Newspapers / The Northampton County times-news. / Aug. 1, 1968, edition 1 / Page 1
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THE County TIMES-NEWS A Combination of Vol. LXXVIl, No, 32 THE ROANOKE-CHOWAN TIMES — Established 1892 ☆ Jackson, N. C. THURSDAY, AUGUST THE NORTHAMPTON COUNTY NEWS — Established 1926 1968 Rich Square, N. C. 10 Pages Partial School Desegregation Ordered NEW BERN — A court order signed here Tuesday by District Judge John Larkins will require Northampton County school offi cials to put into effect this fall the first steps in a program to completely eliminate dual schools in the county. Major points to be required this fall by the court order will be the closing of Willis HareHigh School and transfer of its students to Northampton High, transfer of about 100 students from Gum- berry to Gaston High and 25 per cent faculty integration in all high schools in the county. The order does not require the transfer of any white students for the coming school year to any of the county schools with an all- Negro student body. The order affects primarily the county’s high schools for the coming year but sets a deadline of March 1, 1969, for the county to submit a plan for further de segregation the following year. Judge Larkins heard oral argu ments and received briefs from the county as defendant and from the U.S. Attorney General’s office as plaintiff on Tuesday of last week. At that time he outlined general terms of what the order would be. Tuesday morning a draft ofthe order was presented to Larkins. After further objectionfrom gov ernment attorneys concerning several provisions of the order, Judge Larkins signed it as writ ten. Handling the case for the Northampton Board of Education were Perry Martin of Rich square and county attorney Angus Mc- Kellar of Jackson. Martin and McKellar, com menting after Tuesday’s order was signed, said, ‘^We are satis fied with the order when it is con sidered on a comparative basis. When considering the orders al ready issued in many other East ern North Carolina counties, we feel Northampton County is in as good a position as could be ex pected. There is no such thing as winning these cases. It is a question of how little you lose.” Under terms of the order en rollment at Northampton and Gumberry High Schools this fall will be approximately equal. Northampton will have about four white students to every three Ne gro students. Gumberry will have a completely Negro student body. Both schools are about equal in size of facilities. The present enrollment at Willis Hare High of 200 Negro students will raise Northampton High’s present 570 enrollment to about 770. Prior to the court or der, approximately 20 per cent of the NCHS student body was Negro. Willis Hare Elementary School will be unaffected by the order issued Tuesday. Judge Larldns’ ruling con cerning transfer of students from Gumberry to Gaston gives school officials a choice of either trans ferring loo students or ail stu dents living west of the Seaboard Coast Line Railroad who now attend Gumberry High. Martin and McKellar said eith er way the net result of the Gum berry transfers will amount to approximately the same. Prior to the order, 850 students were ejqjected to attend Gum- Court Order Text Spelled Out In Detail JACKSON - Complete text of the federal court order under which Northampton County schools will operate this fell con tains 11 numbered paragraphs- wTiich spell out in detail what school officials will or will not be allowed to do. The court order covers as signment of students, closing of Willis Hare High School, require ment of 25 per cent integration of faculties in all high schools and _pther points. In the interest of complete understanding of what is con tained in the order “The Times- News” is publishing the entire contents of the order signed in New Bern by Judge John D. Lar kins Tuesday. The order states: IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF the 1968-69 school year do and perform the following affirmative acts to dis-establish school seg regation in Northampton County, North Carolina and to eliminate the effects of past racial discrim ination in the operation of said school system, 1. That Willis Hare High School, located near Pendleton, North Carolina, be closed im mediately, and that the high school student body be assigned and transferred to Northampton County High School. 