AWARD WINNER
In last 3 years Democrat has won
14 State Press Assn, awards. Eight
of them are first place awards.
VOL. LXXXI— NO. 1
watauga democrat
_Atl lndePendent W™kly Newspaper . . . Eighty-First Year of Continuous Publication
BOONE, WATAUGA COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA, THURSDAY, JULY 4, 1968
10 CENTS PER COPY
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July 1
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22 PAGES—2 SECTIONS
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WAMY s Uncertain Future Topic Fund Leaders
BY KAUHEL RIVERS
After last week’s reminder
that the North Carolina Fund had
completed its five-year tour of
duty, it appeared for awhile as if
WAMY Community Action, Inc.,
also was finished.
In a question and answer per
iod following a talk by George
Esser, top official of the Fund,
Vito Stagliano of the Office of
Economic Opportunity raised a
point about the Commissioners
of the four WAMY counties sub
mitting “designation” papers
to 0. E. O. by Monday, July 1.
At that time, it was reported
that the Commissioners of
Avery, Mitchell and Yancey
counties had complied with the
provisions of a new amendment
to the national anti -poverty
agency. Watauga, however, had
not. Stagliano said “I am wor
ried for WAMY right now.
“. . . You have had problems
down here to get counties to do
this (redesignate). This at “TO
moment is jeapordizing the
existence of WAMY as a com
munity action agency beyond
July 1.**
On Monday, however, Claude
Danner, Tax Supervisor and
sa
clerk to Watauga’s Board of
Commissioners, said that the
designation papers had been for
warded to O. E. 0. in Washii«
ton, D. C., with a proviso. While
Stagliano pointed out thata pub
lic hearing must be held before
the papers are sent, Danner said
that “due to the time limitations,
we requested a waiver of the
public hearing clause,”
$250,000
“Those four counties are sort
cf a test grouping that with the
help of Dr, W, H. Plemmons
we used in 1963 when we were
exploring the possibility of a
major grant from the Ford foun
dation.*’
Esser was speaking for the
Raleigh-based North Carolina
Fund, which has helped lay the
groundwork and encourage the
proper direction of several
community action agencies,
among them VVAMY.
Looking back, Esser said
“The grant came through inthe
summer and fall of 1963 and we
issued an invitation to the count
ies in the state to come forward
with ideas.
“These four counties, per
haps because they’d had a chance
to think about it, came forward
with some very good ideas and
were one of the first seven com
munities chosen by the Board of
Directors of the Fund for sup
port.
“Since 1964, we’ve had a re
lationship with WAMY that has
included a four-year grant for
partial administrative support
and program grants of various
kinds. I haven’t added it all up,
but I know that our total invest
ment in WAMY is at, or per
haps over, a quarter million
dollars ... in terms of a rural
area, I guess the greatest mone
tary investment made.”
He added that the purpose of
his visits in the mountains is to
first see at what stage the pro
grams are, then “meet with the
board and leadership in the
communities to help make the
point that the Fund’s phasing
out was anticipated in 1963 and
that we’re following through
what our initial intent was.”
However, Esser warned that
“because of the national invest
ment since 1964 in these kinds
erf programs, this kind of invest
ment (private funds) is unlikely
to come from foundations again
for community action programs.
In this part of the state, histor
ically, tax dollars have been
shepherded as carefully as in
any part of the state, simply
because there are so few of
them.
“It’s going to be difficult for
WAMY to replace the full cash
investment you’ve had from pri
vate sources in the past four
years, I wouldn’t encourage you
to think that cash investment
is going to continue to be avail
able from other foundations, be
cause this is an area in which
the foundations a^e really pull
ing out.” He said he feels the
money will more often be ex
(continued on page two)
It was a "full house" in Daniel Boone Theater last Saturday just
before the last available seats and standing room areas were fill
ed for the opening 1968 production of Horn in the West. Some
2,500 persons sawthe initial performance and 500 others were un
able to find spots from which to view the drama. Most of those
returned on Sunday night.
Development Group Asks For More
Roads At State Commission Meeting
In official session at Green
Park Hotel in Blowing Rock
Thursday, the Noith Carolina
Highway Commission recorded
percentage increase data given
by Col. Clyde C. Miller of
Boone and heard remarks from
Mrs. Stella Anderson of West
Jefferson.
