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THE STATE PORT PILOT
A Good Newspaper In A Good Community
The Pilot Covers
Brunswick County
Volume No. 21
No. 14
12-PAGES TODAY
SOUTHPORT, N. C.
WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 1960
5c A COPY
PUBtlSHED EVERY WEDNESDAY
Hurricane Donna Roars Through Brunswick
Signs Proclamation
HONOR—Mayor Roy Robinson signs a proclamation
calling upon citizens of this community to honor the
memory of General John J. Pershing on the occasion of
the 110th anniversary of his birth. Looking on is Lt. Col.
Johnnie D. Duffie, commanding officer at Sunny Point.
Elect Community
A SC Committee
High Man In Each Town
ship Becomes Chairman
Of Own Committee And
Delegate To County Con
vention
Community elections were held
Thursday in the Brunswick Coun
ty ASC program, with the high
man ,in each of the six townships
to serve as delegate to the con
vention on September 23 to name
the County ASC committee for
the coming year.
In the list, the first named is
chairman, the second is vice
chairman, the third is regular
member, the fourth is first alter
nate and the second alternate.
Following is a list of winners:
Lockwood Folly: Aldridge
Phelps, Edwin Sellers, Floyd
Hewett, W. McKinley Hewett,
Alton Bennett.
Smithville: Willie Clemmons,
Lillian Hewett, Frank Lennon,
Willie Brown, Edgar Finch.
Town Creek: Roy Willetts,
Daniel Rabon, Alton Potter, E. T.
Albright, Roy Swain.
Northwest: H. O. Peterson, Jr.,
George Skipper, John Smith, R.
J. Peterson, Herbert Brew.
Shallotte: Horry Jenrette, How
ard Gore, Weldon Hughes, A. W.
Continued On Page 4
LBrief Bit* Of
-NEWS-1
SVB-DISTRICT MEETING
The Brunswick County Sub
District MYF will meet at( Zion
Methodist Church at Town Creek
Monday evening at 6:30 o’clock.
BOLIVIA LIONS
The Bolivia Lions Club will hold
Ladies Night and the 11th anni
versary of their charter Thursday
night. Carmi Winter will be
the principal speaker. Members
of the Bolivia Schoo}, faculty will
be guests of honor.
LIONS TO MEET
The regular meeting of the
Southport Lions Club will be held
tomorrow (Thursday) evening at
6:30 o’clock in the Community
Building. Former members have
been invited to attend as guests
of the club and the program will
be a film of highlights of the
1959 World Series.
I
fc'
Teacher
ROBERT H. SELLERS
Shallotte Man Is
Now In Germany
Robert H. Sellers Teaching
At Fulda American School
Near Russian Border
Robert H. Sellers of Shallotte,
former member of the school fa
culty at Shallotte and at Bolivia,
has arrived in Germany where
he will teach this year at Fulda
American School.
Sellers landed in Germany at
Frankfort. Originally he had been
scheduled to fly to Goose Bay,
Labrador, thence to Scotland and
on to Frankfort. A storm on the
1 Bast Coast brought a change in
j plans and he landed in the
Azores, which he described as be
j ing beautiful in the morning sun
i rise which greeted him there.
He says that his school is in a
town of 45,000 persons and is
j located only 5 miles from the
Russian Border. Trips in that
j legion are hard to make, he said,
. although he says that it is possi
I ble to go to Berlin with special
elearence.
Fulda is the center of Catholic
ism in German, he said, and the
oldest Catholic Church in that
country is located there.
Sellers was anxious to have his I
State Port Pilot started at once 1
so he can keep up with what’s
going on back here at home. 1
---,-*
Emergency Red
Cross Office Is
Set Up Monday
Applications Being Receiv
ed By Field" Worker From
Those Unable To Take
Care Of The Emergencies
Caused By Storm
The Red Cross disaster office
opened Monday in the Brunswick
county welfare office in South
port, with Mrs. Emma Tatum
registering applicants pending the
arrival of a field representative.
Clarence A. Wells, Red Cross
Field Director from Jackson,
Tenn. arrived Tuesday and has
been busy receiving applications
for assistance. He is the only rep
resentative likely to be sent to
Brunswick county since the path
of destruction caused by Hurri
cane Donna was so widespread.
Office hours are from 8:30 a.
m. to 4:30 p. m., Monday through
Saturday.