2. That there shall be a total faculty desegregation ofapproxi- mately twenty-five per cent (25%) in all High Schools of North ampton County for the 1968-69 school year except at W. S. Creecy Union School, located at Rich Square, North Carolina, this twenty-five per cent (25%) shall apply to the faculty of all of the grades, 3. That all high school students (grades 9 through 12) residing West of the Seaboard-Coast Line Railroad (Old AtlanticCoastLine Railroad) shall be assigned to Gaston High School, commencing with the 1968-69 school yearj or one hundred (100) students from Gumberry High School shall be assigned to the Gaston High School for this year 1968-69, That students East of the aforemen tioned Railroad Line may not be assigned to Gaston High School. 4, That conditions of over crowding in the Elementai'y Schools of Northampton County, as determined by Pupil-Teacher ratios and Pupil-Class Room ratios shall, to the extent feasi ble, be distributed evenly between schools formerly maintained for negro students and those for merly maintained for white stu dents. 3. That the Advisory school Councils heretofore utilized in the Northampton County School System be totally integrated if they are continued at all. 6, That prompt action be taken to schedule athletic events be tween all high schools of North- (See COURT, Page t> 82 Criminal Cases On Woodland-Olney Affected; Other Elementarys Not JACKSON — During a school board gathering Wednesday night here it was learned it will be necessary to transfer approximately 62 additional Negro students from Woodland Graded School to Woodland-Olney Elementary for the term beginning this fall. School board member Clifton Parker Jr. oi sVoodland asked for the special discussion, held following a countywide teachers meeting, to clarify the portion of the court order signed earlier in the weekpertainingto transferring students to best use existing facilities. Attorneys Perry Martin and Angus McKellar werepresent to explain the intent Judge John Larkins had in mind on the section about facilities. The attorneys said transfers from Woodland Graded, where mobile units are in use, to Woodland-Olney, which has available classroom space, would be required under the court order. It is expected that Woodland-Olney will be the only North ampton elementary school required to take transfers this fall of students who did not choose to attend a particular elementary school during the freedom of choice sign up period earlier this year. The approximately 62 new transfers to Woodland-Olney will bring its total enrollment to approximately 258 for the coming school term. Racially Woodland-Olney is expected this fall to haveabout 166 white and 92 Negro students. About 30 Negro students were already signed to attend Woodland- Olney under the freedom of choice plan. berry this fall under freedom of choice. The 100 students trans ferred out will give the school an approximate enrollment of 750, At Gaston the 100 transfers will increase enrollment to 370. There are 37Negro students cur rently enrolled at Gaston. The transfers will give Gaston High an approximate racial mix of 137 Negro and 233 white students, A portion of the order indi cates there may be some trans fers required this year of ele- mentary students between schools serving the same com munity where one school is using mobile units while another has unused or underused classrooms. NCHS vs. Creecy The judge’s order also will have its effect on athletic con tests among county high schools. A portion of the order says “prompt action be taken to schedule athletic events between all High schools of Northampton County with similar athletic clas sification.” It is expected that the athletic rule will primarily affect con tests between W. S, Creecy High and Northampton County High, No cha:\ges are required in the foot ball schedules already planned for this fall. The two schools are expected to begin scheduling games with each other in basket ball, baseball and track begin ning with the coming basketball season. Approximately 23 students in the Garysburg area who have been attending school in Weldon under a special agreement with Halifax County will have to be as signed to Northampton County schools this fall. Judge Larkins’ order cancels the special agree ment. The order does allow school authorities latitude to move mo bile classrooms from school to school to relieve overcrowding that may be caused in comply ing with terms of the order. In an order handed down by Judge Larkins this week for Bertie County complete deseg regation by the start of the 1969- 70 school year is required. The Northampton order appears to be more flexible on this point. The order requires apian to be submitted by next March 1 but does not state that the plan must bring about total elimination of the dual system by the start of the 1969 school year. It does require, if segregated