You Must Register by Saturday in Order To Be Eligible To Vote in Speeial Eleeiion June K
T'owni
o pics |
»r
Miss Frances Winslow, daught
er of Mr. and Mrs. W. Frith Wins
low, of Plymouth, has been ini
tiated into the Pierrette Players,
honorary dramatic organization
at Salem College in Winston
Salem where Miss Winslow is a
student. New members are taken
into the organization on basis of
a point system according to in
terest and work shown in campus
theatrical productions.
The Rev. and Mrs. E. B. Quick
left for Savannah Monday min
ing to visit their son and daught
er-in-law. Mr. and Mrs. Ben H.
Quick and. incidentally to get
their first, glimpse of their first
grandchild. Faye, who was born
last November. The Rev. Mr.
Quick and Mrs. Quick will re
turn to Plymouth in about 10
days.
The Washington - Tyrrell
Health Department has order
ed smallpox vaccine and will
resume its vaccinations against
the disease as soon as the ma
terial has arrived, health de
partment officials have an
nounced. Schedules for the
vaccinations will he announced
as soon as the vaccine has ar
rived.
The Plymouth town council has
reported that 1.040 more feet of
terra cotta sewer pipe than ori
ginally planned will be necessary
in order to complete the present
city improvement program. The
report added that the pipe has
been ordered and is expected to
arrive sometime next week.
An offer of rye-grass seed by
the Commodity Credit Corpora
tion was voted down by the Wash
ington County Triple-A Com
mittee, meeting in the Agricultur
al Building in Plymouth last Fri
day. The group gave as the rea
son for their action the fact that
few farmers in the county use
this kind of seed.
W. L. Hassell has been ap
pointed judge of election to re
place 'V. H. Joyner in the June
3 city limits extension ballot
ing, it has been announced.
The town council pointed out
that since ]J(U. Joyner is jrow
a rie*
cl ,„»~1
official.
Since difficulties have been en
countered in obtaining acoustic
tile board for the ceiling in the
Plymouth High School new class
rooms, Superintendent W. F.
Veasey made a trip to Richmond
for a conference on Wednesday
afternoon with the wholesale
dealers to see if something can’t
be done to speed up the ship
ments.
Efforts are being made by local
school officials to purchase 7,000
feet of war surplus plywood at
Williamsburg, Va., for the basing
of the tile floors in the Plymouth
School’s new classrooms. The war
surplus material, it was stated,
could be obtained more inexpen
sively and is of equally good
quality as the plywoods being
manufactured now.
■f
Creswell Stores Begin
Closing on Wednesdays
-+
Creswell.—O. D. Hatfield, pre
sident of the Creswell Mercants
Association, announced recently
that beginning on Wednesday,
May 7 and continuing until Mon
day, September 1, all stores in
the town of Creswell will close
each Wednesday afternoon at one
o’clock.
■-4
Funeral Held for
F. Cortez Spruill
Last rites were conducted from
the Piney Grove Baptist Church
near Roper last Thursday at 3
p. m. for F. Cortez Spruill, 72, of
Pea Ridge section, who died at
his home near there on Wednes
day, following an illness of two
years. The Rev. L. B. Taylor of
ficiated at the services, assisted
by the Rev. T. F. Davenport and
the Rev. John McLeod. Burial
•as made in the church ceme
tery.
Mr. Spruill, who was a native
of the county and a well-known
farmer and fisherman of the Pea
Ridge section, was a member of
the Piney Grove Church. He was
married to Mrs. Ida Swain Spruill.
Other survivors include four
sons, Fay, Erie, Edison, and Ern
est Spruill, all of Roper; three
daughters, Mrs. E. G. Barber and
Mrs. A. M. Lee, both of Roper;
and Mrs. William Lassiter, of
Hertford; two sisters, Mrs. D. W.
Arnold of Washington, and Mrs.
