The News record
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SERVING THE PEOPLE OF MADISON COUNTY
On th* Intldm . . . ?
There's plenty of news
about farming these days
. . . turn to Page 2
78th Year, No. 15
PUBLISHED WEEKLY IN THE COUNTY SEAT AT MARSHALL, N.C.
THURSDAY, April 12, 1979
15' Per Copy
Beer Sale? Forks Of Ivy Folks Hot
-v i
FUTURE GROWER of tomatoes is Tracy
Miller who works with his toy earth grader at
the edge of a field where his parents are
setting up 40 greenhouses to get a price break
on tomatoes by growing them earlier and
later than the normal Haywood County
Residents of the Forks of
Ivy community, disturbed
that a beer and wine package
store may soon open ii^ a dry
county took the matter to a
late meeting of the Madison
County Commissioners
Friday night.
A delegation of seven
persons, led by Jimmy Lee
Buckner, told the com
missioners that it was the
county's responsibility to
determine whether or not the
store in question, Peabody's
Discount Center, was in
Madison County.
"Because that is the issue,"
he said. "If the store is in
Madison County, then it's
illegal and Sheriff (E.Y.)
Ponder said he'd put a
padlock-on it. If it is located in
Buncombe County, as the
State ABC Board believed
when it issued them the
beverage permit, then that's
another matter.
"But," Buckner said, "as
residents of Madison County,
we deserve to know where the
line is."
The county line, Buckner
explained before the meeting
with the commissioners, has
always been a big question in
terms of the four-unit building
that houses three apartments
and the beverage center.
"Nobody, not even Sheriff
Ponder, knows exactly where
the line is," Buckner said.
"But a small portion of the
property is in Buncombe
County. But the major portion
of the property is in Madison
County, where it is illegal to
sell beer or wine."
Buckner, an electrician
whose shop is next door to the
building in question, said that
the property had always been
considered in Madison County
until 1973, when the owners of
it, for no known reason,
requested Buncombe County
to put it on Buncombe's tax
rolls.
This was done, Buckner
?aid. "But our tax supervisor
(Ernest Snelson) told me that
he went to the tax office in
Buncombe and had it tran
sferred back to Madison. So
now it's back on the Madison
County tax roll and he said
they would be collecting taxes
on it."
The main reason, said
Buckner. that the citizens are
trying to stop the center from
ever opening its doors is
because it sits in plain view of
the Forks of Ivy Baptist
Church, of which Buckner and
nearly all of the concerned
citizens are members.
The commissioners, after
hearing from Buckner's
delegation, agreed to take the
matter under advisement and
to, in some way, determine
just exactly where the county
line runs.
The owners of the discount
center, Edward Kilpatrick
and Robert Sofield Jr., could
not be reached for comment.
ToitUl tOGs/ A Longer Season Indoors
By WALLY PAGE
Fain Miller is getting ready
a extend the Haywood
bounty tomato season... early
ind late ? with greenhouses.
While their young son,
rracy, grades the sandy soil
Marby with his toy bulldozer,
Pain Miller and his wife,
Sara, are erecting half-circles
if white rpds in the Pigeon
River West Fork Valley to
Duild 40 greenhouses for
tomatoes.
Motorists traveling High
way 276 near the river bridge
?n look across the field and
?ee the novel white arcs
iprouting from the soil. By
June, the Millers hope to be
picking tomatoes there.
Fraught with summertime
tomato prices on a glutted
market, Miller is planning to
start selling his six weeks
before other Haywood
growers can offer their field
grown fruit. And after the
Field-grown tomato season
has ended, he'll have
tomatoes to sell until
November if his plans work
out.
Miller has grown open field
tomatoes for years. He even
grew them over in Tennessee
to start marketing a crop as
early as July 10 ? two or
three weeks before Haywood
fruit starts to go to market.
"This year I thought I'd
stay home and give this a
try," he says, looking off
through a maze of white
hoops soon to support plastic
covering. "I like to try
something new. Our
forefathers had to do that, you
know."
