- ? wish** u>[ a napjjj aouuap.
^ G. T. SPIVEY
Wholesale Fruits and Produce
Live Oak Si. Beaufort N. C.
meeting old friends and making new ones. To all go
our hearty thanks and happiest greetings. May each
and every one ot you have the merriest holiday ever.
Bullock's Shoe Shop
1011 ArendeU St. Morehead City
Tor all our friends and neighbors we send this
Yuletide wish. May the joy of Christmas meet
and mingle with the happiness in your heart.
May the spirit of Christmas ever dwell with you.
Styron's Department Store
Morehrad City, N. C.
Tryon Palace, How It Came
To Be, How It is Restored
By TUCKER R. LITTLETON
In the year 1764 ? Oct. 10, to be
exact ? a young man sailed upon
the Cape Fear aboard the HMS
Friendship. Coming from EngUnd
to assist the ailing Royal Governor
Dobbs. William Tryon established
his early residence as lieutenant
governor In Wilmington. Upon the
death of Arthur Dobbs. Tryon was
made Royal Governor of North
Carolina on March 28, 1765.
How mucb William Tryon had up
I his sleeve when he came over is
not certain, but it seems interesting
that along with his family he
brought over one of England's most
outstanding young students of ar
chitecture, John Hawks.
Tryon had not long been governor
before he requested funds from
England for the construction of a
royal palace to serve as the first
capitol building of North Carolina.
Upon the appropriation of necces
sary funds, this same John Hawks
was forthwith appointed architect
in charge of the building of the
palace. Accordingly, plans were
soon drawn up and construction
was underway at New Bern by Au
gust of 1767.
Tryon Palace is something
unique in Colonial America. Most
people who think of colonial res
torations envision buildings which
conform to stereotyped colonial
patterns, but Tryon Palace is dif
ferent Tryon. having just arrived
from England, was familiar with
the latest style of architecture used
by the nobility in the vicinity of
London.
Since he wanted something bet
ter than the other colonial build
ings, he chose this late Georgian
style architecture, a style too re
cent to have been used for the
other American buildings of his
day. Therefore, Tryon Palace has
no rival in this aspcct of colonial
restorations.
In 1770 Tryon Palace was finally
completed and being used by Tryon
and his family. The design of the
building indicates that the first
floor of the main building was to
be shared with the assembly and
council and the second floor to be
used only by the royal governor's
family.
In addition there were the East
Wing, the West Wing, and the
"necessary houses". This is one of
the rare instances of a palace used
as a family residence and as a
place for the assembly and council.
Governor Tryon had not served
long before be was sent to New
York and was succeeded here by
Josiah Martin, who fled under pres
sure in 1775. Only two royal gov
ernors ever used the palace dur
ing the years 1770-1775. and in 1776
.1
onnis
To Our Friends:
The Sinclair dealers In thlf locality and myself Join together la
wishing yon a very Merry Christmas and a good cheer for lh?
New Year. Yonr friendly patronage during the paat year ia great
ly appreciated. And we leek forward to providing yon with even
better Sinclair prodneta and aervkei during the coming year.
Sinclair Rofining Co.
T. T. Potter * Sen
Tom - Tnmmle
Ivey - Eric - Rndoiph
Percy - Roland - Sklhle - Oscar
HOREHEAD CITY, N. C.
Royal klU-hea: Three Now In Mies U?P?ci the Uchoa ot the restored coionUI p?Uce of WUUsm
Tryon, one of the last royal governors of North Carolina. Restoration, which cost ZV4 million, is expected
to lure free-spending tourists.
the American Revolution broke
out.
It befell Great Britaia to spead
a tremendous sum on the coptsrue
tion of a building which she was to
use less than ten years.
For, following the independence,
North Carolina became a state un
der the United States Constitution
and in 1777, exactly tea years after
the beginning of the building of
Tryon Palace, this state confiscated
the royal palace estate and made
it the first capitol of the independ
ent state of North Carolina.
Accordingly, Tryon Palace ?
which holds the distinction of be
ing the meeting place at the first
assemhly anywhere in America
called in defiance of Britain? was
used as a capitol by the state of
North Carolina from 1775 until 1784,
at which time the state capitol was
moved to Raleigh.
It was at Tryon Palace that the
first state officials and the first
governor of the free state of North
Carolin. Richard Caswell, were
inaugurated on Jan. IS, 1777. Soon
alter, the first meeting of the state
legislature was held there in April
of 1777.