Etta Sawyer of Hickory, Va.;
and four brothers, John and War
ren Spruill, both of Roper; Ab
Spruill, of Eastern Shore, Md.,
and Ernest Spruill of Washington,
D. C.
The Rc anoke Beacon
****** and Washington County News ******
VOLUME LVIII—NUMBER 21
Plymouth, Washington County, North Carolina, Thursday, May 22, 1947
ESTABLISHED 1889
Poppy Sale Saturday
By Legion Auxiliary
Preparations for Poppy Day
have been completed by the
Plymouth American Legion Aux
iliary women, Mrs. J. B. Carlisle,
poppy chairman, has announced,
adding that volunteer workers
from the Auxiliary and co-opera
ting groups will be on the streets
at an early hour Saturday morn
ing distributing poppies and re
ceiving contributions.
Money received for the sale of
the Memorial Day poppies, Mrs.
Carlisle said, will be used for the
organization's rehabilitation and
child welfare work. Women dis
tributing the poppies in Plym
outh, as elsewhere, she added, are
unpaid volunteers who have of
fered their services to aid in the
rehabilitation of disabled veter
ans.
Mrs. Carlisle expressed the hope
that all residents of Plymouth
will take advantage of the op
portunity to honor the dead of
World War I and World War II
by purchasing a poppy from one
of the distributors. The poppies,
she said, were made by veterans
in hospitals and convalescents’
centers throughout the nation.
Over 100 Seniors To
Graduate in County
To Star! Using
New Fire Alarm
Officials in the Plymouth
Fire Department have an
nounced that the department
plans to begin using the new
alarm system on or around June
June 1. They added that they
hoped to have all residents of
the town notified as to their
particular zone number by that
date.
Most of the zone numbers
have already been posted and
are permanent, but, it was
stated, several more numbers
are yet to be determined and
will probably be posted by the
first of next month.
Central machinery for the
new horn alarm was installed
several months ago.
Here on Monday
Pass Motion Allowing
Mayor to Fix Course
Stillacres Sewer Line
to Roanoke River
-♦
Plymouth town councilmen,
meeting in called session in the
Municipal Building here on Mon
day night, heard statements from
engineers making surveys of the
portions of Plymouth in which
new sewers are to be laid and,
basing their decision on the re
ports, passed a motion allowing
Mayor A. J. Riddle to fix the
course of the sewer line in Still
acres now within the city limits
to the Roanoke River in order to
secure an adequate drop for the
pipes.
The councilmen also decided
that the next money available to
the town would be spent for
sewers to be placed on Wilson
Street extension and in the Red
Hill section. Further provision
was made to purchase “Y” pipe
joints for the planned sewer lines.
A delegation of citizens from
lower Washington Street appear
ed before the council to protest
the project erection of a filling
station in their neighborhood,
pointing out that such a move
would place a commercial build
ing within a residential section.
It was stated further that in order
for the station to be operated
there, a change in the zoning of
the town would be necessary.
Such a request had been made
to the council, but members vot
ed it down, deciding, instead, to
allow the zones to remain as they
now are.
-t
New Officers Are
Installed Friday
New officers were installed by
the the James Jethro Post of the
American Legion in Plymouth at
a meeting held last Friday night
with Judge Ronald Gaylord tak
ing over as post commander.
Other officers installed were
Dr. Ernest Furgurson, first vice
commander; Leroy Bateman,
second vice-commander; Dallas
Waters, adjutant; P. W. Brown,
finance officer; Blount Rodman,
historian; Ronald Tetterton, ser
geant-at-arms; and the Rev. Paul
B. Nickens, chaplain. Bruce Bate
man acted as installation officer.
The officers for the 1947 term
were elected at a meeting held
several weeks ago.
Total of 63 White and 39
Colored PupilsAreCan
didates for High School
Diplomas
One-hundred and one boys and
girls will complete their high
school work in the Washington
County schools next week with
the number of students being
graduated remaining about the
same as those finishing their high
school educations in 1946, coun
ty school officials have announc
ed.
The first in the series of final
exercises, commencement ser
mons, will be held by all three
white schools and the Plymouth
Colored School on Sunday morn
ing. Class night exercises have
also been scheduled in the vari
ous schools this week and next,
while diplomas will be handed
out in the institutions on Wed
nesday and Friday. Final ex
ercises will be held by the J. J.
Clemmons school in Friday, two
days later than the rest of the
county schools, since their term
was interrupted during the fall
by school-bus difficulties.
