1969
1970
WATAUGA DEMOCRAT^
VOL. LXXXII—NO. 30
An In*>Pendent Weekly New paper ... Eighty-Second Tear of Continuous Publication
.WEATHER
Snow WHlLo
tt-in 43 29
1-in. 41 31
Jan. 23 29 10 .09 1-in. 46 38
Jan. 24 39 IS .03 Vi-in 59 39
Jan. 25 58 25 49 20
Jan. 26 55 41 ,19_34 15
BOONfi, WATAUGA COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA, THURSDAY, JANUARY 29, 1970
10 CENTS
20 PAGES—2 SECTIONS
At the 45th annual N. C. Press Institute in Chapel mi, David
Whichard II presents certificates of award to Rob Rivers,
president of Rivers Printing Company, which publishes the
Watauga Democrat. Whichard Qeft) is president of NCPA.
In State Press Assn. Contests
Watauga Democrat Is Rated First
In General Excellence
The Watauga Democrat was a major winner in the 1969
contests of the North Carolina Press Association at the mid
wirier press institute held at the University of North Carolina,
Chapel Hill, last week.
The Boone newspaper again was presented the coveted
first {dace award in the General Excellence category, having
been a winner in this division for the last five years, fakirs
four firsts and one third,
Ralph Tug man, head of the Democrat’s advertising de
partment, again placed in the advertising division with a
third place award. In five years he has won three first
places.
The Democrat: placed second in Excellence in Offset
Typography, It has consistently placed in this category.
In the absence of Governor Scott, David Whitchard, n,
of the Greenville Daily Reflector, president erf the State
Press Association, presented the awards at the annual awards
banquet.
Editor Rachel Rivers, Rob Rivers president of the
company, Ralph Tug man and Armfieid Coffey attended the
institute.
Commenting on the awards, the judges had this to say;
“General Excellence; The Watauga Democrat is ap
parently an excellent newspaper week-in, week-out. Filled
with interestingly-written news; illustrated nicely with good
photography and with a locally-oriented editorial page bound
to create reaction among readers. Advertisements were well
prepared, with obvious thought and creative ability.
Typographically it was among the top two or three erf all
entries. Type faces are attractive and pages show a
recognition of the best techniques of make-up.
“Excellence in Typography (Offset): This is a consistently
good newspaper throughout. The photos, inside pages, color
work are professionally well done. Type faces and make-up
are pleasing. A paper of which anyone would be proud.
“Best advertising: An original approach to a 25th class
reunion nailed down third place for the Democrat. The ad
must have made good reading for the returning classmates
as well as the paper’s other readers. Layout and typography
of the Savings & Loan Association ads also are good and are
enhanced by careful use of color.’*
Estimate 10,000 Acres Optioned
Area Strip Mining Proposal
Topic Of Development Assn.
KEEPING WATCH—The chilly waters of the New River slipped
silently by the bottomland of the Cloyd Bolick dairy farm on IE
421 east of Boone last Friday as the county began to shod itself
of threat from more snow, ’
Mass Vaccination Program Is
Aimed Against German Measles
a. a.
A mass vaccination program
against German Measles (Rub
ella) is being planned in Wa
tauga County.
Announcement comes from
Mrs. Harvey Ayers, chairman
the Watauga County Chapter
The March of Dimes. An
epidemic of German Measles Is
expected In the spring and a
number of groups are binding
together In an effort to advert
a serious toll on unborn In
fants in the county.
Carl Tuttle, director of the
Distrkt Board of Health, states
that there are 4,300 children in
Watauga County that will need
to have the first vaccine. He
says that if 50 per cent of them
can be reached before the epi
demic is expected, “we will be
on our way to averting the
tragedy that could be ours.’*
Watauga County Schools
Work On Accreditation
The elementary schools of
Watauga County are now work
ing toward accreditation hy the
Association of Southern Schools
and Colleges.
They became affiliated with
the Association in 1967 and in
accordance with its guidelines
have been working on* improve
ment projects and in self-stu
dies. leading to evaluation for
membership status.
Dr. Guy Burchfield and Dr.
Jerry Rice of Western Carolina
University in Cullowhee are
working with the schools as con
sultants in their self-studies.
Dr. Burchfield and Dr. Rice
spent two days last week in the
office of the Superintendent at
schools, Dr. Swanson Richards,
working with Dr. Richards, with
Mrs. Dessa Mae Edmisten who
s Supervisor of Instruction and
he elementary principals and
oacber representatives.
A visiting committee is sch
eduled to evaluate the schools
in April* Dr. John Bridgman,
Director of the Advancement
School, Winston-Salem, has
been selected to serve as chair
man of the visiting committee*
The remaining 34 members on
the committee will be selected
by Dr, Richards, Dr, Bridgman
and Mss Madeline Tripp of the
State Department of Public In
struction,
Since Rubella attacks the un
born baby and the expectant
mother is often unaware she has
been in contact with the germ,
the vaccination program is
aimed first at the group most
susceptible to Rubella, This age
group is one tr 12,
CO-OPLRATING
Tuttle along with George
Thomas, director of the Blue
Ridge Council of Chapters of
The National Foundation-March
of Dimes, appeared before the
Watauga County Medical Society
to get their support in begin
ning the mass campaign.
