THE ZEBULON RECORD
Volume XXXIV. Number 51 Zebulon, N. C., Thursday, March 3,1960 Theo. Davis Sons, Publishers
AN EDITORIAL
Stand Up, Be Counted
The time has come to stand up and be counted for
greater opportunity for our young people.
It is good to have civic pride.
It is good to promote business.
It is good to cherish traditions and history.
But it is bad to covet these things to the detriment
of our children.
These things have been used as arguments against
consolidation of several high schools into one large, bet
ter-equipped, better-staffed school with an expanded, en
riched curriculum. •
Many questions have been presented. Many objections
have been raised.
Yet the one outstanding question we must answer is
this:
Do we want to give our young people the best possible
opportunity to cope wijh the problems of the world they
live in?
If you answer “yes” to this query, then you are ready to
seek a practical" solution to the question of how best we
can educate our children, for education is the key which
unlocks the door to opportunity.
We have expressed great pride in having a school in
this community. Let’s speed the day when we can take
as much pride in the education we provide our children.
We pride ourselves on our progressiveness. Let’s in
sure continued progress by clear, unbiased thinking.
We pride ourselves on the commercial business which
comes to Zebulon. Let us appreciate the fact that increased
business depends upon more income in the community, and
more income requires added training and skills.
We pride ourselves on our forebears’ leadership in
fields of education. Let’s continue this leadership with
clear vision.
Face the facts. Pride can lead to a fall.
If our available resources permit us to give the best
possible education to our high school students at Wakelon,
then by all means let’s continue the work there.
If consolidation of Wakelon with one or more other
high schools will give our children a better opportunity,
honesty commands that we provide a consolidated high
school at the earliest time.
It is our firm belief that our children will be better
prepared through the program available at a larger school.
We are willing to be counted.
—Barrie S. Davis
Proposed School Consolidation
Continues in Spotlight Here;
Whitley Gives Board Position
County Chairman Sets
Record Straight on Bonds
In an exclusive interview with
a Record reporter Tuesday, C. V.
Whitley, chairman of the Wake
County Board of Education, ex
pressed his views on consolidation.
“The location has not been de
cided on,” Whitley said. “In fact,
we haven’t decided we are going
to consolidate yet. We are going
by the wishes of the people who
are in the area who are concerned
with consolidation.”
He said when the first bond is
sue came about during the 1949-50
school year, Wakelon School had
an enrollment of 706 students. In
1958-59, the school had a total
of 815 students. This was a gain
of 109 students for Wakelon dur
ing the 10-year period, he said.
In the county proper, Whitley
continued, there were 14,471 stu
dents in 1949-50. This does not
include the City of Raleigh. A
decade later, there were 19,730
students in the county schools, a
gain of 5,259 pupils.
Whitley said $8,125,000 worth of
bonds were sold in the three bond
issues. This is equal to $1,545 per
child gained in the entire county.
Multiplying $1,545 by 109 gained
students totals $168,405.
The Board chairman enumerated
the expenditures from the bond
monies Wakelon School received.
The cafeteria and classrooms cost
$135,828.88. Renovations to the
other building at this school
amounted to $38,600 Additional
land for playground and future de
velopment was purchased at a cost
of $9,000. Furniture and classroom
equipment totaled $9,924. These
first Federal Branch Opens Here
March 14; Manager Named
R. D. Beam, executive vice pres
ident of the First Federal Savings
and Loan Association of Raleigh,
announced this week that Charles
A. Alexander will be the manager
of the Zebulon branch office.
The First Federal branch will
open here around the middle of
March, Beam has said.
Alexander, 26, is a native of
Mecklenburg County and attended
public schools there. After grad
uating from high school, he at
tended N. C. State College where
he was enrolled in the dairy manu
facturing school. He worked for
Long Meadow Dairies for about a
year and then joined the staff of
First Federal in April of 1955.
In 1957 he was called into serv
ice and was stationed in Germany.
Upon his return from service, he
rejoined the staff of First Federal
in 1959.
He was married in 1954 to the
former Carolyn Bynum of Char
lotte, and they have one child,
Terry Leigh Alexander, born in
January, 1959. The family pres
ently resides in Raleigh but is
planning to move to Zebulon this
month. They will occupy a home
on East Franklin Street, owned
by Mrs. Lois Privette.
Assisting Alexander in the local
savings association will be Mrs.
Randolph Hendricks. Mrs. Hen
mm ■ \mmmmmm
Charles Alexander
dricks is the former Ruby Martin,
and is one of six living children of
Mrs. Ed Martin of Route 1, Zebu
Ion, and the late Mr. Martin.