Of the 101 candidates for grad
uation, 28 are in the Plymouth
Colored School with 22 girls and
6 boys in the senior class. Plym
mouth White School is preparing
to graduate 10 boys and 14 girls,
while the Roper White and Cres
well White Schools with 19 senior
students each, have 8 boys and
11 girls, and 10 boys and 9 girls
respectively. Two of the graduat
ing boys in Creswell are veterans.
Four girls and 2 boys are slated
for graduation from the J. J.
Clemmons School at Roper, and
the Creswell Colored School will
deliver diplomas to 2 girls and
3 boys. At total of 63 white stud
ents and 39 colored students are
candidates for high school gradua
tion this year.
-*
Thieves Rob Gas
Station Monday
-♦
Thieves entering the filling
station of Wig Gaylord on High
way 64 near Roper on Monday
night of this week, stole several
cartons of cigaretts and made off
with a collection of Roosevelt
dimes that Mr. Gaylord had been
saving as curios, Sheriff J. K.
Reid has reported.
The Sheriff added, that the rob
ber or robbers had removed some
iron bars from a rear window of
the building in order to make an
entrance. The robbery was dis
covered when the station was
opened for business Tuesday
morning. So far no other articl
es than the cigarettes and dimes
have been missed by Mr. Gay
lord. Sheriff Reid stated that an
investigation is being made and
that he expects to arrest the cul
prit shortly.
Will Allow No
Absentee Voles
mu ausemee uanuia ihuj uc
cast in the election on the ex
tension of the city limits of
Plymouth, being held on June
3, Mayor A. J. Riddle has an
nounced.
Mr. Riddle stated that he and
the election officials had receiv
ed several inquiries about
absentee voting in the election
and had made an investigation
of the matter which disclosed
that no provision had been
made for such ballots in the bill
passed by the General Assembly
and that therefore absentee
voting would not be considered
in the election.
All Teachers in
School Reelected
By Board Here
To Date Only One In
structor Has Handed in
Resignation to Plym
outh Committee
-♦
Plymouth School committee
men. meeting here last Wednes
day, reelected J. S. Fleming prin
cipal of the white schools, and
approved re-employment of all
j instructors in both white and
colored schools in the Plymouth
district for 1947-48. Of the re
plies, to reelection notices, receiv
ed in the office of the county
superintendent to date, all but
one have been acceptances to
teach in the local schools for an
other year.
The one exception so far is
from Mrs. H. D. Lassiter, sixth
grade teacher, who has tendered
her resignation. The committee
also approved all school bus driv
ers for the 1947-48 terms.
It was revealed at the meeting
that due to a drop in attendance
at the Morattock School, one of
the two teachers there will be
eliminated. Some compensation
for the loss may be obtained, how
ever, since increased attendance
at the Plymouth Elementary
School has led officials to believe
that another teacher may be earn
ed by that institution, although
final decision rests with the State
Board of Education. If the teach
er is secured here, it may be in
the field flf public school music.
-♦
Announce Potato
Support Prices
-4
Government support prices for
early commercial Irish potatoes
are $2.60 for the June-July period
and $2.40 during August, Miss
Miriam Ausbon, county AA^aec
retary, has stated. These Btices,
she said, are for 100-pound Ings
grading US Number 1 which are
sacked and loaded f. o. b. through
carrier in carlots or trucklots at
country shipping points.
If government purchase of po
tatoes becomes necessary, Miss
Ausbon stated, they may be dis
posed of through approved non
food or industrial outlets such as
livestock feed, starch, flour, glu
cose, alcohol, or school lunch
rooms.
Former Resident
Of Roper Killed
Charlie Frank Swain, 27, form
er resident of Roper and native
of Beaufort County, his home
now in Reading, Pa., was fatally
injured Monday morning when
the motorcycle which he \yas rid
ing crashed into the side of an
automobile at an intersection in
Wilson.
Swain was taken to a hospital
there where he died, around
noon, of multiple injuries, in
cluding a fractured skull. The
car struck by the motorcycle was
driven by Duncan Eastman, negro
of Bailey. Wilson police, investi
gating the accident stated that
Reading law officers supposed
that Swain and his wife, a native
of Grimesland, were visiting in
Plymouth.
Funeral services were held in
the Lane Wilson home near
Washington, at 3 p. m. Wednes
day with t<|ne Rev. M. E. Turner
officiating. Burial was made in
the family cemetery near Bunyan.
