VOLUME 42
THE STATE PORT PILOT
NO. 39
A Good Newspaper In A Good Community
14 PAGES TOD A Y_WEDNESDAY, APRIL 14, 1971 SOUTHPORT, N. C. ~5c~ACOPY
PUBLISHED EVERY WEDNESDAY
New Members
Are Sworn In
Wilbur E. Rabon has been
elected chairman of the
Brunswick County board of
education and Mrs. May
Barbee serving as vice
chairman.
Rabon, Mrs. Barbee, Dr.
John T. Madison and William
T. Bowen were sworn in by
magistrate Ernest F. Gore.
All were elected last year
except Bowen, an appointed
member from the Wac
camaw District.
Bids for carpeting three
consolidated high schools will
be awarded next meeting
after two of the low bids are
examined more closely. The
apparent low bid of $22,164 by
Traid Carpet Center of
Asheboro and the second low
bid, $23,116 by Kimball’s of
Shallotte, will be examined
by the schools architect, and
he will prepare a detailed
analysis for the board.
Other bids were in the
$26,000 to $28,000 range,
except for a $23,515 bid by a
Siler City firm. Kimball’s
was the only bidder from
Brunswick County.
The board approved
George Price, Lincoln, and
Mrs. Myrtle Carroll and Mrs.
Esther Mae Willetts, Bolivia,
as substitute teachers.
A budget review was held
by the board, which approved
the budget for the driver
training and safety education
program. This program is
(Continued On Page Three)
Audit Reveals
Everything OK
Members of the Board of
County Commissioners have
disclosed that a special audit
recently conducted by an
independent auditing firm
failed to reveal any evidence
of misappropriation of funds
in the office of the Brunswick
County Tax Collector.
Because of allegations that
there was a shortage in this
office, the Board of Com
missioners authorized the
employment of an in
dependent accounting firm to
run a detailed audit on the
Brunswick County Tax
Collector’s office during the
period of time in which the
alleged misappropriation of
funds took place. This audit
has been completed and the
results indicate that there has
been no misappropriation of
funds in the Tax Collector’s
office. The audit covered the
period of time from August,
1968 to March, 1969.
It had been alleged that
there were changes in the
penalties to compensate for
.funds which were misap
propriated. The results of the
audit indicated tthat there
had been some slight changes
made in the penalty in order
for the turnover sheet to
balance. However changes
range from 1 cent to less than
$1.00 and the amount of funds
involved were insignificant
considering the total amount
of tax funds collected during
this period of time, according
to the auditor’s report.
Copies of this audit are
open for public inspection in
the County Manager’s office
in Southport.
The auditing firm made
certain recommendations as
to procedural changes in the
Tax Collector’s office and
these changes are currently
being implemented to insure
a more effective operation of
this office.
New Jaycee President
William D Ezzell, left, was installed as new president of the Southport
Jaycees at the annual banquet Saturday right. -The installing officer was
District Vice-President Roger Averett, center. Looking on is outgoing
president Robert Howard, who served as master of ceremonies for the
banquet. (Photo by Spencer)
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Install Jaycette President
District Jaycee Vice-President Roger Averett installed Emily Blake,
center, as the new president of Southport Jaycettes during the banquet
festivities Saturday night. At the right is Jean Kenney, outgoing president.
(Photo by Spencer)
Jaycees, Jaycettes Pick
New Officers At Banquet
Rep. Thomas Harrelson
addressed the 11th annual
Jaycee-Jaycette Installation
Banquet on Saturday.
Jaycee President Robert
Howard introduced
Harrelson after the in
vocation by Rev. John C.
Dean and the buffet banquet.
Rep. Harrelson pointed out
the many services that the
Jaycees have performed for
DuPont Plant
Expands Again
The Du Pont Company
announced today an ex
pansion of its Cape Fear
“Dacron” polyester plant
located in Brunswick County.
C.E. Dickey, plant manager,
reported that the new
capacity would be for
production of additional
“Dacron” polyester filament
yarn.
The new facilities are
expected to be in operation in
1072. Additional operating
and maintenance personnel
will be required, with hiring
to begin in late 1971 or early
1972.
The market for “Dacron”
polyester filament yarn has
been strong in an otherwise
disappointing year for
manufacturers of man-made
fibers. This yarn is used in
knit fabrics which have been
bestsellers in apparel for both
women and children.
Recently, similar fabrics
have been used by
manufacturers of men’s suits
and slacks and are gaining
(Continued On Page Three)
Southport during the past
year and gave a brief outline
of the routine of a
representative in Raleigh.
