The Pilot Covers
Brunswick County
THE STATE PORT PILOT
A Good Newspaper In A Good Community
Most of the News
All The Time
m
VOLUME 412
No. 4
10-Pages Today
SOUTHPORT, N. C. WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 5, 1970
5* A COPY
PUBLISHED EVERY WEDNESDAY
Erosion At Yaupon Beach
The ocean has been washing away Brunswick
County beaches at an accelerated pace in recent
months. The damage is severe at the Yaupon Beach
amusement center, above, and has forced a move
across the road in search of protection. (Photo by
Spencer)
County Farms
Now Rank 44th
Brunswick County has
dropped from 39th to 44th in
the ranking of the state’s 100
counties based on total value of
agricultural production.
The information is included in
the new edition of North
Carolina Agricultural Statistics
produced by the Federal-State
-'-•Crop Reporting Service in
Raleigh. The U.S. and state
departments of agriculture are
the agencies involved in the
project.
Total value of 11 major crops
in Brunswick County was listed
at $4,508,130 in 1968, the most
recent year included in the
report. This is a decrease from
the $5,426,880 listed for 1967.
The breakdown by crops
shows that tobacco value
dropped from $3,986,000 to
$3,302,000; peanuts from
$4,080 to $2,040; sweet
potatoes from $153,000 to
$144,000; com from $741,000
to $534,000; soybeans for beans
from $485,000 to $462,000;
and all hay from $36,550 to
$34,700.
Increased values were noted
for lespedeza for seed, up from
$430 to $1,680; oats up from
$5,960 to $6,700; wheat up from
$6,960 to $9,700; Irish potatoes
up from $7,560 to $9,580; and
cotton up from $340 to $1,730.
The four leading counties in
North Carolina, according to the
report, are Pitt, Johnston,
Robeson and Columbus, which
also are the leading
tobacco-producing counties in
the same order.
NORRIS LONG
Postmaster
Long Retires
Norris Long retired Friday as
Postmaster at Southport after
almost 35 years in the postal
service. He has held the local
position for the past three years.
His position is being filled by
Mrs. Marjori Livingston, veteran
post office employee, who has
filled in at various other times
when the position of postmaster
was temporarily vacant.
Long went to work for the
(Continued On Page Ten)
Rep. Alton Lennon Reports
Comity, Several Beaches
Hamper Erosion Control
Erosion of Holden Beach has
been the center of attention
lately, but if any of the
Brunswick County beaches get
relief from the sea Yaupon and
Long Beaches probably will be
the first.
These two municipalities are
the only beach areas in the
county that have shown a
willingness to share the cost of
an erosion-control project that
would be jointly financed by
federal, state and local
governments. The two Oak
Island beach communities put
up $20,000 to finance the first
stages of the project which could
answer the entire county erosion
problem.
Yaupon, the Brunswick beach
with the shortest coastline
(3,600 feet), put up $2,500
while Long Beach, the county’s
longest strand of 43,000 feet,
paid $17,500.
Southport School
Principals Named
Principals of the Southport
elementary and high schools
have been named for the
1970-71 school year, according
to county Supt. Ralph C. King.
The new Brunswick
County-Southport High School
principal is E.L. Pettiford, and
Marion L. Bum fills the position
at the elementary school. The
former principals, A.C. Caviness
of the high school and T.M. Lee,
submitted their resignations
after the close of the school year
in June.
According to Supt. King,
“both principals have broad
backgrounds of educational
experience and proven ability in
school work. I am confident
each will work for the
advancement of the educational
program in their respective
schools and will provide
important contributions to the
total educational improvement
in the country.”.
Pettiford is a native of Spring
Hope and was graduated from
high school there. He did his
undergraduate work at A&T
State University and earned a
B.S. degree in vocational
agriculture.
After teaching for several years
he attended Fayetteville State
University and received a B.S.
degree in elementary education.
Pettiford taught two more years
before returning to A&T
graduate school where he
received his Masters degree in
administration and supervision.
He has served as principal at
Anandale Elementary School in
Pender County.
Pettiford, whose wife is
deceased, is a Mason and a
Shriner.
Bum was born in Brunswick,
Georgia, but while his father was
a boat pilot in 1937 with the
U.S. Public Health Service he
was stationed in Southport.
Burn was graduated from high
school in Charleston, S.C. and
attended The Citadel, from
(Continued On Page Pour)
Tii
And Tide
The Pilot for July 31, 1935, reported the election of Henry C.
Stone as principal of Shallotte High School. This was the biggest issue
ever published up that date and included a 12-page section
learlding the opening on August 8 Whiteville Tobacco Marketing
County Agent J. t. uodson naa announced that tobacco marseiiug
cards were ready for distribution and could be picked up at the
Farm Office at Supply.
