Frank lin's 100th birthday on June 16, 17, and 18. But, as we celebrate, we shall look ahead, too. / And we face the future with quiet confidence; because we know we have today, in Franklin and Macon County, the same high type of citizenship on which we have built in the past. LAKE V. SHOPE Macon County Register of Deeds We've come a long way since our forefathers used methods like these to harvest their crops. Franklin has come a long way, too. / We are proud to be a part of it, and we are sure its "best is yet to be". DOWNS & DOWDLE Feeds, Seeds, and Fertilizer ' Macon's Sole Civil War Battle Told By LEONA B. PORTER This is the story of Macon County's only battle of the Civil War, as It was told to Thomas W. Porter by Mrs. "Dee" Cunning ham. But first, a word about Colonel George W. Kirk. Colonel Kirk and his gang of bushwhakers had been terroriz ing the counties of Western North Carolina, about the close of the War Between the States. They came to Franklin, where Kirk made his headquarters at "Dixie Hall", the home of Capt. Julius Siler, in the center of town. The two little girls at "Dixie I Hall" were Alice, later Mrs. James | Robinson, and Tim, who married Kope Elias. Tim, the younger child, climbed up to where Kirk had placed the U. S. Flag on the lattice work of the front porch, and carefully furled the flag, ty ing a string around its folds, say ing it was not to fly over their home. When Kirk came and saw what had been done, he indignantly in quired who had done such a thing, and Tim told him she had. He whipped out his knife and cut the string and angrily scolded her. Alice, the older girl, went upstairs to the porch, leaned out. and spat upon the flag to show her comtempt. Prom Franklin, Kirk and his men made raids to any part of the county where they could find money, .food or livestock. Many stories were told of their high handed robberies, with threats to the ones who refused to give up their possessions. On Cartoogechaye, Mrs. Am brose Conley, whose husband was away at war, worked to caity her hams, wheat and corn up to a high rock in the hills back of her home, underneath which she hid her stores. Soon after. Kirk came and ordered her to cook dinner for him and his men. She killed chickens and cooked a good dinner for them, hoping to avoid any trouble. After dinner, he told her to give him what money she had. She would not tell him of any and he ordered his men to take her straw, pile it around her house, and set fire to it. She wept and begged them not to 'burn her home: so finally, con I1 J vinced that she had no money, they put the fires out. Others were not so fortunate. "Dee" Cunningham, a great horse-trader, had an inside belt, with pocket, to hold his pieces of gold. When Kirk's men came to his house he took his wife in to a back room, removed his money belt, and told her to put } it on underrfeath her clothes. As J she was doing this one of Kirk's men watched her through a win dow and he told Kirk. Kirk made Mrs. Cunningham take off her husband's money belt, with one of her own which she was wearing. and give them to him. i On Cowee. a wealthy farmer, William West, known as "Uncle Billy," had his faithful slave. "Old Tol", bury his money and silver. Kirk's band came and or dered "Uncle Billy" and "Tol'' to tell where the money was hidden They refused, so a rope was slung over the limb of a tree and one end was tied around the neck of Mr. West and the other end 'around "Old Tol's" neck. As Mr. West was very heavy, he went down to the ground and poor old "Tol" went up. But he loyally refused to tell where the valuables were hidden. Kirk's men finally cut them down. "Tol" suffered more than "Uncle Billy" from the effects of their hanging, but they never did tell and Kirk had to leave without his booty, Now about the battle: Capt. Steven Porter, who had j been injured in a battle in Tenri i essee and invalided/ home, was made capt. of the Home Guard and assembled a small company of older and very young men. When Kirk's company finally was ? leaving for Tennessee. Capt. Por ter p.nd his company followed, ! overtaking them at the Iotla ford I of the Little Tennessee river, a- j bout three miles north of Frank- 1 liris where the Iotla bridge now j stands. Crtpt. Poller and his m-ni fired j on Kirk's troop and the battle' ? i* <m None of. Porter's men were j killed, but the bodies of two of Kirk's mm were seen floating down the river and Kirk and the i others were captured and brought back to town. Mr. and Mrs. Cunningham re covered their gold, and Kirk made r.o more raids in Macon County. Back in 1904. Franklin had not one. but two schools, according ' to a booklet prepared by the late | Walter Deal and printed by The Franklin Press. The two schools I were the Macon High School and ! the Franklin High School. i A hundred years ago, this little boy in Franklin wore homespun. Today little boys wear bluejeans. But whether people wore homespun or bluejeans, all down through the Century Franklin has been A GOOD PLACE TO LIVE. The Children's Shop GRACE BARNARD O'MOHUNDRO P. S. Happy Centennial, Franklin! 100 Years of Progress ? 1855 Kitchen 1 1 1955 Kelvinator Kitchen Martin Electric Company 7
The Franklin Press and the Highlands Maconian (Franklin, N.C.)
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June 16, 1955, edition 1
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