attendance zones are a part of the plan, that data be submitted which will indicate what the racial composition of schools will be after the plan is put into operation. Federal attorneys in oral argu ments pressed for the establish ment of either attendance zones or the pairing of schools this year. Northampton’s order is one of the few which has allowed op eration of schools this coming year without one of these two de vices for furthering desegrega tion being required. Northampton County schools have an enrollment of 74.5 per cent Negro and 25,5 per cent white students. Only Northampton and Warren have such a high propor tion of Negro students in North Carolina. It is thought the combination of the high Negro enrollment and the limitations of the county’s school (See SCHOOL, Page 8) NORTH CAROLINA WILSON DIVISION CIVIL ACTION NO. 1025 ORDER Superior Court Docket Perry Martin Explains Court UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, BY RAMSEY CLARKE, ATTOR NEY GENERAL (Plaintiff) -vs- NORTHAMPTON COUNTY BOARD OF EDUCATION, ET ALS, (Defendants) It is hereby ordered, adjudged and decreed that the defendants, 'their agents, officers, emplcyces or successors commencing with JACKSON ~ Eighty-two cases are on the criminal docket for Northampton County Superior Court when it opensMonday,plus 10 divorces and a number of petitions and motions. There are 26 cases of drunken driving. They involve Ernest M, Debogorza, George Scott, Mattie Sherrod Peebles, WaverlyD. Whitaker Arthur Boone (second offense), Rufus £, Britton, James R. Taylor, Junior WrennTurner, also charged with carrying a con cealed weapon; James H. Wade, Benjamin Sweatt, Durwood L, Coker and he is also charged with possession as is Joseph B. White, Louis Scott; Francis W, Amtower, also charged with driving while license suspended; Frank Smith, Clinton R. Jacobs, CGorge Brow^, Clev^eland Barnes, Joseph 3. Porch, Edward Need For Volunteers Cited CAD A Adivating $110^960 Hungry Poor Program Thurs. L. Williams, Joe Robinson, v4io is also charged with carrying a concealed weapon; Moses Ander son, Lloyd E. Drake, Robert H. Hatcher, Nicholas Wilkins, Lloyd L. Smith, who is also indicted on a speeding charge; and Robert N. Jordan. James Jones Jr. and Raymond Edward Greene are both charged with forgery Jones Usted on five indictments and Greene on four, Daniel C. Murphy is charged with three counts of intent to com mit an unnatural act and is also charged with a crime against nature. Order To N’ampton Teachers JACKSON - “The United States of America is speaking to you and you have to do what it says.” These were the words of Per ry Martin, Northampton Board of Education attorney, Wednesday MURFREESBORO - Activation of CADA’S $110,960 program for the “hungry poor” was togetun- derway Thursday, with volunteer workers the big need, John Tay lor, assistant director, said Tuesday, 1 ayior’s statement followed a Tuesday conference of the four- county CAD A personnel who will spearhead the program, county Multi-Service Center directors, assistants, family group work ers, and the part-time secre taries and outreach workers ap pointed for the program. Funds will go for food stamps in Bertie, Northampton and Hal ifax Counties, with funds used for matching purposes in some in stances and others, when neces sary, the full amount. (In Hert ford County the food program is handled by the federal surplus food distribution with food given without cost to the recipients.) Too, funds will go for direct food grants and emergency med ical services, but the condition necessitating such need must be related to malnutrition, it was said. The volunteer workers are needed in most instances to pro vide transportation for the needy poor, according to Taylor. However, as of Tuesday, the response has been slim to what has been hundreds of letters reporting the need which have gone out to church groups, clubs, civic organizations and individ uals. “So often,” Taylor added, “we hear people say they would like to help if they knew what they could do. “This is something they can do,” he pointed out. He recited the need as predi cated on extreme problem of getting needy poor to where they can obtain benefits of many kinds. For example, inHertfordCounty, he said that not everyone eligible for federal surplus food gets it, some because they don’t know and others because ofthe expense involved in having to pay for transportation to and from the distribution center. He said this also is true in relation to many other benefits. “The cost of transportation outweighs the benefits,” he de scribed the picture. Seventy-five volunteers are needed in the