"If this works out, I'd like
to see enough other growers
grow tomatoes 'under glass'
to open the county co-op a
month early." Miller is a vice
president of the Haywood
County Tomato Growers
Cooperative on the Old
Asheville Road just outside
Waynesville. In season,
Haywood tomatoes are
graded and shipped from
there throughout the East and
into Canada.
The Millers are erecting 40
plastic greenhouses 14-80 feet
each. They'll put 1V4 acres
"under Gl glass." Tomatoes
will be planted in the next few
days and be grown in the
ground and on stakes just as
the field-grown crop is.
The plastic skin on the
greenhouses will keep the
sun's heat in the soil. Doors
are big enough at the end of
each greenhouse to let small
tractors work the crop.
There'll be no artificial heat
or ventilation to use costly
energy. Miller points out.
"Feel that breeze," he says,
lifting his hand into the
cooling air moving through
the valley. The greenhouse
lengths are oriented to let the
natural breeze blow through
than when the sun grows hot.
The greenhouses are
relatively simple affairs.
Twenty-six-foot fiberglass
rods are attached to mobile
home anchors at their ends.
The anchors go 30 inches into
the earth to hold the rods in
arched shape. Hundred-foot
wide plastic sheeting will be
stretched over the top of the
arches.
"Greenhouses always did
excite me," Miller says. "I
can hardly wait to get the
plants growing in here. Then
we'll see what happens."
Mrs . Wallin Wins Top Award
<?
4-H Leaders Recognized At Banquet
By SHARON CARTER, ASST.
HOME ECONOMICS
EXTENSION ACT.
How do you thank people
wbo give many, many
volunteer hours to the
development of Madiaon
County Youth? It Is difficult,
but Friday night, ap
preciation was expressed to a
group of twenty adult 4-H
leaders and four Junior 4-H
leaders. They were served a
delicious buffet meal of baked
Sfc< . ???
ham and fried chicken with
"all the fixings", prepared by
Wolf Laurel Restaurant.
Special music was presented
by the talented Tommy
DuVall. After the meal,
Reagon Amnions, Polk
County Extension Chairman,
gave a very interesting and
inspiring talk on being a
volunteer 4-H leader.
Ammons served as Polk
County 4-H Agent for several
years prior to his position as
S? ? ~ 7
WAl
MRS, MARION WALUN
chairman.
Gary Ealey, Agricultural
Extension Agent presented
awards to 4-H leaders and
Junior leaders. Amnions was
presented a blue sports hat
festively decorated with
ribbons and eggs for his
"Easter Bonnet."
Each year one leader is
selected for outstanding
leadership and work in the
county 4-H program. Mrs.
Marion Wallin was recognised
as the 1879 Outstanding
Leader and was presented a
silver tray. A drawing for
door prizes ended the
program. Prises consisted of
everything from an Easter
basket to potted plants, the
plants were donated by
Garland Woody for the
(hrawing.
Appreciation goes to the
fnllnMlsul miKa ? tk.
louowing who nwinrwi cm
dinner: James Ledford, Farm
Bureau, Micro Switch, Inc.,
A big thanks goes to all who
supported this 4-H leaders
banquet and to the leaders
themselves. Though at times
their Jobs may seem difficult
and in vain the 4-H Volunteer
Leaders are developing and
encouraging the most im
portant asset Madison County
possesses and that is our
young people,' Miss Sharon
Carter, Assistant Home
Economics Extension Agent,
stated.
Union
Easter
Services \
Community Union Easter
services have been announced
for Marshall as follows:
Maundy Thursday, ob
servance of the Lord's Sup
per, at Marshall Presbyterian
Church, 7 p.m.
Community worship service
on Friday afternoon, 3 p.m.,
at Marshall Baptist Church.
Easter Sunrise Service
Sunday at Madison High
School, 6:30 a.m.
Fired Policeman
Kept In Dark
Over Discharge
"I was fired on April 2, as a
Marshall policeman but to
date I've been unable to find
out the reason for my
discharge," LeRoy Gosnell
told this newspaper Monday
morning.