Great Britaia had had the wealth
to construct such a mignificent
palace, but it soon became evident
that the poor and bumble state of
North Carolina had too small a
treasury to keep the palace in
proper repairs. One must remem
ber that the United States was at
that time a young and struggling
nation, and North Carolina had not
begun to overcome her financial
setback suffered, as a result of the
Revolutionary War.
Therefore, no appropriations were
made toward adequate upkeep of
the palace during those years that
the legislature met there, and
President George Washington re
marked in his journal that the pal
ace was on its way to ruins as
early as 17(1, when he was enter
tained there at a ball.
After tbe relocation of the capi
tol in 1794. Tryon Palace r^>idly
declined and served private uses
rather than official. After 1794,
therefore, it fell into ruthless
hands, being rented first to lodgers.
Thereafter, the palace was used
by a private school, which can ac
count for much of the damage that
the palace suffered. School chil
dren have a unique ability to de
stroy anything ? from teachers to
palaces.
Later, the palace was used by a
Masonic Lodge before the main
building was destroyed by fire on
the night of Feb. 27, 1798. Later,
at some unrecorded time, the East
Wing completely disappeared, and
the West Wing was serving as an
apartment house as late as the
1940 s, when the first steps toward
restoration were taken.
Probably every great achive
ment began as a dream in some
body's head. R was so with the
restoration of Tryon Palace. As a
little girl who bad often seen the
old Palace estate and beard the
New Bern people tell stories of its
past, Miss Maude Moore fancied a
time when the palace could be re
stored to its original grandeur.
After she became Mrs. Maude
Moore Latham, this New Bern na
tive began to see her dreams ma
terialize. From the first, the Gar
den Clubs of North Carolina began
to take an interest in the idea of
a restoration and made that the
dominant theme of their book Old
Homes and Gardens in North Caro
lina.
The first money given for the
restoration was on Jan. 26, 1944,
when Mrs. Latham established the
Maude Moore Latham Trust Fund
of $100,000 for the restoration of
Tryon Palace. In 194S the General
Assembly appropriated $150,000 to
ward the restoration of the palace.
This was followed on April 26,
1949, by Mrs. Latham's establish
ing a second trust fund of $150,000.
Accordingly, the next General As
sembly appropriated an additional
$77,000.
Is 1950 Mrs. Latham donated
part of her collection of antique
furnishings to the palace, a gift
valued at $125,000. Following her
death jn 1*51, it was learned that
Mrs. Latham had bequeathed her
estate valued at $1,250,000 to the
Tryon Palace Commission.
The restoration work was soon
under way with the excavating of
the palace site. These excavations
revealed some invaluable clues
relics, artifacts, building locations
and sizes, and even pieces of the
original marble tiling that made
it possible to restore the palace
with authentic replica flooring.
The removal of wallq and Blaster
in the remaining West Wing re
vealed the original wood and measr
urements of the palace. With this
information the rebuilding could
begin.
Bat there was another important
source of information for those
-.i
working on the restoration. Eng
lishmen have the reputation for
keeping legal papers and docu
ments forever, and for that reason
the commission now has photo
graphic copies of the documents
and papers showing John Hawks'
original designs and plans for the
palace and an insurance claim filed
by Royal Governor Tryon listing
the books of his library destroyed
in a fire.
As a result, the entire library of
William Tryon is now restored,
showing him to be a highly cul
tured gentleman of his day.
Through the efforts of the com
mission, the Palace is now re
stored with authentic 18th century
furnishings. These include such
wonderful items as cut glass chan
deliers, oriental and Spanish rugs,
17th and 18th century tables, rare
antique clocks, the 485-volume li
brary of Governor Tryon, chess
games, pictures, the completely
restored Housekeeper's Room, the
restored stables, silverware made
in England in the UOO's, expensive
draperies, "necessary houses", and
gardens.
The visitor should not become
frightened if he is suddenly greet
ed in some room by the austere
and unfriendly glare of an old por
trait ? either George III; Lord
Tryon, father of William; Queens
See PALACE, Page 3, Section 2
INtwport Dry Ck?n?rs
?ttra ? ?. |
THESWrrOF
(&?
In th? true spirit of th?
glorious Holiday Season
we extend our sincere
wishes for the good
health and happiness
of all our devoted
friends and neighbors.
Early Jewelers
723 Arrndel) SI. Morthead City
May you
enjoys
Christmas
*
holiday as full
of joy and
good cheer as 1
your trae is full
sparkling ornaments.
Ottis Fish Market
Shepard Street Phone PA (-403(1 Morehead City
PARKER MOTORS
Pfrd S*1** ?** SttIq.
?mImI Ofr V- 9>