four-county area with five cents a mile budgeted to pay for the use of their cars in getting needy poor back and forth under the program. Twenty volunteers each are sought in Bertie, Northampton and Halifax Counties, with$3,000 for mileage budgeted for their travel, and 10 are sought inHert- ford, with $1,200 budgeted for their travel. The $110,960 covers a four- month program, which originally was expected to begin in June, but delay in getting it set up and approved threw it late. CADA’s new fiscal year will get underway in October and what part of the money has not been spent will be rechanneled for use, with the new program for the hungry poor hopefully to be ap proved for the entire l2-month period, it was said. This then would run to Sep tember 30, 1969. Four false pretense charges have been filed against A. W. Wooten and two persons, Allen W. Rouse and Dolan Aykinspn, have been indicted for firelight ing deer. Assault charges have been filed against Lawrence Butcher, John Henry Pelham, Margie Vaughan, Virginia Turner, Overton Fleet- wood, JerryCarswell,MichaelT. Conners, James E. Russ, all charged with assault with a dead ly weapon. Fleetwood is also charged with assault on an of ficer. Edmond Smith is charged with assault, public drunkenness, trespass and engaging in an af fray with a deadly weapon. In traffic violations, McDonald Tippette is Indicted for parking on the highway with lights af fecting traffic, Jasper P, Jenkins charged with speeding and reck less driving, Woodrow Webb in dicted for driving while license suspended, Donald Ray Grant charged with failure to sound audible warning, Wiley Boone in dicted for driving while privilege suspended, Grady Me. Deloatch charged with speeding, Robert (See CRIMINAL. Page 8) gathering of Northampton teach ers the federal court order re quiring Northampton County school officials to take initisd steps this fall to eliminate adual school system in the county. The order was issued at 10 a.m. Tuesday and a meeting of all county teachers was held Wed nesday ni^t in the Jackson School auditorium to, inMartin’swords, “help stop some of the false rumors that have been circulat ing since the order was issued.” County Attorney AngusMcKel- school with an all-Negro student body this year,” pointed out Mar tin. Martin said the order will af fect the county high schools for thf». ^968-69 school year and will 'Xi'lC'ib.ocimp.'Cii sched d'* ficials to submit a plan for fur ther desegregation for the 1969- 70 school term by March 1, 1969. Martin said the last sentence in the order states: “On or before March 1, 1969, the county must present a plan of unitary, non- racial school system and a plan to eliminate a dual system.” He pointed out, however, that the or der does not say the plan has to be completely effective in the 1969-70 school term. Martin said Judge Larkins re alizes Northampton has some where no zoning of the county has been ordered,” said Martin. The ruling on the transfer of students from Gumberry to Gaston allows school officials a choice of transferring 100 stu dents or aii sluu’htts liviiig west of the Seaboard Coast Line Rail road tracks who now attend Gum berry High School. Before Judge La. sins’ order, over 850 students were expected to attend Gumberry this fall under the freedom of choice plan. The transfer, if completed, will re duce that number by 100. ine transfer is expociea ..o in crease enrollment at Gaston to around 370 students. GastonHigh (See MARTIN, Page 8) Three Virginia Men Facing County Kidnapping Charge iar told the teachers, “We wil^ peculiar problems and that was have to have faith to operate as fine a school system as possible. I believe the people of North ampton County are not sunshine patriots and will give their sup port to the school board and to Mr. Lowry.” Lowry is school superintendent. Martin outlined to the teachers on a blackboard the major points of the order, pointing out the order will require the closing of Willis Hare High School and the transfer of its students toNorth- ampton County High School, the transfer of some 100 students from Gumberry to Gaston High School and 25 per cent faculty integration in all the county’s high schools. The order, issued by Federal Court Judge John D. Larkins, “does not require the transfer of any white students to any the reason he gave the Board of Education until March 1, 1969, to present its further desegrega tion plans. The Northampton attorney stated that the enrollment at Northampton and Gumberry High Schools this fall is expected to be about equal. The ratio at Northampton County High will be approximately four white stu dents to three Negro