As roads chairman for the
Boone Chamber of Commerce,
Marsh To Tour
So. America
James P. Marsh, local Bap
tist layman, will leave Sunday,
July 7, for a tour of South Ameri
ca as a representative of the
Baptist State Convention and the
First Baptist Church of Boone.
As part of the Crusade of the
Americas and the Pan Ameri
can Baptist Laymen’s Evange
lism Congress, he will be in
Peru, Chile, Argentina, Brazil
and Uruguay.
The tour will include visits to
mission points in South Ameri
ca where the Southern Baptist
Convention has missionaries
suid will be in Rio for the Lay
men's Congress. Other count
ries also will be visited on the
tour.
North Carolina Baptists will
send 27 men to the international
meet to be attended by many of
the world’s Christian leaders.
mmmmi
JAMES MARSH
Col. Miller also is active In
the New River Valley Develop
ment Association, which repre
sents Ashe, Alleghany and Wa
tauga counties. It was on behalf
of NRVDA that Mrs. Stella An
derson, editor of the Skyland
Post, said:
“You've read the book, You
Can’t Get There From Here,
I know. Well, that title fits us
better than anybody else.”
In a plea for road improve
ments, Mrs. Anderson was re
Taxable Property Is
$2,534 Per Capita Here
(Special to the Democrat)
NEW YORK, June 24—From the standpoint of property
taxes, how are residents of Watauga County making
out these days?
What changes have taken place lately In property
valuations in the local area?
With people all over the country aroused over their
steadily mounting real estate taxes, a look at the local
assessment situation is in order.
Such a look has just been taken by the Cenus Bureau
as part of a nationwide survey of state and local govern
ment operations, which it makes every five years.
Its findings are released in the “Census of Govern
ments, 1967.”
They show that, in Watauga County, where the property
tax is the principal source of revenue for local government
needs, the assessed value of property subject to such tax,
came to $44,363,000, compared with the total reported five
years before, $26,413,000.
The Increase in the period amounted to 67.9 percent.
In the United States, the rise was 37.3 percent and, in
the State of North Carolina, 52.6 percent.
The figures do not include property belonging to
churches, non-profit hospitals and public agencies that
are generally exempt from taxation.
Because property is usually assessed for tax purposes
at something less than its actual value, this is not
to be taken as the true market worth. Rather, it is
the tax base against which local tax rates are applied.
The tax rates used In connection with assessed value
vary widely across the country. In some areas, where
property Is assessed at only a small fraction of real
value, tax rates are often higher than in places where
assessments are closer to true values.
In terms of population, the taxbaseinWataiga County
was equivalent to $2,534 in taxable property per local
resident.
The average, elsewhere in the United States was
*2,261 per capita. It was $1,934 in the Southern States.
Not only are property valuations rlsii« all over the
country, but the tax rates applied to them are goliw up
as well.
Local communities have been forced to take such
action because of Increased demands for service and be
cause of the effects of inflation on their operating costs,
which have been rapidly spiraling skyward.
ferring to the need for better
highways to support the poten
tial for development in this
mountain area.
She asked for special attention
to connecting highways, because
the three-county area is not as
accessible as it should be and
“We would get a lot more
tourists if they could get in and
out,” She said improvement is
especially needed from the Vir
ginia line in Alleghany County
to link with 1-40 at Morganton.
This is a 40-mile link.
GOV. MOORE
As guest of the chambers
of commerce of Boone, Blowing
Rock and Lenoir, the Highway
Commission was entertained the
night before at Green Park.
Guest speaker for the banquet
was the Hon. Dan K. Moore,
Governor of North Carolina.
‘Vfter an introduction by Bill
Williams, president of the Blow
(Continued on page seven)
Frank Helseth Gets
Doctorate At Ga. U.
Frank A. Helseth, son of Mr.
and Mrs. Edwin A. Helseth of
Vero Beach, graduated from
the University of Georgia,
Athens, Ga„ last month.
He received his doctor of
philosophy degree on comple
tion of studies in the botany
department. His dissertation
was entitled, “The Effect of
Oxygen Tension and Transpira
tion on Uptake and Transport
of Calcium in Intact Plants”.
Or. Helseth completed his
B. S. degree at Appalachian
State Teachers College in 1962
and his M. S. at the University
of Georgia in 1965. While pur
suing his studies, he was an
NDEA fellow and recognized
in Who’s Who in American Col
leges und Universities.