Swain is survived by his wife and
father, Charlie Swain of Ransom
ville, RFD.
-«
Newlands Request
Electric Services
Citizens of the Newlands sec
tion of the county, it has been
reported, have been making ef
forts to secure rural electrifica
tion service in that district
through a Virginia power com
pany, but so far have met with
little success, the report stating
that company officials were un
willing to make any sort of
promise of action before the end
of this year.
Newlands residents have made
attempts to secure such services
in past years, principally through
the Rural Electrification Adminis
tration, but their efforts were in
vain. So far as can be determin
ed, however, the program for se
curing farm electricity is still go
ing on with some chances of suc
cess, although not in the very near
future. ,
Reni Control to
Maintain Office
In This District
->-.
If Present Plans Effect
ed, no Decontrol Will
Be Ordered in County!
in Near Future
The Washington County rent
control office at Plymouth, sched
uled to be closed out on Friday
of last week, will be maintained,
according to present plans, as
long as rent control remains in
effect in this area, Mrs. Sabrie
Reid, chief clerk in the office, has
announced, adding that the stay
open order had been sent from
the Atlanta regional office on
Friday.
She also stated that R. E.
Lewis, state rent control direc
tor, in delivering the order from
the Atlanta office, had said that
while a poll had been taken in
the Albemarle district. Washing
ton County included, on the at
titude of the public towards con
trol, no decontrol orders would
be issued in the very near future.
The Plymouth office, Mrs. Reid
said, will keep its regular hours
of 9 a. m. until 5 p. m. Monday
through Friday and will remain in
its present location in the com
missioners’ room in the county
courthouse.
-•
Expect Complete
Laying of Mains
Late This Week
Begin Operation for Plac
ing of Sewer Wednes
day; to Put First Pipes
in Red Hill
• -♦
Work on the water mains now
26MiSf
of this week, Mayor A. J. Riddle
has announced, adding that crew
men had begun operations for the
laying of sewer pipes on Wed
nesday and that in all probabili
ty the actual installation of the
pipes would be started sometime
today.
First sections of the sewers, he
said, would be laid in the Red
Hill district of town.
The installation of sewer pip
ing on Wilson Street extension,
Mayor Riddle, remarked, will be
delayed until surveys can be made
for an outlet. Research, he said,
has shown that the lay of the
land now inside the limits will
not allow enough of a drop in
elevation to insure adequate
drainage of the pipes. He added
that it would probably be neces
sary to effect an outlet some
where on Welch Creek.
Operations on the portion of
Stillacres now inside the town's
corporate limits will begin next
week, the Mayor stated.
-4
Creswell PTA to
Present Musical
-*
Creswell.—“Way Dovn South
in Dixie,” a musical comedy, will
be presented under the sponsor
ship of the Creswell Parent
Teachers Association in the Cres
well High School auditorium
next Thursday, May 29, at 8 p.
m., PTA officers have announc
ed.
Proceeds will be applied to the
Memorial Gymnasium Fund, it
was stated. Lucky numbers will
also be drawn for a refrigerator,
an electric iron, and an electric
fan.
Jerry Flood, recently declared
a Gold Star Actor, of Raleigh,
will play the leading role, assist
ed by local talent. The public
is invited to attend.
MilfWorker Is
Injured Monday
-4
Thad Lilly, employee of the
pulp mill, suffered a left hip frac
ture early Monday morning when
he slipped and fell in the locker
room at the mill, it has been re
ported.
Lilley was on his way from the
shower room back to his locker
when the accident occurred. He
was taken to the office of Dr. T.
L. Bray in Plymouth where he
j was given first aid, and was then
removed to a Rocky Mount hos
pital. His condition on Tuesday
was reported as being satisfac
tory.
Saturday Is Last Day To
Register for City Election
--——— —~-—+ ♦
C ivil War C annonball
Dug I i* in Yard llrrr
Mrs. 0. E. Jones, of Plym
outh, wasn't looking for histori
cal relics when she was digging
in her backyard, on West Main
Street, last Wednesday, all she
wanted was some topsoil for
her flower beds, but to her sur
prise, she turned up a 35-pound
cannonball the like of which
had slammed the daylights out
of Plymouth some 80 years ago
when the Yankees and Con
federates were battling for pos
session of the place.