The Red Cross will lend assist
ance only in those cases where
hardship has been caused by dis
aster to those unable to take care
of their needs through their in
dividual resources.
After all applications have been
received, they will be reviewed by
a committee comprised of repre
sentative citizens from every sec
tion of the county.
Most of the reports of damage
are under $100 and deal chiefly
with roof damage.
Mrs. Phil King:, home service
secretary, said today that Bruns
wick county people should make
application for help through the
Brunswick County Chapter. Plans
are being made by Chairman
Hubert Bellamy and other chapter
officials to expedite this help as
much as possible.
Leland Parent
Teachers Meet
First Fall Meeting Of PTA
Brings Business Discus
sion At Leland
The Leland P. T. A. held its
first meeting of the 1960-61
school year on September 5 with
James Thompson presiding. He
T.troduced the Rev. J. C. Shaw,
pastor of the Leland Baptist
Church, who led the devotional.
The treasurer, Mrs. Crumpler,
gave her report with a balance of
$511.89.
Principal Homer Thomas wel
comed the parents and gave a re
port on what had been accom
plished since the end of last school
year. The lawn had been well
kept, seven classrooms had been
painted. 150 new desk tops and
24 desks had been added, a new
water well with sufficient water
supply was added, and a new fil
ter bed is being prepared for
sewerage. The cafeteria has new
tile and paint and the senior
class has presented a new trophy
case to the school.
For the room count the winners
were: Mrs. Byrd, primary grades,
Mrs. Austin, grammar grades, and
Mr. Freeman, high school.
Mike Mitchell stated that the
smaller children are in need of
playground equipment. Mr. Thom
as made a report on new tables
and chairs for the cafeteria, giv
ing a price list for each. Tim Cor- j
bett made a motion that the I
^ T. A. purchase the necessary
tables and chairs.
The meeting was adjourned to
the cafeteria where refreshments
were enjoyed by all.
The executive meeting of the
Leland P. T. A. was held Septem
ber 2. The following committees
were named: Membership—Mrs.
Mary Cook and Mi's. Crumpler;
Publicity—Mrs. Wentz, chairman,
Mr. Roberts and Mrs. Johnie F.
Johnson; Program—Mr. Shelton
cnairman, the Kev. Ran
dolph Graham, Johnie F. John
son and Wilton Lynch; Hospitality
—Mrs. Norma Williams, Mrs.
Bessie Sullivan, Mrs. Gillis and
Mrs. Mike Mitchell; Halloween—
Mrs. Austin and Miss Harris;
School Improvement—Buck Long,
Elmer Aycock, James Earl Clem
mons and Joe Gainey; Safety_
Patrolman Thomas, Jimmy Ses
Soms and Wilbur Brew; Purchas
ing—Leo Johnson, George Thos
Rourk and Willie Hayes; Finance
—Paul Gainey, Mike Mitchell, Tim
Corbell, D. A. Long and Thur
man Shipper.
irrniiiit iww mmm ias
Hurricane Destruction
STEEPLE—This is the steeple of St. Phillips
Episcopal Church which toppled to the ground
during the early part of Sunday night’s tropical
storm. The ruins were removed from the sidewalk
Tuesday as the congregation made plans to repair
the damage. This was the most spectacular loss re
ported in Southport, although there were many in
stances of minor damage.
Hickman Gives
Resignation As
Board Member
Representative from Second
Ward Resigns As Aider
man Following Thursday
Night Meeting
Members of the board of aider
men met Tuesday in special ses
sion and accepted the resignation
of Otto Hickman as alderman
from the second ward.
The resignation followed a dis
cussion at the regular meeting of
the board on Thursday night at
which time Herman Strong came
before ,the aldermen to explain
his resignation as chief of police.
Earlier he had stated that harass
ment by one of the members of
the board had led to his decision,
but he failed to name the city
official. Thursday night he de
clared that Alderman Hickman
was the man to whom he referred.
Hickman did not engage Strong
or other members of the board in
argument, but when asked if he
had any comment to make he
stated that “I was only doing
what I was put in office to do—
look out for the best interest of
the tax payers.”
Whether his resignation will
change the decision of Strong re
Continued On Page 4
Powell Bill Funds
Are Distributed
Long Beach Leads AH Other :
Brunswick County Muiici
palities With $31,652.98
From This Source
Allocation of $7,015,112.19 in
Powell Bill funds to 409 partici
pating municipalities was an
nounced this week by the State
Highway Department. The funds
are distributed annually to quali
fied cities and towns for use in
non-highway street work within
their corporate limits. Checks will
be mailed to the municipalities
on September 30.