Mrs. Hendricks is a graduate of
Corinth-Holders High School and
attended Raleigh School of Com
merce. She began her career here
in the same building being occu
pied by First Federal. She at that
Ruby Hendricks
time was with Wakelon Trading
Co.
After leaving Wakelon Trading
Co., she went with the local Peo
ples Bank & Trust Co., becoming
cashier. When her husband left
for employment in Dunn, Mrs.
Hendricks secured a job in that
city with Dunn Commercial Bank.
(Continued on page 4)
combined figures add up to $193,
351.88.
“Wakelon School got practically
$25,000—$24,947.88 to be exact—
Whitley said, “more than the
county average as a whole. Of
course, we needed it here, needed
it badly at the time we spent it.
They were needing other expendi
tures in other parts of the county
as well, but we felt like at that
particular moment we ueeded
it here as badly as anywhere, if
not worse.”
He said $445,000 was spent in the
district during that period since the
first bond issue. Out of this money
was built the gymtorium or general
activities building at Shepard
School, and also classrooms at Ri
ley Hill.
He said he feels quite confident
that this area has had its propor
, tional share of the bond monies.
“I am personally very much in
favor of consolidating the four
schools,” he said in answer to the
reporter’s question. “That is also
(Continued on page 9)
Blubbers Because
All Bullets
Don't Hit Mark
He sat down and blubbered be
cause the other four pistol shots
did not hit his victim.
Sheriff’s Deputy S. J. Blackley
said tienjamin Franklin Murchin
son, 34-year-old Negro of Route
1, Middlesex, sprayed the door of
the piccolo joint with 32.20 bullets
intended for Melvin Scott, 27
year-old Negro.
Blackley said one bullet hit
Scott in the left side. Because the
other four bullets went wild,
Murchison sat down and bawled,
the deputy said.
The two Negroes were shooting
craps in a piccolo joint on Route 2,
Wendell, operated by George
Smith. An argument ensued and
the shooting took place.
The arrests were made by the
deputy Saturday night, February
20.
Local Citizens Rally
To Support Plans
For Larger School
The proposed consolidation of
Wakelon High School with other
high schools of Eastern Wake
County continued to hold the spot
light in the community this week.
Local citizens and educational
leaders who favor a larger high
school with a broader, expanded
curriculum refused to be stam
peded by those who have taken a
stand against any possible removal
of the high school from its present
site.
C. V. Whitley, chairman of the
Wake County Board of Education,
told The Zebulon Record: “I am
personally very much in favor of
consolidating the four schools
(Wakelon, Wendell, Knightdale,
and Rolesville).”
Two weeks ago local citizens who
refused to have their names listed
professed to know that Wakelon
School did not receive “the first
red cent” from the two bond is
sues voted with approval of the
nortnlo in 1 0^17 on/i 1 Q^Q
Without referring to this con
tention, Mr. Whitley said Wakelon
has received more than its share,
if the number of pupils enrolled
in the school is used as a guide. Of
the $8,125,000 in bonds sold, Wake
Ion received $193,352.88 for con
struction of a cafeteria, classrooms,
renovations to other buildings, and
additional land for playground and
future development.
The interview with Mr. Whitley
is included in another column on
the front page.
Reasons presented by citizens
against any consolidation in
clude: (1) possible loss of pres
tige and business to Zebulon; (2)
doubts that the consolidated high
school would be better than Wake
Ion is at present; (3) opposition to
locating a high school in the Riley
Hill area; and (4) increased travel
to and from school for children
living in the immediate area a
round Zebulon.
Rapid growth of the suburban
areas North, West, and South of
Raleigh has caused schools in
(Continued on page 4)
Insurance Executive Dies
Suddenly Of Heart Attack
Death attributed to a heart at
tack claimed a prominent Zebu
Ion insurance executive Tuesday.
John Gibson Terry, 55, died in
Middlesex after suffering what:
Nash County coroner said was a1
heart attack. Death came about:
11:45 Tuesday. |
He had made several calls in
Zebulon and was on his debit |
route in Middlesex. He was re-1
ported to have called on a Mrs. I
Caines, collected her pi emiums |
and returned to his car. Mrs.,
Caines noticed seconds later that
the car had not moved'and went
to investigate, finding Terry
slumped in his car.
About the same time two other
insurance agents from the Home
Beneficial Life Company passed
the car. They saw the victim
slumped over the wheel and
(Continued on page 4)