Each Jaycee was urged to
think seriously about running
for public office.
Miss 4th of July, Dianne
Rees, attended the banquet
and expresssed her gratitude
for the support the Jaycees
and Jaycettes have given her
during the past year.
State Jaycee vice
president, Roger Averrett,
was a special guest and in
stalled the officers for the
coming year. He prefaced
the installation with a few
words about what it means to
be a Jaycee.
He gave the oath of office to
the following new officers:
president, William D. Ezzell;
first vice-president, Irvin
Smith; second vice
president, John Richards;
secretary, James F. Howard,
Jr.; treasurer, W. Jack
Keith; directors, Lee
Aldridge and Leonard Lewis,
(Continued On Page Three)
Meeting Tonight Will Affect Future
What Brunswick County
receives for highway, airport
and waterway improvements
during the next 20 years may
be decided at a public hearing
here Thursday night.
The hearing, scheduled for
7 p.m. in the courthouse, is
the fourth held by the
Regional Transportation
Planning Committee “to
listen to the public’s opinion
of the needs and priorities of
Brunswick County.”
V.A. Creech of Leland is
chairman of the 13-member
committee that also includes
Jackie Stephenson and W.E.
McDougle from this county.
The group was selected by
the Cape Fear Council of
Governments to determine
what Brunswick, Columbus,
Pender and New Hanover
counties need in the way of
transportation.
The local planning group is
helping with the National
Transportation Needs Study
that will formulate a long
range plan for transportation
throughout the country. All
federal expenditures during
the next 20 years will be
based on the needs and
priorities cited in the study.
President Nixon asked
each governor to present
proposals for his own state,
and Gov. Scott selected the
Cape Fear Council of
Governments to determine
what this area needs.
Chairman Creech said most
of the state is being surveyed
by the Planning Division, and
that these four counties are
fortunate to receive local
attention.
Projects that could affect
Brunswick County have been
outlined by the Planning
Committee,and Creech asks
for local comment on the
proposals and which projects
the local population considers
most important. Some of the
projects would include the
Coastal Corridor highway,
the Piedmont Corridor, and a
connector with Interstate 20
that now ends at Florence,
S.C.
The committee has
suggested that the Cape Fear
River be widened and
deepened, that cargo han
(Continued On Page Three)
Island Should Be Bought,
Gov. Scott Says...Officiailv
Gov. Robert Scott has of
ficially called for the con
demnation of Bald Head
Island as a means of
protecting the North Carolina
coastline from the threat of
man.
In a message to the North
Carolina General Assembly
last Thursday, Gov Scott said
the beaches must be
protected from wind and
wave erosion and from the
destructive force of
hurricanes.
“Probably the greatest
threat to these areas is in
discriminate and unwise
development,” he said. “This
development involves
dredging and filling our
marshlands and tidelands.”
Thus, the proposed con
demnation of Bald Head, the
Program At
Local Library
National Library Week will
get a send-off in Southport
Sunday afternoon with a
program for which Dr. J.R.
Corbett of Wilmington will be
the principal speaker.
Mrs. Edna Gause is
Brunswick County chairman
for National Library Week
and is being assisted in this
special observance by
Friends of the Library, a
volunteer organization which
has been particularly active
during the past year. Their
principal project was to
purchase and pay for a new
(Continued On Page Two)
sub-tropical island located at
the mouth of the Cape Fear
River near Southport.
The governor proposed a
complete environmental
program that would protect
the state for “the countless
tomorrows to come.” The
state acquisition of Bald
f
Head Island has been the
major goal of Scott’s ad
ministration.
First efforts of Charles
Fraser to develop the island
about two years ago were th
warted by the state’s firm
stand against the developer
of South Carolina’s Hilton
Landfills Would
Cost Much Less
A revised system of six
Brunswick County landfills
would cost much less than a
plan offered by the State
Health Department, the
commissioners have been
told.
The second plan for the
solid waste disposal system
would cost $66,000, of which
the county may be asked to
provide only $11,000 at the
start. According to Paul
Butler of the Division of
Community Planning, North
Carolina Department of
Local Affairs, the balance
could be obtained by a $33,000
grant from Farmers Home
Administration and a $22,000
loan.
The original sanitary
landfill proposal quoted a
capital investment of
$107,000, with an annual
operating cost of about
$46,000. Butler said the
estimated capital investment
of $66,000 for the revised plan
could be above the amount
that would be needed.
The plan submitted by
Butler would locate six
landfills in the county at
points where most of the
population would be within
eight miles of a landfill.