students. Gumberry’s student body will be entirely Negro, he said. Martin predicted the transfer of students from Willis Hare will raise Northampton County High’s enrollment to approximately 775 students. About 20 per cent ofthe students at the school last year were Negro. “This is the first case of 19 handled in Eastern District Court CONWAY—Three Virginia men were bound over for trial in Northampton Superior Court fol lowing a preliminary hearing before a Conway magistrate Tuesday on charges of kidnap ping a Severn service station operator. Bound over under a $1,000 appearance bond each are New man Milteer ofBranchville, Gary Milteer and Thomas Milteer, both of Holland. All have posted the required bond. Newman and his brother, Thomas, are charged with the actual kidnapping while Gary is charged with aiding and abetting the crime. A fourth man who has been fig ured into the incident, Neal Bol ton of Branchville, has been released under a $5,000 bond in connection with the case. How ever, his exact connection has not been revealed. The four allegedly kidnapped Robert Harvey Jones from his service station in Severn July 11. At the preliminary hearing before Magistrate Otis Ricks, Jones testified the four defen dants drove up to his station in two cars and forced him to accompany them to Newman Mil- teer’s home in Branchville. Jones added Newman Milteer wanted him (Jones) to confess to an affair with Mrs. Milteer, which he denies ever took place. New man Milteer and his wife are separated. Jones also told that while he was being held in the Milteer home that Milteer’s attorney came in and talked with him. He said that after about an hour he was taken back to his service station and released. Jones, who is married and lives in Boykins, was formerly employed by Newman Milteer, The case is expected to be among those heard in the summer session of Superior Court here next week. Expect 1,200 For Annual PROP Meeting Saturday AHOSKIE - The third annual “Poor People’s Conference” will be held Saturday under auspices of the People’s Program on Pov erty beginning at 10 a.m. at the New Ahoskie Baptist Church on Catherine Creek Road. Speakers will include Hosea Williams, strategic planner for the late Dr. Martin Luther King’s Southern Christian Leadership Conference who helped activate “Resurrection City” in Washing ton, D. C.; Dr, Reginald Hawk ins, defeated candidate for nomi nee for governor of North Caro lina; Eva Clayton, president of the Second Congressional Dis trict of the Voter Education Project; Howard Fuller, commu nity organizer; and Dr. Carroll Felton of Elizabeth City. The program is one for which Day.” Too, arrangements have been made in the four counties of the Choanoke Area Development As sociation to provide transporta tion for the poor with contacts being the Rev. Leon Vaughan in Hertford County, Mrs. Georgia Piercp in Northampton County, Mrs, Alice Ballance in Bertie County and the Rev. Jeremiah Webb in Halifax County. Mrs. Virginia Risper is pres ident of the People’s Program on Poverty; Mrs, Dimple Newsome of Ahoskie, program chairman; and the Rev. James Felton of Winton, executive director. According to the PPOP offi cials, the program is expected to draw the poor and poverty in terested from points from Cur rituck to Durham for what is being labeled as “Poor People’s invitations have gone out over i Some 1,200 are expected for i'idespread area,accordingtothe the Saturday meeting, according Rev. John Scott, pastor of the to the Rev. Scott. Some 600 at- NEBO CHURCH nears completion with plans for the first sermon in the new building to be delivered the first Sunday in September, according to the Rev. Mel vin Creecy, who agoin extended thanks to’ all persons and firms for their gifts which have totaled $16,000. The brick edifice, seating 700 persons, replaces the two-year- old building destroyed by arsonist fire in November 1967. host church and chairman of the tended the first annual meeting board of directors of PPOP. They have invited the public to come and bring the entire family including the children, promising refreshments and din ner and plenty of parking space. July 30, 1966, and around 500 the 1967 meeting held July 29, with both sessions in Woodland, Scott promises that both park ing and food will be adequate for the Ahoskie meeting. CONSTRUCTION UNDERWAY — Ashley Grove Baptist Church has begun to take shape again after a fire destroyed the building last winter. At present workers ore putting the roof on the building with the bock portion of the roof complete with the front portion left.
Aug. 1, 1968, edition 1
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