He has been employed for a
year and a half as assistant
plant physicologist at the USDA
Southeastern Forest Experi
mental Laboratory, Cl us tee,
Fla.
On Sept. 1, Dr. Helseth will
begin his duties as assistant
professor at Appalachian State
University, Boone.
Watauga County^ Nighty Successful
Horn InTheWest Opens
ToEnthusiasticCrowds
Free Tickets
Said To Have
Made Problems
Horn in the West experienced
the greatest kickoff in its 17
year history as over 4,000
spectators attended the two
opening 1968 performances in
Daniel Boone Theater last week
end.
A record crowd of approxi
mately 2,500 witnessed the ini
tial show on Saturday night.
The Sunday night audience total
ed in the neighborhood of 2,000.
The outdoor drama, directed
for the second straight season
by Ward Haarbauer, drew en
thusiastic responses from the
viewers who repeatedly signaled
their enjoyment with bursts of
applause.
The closing battle scene,
much longer than in previous
years, was especially well re
ceived by the large crowds.
As usual, most of the laughs
were provided by the lines of
Charles Elledge in his portray
al of Rev. Sims.
The “Watauga County Night”
festivities presented a few pro
blems for the drama’s manage
ment, which stretched the ob
(Continued on page seven)
Mack Brown is
Area Chairman
For Auto Assn.
Mack D. Brown, Brown &
Graham Motor Company, in Bo
one has been appointed to serve
as Area Chairman for Watauga
County for the North Carolina
Automobile Dealers Associa
tion, succeeding W.R. Winkler
also of Boone.
, In making the announcement,
NC.ADA President R. B. Mc
Millan, Jr., of Red Springs, said
that Brown will act as liaison
officer between new car and
truck dealers in this area and
NCADA and the National Auto
mobile Dealers Association. He
will be responsible for pro
moting the various programs
and activities of NCADA and
NADA and will head a county
wide membership campaign for
both organizations in the fall.
MACK D. BROWN
With his hunting knife belted about his original pioneer costume, Ivey Moore stands with some
special friends of his, the Pollard family from Scarsborough in Canada. (Staff photo)
Last Week’s Wagon Train
Was Grandest Of Them All
BY RACHEL RIVERS
It was five years ago in June
that the beginning of the west
ward movement was revived by
a hearty band of teamsters and
horsemen who comprised the
Wagon Train from Ferguson to
Bx>ne.
It happened again last week,
but in the grandest style ever.
Chief Scout Ivey Moore reported
282 riders were along with a
total of 118 wagons, some of
which joined the procession
along the 30-mile trail from
North Wilkes boro to Boone.
But this time it came with a
touch of pathos. Along the trail,
a horse had to be destroyed
after it was kicked and dashed
off the road and over an em
bankment. Wagon Master De
witt Barnett said the rider was
uninjured. Then on up the trail
a mare was foundered on water
and died.
But these are the pitfalls that
even a modern-day expedition
must face along the way. And
for so many, the annual Daniel
Boone Wagon Train is where
they’ll plain be for all the years
in which it rolls mountainward
the last week in June,
Saturday’s parade was live
lier than any in the past, brought
out larger crowds and moved
at a faster clip. As Moore ex
plained, though, not all the units
of the Train were on hand for
the parade since they had start
ed out early in the week and
needed to get back to home and
jobs.
Because the parade was so
long, however, the tail end of
the train followed the parade
route a few minutes after down
town channels of travel had been
resumed. Some of the bulkier
units turned down Depot Street
to avoid the congestion, while
the remainder of the Wagon
Train entries continued the full
route as specified.
(Continued on page seven)
Holiday Inn Robbed
Of $285 By Gunman
A gunman robbed the Holiday
Inn of Boone of $285.95 about
2:10 Tuesday morning.
Innkeeper W. C. Dale said
a Caucasian male about 5*11”
and weighing 185 pounds told
night auditor Bill Jenkins to
“put the money in the bag.’*
When Jenkins told him he had
no bag, the man said he’d better
get one, Dale reported. He then
went through a side door and
behind the counter where Jen
Kins had been counting money.
Dale said the robber backed
Jenkins up to the wall and with
his left hand, emptied the open
cash register of bills and part,
of the change.
After telling Jenkins to wait
a couple of minutes before call
ing police, the man left the
building, got into his car and
drove off.
Dale said Jenkins supplied the
(Continued on page seven)