Dr, Clayton C, Dean, chair
man of the Medical Society,
stated that the doctors will sup
port and be glad to give time to
the campaign.
Meeting with the Boone Jay
cees, Tuttle and Thomas again
met support for the program.
Dr, william C. Derrick, M, D„
was elected to head the Jaycees*
committee on the vaccine.
The Boone lions Club, which
has aid to the blind and pre
(Continued on page two)
Concern Felt
For Regional
Scenic Values
BY RACHEL RIVERS
The president and vice
president of the Colonial Oil
and Gas Corporation of Roches
ter, N. Y. came to North Wilkes*
boro last week to allay fears
about their proposed strip
mining operation in the region.
It is Gibbsite Corporation of
America, 75%-owned by Co
lonial, that has secured leases
for mining in Ashe, Wilkes, Al
leghany and Surry, four counties
in the 11-county Northwest
North Carolina Development
Association.
Mrs. Doris Potter, president
erf the association, offered two
mining officials a forum before
area loaders as the program for
the association’s Wednesday
Jan. 21 meeting in the Elk’s
Club in North Wilkes boro.
Larry L. Murphy and Frank
T. Lamb, president and vice
president of Colonial respec
tively, gave repeated pledges of
good intentions, the desire to be
“good neighbors” and to restore
the land “as close to original
contour as economically feasi
ble” after extracting aluminum
oxide, or alumina.
The concern of area citizens
was voiced by Jonn Walker,
vice-president of sales for
Lowe’s Companies, Inc,, who
raised some questions that Mur
phy and Lamb could not answer
to his satisfaction, but promised
to work out in detail later.
The upshoot of the forum was
that Mrs, Doris Potter and Neal
Bolten, president and secretary
of the association, were asked
to appoint a committee to meet
with Murphy, Lamb and their
attorney with preservation of
scenic resources and preven
tion of pollution as the aim,
UNCERTAIN
The officials could not ans wer
what the total acreage under
lease for mining is.
They said they have purchased
leases in the four North Caro
lina counties as well as in Car
roll and Grayson counties in
Virginia, that they are now
focusing on a 10-acre tract
available to them in Alleghany
County and have roughly 2,000
acres under lease in Wilkes,
A "wild guess" as to the
total acreage leased for mining
is 10,000 Murphy told the meet
ing, And, he said most leases
are in Alleghany and Carroll
counties.
The company president indi
cated that many of the leases
will be dropped but that lease
of thousands of acres was need
ed to guarantee the availability
(Continued on page three)
PET PROFILE
FIVE LITTLE PUPPIES pressed their shivering paws onto the cold steel wire of their pen at
the animal shelter Friday afternoon—yelping for a home. This little fellow was amor^ them. He
enjoyed the attention. With him in the big kennel were seven other puppies, one mother and two
collie-type females. Cftaff photo)
Boone-Based Organization
To Attack Pollution In Area
People for the land, a fledg
ing band of people concerned
about man and his environment,
are stretching their efforts into
several states from a new base
in Boone,
Keener Smathers, executive
secretary, said the movement
had its birth among a group of
Duke University graduate stu
dents in the spring of 1968,
Its main function has been
distribution of information ab
out environmertal problems to
Gilbert Mast
Gets Promotion
Highway Dept
G. F. CSmokey) Mast of Boone,
tes been promoted to district
er^ineer for the North Carolina
Highway Commission’s activi
ties in Avery, Watauga and Cald
well counties.
He succeeds J. T, Winklei
who was named area highway
engineer.
In other changes in the 11th
engineering divisions, F, D,
Blevins was named assistant
(Continued on page two)
a few members in 12 states.
Members funnel the informa
tion to radio stations and other
news media as part of an effort
to alert the public to problems
brought on by population grow
th and misuse of natural re
sources, including stream and
air pollution.
“Essentially the organization
seeks to present to the public
(Continued on page two)
Carpenter Named
Census Manager
Appointment of Harry E. Car
penter, Jr. of Conover, as Dis
trict Manager ol the 1970 U. S.
Census of Population and Hous
ing in this area was announced
today by Director Jos eph R. Nor
wood of the Census Bureau’s
Regional Office in Charlotte, N„
C.
A native of Catawba County,
Mr. Carpenter was educated in
the local schools, and received
his degree from Duke Univer
sity. He has also studied at the
University at Maryland. Mr.
Carpenter has served as an of
ficer In the Navy. For a num
ber of years he was associat
ed In a scientific capacity with
the national space program, pri
marily with NASA and Douglas
Aircraft. Most recently he was
president of a furniture manu
facturing plant in Taylorsville,
and within the past year has en
tered the investment sales field.
From the District Office lo
cated at 20-22 Second Street.
N. W„ Hickory, Mr. Carpenter
will supervise all phases of the
census in the folio wing counties:
Alexander, Alleghany, Ashe.
Avery, Burke, Caldwell, Cataw
ba, Cleveland, Lincoln, Surry,
Watauga and Wilkes.
On January 26, following sev
eral days of intensive training
in the Regional Office, Mr. Car
penter will come on duty and be
gin setting up the District Office,
He ivill direct a force of about
460 field workers throughout the
area.
Taking the Census nationally
will require the services of
172,000 field workers, 393
District Managers, and 13,000
office personnel.