One editorial cited the shameful need for a hardsurfaced road
leading from Brunswick county to the tobacco market; the
Waccamaw river was being surveyed to determine the feasibility of
building a dam for the erection of a power plant; and news from
Baltimore was that Miss Eleanor K. Niernsee was making a good
record as student nurse at Johns-Hopkins.
Five years later there were signs of international unrest: A
Southport lady had received a letter from her family in England,
who reported generally good conditions despite the fact that
country was at war; there had been 21 Army enlistments from
Brunswick so far for the year; and the Marine Corps was slanting a
sales pitch to young men of military age.
(Continued On Pace FV)ur)
Other Brunswick beaches are
Sunset (6,000 feet), Ocean Isle
(28,000 feet), and Holden
(40,000 feet). None has
contributed its share of the
costs.
Aside from the $2,500 already
contributed to the erosion
study, it is reported that Yaupon
Beach is holding approximately
$50,000 in reserve to be spent as
its share of the project.
The local share of the project
is six percent and could be
shared by the county and the
beach municipalities. According
to Col. George Pickett, director
of the State Department of
Water and Air Resources, total
cost of the Brunswick County
project now is $21 million,
almost $2 million more than the
$19,251,000 that was estimated
in 1968. Reason for the increase
is “escalation in construction
costs.”
Alton Lennon, U.S.
Representative for the district of
which Brunswick County is a
part, reviewed his position on
(Continued On Page Bight)
BEMC Shallotte
Office Expanded
Brunswick Electric
Membership corporation is
nearing the finish line on the
addition to its headquarters
building at Shallotte and work
has started on enlarging the
office at Whiteville, according to
'General Manager Robert G.
Hubbard, Sr.
The expansion at Shallotte,
with design in keeping with the
original building, is expected to
be ready for occupancy this fall.
The Whiteville enlargement,
under contract to the J. W. Cook
Construction Company of
Whiteville, is in the foundation
stage currently with completion
expected in early 1971.
Smith Brothers Construction
of Whiteville has the general
contract for the S' allotte
addition.
The two additions reflect
progress of the cooperative since
its founding 31 years ago in
1939. They will increase the
total value of all facilities for
BEMC to $10 million.
Initially, the cooperative
started out with only a handful
of members and just a few miles
of lines. Now there are over
16,000 members and 2,362
miles of transmission and
distribution lines serving areas in
four counties—Brunswick,
Columbus, Bladen and Robeson.
Both Manager Hubbard and
Area Development
(Continued On Page Hour)
Deadly Nerve Gas Shipment
Scheduled From Sunny Point
Worldwide attention will focus
on Sunny Point Army Terminal
during the next ten days as a
shipment of deadly nerve gas is
brought here en route to a sea
burial off the Florida coast.
The disposal plan, announced
last week by the Pentagon, has
been strenuously and widely
opposed, particularly by Florida
Gov. Claude Kirk who has
threatened to sue to block the
effort unless the Army can
provide better assurance that the
gas will not affect east coast
beaches. In recent days, officials
have admitted that some gas has
leaked from its container-rockets
but added that damage from any
leakage at sea would be minimal.
The plan for the nerve gas
disposal calls for trains from
Anniston, Alabama, and
Lexington, Kentucky, to leave
those depots about August 10
with their cargos. The shipments
involve 68 tons of the deadly
gas.
The gas, which is loaded in
15,540 rockets, will be encased
in concrete coffins. Each of the
418 casks weighs six tons and
will hold 30 rockets.
The shipment of the deadly
cargo has been declared safe by
Pentagon officials but special
precautions are being made
nonetheless. The cargo trains
will proceed from their depots at
a slow 35 miles an hour and each
will be led by an escort train to
test and inspect the railroad
route.
Also, the routes have been
planned to avoid
heavily-populated areas, and
antidotes have been stocked
along the routes in case an
Dr.L. G. Brown
Ends Practice
Dr. liandis G. Brown has
retired after serving on the staff
of J. Arthur Dosher Memorial
Hospital for more than thirty
years, arid fifty colleagues and
hospital employees attended a
farewell; dinner given in his
honor at Herman’s Restaurant
Friday night.
W.F. Cupit, Administrator of
the hospital, presented Dr.
Brown a letter of appreciation
from the employees of the
hospital, a $100 gift certificate
and a Certificate of Loyal
Service from the Board of
Trustees.
Dr. Fred Burdette presented
Dr. Brown with a plaque-type
letter on behalf of the Medical
Staff.
Mrs. Jo Donnally, Director of
Nursing Service, presented Dr.
Brown with a letter of
appreciation and a suit of
clothes on behalf of nursing
service.
Mayor E.B. Tomlinson
attended the dinner and made a
speech of appreciation on what
Dr. Brown has meant to the city
land community during these
past 30 years. He presented him
with a letter from the Board of
Alderman of Southport.
L.T. Yaskell, chairman of the
(Continued On Page Ten)
emergency arises.