The missile is a bit rusty
after its long sleep in the Jones’
backyard, but it's still loaded
and is probably as potent as it
was in 186-1. The Joneses have
allowed the ball to be placed on
display in the window of a local
drug store and it is reported to
have attracted quite a lot of
spectators.
Charles M. Johnson
Finals Speaker Here
Diplomas to Be Presented
to 24GraduatingSeniors
in Local Theatre on
Wednesday
-♦
Graduation exercises for the
24 members of the Plymouth
High School Class of 1947 will
begin with class night exercises
this Friday at 8 p. m. with an all
star cast chosen from members of
the graduating class. The show
will be entitled “The Grand Cir
cus” and will be presented in the
school auditorium.
On the following Sunday, May
25, the Commencement Sermon
will be delivered by the Rev.
Paul B. Nickens, pastor of the
Ludford Memorial Baptist Church
at 11 a. m. in the Plymouth
Theatre. Special choral music
will be furnished by the senior
class and church choirs.
1 rol'tiral presentation of diplo
mas will be made next Wednes
day at 10:30 a. m. in the theatre.
An address will be made by the
Hon. Charles M. Johnson, State
treasurer, and the valedictory
will be made by Joyce Bailey.
Anne Veasey, president of the
class, will deliver a short address
and awards will be made to out
standing class-members by Prin
cipal J. S. Fleming. Presentation
of the diplomas will be made by
Superintendent W. F. Veasey and
A. L. Owens, chairman of the
Plymouth school committee. The
Hon. Mr. Johnson will be intro
duced by Attorney Carl L. Bailey.
Members of the graduating
class are A. J. Ange, Horace Ange,
Henry Dixon. Keith Estop. Gene
Harris, Raymond Leggett. Wesley
Nooney, Jerry Polk, Bill Robbins,
Marvin Waters, Vonnie Allen,
Marie Ayers, Joyce Bailey, Mary
Bateman, Virginia Chapin. Rita
Hardison, Betty Hays, Anne
House, Dorothy Humphreys, Ra
mona Oliver, Doris Roberson,
Shirley Sexton, Jacquelin Styons,
and Anne Veasey.
-♦
Creswell Finals
Begin on Sunday
-♦
Commencement exercises \vill
begin in the Creswell High School
on Sunday at 2:30 p. m. at which
time the Rev. Garland C. Bland,
local Christian minister, will de
liver the commencement sermon
in the high-school auditorium, H.
V. Chappell, principal, has an
nounced.
Class night activities will be
presented, it was added, in the
auditorium on Monday at 8 p. m.
Graduating exercises will be held
Tuesday at 8 p. m. at which time
Herbert Peele, editor of the Eliza
beth City Daily Advance, will de
liver the address.
Reporters for
Tobacco Named
The Washington County AAA
Committee, meeting here last
Friday, appointed tobacco re
porters for 1947 and will ap
prove the appointment of others
if it becomes necessary, it has
been announced.
Those named tobacco report
ers are: Plymouth, H. G. Simp
son; Roper, Wendell C. Spruill;
Creswell, W. P. Davenport;
Pleasant Grove, William C.
Spruill; Long Acre, R. C.
Jackson; Tobacco acreage mea
surements made by the men
will be reported to the commit
tee at a later meeting.
! NEW RECTOR
i
The Rev. Edward M. Spruill,
above, will assume his duties
as rector of Grace Episcopal
Church in Plymouth and
Pricst-in-charge of St. Luke’s
Church in Roper on Sunday
June 1. He was formerly at
Mayodan.
Date Is Set for
Club Joint-Meet
On Building Fund
-4
Veterans Group Seeks Co
operation of Civic Or
ganizations in Aiding
Woman’s Club Project
Date for the joint meeting oi
the Plymouth post of the Vet
eran of Foreign Wars and the
presidents of all local civic group:
has been set, tentatively, foi
Wednesday, May 28, at 8 p. m. ir
the Legion Hall here, according
to decisions made by the VFW a1
a meeting held Thursday night al
the courthouse.
