THE VOICE OF WILKES COMMUNITY COLLEGE VOLUME 8, NO. 5 WILKESBORO, NORTH CAROLINA MARCH 9, 1978 Absher Crowned Queen Homecoming A Big Success At WCC February 13-17 was homecom ing week at WCC. The Phi Beta Lamba Club sponsored the annual WCC homecoming this year. Several activities were planned. Two of these activities were the crowing of the WCC homecoming queen, and the WCC homecoming dance. The Wilkes YMCA was the setting for the crowning of WCC’s Homecoming Queen Judy Absher. Judy was crowned Homecoming Queen during half- time at the WCC-MCC on February 15. She was crowned by Dr. Daniels, and her escort was Ronald Holbrook. The members of the homecoming court were Sherry Wolfe, maid of Honor; Kathy Green, Sophmore attend ant; Gail Barker, Freshman attendant; Angie Crabb, Lisa Cramer, Anita Ferguson, Shirley Gilley, Christine Harris, Zarrest Pennell, Gaye Phillips, Linda Pugh, Shelia Scott and Donna Shore. The WCC Homecoming dance was held Friday, February 17, at the Wilkes National Guard Armory. Attendance by WCC students was excellent. The dance started at 9 p.m. and lasted until the wee hours of 1 a.m. Entertainment was provided by Clockwork, and the students enjoyed the event immensely. •iV Judy Absher, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Jimmy Ray Absher of McGrady, was crowned as the 1978 Wilkes Community College homecoming queen by Dr. David Daniels, Wilkes Community Coll ege President, during halftime festivities at the WCC-Mitchell Community College game at the Wilkes Y.M.C.A. Wednesday night, Feb. 15. Miss Absher a graduate of North Wilkes High School, was escorted by Ronald Holbrook. Others in the homecoming court were: Sherry Wolfe, maid of honor; Kathy Green, Sophomore attendant; Gail Barker, Freshman attendant; Angie Crabb, Lisa Cranor, Anita Ferguson, Shirley Gilley, Christine Harris, Zorrest Pennell, Gaye Phillips, Linda Pugh, Shelia Scott and Donna Shore. On Friday night, February 17, a Homecoming dance was held at the National Guard Armory, from 9:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. Music was provided by “Clock work.” Cassette Checkout JUDY ABSHER A limited number of cassette players are availalbe for checkout in the Instructional Media Center. Students will need to provide batteries and cassette. They may be checked out for a maximum of two days. Please inform the IMC staff of the number of hours used upon return of the player. Commissioners Hold Bicentemiial Meeting Whereas “a General Assembly of the State of North Carolina, begun and held at Newbern, on the Fifteenth Day of November, in the Year of our Lord One Thousand Seven Hundred and Seventy-seven, and in the Second Year of the Independence of the said State:” Whereas Chapter XXXII of the Laws of North Carolina was “an Act creating Part of the County of Surry, and Part of the District of Washington, into a separate and distinct County, by the Name of Wilkes...” Whereas the first meeting of the Commissioners of said County of Wilkes was held on the first Monday in March, 1778, accord ing to the law creating the County of Wilkes; Therefore, on last Monday, March 6,1978, the Wilkes County Commissioners, meeting in the County courthouse in Wilkes- boro, held their bicentennial meeting with distinguished guests and many other citizens of the county present; and an impressive ceremony was held, including the reading of the minutes of the first meeting on March 2, 1778. The following is a brief history of Wilkes County which was presented to the group by J. Jay Anderson of the Wilkes Commu nity College General Studies Division. WILKES COUNTY HISTORY The General Assembly of the State of North Carolina ratified an Act on December 24, 1777, stating that “from and after the fifteenth Day of February next (1778), the County of Surry and District of Washington be divided by” stated lines, “into a distinct County, by the name of Wilkes.” Therefore, it is obvious that Wilkes never extended to either the Mississippi nor to the Pacific, wishful thinking to the contrary. From its beginning, Wilkes, somewhat comparable to a description of Rhode Island in its earlier years, has been “the home of the otherwise minded.” The people herein are independent-mi nded and have stood for their convictions. The history of any area is basically a history of its people, and Wilkes has been fortunate in its men and women who have achieved and who have provided leadership at home and abroad. Christopher Gist, the first non-Indian to settle in Wilkes in 1750, so far as we know, was called upon by the Ohio Company to survey and arrange for settlement on new territories, and Gist served as a guide and companion to George Washing ton. Daniel Boone early came into Wilkes and led the Westward trek from this place. William Lenoir settled in earlier Wilkes and became the first Chairman of the Board of Trustees for the University of North Carolina. Benjamin Cleveland built his home in what became Wilkes, and he was notorious for his rough-and-ready justice during the Revolutionary War period. Today, the home of his brother, Robert, still stands in Parsonsville community. James Wellborn, a trustee of early schools in Wilkesboro, represented this section in the General Assembly for some 27 years. Montford Stokes, while resid ing on the Yadkin in Wilkes, became Governor of North Carolina and was appointed Indian Commissioner by Presi dent Jackson. The list could go on and on, but we skip to the Civil War period. General James B. Gordon was the highest-ranking leader from Wilkes on the Southern side during the Confederate War for Independence. His home was where the hospital stands today. The “Red Fox,” John Quincy Adams Bryan, was an outstanding leader in recruiting men for the Federal cause during the Civil War, later served in the General Assembly and was a leader in education. Dr James Calloway, grandfat her of Dr. Fred C. Hubbard, was a surgeon, operating in Wilkes during the Civil War—from the 1830’s up until years following the war. The world-famous Siamese Twins, Chang and Eng Bunker, partially as a result of their acquaintance with Dr. Calloway, settled in Wilkes and became American citizens here in this spot, got married in Wilkes, and took their name in the place. Dr. Tyre York, of Traphill, was well-known during and following the Civil War and was involved in medicine, education, and politics. We have, from this county, within the memory of many here, given to the world such men as Dr. Arthur Eugene Billings who performed perhaps the first open-heart surgery. We are the home of outstanding men and Senate Majority Leader, Robert Byrd, who was born a Sale in North Wilkesboro; Dr. Irene Parsons, raised at Cricket, who became head of the Personnel Division of the Veterans Adminis tration in Washington; Lady Sara Lou Carter, born Sar Lou Harris in Wilkesboro, and for a brief time teacher at Lincoln Heights; Dr. Paul Caudill, Internatio- nally-known Baptist minister, and since his retirement, interim pastor at the Traphill Baptist Church. The list could go on and on, but time is limited. We are justifiably proud of Judge Johnson Jay Hayes, Federal jurist, who has two building in Wilkesboro named for him, and the author of the most complete history of Wilkes County-The Land of Wilkes. Then there is Dr. Frederick C. Hubbard who has been associated with the three hospitals in Wilkes; first, that of Dr. White in Wilkesboro, then the Wilkes Hospital which he founded, and the present Wilkes General Hospital, for which he gave the land and led the fight to obtain. Edd F. Gardner, responsible for two of the world’s largest mirror plants, is today a visible asset to this community. Then, too, there is Junior (continued to page 6)

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