Leading all other municipalities 1
in the amount of money received
from the Powell Bill allotment
was Long Beach, with $31,652.98.
Next was Southport, with $10,
829.66; Yaupon Beach with $3,
686.40; Shallotte with $2,344.61;
and Ocean Isle with $1,993.08.
Powell Bill funds represent one
half cent of the regular State
gasoline tax and this year’s total
allocation represents a 3.6 per
cent increase over last year. Over
the ten-year period in which the
Powell Bill law has been in effect,
a total of $58,797,140.55 has been
distributed. Tne numDer of par
Continued On Page d
TIME and TIDE
Ten survivors from the shipwrecked liner Dixie had been
brought into Southport aboard the Texas Oil Co. tanker Reaper
and were ferried ashore by men of Oak Island Coast Guard Sta.
tion. There was news of the murder of Louis W. Ganus, Wacca
maw township farmer; State WPA was going to spend $4 million
for port improvement at Southport.
This was the news in our edition of September 11, 1935.
There had been a tropical storm in this area on the preceeding
Thursday night. Power failure and fallen trees constituted the
chief damage, other than the fact that dirt roads had washed
badly from the rain.
It was September 11, 1940, and a perenniel problem here in
Southport had earned the consideration of Col. G. W. Gillette,
chief of the Engineers office in Wilmington: He was going to
try to discover a way to control sandspur growth in the garrison.
Pickpockets had infested Whiteville during the tobacco market
ing season and that town had just passed the 12-million mark
in total pounds sold.
Gene O’Brien, in those days a pigeon fancier, had engaged in
a good will exchange of messages with Mayor Tom Cooper of
Wilmington—said messages having been conveyed by carrier
pigeon; the dredge Henry Bacon was coming to Southport to
dig the yacht basin; and the dredge Comstock was going to
Jacksonville, Fla.
pp^tinued on P»ge Four
l
Transferred
mmmmmmBmmmmmmmmmmmmxrn
LT. WILLIAM W. PROPST
Lt. Propst To
Go To Germany
Sunny Point Officer Is Giv
en Overseas Assignment
And Leaves For Service
This Week
Lt. William Propst, who has
been stationed at Sunny Point for
the past two years, has been as- I
signed to duty in Germany and he
and Mrs. Propst left Friday for
a vacation in Kentucky before
leaving for the overseas assign
ment.
Lieutenant Propst has been as
signed to Sunny Point Army Ter
minal since July 1958, where he
has served as the Terminal Ad
jutant and Class B Agent Officer.
He was born in Osage, West
Virginia, and was educated in
the public schools at Morgantown,
West Virginia.
Following graduation from high
school, he attended the Univer- |
sity of West Virginia from which i
he graduated in April 1958. He
was then commissioned a Second j
Lieutenant, Transportation Corps, i
and immediately entered the i
Army on active duty.
Prior to his assignment to
Sunny Point, he served at the !
Transportation School, Fort Eus- !
tis, Virginia. He was promoted to i
First Lieutenant in October 1959. !
Lieutenant Propst is married j
Continued On Page 2
Savings Bonds
Being Held By
County Citizens
County Chairman Prince O’
Brien Reports That Resi
dents Of Brunswick Have
Total Savings Of $700,
000 In Bonds
Brunswick county residents
were congratulated this week for
their part in increasing U. S.
Savings Bond ownership to a new
all-time high.
Prince O'Brien, Brunswick
County Volunteer Chairman for
the Bond Program, said that na
tionwide holdings of Series E and
H Savings Bonds stood at $42.8
billion, as of August 31, accord
ing to official word sent to him
from the Treasury Department in
Washington.
Of this total, North Carolina
residents own nearly $500,000,000,
and O’Brien estimated Brunswick
county's share of the total at
approximately $700,000.
The report to O’Brien came in
the form of a congratulatory let
ter from William H. Neal, Assist
ant to the Secretary of the Treas
ury and National Director of the
Savings Bonds program. In it
Mr. Neal said that the new $42.8
billion total tops the World War
II peak of E Bond holdings by
some $12 billion, pointing out the
steady growth which has charac
terized the bond program through
out the peacetime years since
1945.