Municipalities would con
tinue to collect trash to carry
for the landfills, and house -
to - house collection in
unicorpora ted areas would be
continued by private con
tractors.
Although funding is not
immediately available,
Butler said, several steps in
the planning phase could be
started immediately.
County Board Chairman
William Kopp said he hopes
the commissioners will ap
prove the plan at a meeting
scheduled for next Monday.
On that day, the county
sanitarian is expected to
report to the county board
regarding the sic-landfill
plan, and a meeting with
mayors of Brunswick towns i
will also be held to discuss the
solid waste disposal system.
Head Island Complex. Then
last summer, William
Henderson of Carolina-Cape
Fear Corporation announced
that his firm had purchased
the island from Frank
Sherrill for an estimated $5.5
million.
Scott and other members of
the state departments have
continually said the island
will not be developed;
Henderson has insisted that
the state cannot deny his firm
access to its own property,
and that whatever dredging
that would be done would not
damage the marine life in the
area.
Chances of compromise
seem nil.
The governor told the joint
session of the legislature that
Henderson’s firm has not
been willing to sell to the
state at a reasonable price
and that he proposes that
“the state initiate con
demnation proceedings to
bring the island into state
ownership.”
Henderson has further
argued that the state must
show a need for the island
before it can be condemned,
and he believes the state
cannot show such a need.
Many Brunswick County
officials are in favor of the
development because of the
added taxes it would provide
:or the county.
Scott said he is instructing
die Department of Ad
ministration to appraise the
/alue of the island, which he
lopes to turn into a wildlife
*efuge and research facility,
rhis would determine how
[Continued On Page Two}
DR. J. R. CORBETT
Harrelson Bill May Lead
To Leland Beco:
II
ing Town
Leland may be in
corporated by virtue of a bill
introduced in the N.C, House
of Representative by Thomas
Harrelson of Brunswick
County.
The local legislative bill
calls for a popular vote and
would set July 6 as the date
for the referendum.
The bill also calls for a new
Time And Tide
Remember Camp Sapona, and remember Capt. Fred B.
Leitzsey? Well, on the front page of The Pilot for April 15,1936,
there was an announcement that he was being transferred and
that his relief was Lt. John L. Malone. An appropriation had
been made for locating and marking wrecks in the Southport
shrimping grounds.
The final link of the Intracoastal Waterway had been com
pleted and ceremonies on the previous Saturday had marked
the occasion. Blue mold was posing a threat to Brunswick
County tobacco production; Easter had been fittingly observed
in Southport, with the editor taking his pen in hand for words of
praise concerning local activities of the day.
0f™nt page picture in our issue for April 16,1941, showed
the USS Dredge Comstock at a Philadelphia shipyard where
she was being converted into an Army cargo vessel. There had
(Continued On Pip Fbur)
registration of voters for the
incorporation election and, if
voters favored incorporation,
for the first election of town
officials.
Registration books would
be open Junel9 through June
26.
Harrelson said he in
troduced the bill as a result of
numerous expressions of
interest by citizens of the
area in having a referendum
on the subject.
Harrelson said, “At the
request of citizens I will call a
public meeting in two or three
weeks at Leland. A
representative of the North
Carolina League of
Municipalities will be present
to discuss the pros and cons of
incorporation.
“In addition, I intend to
invite various municipal
heads of Brunswick County to
discuss the relative merits of
incorporation. This would not
be an attempt to sell the
program but it would provide
an open forum for the citizens
of the Leland area to learn
about what they will be voting
for or against.”
Of the voters decide to
incorporate the Town of
Leland, the boundaries would
be as follows until changed in
accordance u;?h Law:
(Continued On Page Two)
New Building
Started Here
Groundbreaking ceremon
ies for a $28,000 State Com
mercial and Sport Fisheries
Division office at Southport
were held Wednesday af
ternoon at 3 p.m.
On hand to turn the first
shovel of dirt to begin con
struction was Roy Sowers,
director of the Department of
Conservation and
Development.
Funds for the new office
were appropriated in 1969 by
the General Assembly. The
facility, which will house the
division’s personnel from
southeastern counties, will be
located adjacent to the Small
Boat Harbor.
Mayor E.B. Tomlinson, Jr., of Southport is
shown here with Friends of the Library members
and other library officials as he proclaimed
National Library Week. Seated next to him on the
1 roclaims JNational Library Week
left is Mrs. Edna Gause, Brunswick Count,
Chairman for National Library Week. (Photo bj
Spencer) 4