The purpose of the meeting
VFW leaders report, is to make
an effort at incorporating efforts
of all civic groups in town toward
the financing of a community
building, sponsored by the Plym
outh Woman’s Club. The veterans
organization has promoted sever
al drives for funds and voted un
animously at the Thursday meet
ing to give all-out aid to the com
munity building project if the co
operation of the other Plymouth
groups can be secured.
VFW members also passed a
motion to retract a statement
made by them that the communi
ty building sponsorship is theirs
since, it was pointed out, the
Plymouth Woman's Club is the
originator of the idea. They
stated that the VFW wishes to ef
fect a joint-aid program whereby
all civic-minded organizations in
town may assist, under the leader
ship of the Woman’s Club, in
financing the construction of the
building.
-4
Hold Services at Concord
Primitive Baptist Church
- - ♦
Elder S. Gray, pastor, will con
duct services at Concord Primi
tive Baptist Church, between
Cherry and Creswell, next Satur
day and Sunday mornings, May
24 and 25. The pastor has been
#way for several weeks and will
conduct, the first services since
his return on Saturday. The pub
lic is invited to attend.
About 500 Voters Are
Nov/ Recorded; Few
From Club Village,
Many from Richwood
-♦
Total registrations for the
special city limits election next
month now amount to a little
more than 500, Mrs. Hermine
Ramsey, ,-egistrar has reported.
She stated that until Tuesday 470
names were on the books while
approximately 30 more were
registered on Tuesday and Wed
nesday morning.
The books will be closed this
Saturday, and the following Sat
urday is challenge day. All per
sons who have not been register
ed as yet have been urgently re
quested by town officials to do
so at once, since they pointed out,
it is important that everyone vote
in the election which will be held
on June 3. They especially em
phasized the fact that a special
registration is required for the
voter to be eligible to cast his
ballot and that, regardless of how
many times he has voted or regis
tered in the past years, he must
be re-registered for this particular
election or forfeit his right to cast
a ballot.
So far. Mrs. Ramsey has stated,
few registrants have been noted
from the Country Club Village
while almost all of Little Rich
wood has been placed on the
books. A considerable number of
citizens of Plymouth have regis
tered also, but the number there,
she pointed out, is not as high as
it could be.
-4
Conference Held
OnPrincipalship
-, ...
The Creswell School committee,
* meeting there oft Monday, con
sidered three applications for the
principalship being vacated this
year by H. V. Chappell who has
resigned. No final decision was
made on the matter with the
ultimate selection to be decided
after further data is collected.
A delegation of colored citizens
of Cherry appeared and asked
. the group to employ Theresa
Arnold in the school there which
was granted. Cora Hornablew
was also elected to teach in the
Pritchett Colored School in that
district.
O. D. Hatfield, representing the
Creswell Parent-Teachers Asso
ciation, appeared and asked that
the committee recommend to the
county board of education that a
new roof be put on the Creswell
High School aduitorium. The
group agreed to make the recom
mendation.
Members of the Creswell com
mittee are H. R. Stillman. H. P.
Barnes, and W. A. Davenport.
-4
Local Girl Hurt
In Accident Here
-+
Doris Lee Davenport, 12-year
old daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Foy
Davenport of Plymouth suffered
scratches and minor bruises when
struck by a 1928 Ford automobile,
driven by Joe Manley. Edenton
negro, on Monroe Street last Sun
day about 6:30 p. m.
Miss Davenport was riding a
bicycle down the street when
Manley, backing his automobile
in front of Williford Tavern, fail
ing to see the girl, struck her. The
bicycle was badly damaged. No
charges have been preferred.
-«
Last Rites Held
For John Sexton
-4
Funeral services were Vield
from the Sexton home in Wash
ington, on Sunday at 3 p. m. for
John E. Sexton, 58, of Washing
ton, brother of Will and George
Sexton of Plymouth. Mr. Sex
ton died unexpectedly on Friday,
while at work in Plymouth. He
had been employed by the State
Highway Department for 25
years and was the son of R. G.
and Bettie Mobley Sexton.
Survivors include his wife, Mrs.
Martha Holliday Sexton; two
sisters, Mrs. Dare Stallings and
Mrs. Carrie Anderson, both of
Jamesville; and six brothers,
Will and George Sexton, both of
Plymouth, Charles, Herbert, and
Lawrence Sexton, all of James
ville, and Milton Sexton of Zebu
Ion.