“These statistical facts, how
ever, are a comparatively minor
part of the story,” Mr. Neal told
Continued On Page 2
General Pershing
Is Paid Honor
Observance Of 100th Anni
versary Of Birthday Car
ried Out At Sunny Point
Army Terminal
In commemorating- the 100th
anniversary of the birth of Gen
eral John J. Pershing, Lt. Col.
Johnnie D. Duffie, commanding
officer at Sunny Point Army Ter
minal, this week issued the fol
lowing letter to all personnel at
the terminal.
“The President of the United
States has proclaimed Tuesday,
13 September 1960, General of j
the Armies John J. Pershing Cen- !
tennial Day. This is in honor of !
the hundredth anniversary of the 1
birth of one of America’s great
est soldiers.
Continijec} On Page 5
Full Force Of Season’s Most
Violent Hurricane Felt In
This Area As Storm Pass
es Through Sunday Night
CAUSED WIDESPREAD
DAMAGE ELSEWHERE
Brunswick Escaped With
Comparatively Little Dam
age As Hurricans Takes
Toll Along Atlantic
Coast
Surricane Donna came early
and stayed late Sunday night as
she roared across Brunswick
county, leaving in her wake dam
age which was minimized only
by her greater destruction in oth
er sections of the Eastern Sea
board.
Principal losses were from col
lapsed buildings and damage to
roofs, with the beach areas escap
ing without major disaster. There
were losses in those areas, but
few of these were attributable to
wave-wash. This condition was
brought about by the fact that
the full force of the storm hit
Brunswick well before the mid
night high tide.
There appeared to be a mini
mum of damage to electric power
and telephone lines, a condition
that was surprising considering
the force and intensity of the
storm. Power went off on the
REA lines early Sunday night,
but many areas had service early
Monday. Here in Southport there
was no electric current until Tues
day afternoon, but that was be
cause Carolina Power and Light
was unable to deliver. City forces
had cleared up all major local
trouble before dark on Monday.
Telephone service was restored on
a partial local basis Monday, with
outside lines coming into use
Tuesday morning.
There was no report of death
or serious injury, and this was
hard to believe when inventory
was taken of the damaged build
ings, the high winds and the fly
ing debris. There were reports of
narrow escapes, but safety pre
cautions paid off once more for
residents of this area who are be
coming hurricane hardened.
There was ample warning of
the approach of Hurricane Donna,
for she had been spawned almost
10 days earlier in the Caribbean
Sea. As short time ago as Fri
day she appeared to be wreaking
her havoc on the Florida Keys,
then turned west to the Gulf be
fore veering North and east to
wend her erratic way up the East
Coast along the path that has
been traveled in seasons past by
her sisters.
First reports Sunday indicated
that her route would be offshore
from Brunswick county and that
her winds would be dangerous
but probably not of hurricane in
tensity. But once more her course
was changed and her rate of for
ward progress accelerated. That
put Donna over Brunswick county
about four hours ahead of sched
ule, at about 6:30 o’clock, and it
placed this county squarely in the
eye of the hurricane.
This led to a false feeling of
security when a dead calm de
veloped here in Southport at 8:05
p. m. and lasting until 10 p. m.
During this period folks who had
been in storm shelters and in the
safety of their homes or other
buildings ventured forth and
began to take inventory of dam
age. Red Cross officials and the
radio warned of more trouble to
(Continued On Page 2)
Tide Table
Following Is the tide table
for Southport during the next
week. These hours are ap
proximately correct and were
furnished The State Port Pilot
through the courtesy of tbs
Cape Fear Pilot’s Association.
High Tide Ia>w Tt*i
Thursday, September 15,
3:20 A. M. 9:27 A. M.
3:46 P. M. 10:12 P. M.
Friday, September 16,
4:15 A. M. 10:21 A. M.
4:36 P. M. 11:00 P. M.
Saturday, September 17,
5:04 A. M. 11:10 A. M.
5:23 P. M. 11:46 P. M.
Sunday, September 18,
5:50 A. M. 11:58 A. M.
6:05 P. M. ..
Monday, September 19,
6:33 A. M. 0:27 A. M.
6:46 P. M. 12:41 P. M.
Tuesday, September 20,
7:13 A. M. 1:07 A. M.
7:26 P. M. 1:24 P. M.
Wednesday, September 21,
7:53 A. M. 1:45 A. M.
8:04 P. M. 2:07 P. M.