GoueU said he had asked
Qitr Marshall mayor and
aldermen in writing for the
reasons but has not been
informed.
Gosnell said he had been
told by the mayor of Marshall
to stop the speeding on
Walnut Creek Road. "Shortly
after that, I stopped 15 per
sons on that road and issued
warning tickets to them. On
one occasion, I attempted to
stop a rescue squad worker
who was on duty, but in a
private vehicle, but he would
not stop for my blue light and
siren. I was told later that
when the mayor of Marshall
heard of this incident that he
called a meeting of the town
aldermen and requested that
I be fired, .but the aldermen
would not agree to do so,"
Gosnell stated.
"On April X, I met a vehicle
on the Walnut Creek Road,
which was being operated in
such a manner as to cause me
to believe that the driver was
drunk. I turned the police car
and pursued this vehicle for
several miles. While I was
pursuing this vehicle, I
contacted members of the
highway patrol by radio. I
finally succeeded in getting
this vehicle stopped on U.S.
25-70, near the intersection
with the Panhandle Road.
When the vehicle came to a
stop, I got out of the police
vehicle and I observed the
driver of the other car
bringing a rifle up to a firing
position. I covered him with
my revolver and he dropped
the rifle. He then placed his
car in reverse and backed up
MADISON HIGH SCHOOL F.F.A.
livestock teem pieced first out of
a teams in the district contest
bekl st Clemson University on
April 5. The teem wE rspreeet
Western North Csroto* hi the
State contest in June. Members of
the teem, shown above, left to
right, Harvey Franklin, Michael
Griffin, Lynn She] toe and Michael
Coalisa. Advisors are Mr. Woody
sod Mr. Cole.
for a short distance and
jumped out and ran, making
his escape on foot. Shortly
thereafter, several members
of the highway patrol arrived
on the scene," Gosnell stated
Gosnell then stated "since
Marshall has no chief of
police to giVt ordfers or ad
vice, on April 2, 1 requested a
meeting with the mayor and
board of aldermen to ask
them what charges I should
place against the person who
had escaped the day before. I
was never able to get such a
meeting with them," Gosnell
commented.
"On April 2, 1 learned that I
had been fired and I then
requested to see the minutes
of the board of aldermen for
the meeting at which I was
fired, but this request was
refused," Gosnell continued.
"It appears that I was fired
because of my attempt to
arrest the driver of the
vehicle that I pursued on
April 1. I was given no op
portunity to tell the mayor or
aldermen what had happened,
although they conferred with
the person I had pursued and
with his family. I would like
to thank James Penland and
Buford Marler, aldermen, for
supporting me while I was a
member of the Marshall
Police Department."
Gosnell stated that he had
been certified as a special
deputy sheriff in Madison
LEROY GOSNELL
County and he said he tran
sferred in September 1978,
through the Criminal Justice
Department, Attorney
General's Office, Raleigh, to
the Town of Marshall, where
he has served since Sep
tember 1978, as a policeman.
He also said he had a card,
signed by James Penland,
vice-mayor, certifying him as
a policeman.
"I wish to thank my many
friends for sympathizing with
me in this situation," Gosnell
concluded.
Hot Springs Health
Unit Adds Employees
Linda BotweU of Walnut
was recently hired to work as
Home Health Aide for the Hot
Springs Program beginning
April l. In the fall of 1977
Linda completed a GED
certificate and a 13-week
nursing assistant program at
Memorial Mission Hospital
After working a year on a
medical-surgical unit, the
Memorial Mission Hospital
Auxiliary awarded her a full
scholarship to complete an
Associate Degree in Nursing
at AB Tech. Due to personal
difficulties, she was unable to
finish her studies, but hopes
to continue them in the future
three yean ago.
In January of this year, the
Hot Springs Health Program
added a full-time Health
Educator to its staff. Judy
Major is originally form
Illinois where she laiigrt
French before joining the
Peace Corps as a nutrition
health educator in Nlfv,
West Africa. For over two
years, she worked as a
volunteer with Nigerian
women and children super
clinics and conducting health
education programs to the