Pentagon officials have stated
that the probability that the
cargo would leak and cause a
major catastrophe is “essentially
nil.” It would be “unrealistic” to
worry about such an accident,
the source added.
The toxic chemical agent is in
liquid form and the spokesman
said that if any spilled, special
crews could easily render it
harmless by applying a caustic
agent. The special trains will
carry crews of security guards,
medical aides and special
technicians, to cope with any
possible emergency. Everyone
on the trains, including
newsmen, must wear head-to-toe
protective clothing to prevent
any contact with nerve gas in
case of that unlikely accident.
The Pentagon chose ocean
disposal instead of chemical
detoxification because, it said,
handling the nerve gas would
have been too dangerous and too
expensive.
Critics have suggested that the
government efforts to find a
better means of disposal have
been less than adequate. A team
of scientists named to study the
disposal stated that destruction
of the chemical by an
underground nuclear explosion
would be preferable to the
disposal 280 miles off the
Florida coast.
Leakage into the ocean
through the concrete enclosures
Physician Retires
Dr. Landis G. Brown, left, was honored Friday
night by his colleagues and friends at a dinner at Her
man’s Restaurant upon his retirement from active prac
tice- Here he receives a letter of appreciation from W.
F. Cupit, hospital administrator. (Photo by Spencer)
is expected—seepage from the
rockets already has been
noted—but the liquid gas is
heavier than water and should
stay near the bottom of the
ocean. The depth where the gas
is to be dumped is three .miles.
A House oceanographic
subcommittee currently is
conducting hearings into the
Army’s plan. Kirk told the panel
Tuesday “if the ocean along our
east coast became contaminated
because something went
wrong—if these missiles released
their content in a matter not
planned—it could be disasterous
for us.”
Congressmen from areas along
the train routes also have
expressed disapproval of the
plan and there is a possibility
that an objection may be
forthcoming from the Prime
Minister of the Bahamas.
The mayor of Macon, Georgia,
has threatened to stop the train
there for 72 hours to protest the
train’s by-passing of Atlanta
because the latter is a
heavily-populated area. He called
the railroads in his area
“antiquated” but saw no danger
if the train were halted in his
town.
ratrons talk
With Board
The Brunswick County Board
of Education met Monday night
and discussed with Southport
patrons plans for transfer of
students from Fort Caswell to
temporary facilities located on
grounds of Southport School.
Hope was expressed this transfer
would be made before
November of this year. These
patrons presented to the board a
list of items prompting concern
among parents of pupils being
housed at Caswell and BCHS. It
was stated that unless positive
action is taken to correct these
negative factors before opening
(Continued On Pane Tmn\
School Injunction Possible
Mayor E.B. Tomlinson this
week addressed a letter to
County Attorney E.J. Prevatte
outlining the position he feels
compelled to take with regard to
the unsettled school situation. In
the course of this letter he states
that an injunction will be filed if
any attempt is made to begin
any other high school building
before one has been started in
the Southern School District.
Mayor Tomlinson admits that
the county attorney may not be
the primary recipient for this
letter, but he has taken care of
this matter by addressing copies
to numerous other officials,
including chairman of the Board
of County Commissioners, the
Superintendent of Schools and
the chairman of the Board of
Education.
Following is the text of the
Tomlinson letter:
“I realize that airing school
construction problems with you
is perhaps going out of the chain
of command, but inasmuch as
you must make certain positive
declarations before county
bonds can be issued for sale I
believe a restatement of some
facts should be made:
“In both recent school bond
elections the Smithville school
district voted overwhelmingly
“yes” while much of the
remainder of Brunswick County
(particularly the western
precincts) voted against the
issue.
“After the bond election
passed in 1969, due to the large
“yes” vote from both the
Southport and Leland areas,
school sites for the southern area
(Bolivia-Southport) school were
investigated at Boiling Springs
and Midway. None of these
proposed sites could be
approved. An alternate site was
chosen on Highway 211
(Beaverdam). This site was
found suitable and the
Weyerhauser Paper Company
offered to sell for a reasonable
figure.
“At this time certain Bolivia
area residents filed or threatened
to file an injunction against the
use of this site, even though it is
only some two miles further
from Bolivia than is the Boiling
Springs site considered earlier.
We in the Southport area could
not understand this action as we
had offered no objection to the
earlier possibilities of the school
being either at Boiling Springs or
Midway.
“I now understand that the
Board of Education plans to ask
for bids on the Shallotte and/or
Leland area schools, by passing
the Bolivia-Southport area for
the alleged reason that we can
(Continued On Pace Whit)
Electric Cooperative Expansion
Addition to Brunswick Electric Membership cor
poration headquarters building at Shallotte, shown
above, is expected to be ready for occupancy this
fall. Enlargement to Whiteville office is just getting
underway. Investment is over half a million dollars.